items of interest

Through skilled advertising that presents gambling as a family-friendly activity, casinos and other organizations lured Americans into wagering more than $550 billion last year. Since churches sometimes promote gambling, they also have a role in stopping it. An editorial in Christianity Today explains:

"The theology of chance, putting us at the mercy of blind fate, violates our Christian understanding of how God as Creator interacts with us. One aspect of this pathogen within the church is shown by the prevalent attitude that low-stakes gambling is benign. Charity raffles may be a mostly harmless fundraising activity, but they condition us to think that gambling can be fun, exciting, and socially acceptable. ...

"The dishonest theology of gambling violates relations between God and humanity, because God's perfect will for each of us cannot be had for the price of a lottery ticket."

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Article

Facing the challenge of raising a moral child