CCP217: On Online Sports Betting

CCP217: On Online Sports Betting
James Emery White

In this week’s conversation between Dr. James Emery White and co-host Alexis Drye, they discuss the world of online sports betting, which is becoming more and more popular each year. In fact, nearly a quarter of Americans claim to have personally bet money on sports in the past year. So does the Bible have anything to say about this? And about gambling in general? Today’s episode digs into these questions.

Episode Links

Dr. White wrote a blog on this topic that we’d suggest you go back and revisit. It’s called “Gambling on the Game,” and you can find it on the Church & Culture website HERE. The topic of gambling was also an installment of an incredibly popular series that Dr. White gave at Mecklenburg Community Church. The title of the series was “Is it okay for a Christian to…,” and the installments filled in the blank with a host of topics that people have questions about when it comes to the Christian faith. You can find that series HERE.

There are a number of articles that served as sources for the content in today’s conversation. If you’d like to find out more about what’s happening with this culturally, how it’s impacting people’s lives, and how the church is beginning to weigh in, you can click the titles below to read the article:

McKay Coppins, “Sucker: My Year as a Degenerate Gambler,” The Atlantic.

Will Gottsegen, “A Bet That Young People Are Willing to Make,” The Atlantic.

McKay Coppins, “Churches Are Finally Making the Moral Case Against Sports Betting,” The Atlantic.

Kimberly Adams & Alex Schroeder, “What are sports betting apps doing to help problem gamblers?” Marketplace.

Jake Pearson, “I Deliberately Bet Like a Problem Gambler. DraftKings Made Me a VIP.” ProPublica.

Max Read, “How Everything Became Gambling,” The New York Times.

Windsor Johnston, “With the Surge in Sports Betting, the Risk of Gambling Addiction Rises Too,” National Public Radio.

Katia Riddle, “As Sports Betting Has Soared, More People Search Online for Help with Gambling Addiction,” National Public Radio.

Finally, if you or something you know is struggling with an addiction to gambling, you can contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline Chat either by phone or by text HERE.

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