Gambling is an issue that has plagued society since the beginning of time. In our state alone, issues such as video poker, the lottery, bingo, poker, casino boats and sports betting have brought not only local headlines but also national attention. South Carolina Baptists have been in tune with these issues. Since 1981, the messengers to the annual conventions have adopted 20 resolutions related to gambling.
HendrickThis legislative session has found itself again engulfed in a battle between the gambling industry and those of faith who recognize the sin and damage that gambling can inflict on lives. While we have identified several pieces of legislation this year pertaining to gambling, there is one that is expected to be the focal point when the legislature convenes in January. Sen. Ray Cleary (Murrells Inlet) has introduced three of those bills regarding raffles and poker and dice games.
Senate Bill 255, which would create legislation providing for charitable raffles, may sound fairly harmless to some, but could be one of the most dangerous. This issue alone dominated the first five weeks of the Senate earlier this year as Sen. David Thomas (Greenville), a practicing attorney and Baptist seminary graduate, led the charge to clean up language in the bill.
While some would agree that buying a raffle ticket is the same as buying a lottery ticket and thus wrong, others who are more lenient toward a raffle ticket should understand the unintended dangers of creating this type of legislation.
Another attorney, Sen. Wes Hayes (Rock Hill), said, “This bill could inadvertently open the door for video poker or similar games to come back into South Carolina. We dealt for 10 years with the unintended consequences of video poker, and I am very leery of any of these ‘innocent’ changes in the law.”
Sen. Glenn Reese (Spartanburg), another strong ally on this issue and member of Boiling Springs First Church, said, “Running raffles is a gimmick, in my opinion, and not the Lord’s way.” Reese explains that there are many other ways for charitable organizations to raise funds other than gambling on a raffle ticket, and that when organizations grow dependent on raffles/gambling money, they have “built their houses on the sand.”
The threat that this bill may open loopholes for casinos in South Carolina cannot be overlooked when phrases such as “casino night,” “Las Vegas night,” or “Monte Carlo night” are included in the text of the bill.
The Southern Baptist Convention and its Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission has highlighted Sept. 18 as Anti-Gambling Special Emphasis Sunday. Visit the SCBC office of public policy website (www.scbaptist.org/scbcpublicpolicy) to view ministry tools and resources on this topic. Contact our office to find out more about the issue of gambling in our state, and pray for your elected leaders as they face decisions related to public policy.