I don't really know if there is a strong Mormon teaching against casino gambling. It certainly is not condemned as much as other things are, such as smoking, coffee, tea, fornication and adultery, homosexuality, pornography, etc. My Mormon parents weren't gamblers, but they put coins in Nevada slot machines just for fun, and did not think they were doing anything wrong.

Bruce R. McConkie strongly condemned gambling in Mormon Doctrine, but that book is not officially Church doctrine. Past Church presidents have used the word "gambler" in a demeaning way.

Utah does not allow casino gambling or lotteries, and this is primarily due to LDS influence, but this is political.

Many Mormons live in Nevada, and I'm sure some of them work at casinos, and are not punished for this by Church leaders.

I personally like casino gambling, especially the games in which skill can improve your win rate. I like to talk about gambling with most people I meet. Currently I am living in the same neighborhood I grew up in, among many of the Mormons I grew up with. I'd like to do a little socializing with them. I want to tell them how much I like gambling, but I don't necessarily want to tell them I don't believe in Mormonism. I'm wondering whether or not they will think I'm a sinner when I tell them I gamble.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/16/2012 09:38PM by behindcurtain.

I would not be surprised if the cojcolds owned casinos. Since they like to keep secrets any speculation is fair game.

It's bad (of course)

Just like everything that could possibly ever be addictive or fun.

My in-laws won't even play card games with face cards because they are associated with poker and you can't even show the appearance of evil...

Howard Hughes hired an entire mormon staff because he thought they were honest. Most Vegas casinos have mormons in senior positions. Mormons don't care about any rules as long as it makes money!

They are against their members gambling in any form, which is because I believe it leaves less money for them to steal. However, they wouldn't be above making money off of it themselves. The Marriott family is involved with the casino business in a small way, after all.

Bishop asked me once if I gambled ..

I said sure,.. invest in stocks and mutual funds...
no bigger gamble than that.

My Dad and Mom, both TBM and with callings.....EQP,HP,HC and ward RSP loved to play the slots in Vegas on the rare occasion they were there. And, take in a risque midnight show with topless dancers too. They had a ball, no harm done to anyone and I know they didn't care what anybody thought of it. They were great people. Big a$$ tithe payers and devoted church members. BUT...they were realists who lived in the real world, with lots of non-mo friends. They were NORMAL!

Enthusiastic and dirty at the same time.

Kinna like having secret sex in an empty chapel classroom.

As I understand it, Mormon's are instructed not to pay tithing on money won from gambling.

I remember a discussion of tithing and gambling in PH meeting. The statement was made that you would lose your temple recommend not for gambling, but for winning, because you would not be a full tithe payer since the church does not allow paying on your winnings.

GBH talked about online poker in a GC PH meeting once.

He harrumphed that one man made $40K playing poker online.

A bunch of us in the back row looked at each other and thought "I'm not seeing the downside here."

Go to LDS.org and search "gambling" and you will find a lot of GAs talking about avoiding it. SWK conference talk in 74 stated-
"We hope faithful Latter-day Saints will not use the playing cards which are used for gambling, either with or without the gambling. As for the gambling, in connection with horse racing or games or sports, we firmly discourage such things."

...consisting of male members of the ward council. They were pooling their money and betting large (as in, LARGE) sums at a racetrack in our state. Word got out about it because some of the wives were becoming worried, and talked about it widely. The stake presidency eventually got involved. Good times.

I seem to recall the issue of casinos and temple recommends was a hot issue in the late 70s. As I recall those who gambled in casinos were doubtful for a recommend but those who worked on the tables dealing and such, and also people like the Osmonds who entertained there, were okay.

The rule is the same as for alcohol and coffee: Once you are more than 15 miles from home, it's all good.

LOL They're not even supposed to play with face cards, or play things like bingo, so that should let you know what they would think of casino gambling.

That's true, I remember not being allowed to use face cards at church events. Never quite figured that one out aside from fanaticism.

My Dad use to buy lotto tickets all the time growing up. It wasn't till much later that I learned that gambling was 'evil'. Dad stop for a bit but pretty sure he picks one up from time to time. I grabbed the habit from him too. But yeah, casino gambling is still gambling. I was among many Mormon kid that got yelled at during an activity for playing something like "BS" like face cards. LE GASP! Even my parents thought it was weird.

Very much frowned upon. But if I didn't gamble on my last Vegas trip I would have come back poorer. The way I see it, its my money, I'm not addicted to gambling so WGAF?

My nevermo Grandma played the lottery every week and used to talk about what she would do with the money if she won. Whenever she said she would share it with her kids or buy things for them, my TBM parents would say "no, we could never accept money that you got THAT way" Even as a 5 year old I knew they were being asses.

Raised in Nevada, There was a member of the bishopric that boasted how he and his wife loved to go play the slot machines. Like anything else fun it is strongly recommended you don't.Also had a bishop that got up to the pulpit and said how all the people in casinos looked so sad whenever he stepped foot in one..most TBM's will find a way to say they hate them but the men sure look twice at the cocktail waitresses.I love to gamble too..and love the atmosphere of the adult setting.No screaming children, no wonder TBM try to avoid them.

Out here in California, all the casinos are owned by the "Lamanites". It's OK to give your money to the BOM people. See ya soon!

Drive to any casino in NV and see how many BYU stickers are on cars.

Check the number of Utah license plates in Casino parking lots in West Wendover... (I80, west of SLC)

Last time I was there, they were a lot of them...

Are Ponzi schemes gambling? No real chance of losing for the creators...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/18/2012 02:30PM by mtgrizzly.

I was taught from an early age that gambling was evil. Yes, I believe they will think you are a sinner, to answer your question.

My own view of gambling now, is I buy a lottery ticket every time there is a drawing over a hundred million. I know I am not going to win, but I enjoy fantasizing what I would do if I did, and in that sense the entertainment value is worth the two bucks. If I get to the point where I don't think about it at all, I will probably stop.

I don't play poker or any other card games for money, because I suck at them. Slot machines are a good way to loose a lot of cash in a short time, as are any other games of chance. However, I have never been to Vegas, but if I do, I will probably set aside a reasonable amount of money to play on each of the standard games, just for the experience. Besides, you get free drinks while you are playing, served by pretty girls wearing very little clothes.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/18/2012 01:59AM by forbiddencokedrinker.

Gambling or lottery is clearly condemned by the Church....read "True to the Faith," which serves as a semi-official statement on doctrines and practices of TSCC.

OH Gambling is forbidden. Just tell that to those buses full of TBMs leaving SLC for Wendover every weekend.

I asked one when I was there in the 1990's. They said they came for the buffet...

The Church eschews gambling. No Church funds are raised through gambling. Wards are not permitted to hold a raffle, for instance.

I understand tithing is not accepted from gambling. Proceeds from gambling is considered "filthy lucre." Financial speculation, investing or insurance is not judged to be gambling.

While Mormons are discouraged from gambling, no Church sanctions are applied to members who gamble. Mormons decide for themselves if they wish to patronize or be employed by casinos.

Gambling may be an activity that Mormons avoid or even preach against when around TBM relatives or ward members that they might engage in on vacation.

"[T]ithing is not accepted from gambling," "tithing is not accepted from gambling," but "Mormons decide for themselves if they wish to patronize or be employed by casinos."

Yet TSCC accepts tithing from TBM's who work for casinos, right? So, how can a casino afford to pay its employees? Is it NOT from the profit it makes from "gambling"? So, in other words, TSCC accepts tithing that comes from the profit that casinos make from "gambling."

See how hypocrisy works for TSCC?

As my father pointed out, there is no question asked in tithing settlement how you made your money, only if it is all there. He even pointed out to training he received as a bishop strongly discouraging leaders from pursuing such line of questioning. The church might not officially accept tithing gambling winnings, but they are going to go out of their way to pretend that they don't know where it came from, should the issue ever arise.

We are not talking about winnings here. We are talking bout the money a casino employee earns for his or her labor.

Let's say a bishop knows a certain member works for a casino, would TSCC discourage the bishop from accepting tithing from that member? Nope...not a chance for that to happen.

But it is undeniable that the earnings of that member comes from "gambling" of the patrons. So, that means TSCC takes the money that comes from "gambling." And they think they are in a position to detest or even denounce gambling?

If you're in Utah, just go poll them on Saturday and Sunday when they're at Wendover.

I am not really sure what the difference is between casino gambling and buying equities in the stock market when private equity -like Bain Capital- is manipulating certain companies without the knowledge of the average stockholder.

I have a vague recollection from the early seventies that BYU stopped giving out door prizes at basketball games because it was thought of as a kind of gambling. Getting something for nothing.