A Shavuot Activity for Ages 13 and Up
Introduction
In this activity, we invite you to reflect on your own life through the lens of the Book of Ruth. Together, we will explore two big questions: What does kindness really mean, and how present is it in our daily lives? And what role does money play for us, and how much does it shape the choices we make?
Part 1: Giving and Receiving
Spread sheets of paper on the floor. On each sheet, write a different role or identity that describes the participants, for example: a youth movement member, a grandchild of…, a sibling of…, a child of…, a student in grade…, a volunteer at…. Add more based on your knowledge of the group.
Create two columns: one for situations where we receive, and one for situations where we give. Together with the participants, place each sheet in the column that fits best. For example: when I am a grandchild, do I give or receive? What about as a sibling? What do I give there, and what do I receive?
After placing all the sheets in the two columns, read the following passage together:
Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 34:8: “Rabbi Yehoshua said: More than the wealthy householder does for the poor person, the poor person does for the householder.” This teaches us that even when Boaz gave from his harvest to Ruth, it was Ruth who, in her words, described herself as doing an act of kindness for him. Rabbi Yehoshua reveals something profound: if we thought the wealthy give to the poor, we learn here that what the poor give in return is even greater.
Discussion Questions
In which situations do you give more, and in which do you receive more? How does it feel to give, compared to how it feels to receive?
What does Rabbi Yehoshua mean? What does the person in need actually give to the one who helps them, simply by allowing that opportunity to give?
Are there places where you are the receiver, yet you are also giving something? And in places where you give, are you also receiving something in return? Think of practical examples to bring this to life, such as the experience of being a youth leader: you came to give, yet you clearly receive so much from it.
Part 2: The Story of the Scroll
Share the story of the Book of Ruth (a summary is provided below). As you tell the story, highlight the choice that each character faces: to look after themselves, or to care for those around them. The key characters are Elimelech, Naomi, Ruth, Orpah, and Boaz.
For younger participants, invite a few of them to act out the story while you read it aloud. This brings the contrast to life: Elimelech, the wealthy and self-focused man who chose himself, versus Ruth and Boaz, who chose kindness and generosity, in contrast to the women who simply stood by and laughed.
The Scroll of Kindness: Story Summary
During the era of the Judges, a wealthy couple named Elimelech and Naomi lived in Bethlehem with their two sons, Machlon and Kilyon. A severe drought and famine struck the land. Rather than share their abundance with neighbors and the poor around them, Elimelech’s family chose to leave. One morning the townspeople woke to find the house locked and the family gone, having departed for the land of Moab (today’s Jordan). Before long, Elimelech passed away, and later his two sons died as well. Naomi was left alone with her two daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth.
Naomi decided to return to her homeland and urged both young women to stay in Moab. Orpah agreed, but Ruth refused to abandon her mother-in-law, insisting on returning with her. Ruth’s words became timeless: “Wherever you go, I will go. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” The two women returned to Bethlehem during the harvest season, and the townswomen were stunned to see elderly, impoverished Naomi return with nothing. Some of them stood by and laughed.
With nothing to live on, Ruth went to the fields to glean the leftover stalks after the harvesters, as was the practice for the poor. Boaz, one of Bethlehem’s respected and wealthy men and a relative of Elimelech, noticed Ruth gleaning in his field. He was deeply moved by her character and by the great act of kindness she had shown Naomi by leaving her homeland to follow her. Boaz chose to marry Ruth, bringing great joy to Naomi. The son born to them was named Obed, who became the father of Jesse, who became the father of King David.
“This scroll contains no laws of purity or impurity, no prohibitions or permissions. Why then was it written? To teach us how great is the reward of those who perform acts of kindness.” (Ruth Rabbah)
Discussion Questions
Every character in the story faced a choice: to take care of themselves, or to care for those around them. How did each one choose?
Why do you think it was specifically from Ruth and Boaz that King David was born? What is so significant about how they behaved?
What acts of generosity and giving do you see in your own community? What meaning do those acts carry? Where can each of us step in and strengthen our own capacity for kindness?
Part 3: Money as a Means, Not an End
Place two sheets of paper on the floor with these two quotes:
“A great and wealthy leader of his generation, who left his land for foreign lands because of his selfish eye.” (Rashi on the Book of Ruth)
“I went out full and the Lord has brought me back empty.” (Naomi, upon returning to Bethlehem with nothing)
What was Elimelech’s relationship with money? What did money represent for him? And what happened as a result? What state did his family end up in?
The Book of Ruth shows us that Elimelech chose to abandon his home and his values of kindness and integrity during a time of hardship, all in order to protect his money and his status. In contrast, Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz chose a different path: they chose kindness, values, and home.
Discussion Questions
Is money a means to an end, or an end in itself?
If we decide it is a means, then what is it a means for? What do we actually want to achieve with it? Try to go deeper: if the answer is comfort, ask what comfort will bring. If the answer is a home, explore what feelings and experiences a home provides. Aim to uncover the emotions and desires beneath the physical needs.
When might we slip into treating money as the goal itself rather than the tool?
What helps us stay clear about money’s real purpose in our lives? How can a commitment to charitable giving, for example, keep us grounded?
Conclusion
The Book of Ruth shows us that the choice between protecting wealth and status on the one hand, and living a life of kindness and generosity on the other, carries real and lasting meaning. It invites us to ask ourselves what role money plays in our lives, and what it is truly meant to serve. Beyond that, the story challenges us to consider how much space we make for kindness in our everyday lives, and whether that is enough.
One of the most powerful insights of the scroll is this: the one who gives is, in fact, the one who receives.
About Paamonim
Paamonim is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping families build sound financial lives. We guide families in managing their money wisely, overcoming debt, building a personalized family budget, and working toward financial independence rooted in informed decision-making and values-driven choices.
The organization runs through the dedication of nearly 3,000 volunteers who invest their time to help people in financial difficulty find a path forward, not toward dependency, but toward genuine independence. This work is made possible through the generosity of donors who believe in the power of community to lift one another up.
These are the two enduring principles we carry forward from the Book of Ruth and want to pass on to the next generation: the meaning of kindness and giving from a place of mutual responsibility and care for others, and the understanding of what money is truly for and how to use it wisely in alignment with our deepest values and aspirations.
