Tzedakah in the Name of Rav Meir Baal HaNess

The Maharam Ash explains the custom of giving tzedakah in the name of Rav Meir Baal HaNess. If a person gives tzedakah for the sake of Rav Meir Baal HaNess for any purpose other than helping the poor who live in Eretz Yisroel, he should not expect the soul of the tzaddik to intercede for him. Hashem does not generally withhold reward for any good deed, yet according to Rav Meir's stipulation, tzedakah given in his name for any other purpose does not fulfill his last will and remains ineffectual. Tzedakah given in the way the tzaddik prescribed brings peace and gives a person life, both in this world and in Olam Haba. The reason we promise tzedakah for the ascent of the soul of Rav Meir Baal HaNess is that in his lifetime he saw firsthand the privation and distress of the poor of the Holy Land. Before his passing he left a command in his will that he would intercede for whoever gives tzedakah for the sake of his soul, pleading for their success before the heavenly court, the beis din shel maalah. The prayers of tzaddikim who have already passed away continue to rise before Hashem, as is stated in many sources, and Rav Meir Baal HaNess is known as a true miracle worker, so we believe his words will not fail us. This seems to the Maharam Ash true and proper, and it lays the foundation for a custom that has spread through many places in Eretz Yisroel; surely it is not an empty matter.