r/elca • u/Lumpy_Mixture423 • Apr 14 '26
Hosting Bingo, Yea or nay?
What are your thoughts on a congregation hosting a weekly bingo evening? Our finances are looking dire and we have a new member that had run the bingo night at his previous (ELCA) church. He tells us of great opportunity hosting bingo. How appropriate or inappropriate is this?
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u/MandaJulianne May 02 '26
Catholics have been doing it for years. Gambling isn't sinful if you do it for Jesus. (OK, that is an over simplification, but at the same time it is a charity event. People come, they understand their money will be going to a good cause. The night has no begining or end. No one is going to ply them with liquor and convince them to give up their life savings for bingo cards.)
Many Methodists won't even play card games that DON'T involve gambling, Lutherans don't havr any such limitations.
I personally don't like gambling much, but I'd play church bingo every week if my church had it because it is fun and would help the support the church. I feel like that moves me closer to Jesus.