LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1998, Page 345

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THEOLOGICAL DOCUMENTS

We are reminded here of Luther's comments on the First Commandment:

Many a person thinks he has God and everything he needs when he has
money and property; in them he trusts and of them he boasts so stubbun-
lv and securely that he cares for no one. Surely such a man also has a god—
™mammon by name, that is, money and possessions—on which he fixes his
whole heart. It is the most common idol on earth. He who has money and
Property feels secure, happy, fearless, as if he were sitting in the midst of
Paradise. On the other hand, he who has nothing doubts and despairs as if
he never heard of God. Very few there are who are cheerful, who do not
fret and complain, if they do not have mammon. This desire for wealth
tings and cleaves to our nature all the way to the grave

Gambling’s powerful appeal is the hoped-for windfall. For those who
succumb to its allure, gambling breeds discontent with the present condi-
tion—a state of mind that the Scriptures trace to a lack of trust in God’s gra-
cious provision (Heb. 13:5; cf. 1 Tim. 6:6-10; Phil. 4:10-13).

4. Gambling works at cross purposes with a commitment
to productive work.

God places value on all fruitful labor. In Old Testament wisdom liter-
ature, in particular, indolence or sloth is held in derision (see e.g., Prov.
10:26; 19:24; 21:25; 22:13; 26:14; Eccl. 10:18). Idleness is scorned in the Scrip-
tures not merely because it brings poverty to one who is lazy (Prov.
6:6-11), but because it also withholds the product of one’s labor from the
common life. In the New Testament the apostles condemn idleness and
commend work because labor is the means through which one carries out
social responsibilities (Eph. 4:28; 2 Thess. 3:6-13; cf. 1 Thess. 4:11; Titus 3:1;
1 Cor. 4:12)}--obligations that are especially important within the Christian
community. Work is not glorified for its own sake, nor does it establish
human worth before God. But it should serve asa sign that one’s life is not
turned in on self but is oriented toward the good of another.

Because gambling promises financial gain without work, the tempta-
tion to indolence and the neglect of productive labor is very real. The finan-
cial strains placed on families because of gambling are too common to
ignore. Indulgence in other amusements, of course, can bring similar
deprivations to family and community, but the get-rich-quick enticements
of gambling make it an especially dangerous threat to the welfare of others.

™ Lange Catechism, I, 5-9 (Tappert, 365-66)

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6. Gambling threatens the welfare of our neighbor
and militates against the common good.

The scriptural command to love and to do good to all (1 Thess. 3:12;
5:15) also carries with it the reminder that “love does no wrong to a neigh-
bor” (Rom. 13:10). How Christians are to conduct themselves toward their
fellow human beings, both within and outside of the Christian church,
may be “summed up in this sentence,” says St. Paul: “You shall love your
neighbor as yourself” (Rom. 13:9). Christians, therefore, will always be
concerned about social practices that encourage wrong or bring harm to
others, and that inevitably make onerous, and even destroy, the common
life of society.>

Consider what Robert Goodman, in his book The Luck Business, calls
“problem gambling.” He details the enormous social! costs of Problem
gambling and concludes thus:

By examining the combined costs which are produced by the behavior

of problem gamblers, including bankruptcies, fraud, embezzlement,

unpaid debts, and increased criminal justice expenses, researchers [esti-

mate) ... the yearly average combined private and public costs of each
problem gambler have ranged between $20,000 and $30,000 in 1993 dol-
lars, with some reports as high as $52,000.

Goodman adds that “even more disturbing than the enormous finan-
cial costs of increased gambling is the rise of human tragedies that have fol-
lowed in the wake of government Promotions of more opportunities to
gamble.”” The climate has now been created where “ordinary people” are
enticed into activities leading to personal and family trauma, and even in
some Cases to the loss of human life.

Those who are concerned about the well-being of their neighbor have
good reason to question the appropriateness of Participating in an indus-
try that brings such loss. And, this is to say nothing of the moral evils that
often cluster around the quest for easy money and so easily trap the
unwary (viz., prostitution, sex shows, drug dealing, drunkenness, money
laundering by criminals, and corruption of Public officials).” In the face of

* This document does not take up the posture of the corporate church with respect to
gambling as a political issue. For a discussion of the ways in which an issue such as gam-
bling might possibly be addrensed by the church in the public square, see Render unto Caesar
»» and unto God: A Lutheran View of Church and State, A Report of the Commission on Theol-
ogy and Church Relations, 1995, especially pages 55-90

* Goodman, 51.

* Pid. 52.

x

Thid., 53.

* Krueger, 1022. See also Robert Goodman and Brett Martin, “The Real Economy of
Legalized Gambling.” Christian Social Action (July / August 1994), 8-11; Lee Ranch, “We're
Selling Out to a Bunch of Looters?” Christian Socal Action July / August 1994), 12-16.

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5. Gambling is a potentially addictive behavior.

There is a sobering realism in what the Scriptures say about the power
of greed and the dangers it brings. Greed has the potential of bringing a
person “under an ungodly and demonic spel! which completely separates
from God through serving an alien power’ (cf. 1 Cor. 5:9-13). The lan-
guage of Jesus “You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matt. 6:24) certain-
ly indicates that money or possessions, through an inordinate desire to
have them, have the power literally to “own” a person.

Gambling falls into the category of behaviors that have the potential to
become addictive.” Obviously, not everyone who gambles becomes
addicted to the practice and we would caution against premature and
uninformed judgments in this regard. Nevertheless, the Problem of com-
pulsive or pathological gambling has now afflicted significant numbers of
those who gamble, and it is expected that the incidence of the problem will
become higher as gambling and its availability increase.* Addictive behav-
ior can become extremely difficult to overcome without the help of others.
The Christian community’s love and support, and its use of the means of
grace as God’s power for healing and restoration, offer hope for those
under such a burden.

ccording to the American Psychiatric Association “pathological gambling” is the
“chronic and progressive failure to resist impulses to gamble, and gambling behavior that
compromises, disrupts, or damages personal, family, or vocational pursuits.” Pathological
gambling has similarity with other addictive behaviors and can be diagnosed according to
certain criteria. Henry Lesieur. a member of the board of directors of the National Council on
Problem Gambling and of an American Psychiatric Association work group on disorders of
impulse control, reports: “The American Psychiatric Association is proposing new diagnos-
hic criteria for pathological gambling for inclusion in its Diagnostic anu Stutistica! Manual Mal-
adaptive behavior is indicated by at least four of the following: 1) preoccupied with gam-
bling—preoccupied with reliving past gambling experiences, handicapping or planning the
next venture, or thinking of ways to get money with which to gamble: 2) needs to gamble
with increasing amounts of money in order to achieve the desired excitement; 3) 15 restless
or trritable when attempting to cut down or stop gambling: 4) gambles as a way of escaping
from problems or relieving dysphoric mood—feelings of helplessness, guilt, anaety, depres:
sion; 5) often retums another day in order to get even (“chasing” one’s money) after losing,
6) lies to family and others to conceal the extent of involvement with gambling: 7) engages
in illegal acts such as forgery, fraud, theft, or embezzlement, committed in order to finance
gambling; 8) has jeopardized or lost a significant relationship, job, educational or career
Opportunity because of gambling; 9) relies on others to provide money to relieve a desper-
ate financial situation caused by gambling (a “bailout”); 10) repeats unsuccessful efforts to
control, cut back, or stop gambling.” Henry R. Lesieur, “Compulsive Gambling,” Sacicty
(May/June 1992), 43-44. See also Archibald D. Hart, Healing Life's Hidden Addictions (Ann
Arbor: Servant Publications, 1990).

“Surveys have indicated that before casinos approximately two percent of the total Amer-
ican population suffered from a gambling disorder. In some states, however, the perorntages
have increased markedly since the exphosion of the casino industry. Helpline, A Publication of
SSM Behavioral Medicine, St. Joseph's Health Center, St. Louis, January/February, 1995

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such threats to the common good, the sober reminder of the apostle Paul
seems especially fitting: “Look carefully then how vou walk, not as unwise
men but as wise ... because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:15-16).”

* Gambling itself (even if one should win) may also cause offense to fellow Chnstans
in the body of Christ—illustrating how complex moral judgments in this area can become
tcf. 1 Cor. 10:23-30; Romans 14)

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