lol@descender....
your story is soo typical of the brothers......and ones that are really dedicated to the "troof" would hand it all over...
How sad.....
Can you get Df'd for playing the lottery?
by Agent Smith 23 Replies latest jw friends
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ThiChi
However, If you are repentant, and then donate some of your lottery gains to "Kingdom Interests" all will be forgiven.
In the 80's, this is what Michael Jackson did. He was acting questionable, however, a big donation to his Kingdom Hall sound system and other substantial gifts the WWW, everyone seemed to look the other way...
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Nosferatu
However, If you are repentant, and then donate some of your lottery gains to "Kingdom Interests" all will be forgiven.
Exactly, it depends on how much you give the Society.
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willyloman
Based on my experience sitting on JC on a matter directly related to this topic, my two cents:
It's not gambling that is the specific offense, it's greed. The extent to which greed exists is related to the frequency of the behavior. A sister was seen putting quarters in a slot machine. Two elders "counseled" her and reported back to the body that she had merely been unclear that greed was connected to this behavior and promised not to do it again; case closed. A brother confessed he accompanied visiting worldly relatives to a casino, had a few drinks, and "without thinking" dropped some coins in a machine next to the one his relative was playing. A call to the society yielded the advice that this could be viewed as a momentary lapse in judgment, once we ascertained this was not a "practice."
The society has been very concerned about practice, but not about a single event. And elder once told us he had gone into a casino on more than one occasion, had a few drinks, and played some machines. He was removed as a elder but, since he had always gone to the casino alone and no one in the congo knew about his behavior, no announcement was made of his reproof. He just disappeared from the elder ranks and some weeks later an announcement was made that he had been "deleted." (Incidentally, despite some reports on this board that "deletion" was a more severe form of removing an elder, it is in fact the standard announcement).
In several other related cases (we live near casinos), the determination was first made as to whether a practice of gambling, and thus a pattern of greed, was established. Then and only then would there be a judicial case. We never df'd anyone for this, although we did publicly reprove a man who had stated to some others that he didn't think there was anything wrong with putting a few coins in a slot machine.
I recognize that other congos might have (and probably did) handle such cases differently. And it appears, from a link posted above, that a harder line has emerged more recently.
An elder who is related to an attorney told me once that if he were to buy a lottery ticket and win, he would have the lawyer create a blind trust with power of attorney and claim the prize on behalf of the trust, and his good "fortune" would remain forever anonymous. The lottery check would go to the attorney and be put in the trust and the proceeds wired the client, all protected by privilege. I don't know if this would work in every state, but it's what I would recommend you look into, if you are "in" and you win.
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Sassy
I always figured if I ever gambled.. I would win.. and win big.. thus my picture would end up in the paper..name out there.....etc..
Now of course I don't care.. Figured one of these days we will have a little fun.. go to Vegas.. etc etc.. who knows.. maybe I'll start picking up lottery tickets too.. we'll see
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undercover
It's not gambling that is the specific offense, it's greed. The extent to which greed exists is related to the frequency of the behavior. A sister was seen putting quarters in a slot machine. Two elders "counseled" her and reported back to the body that she had merely been unclear that greed was connected to this behavior and promised not to do it again; case closed.
How can you prove that this sister was guilty of being greedy because she put coins in a slot machine?
If one is not addicted to gambling or is not desperate to hit it big to get out of some financial difficulty, how can you prove it was motivated by greed? While one may spend money on a hobby, what's to say that spending money on gambling games is no different? I know people that enjoy it. They give themselves a limit and hope to last all night with their limit. Once the limit is met, their evening is over. They don't really plan on hitting it big, but if they do, hey, what the hell, drinks for everybody at the table.
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ThiChi
""How can you prove that this sister was guilty of being greedy because she put coins in a slot machine? ""
1. She is trying to get something for nothing (Just like trading the stock market?)
2. She is taking remittence from other?s losses in gambling, which is dishonest gain.
I love to play poker....going this weekend to Vegas with some friends....
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undercover
1. She is trying to get something for nothing (Just like trading the stock market?)
She's not getting something for nothing. She's just getting a good return(like making wise investments on the stock market). She is still investing time and money. It's not like she's stealing from someone. It's a game of chance. There's a chance she might win and there's a chance she might lose.
2. She is taking remittence from other?s losses in gambling, which is dishonest gain.
The odds are on the house and the house is rich. If the house chooses to put up big money for a miniscule chance of someone hitting it big, that's their business. They may have made millions off of millions of losers before this woman, but that is not her concern or problem.
I know your answer was tongue in cheek, but the problem with those answers, if that's how the elders would respond, is that you can't prove those assertions. The lady can't help that some other addicted gambler came in and lost his house payment just as she can't help that bad things happen to people at other times. It's not dishonest if both parties know the odds and rules going into the contest. It's dishonest when one breaks the rules or steals the pot.
To me this is one of those things that even though the Bible doesn't speak on this subject, a religious group has decided to be the conscience for millions of people by saying that God says it's wrong. All I ask is, where does God say it's wrong? If he didn't feel strong enough to say anything about it in his book, then I think other people needn't worry about it, if I choose to do it.
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willyloman
undercover: Just so you know, I agree with you. I was merely stating the viewpoint of the dubs on gambling, as I understood it from having been in the inner sanctum, as it were.