The moral dilemma of the churches
Peeping Tom
Kaieteur News
January 12, 2007

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The Christian churches in Guyana cannot roll back the secular State. The split between Church and State is now an irreversible feature of public life.

To some politicians, the churches and other religious bodies are important constituents and therefore cannot be dismissed, but the churches themselves have proven ineffective when it comes to ensuring public morality and thus the ability to directly influence public affairs and public morality.

Even against this background of their diminished ability to influence overall public morality, it is still not uncommon to find the religious community galvanised around certain issues on which they can get lost in their own illusion of self- importance.

A case in point is the Christian churches protesting the introduction of casino gambling.

The threat to halt the passage of legislation by the churches is however more symptomatic of the hurts caused by their historical failure as a collective institution.

This failure may not have diminished the numbers that go to services, but it sure is not affecting public morality, both in Guyana and in the rest of the world. Despite the many churches and religious groups that exist in our country, we are still overwhelmed by moral problems.

One of the excuses that is often used to deflect from this failure is the argument that the problem is not so much with religion but with secular institutions such as the State and the government. Yet, the government itself and secular institutions are themselves constituted of persons of belief, and therefore religious groupings cannot be exculpated from blame for the persistent decline in moral standards.

The churches therefore face a moral dilemma when they take action such as protesting over the introduction of casino gambling. In order to confront this dilemma, the Christian community should have, before taking to the streets to protest, asked themselves whether they failed as a collective institution to stop gambling by their membership.

After all, the churches in Guyana exist in a society in which gambling is rampant and has been rampant for years, yet these very churches claim that gambling is immoral. Vast majorities of their membership are obviously not heeding that message.

If the churches are serious in taking a stand against gambling which is seen as immoral, they should first do a survey to find out why it is that each day thousands of lottery tickets are sold throughout the country; why it is that each day millions of dollars are spent on horserace gambling. They should also find out why it is that some of their own followers partake in these forms of gambling and what this fact states about the effectiveness of churches in stopping practices that are seen by them as being immoral.

They should also question why it is that ten years after the introduction of the lottery into Guyana and close to twenty years after bookies were legalised, it is only now that they have decided to take a public stand against gambling.

If these churches are serious and wish to be consistent in their message, I urge them to urge their followers to boycott the lottery and the horseracing shops, as well as the casinos. But please, Guyana is not a Christian country and there are others, whether believers, agnostics or atheists, who would wish to have the opportunity to enjoy casino gambling, to play the lottery, and to be at the bookies.

The churches have a right to protest actions that they see as inimical to their beliefs but they should also ensure that before they seek to impose their beliefs on the wider society that their own members are not seen as contradicting the stand they are taking.

I am sure that if a survey were done today it would reveal that many of the followers of Christian denominations also buy lotto tickets and take part in other forms of gambling such as raffles. If they are so concerned about the negative social effects of casino gambling in Guyana , why is it that they are not as vocal on the other forms of public gambling such as the lottery and horseracing?

We are being told about all the evils of casino gambling. Yet, in America , one of the most Christian countries in the world, casino gambling is widespread. So, is it okay for Christians in America to enjoy casino gambling but not okay for those very persons when they come to Guyana to have the opportunity of spending time in a casino?

The demonising of casino gambling disturbs me. I wonder just how many of those raising a storm over casino gambling have ever visited a casino. If they did, they would know that casinos are not rundown joints but very much upscale and that they provide recreation for many people.

The vast majority of persons that go into casinos are not addictive gamblers. Many people go there and have fun. Your luck may be in and you may win. You may stick around and lose back either all that you win or part of what you win. Alternatively, you may not win at all. So long as you can control how much you gamble there can be fun in gambling, as millions throughout the world can attest. Mind you, the probability of winning on the slot machines or on the poker table is far better than winning the lottery.

If the churches feel that casinos make people addicted to gambling, they should begin to ask what makes people addicted to rum drinking. Are we going to close every single bar in this country simply because we are concerned about drunks? Or is a better strategy one that seeks to stop risky behaviour by promoting personal responsibility; because whether you like it or not, the vast majority of persons who go into bars do not go home and beat their wives and neither can it be said that the vast majority of persons who visit casinos are addictive gamblers.

I would love the opportunity to spend some time in a casino in Guyana . Why should I not have this opportunity? I am confident that I will not become addicted and will not become bankrupt because you can only lose what you have in your pockets or what is available on your credit cards and like the vast majority of Guyanese, I do not have a credit card.

Instead of being pleased by the position adopted by the Christian Churches , I am therefore personally disappointed that resident Guyanese would not be allowed into casinos. This provision seems, however, not sufficient to appease the concerns of the churches over the social ills of gambling. They want no casinos at all.

Why this outright opposition to casinos when steps have been taken to limit access only to tourists? Is this not sufficient to mitigate their concerns about the possible negative social effects of casino gambling in Guyana ? Or is their real agenda simply to oppose casino gambling because they feel that it involves political corruption. Are the protests really about political morality alone?

If not then how does one explain why of all the different types of gambling that are legalised in Guyana , the Churches are only taking to the streets over casino gambling.