Do you think it is MORALLY ACCEPTABLE for a Church to put it's name on a Poker Chip?

[Fergal]

People also have problems with drinking - no more beer tents at picnics/carnivals

people have a problem with over-eating - rationing at picnics and bar-b-ques "I’m sorry sir you cannot buy another half chicken."

Your church provides Beer tents at its picnics and carnivals??? And it provides an endless supply of food their too??? Woah… sign me up!!

No seriously. I think you may have lost sight of the fact that it is the CHURCH we are talking about here. Not the local resident’s association or its like. I am talking about the way the Church is taking / gathering money to meet its needs. The Church has a responsibility to hold itself up as a model. A model of challenge as well as many other things. I do not think it is a proper manner. There are far better ways to do it. To me gambling aims at a base desire.
For those secular picnics / carnivals and bar-b-que’s you refer to there is no ownes on them to hold up any ideal except that of money. Here the responsibility is on the one who partakes not the one who provides.

Fergal
Naas
Ireland

 

[tee_eff_em]

mjdonnelly:

Bingo and Monte Carlo events are common. Bingo cards have serial numbers at our council to ensure noone brought in another organizations cards. It would be the same thing with the chips. If someone could buy a set of generic chips for $50 and then try and turn them in for a couple hundred, I’m sure that some people would try.

Very true. But you only have to check the serial numbers on the handful of winning cards, not all the cards in play. How well do you think the cashier would do checking each chip for the right number?*

As an analogy: When your council sells bingo cards to the players, do you check the serial numbers of every bill against lists of stolen/counterfeit bills? Of course not.The image on each bill gives you quick reasonable assurance of authenticity.

(* One might well ask “How well do they do checking names on each chip?” Probably not thorough. But it is a deterrent in the same way as the old adage “Locks are for honest people”. A dishonest thief will work to thwart any system, but a “security” feature such as the parish name on the chip works against the temptaions of honest lazy people to cheat)

tee

 

[Nan_S]

Fergal:

Your church provides Beer tents at its picnics and carnivals??? And it provides an endless supply of food their too??? Woah… sign me up!!
No seriously. I think you may have lost sight of the fact that it is the CHURCH we are talking about here. Not the local resident’s association or its like. I am talking about the way the Church is taking / gathering money to meet its needs. The Church has a responsibility to hold itself up as a model. A model of challenge as well as many other things. I do not think it is a proper manner. There are far better ways to do it. To me gambling aims at a base desire.

100% on target here! There are better fund-raisers out there than casino gambling for cash prizes. The church needs to be a light in the darkness, not an alternative “sanctified” form or moral terpitude.

 

[Trelow]

And who dicided that gambling is evil?

As far as the Holy Bible and Catechism go it is moraly neutral.

 

[wcknight]

I don’t think it’s a matter of morals. It’s a bit tacky for a Church to have its name on a poker chip.St. Dominic’s Casino just doesn’t sound quite right. wc

 

[qmvsimp]

ProLifeAction:

Yes but putting the churches name on a poker chip is like saying “the church endorses gambling”. There’s a difference here.

I really don’t think we have all the information here. You may not make a distinction between minor gambling such as raffle tickets and bingo and major gambling such as no limit table games, but most of us do.

I find it very hard to believe that a Catholic church is engaged in Las Vegas style no limit table games. I suspect the chips have a very small value and the stakes are very limited. If you could tell us the games, value of the chips and the stakes we could decide for ourselves if it is minor gambling, major gambling or something in between.

 

[Ham1]

carol marie:

I can’t see myself EVER going to a church function where there was drinking, poker playing & gambling. I certainly wouldn’t take my children to see such a thing. For me it falls outside of the catagory of Godly Christian things to do. Although I don’t have any addicition issues, I would not want to cause anyone else to stumble and since so many people do struggle with alcoholism & gambling and it literally tears families apart, why take the chance?

Drinking, Poker playing and other gambling are three wonderful pastimes. People can be addicted to drinking and gambling an that’s bad. People can also be addicted to sex and food, but it doesn’t mean that those things are bad. Drinking alcohol and gambling are inherently good activities. Don’t be influenced by puritan mentalities.

 

[wcknight]

Ham1:

Drinking, Poker playing and other gambling are three wonderful pastimes. People can be addicted to drinking and gambling an that’s bad. People can also be addicted to sex and food, but it doesn’t mean that those things are bad. Drinking alcohol and gambling are inherently good activities. Don’t be influenced by puritan mentalities.

I love to gamble, (I don’t drink at all), but I would never go so far, as to say gambling is inherently good. It’s inherently good for the casinos, but I think its inherently bad for the player at least in the long term. I would NOT say it is inherently evil, but it can lead to some horrible situations if you’re an addict.

wc

 

[PLAL]

qmvsimp:

I really don’t think we have all the information here. You may not make a distinction between minor gambling such as raffle tickets and bingo and major gambling such as no limit table games, but most of us do.

I find it very hard to believe that a Catholic church is engaged in Las Vegas style no limit table games. I suspect the chips have a very small value and the stakes are very limited. If you could tell us the games, value of the chips and the stakes we could decide for ourselves if it is minor gambling, major gambling or something in between.

Gambling is gambling whether the stakes are small or large. Gambling is a sin & inherently evil!

 

[tee_eff_em]

PLAL:

Gambling is gambling whether the stakes are small or large. Gambling is a sin & inherently evil!

The catechism says otherwise. (at #2413)

tee

 

[YinYangMom]

The Church reveals to us which behaviors are ‘morally acceptable’ or not. It is not my place to make that determination.

Do I think it’s reasonable, rational, acceptable for a church to place it’s name on a poker chip? I have no opinion. It’s a marketing tool…if it brings people to the church, it can’t be wrong, and where better to find sinners or those in need of help than in gambling locations? God works in mysterious ways, and when a person has hit rock bottom in a place like that, the only reminder left might be that one poker chip in his/her pocket/purse…he/she fumbles with it, reads it, and has an ‘aha’ moment and gets him/herself over to the church for consolation.

It can happen that way.

Most likely it will not.

And most likely the people there will look to the parish name on the chip as a sign that even the Church supports gambling.

But when it comes down to it. Gambling, in and of itself is not an immoral behavior. Excessive gambling, is. Excessive anything is immoral. But in moderation…

 

[frogman80]

ProLifeAction,

You obviously feel very strongly about this… give us some more information. What exactly is this church doing? IF its simply a fund raiser for the Church, it is probably morally acceptable. If the church has been taken over by the local “good fellas” then I might start to wonder.

Beware of the devil twisting you up in the little things… he might be keeping you for worrying about something much more important. But again… you didn’t tell us very much about the situation… tell us more!