Do you play the LOTTERY?

Fisherman

JW view gambling as a sin and sadly people get addicted to gambling causing them financial and health problems. But is playing a couple of bucks a week on some lottery tickets actually gambling? What do you have to lose? It’s only a couple of hundred dollars a year for a chance to make a lot of money which can solve many financial problems. But only if it is not a sinful thing to do. But like drinking in moderation, is buying a couple of lottery tickets once in a while or even weekly, wrong, a sin?

JW are not supposed to gamble. A couple of times I’ve been given lottery tickets which I didn’t solicit and felt very surprised about it and I have won every time! Amazing but only very little money won.

Some decades ago I was invited to a relative’s wedding and another guest goes into a convenience store with his nonJW friend on the way to wedding and nonJW friend bought him some tickets and just gave it to him and he won big money.

Many years ago before I was born, in a small village in Europe, the son of my great grandparent was trying to make money selling lottery tickets but nobody wanted them. He went home at the end of the day disappointed and sadly told his mother. And feeling sorry for her son my great grandma bought all his tickets with the very little money she had in those days and she was going to throw them out but she won the lottery, a great sum of money. However, a lot people go over board gambling or buying tickets and all they do is lose their money. Some people buy tickets and anxiously pray to win. Other people are willing to lose 300 dollars or so a YEAR without getting excited and are willing to lose for a chance to win a lot of money.

Vanderhoven7

Nope.

By the way, isn't gambling a disfellowshipping offense?

BoogerMan

The Stock Market - the biggest gambling casino on planet earth!

I'll never forget the look of horror on a zealous pioneer sister's face when I innocently made a comment regarding "the org probably lost a lot of money in the 2008 stock market crash."

She immediately denied the org invested in the stock market, and turned to her husband for confirmation. He did - he confirmed what I'd said was true. The poor woman's face was a picture! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

PetrW

It happened a long time ago, 30 or more years ago... My grandfather wasn't JWs. But he liked to bet, regularly, a small amount every week. He also regularly watched the neighboring country's TV program. He once saw, when the local TV was broadcasting their regular lottery draw programme, that they drew exactly his 6 or 7 numbers. The prize was - in terms of several million dollars - a gigantic sum. But he bet those numbers here, not in a neighboring country...

Moral: if you win first prize, you don't have to win anything at all.

slimboyfat

I like the story of the great grandmother buying a winning lottery ticket to help out her son.

I think the elders’ book specifically says that small scale and occasional gambling is not a disfellowshipping offence.

TonusOH

I played the lottery a few times several years ago. Since I was out, it seemed like a bit of a guilty pleasure. I don't know if it was a DF offense, but I know it was discouraged. Whether it's a sin or not, I don't know. I'm not sure there is clear Biblical guidance.

I do recall a news story many years ago, where a local (NYC) pastor's wife played the lottery and they won $250,000. The pastor was notorious for his anti-gambling and anti-lottery sermons, and so it was an embarrassing turn of events. But he did not even flinch. He called it "a gift from god." I suspect that he dropped the topic of lotteries in any future sermons, though.

Rattigan350

No, playing the lottery is not wrong. As the OP said, it is a few bucks a week. A person can spend $5 on lottery tickets or he could spend it on beer. Which is better? Why is no one questioning the beer purchase but they question the lottery tickets purchase?

The only reason that they say gambling is wrong is because of that scripture in Isaiah about the god of good luck.

but the God of good luck is Jehovah. They don't even know what luck is.

This is just more superstition that JWs have taken on and adhere to without thinking it through.

luckynedpepper

ks91 originally included language to the effect of "Christians do not play the lottery"

new Shepherd book says elders don't get involved in "petty gambling" and has removed any reference to the lottery.

a $1 or $2 ticket is certainly petty. It would seem that lottery is not an excluded item but is certainly one that will still get you side eyed looks

EasyPrompt

"in the playing of dice of men" also translated "trickery of men" at Ephesians 4:14...

"So we should no longer be children, tossed about as by waves and carried here and there by every wind of teaching by means of the trickery of men, by means of cunning in deceptive schemes."

According to this verse, every single JW is "gambling" with their life when they follow the leaders of the WTBT$.

(It seems to me that buying a lotto ticket is a lot safer bet than following the GB/FD$. "If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.")

FFGhost

I heard another name for “lottery” is the “ignorance of the laws of probability tax”.

No, I don’t play

Do you play the LOTTERY?

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