The Ethics of Gambling
Sta.—The opposition of the Free Churches to gambling in any shape or form is not based upon any spoil-sport attitude ; still less is it due to bigotry or the " fanaticism" commonly attributed to the "Puritans." It is based upon' faith and experience. On faith, because St. Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians commands us not to cause our brother to stumble by indulging in a practice which may have no evil effect upon ourselves ; and, indeed, this is a natural and reasonable inference from the even more authoritative command that we should love one another. It is, or by this time should be, an elementary practice of Christian charity.
On experience, because we find in fact that a large proportion of men and women do in fact " stumble " because of our example. How many have begun with what is merely a "harmless little flutter" and proceeded to ruin themselves and others by engaging in the anti-social practices so well described in the Report of the Commission of the Church Assembly. It may be rejoined that these form only a very small proportion of the whole, but, were it no more than one per cent., the Christian would still be obliged by the compelling force of love that will not let the ninety and nine innocent remain in oblivion of the one that is lost.
I find it difficult to understand fellow-Christians who appear to convert a moral law into a law of averages. At what point does the amount risked become anti-social ? Has the limit been raised with the reduction in the value of money ? Are such considerations worthy of a great Church ? It is time that limits were set to our subservience to "the world" and that by abstention were realised more of the beauty and wonder of the full life that remains.—Yours faithfully,
Previous page
