The connection of sacred values with money is jarring to some people.
Why should keeping the mitzvot involve a fee? Mezuzah, tefillin, Torah scrolls, and the like cost money. In the synagogue, they make a "Mei Shebirach" for the Torah offering and expect a donation. Some see this as commercialization of religion.
It is worth trying to understand where the assumption comes from that matters of Torah and mitzvot should be free. And will mezuzahs grow on trees and will fancy tefillin fall from the sky? And how will the synagogue cover its expenses if worshippers do not donate their money? Sacred utensils and religious services cost money, and someone must ultimately pay for them.
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There are no mezuzahs on the trees.
The mezuzah that is permanently on the door of your home was written by a scribe, letter by letter. Writing the mezuzah required him to work for several hours, along with the cost of the parchment, ink, and other supplies. And is he supposed to work for free? And a manufacturer of tallitot, how will he pay his workers if he doesn't receive payment for his products?
And in fact, if religious needs should be provided for free, why shouldn't the basic necessities of existence be provided for free? Why don't we receive bread, milk, clothing, and an apartment for free? There is no money? But everyone understands that even bread costs money, because someone grew the wheat and someone milled it and someone baked the bread and brought it to the grocery store, and the grocery store owner also needs to earn a living.
When we try to get to the root of the assumption that sacred things shouldn't cost money, we come to the conclusion that for some people, religion is perceived as pure spirituality, and that any connection with physicality is a form of sacrilege. Holiness, in their eyes, is a purely spiritual thing, which has no connection with physical and material things, and it is certainly impossible to connect it with an 'abomination of the soul' like money.
This assumption is fundamentally wrong. The Torah was not given to angels, whose lives are conducted in pure spiritual worlds. It was given to humans specifically so that they might sanctify their daily lives through it. Observing the Torah requires a connection with reality. You need material objects to keep the mitzvot. You need matzah on Passover and an etrog and lulav on Sukkot. Without those material objects, you cannot keep the mitzvot.
Expression of appreciation
The correct approach is completely the opposite. Many God-fearing Jews will refuse to accept holy objects for free, and will insist on paying for them. Because payment is an expression of the importance of the matter and the effort that a person is willing to invest in fulfilling the mitzvah.
Someone who is willing to pay double for a beautiful and elegant mezuzah is expressing the value of the mitzvah in their eyes. Someone who seeks out an elegant and beautiful etrog, even though it costs more, is revealing their love for the mitzvah and their willingness to sacrifice themselves in order to fulfill it to the fullest.
Indeed, one should avoid making excessive profits from sacred objects. It is perfectly fine to ask for a reasonable and decent price, but there is no room for extortionate prices and collecting unnecessary payments.
It is certainly permissible to expect those engaged in sacred objects and religious services not to have a purely commercial approach, even though they make a living from it, but rather to express in their conduct the fact that they are engaged in sacred matters.
