Topic: Do You Phase Or Are You Slowing Down Your Gambling Activity When.... (Read 633 times)

I haven't found myself in this condition where I have to fully leave or suspend myself from gambling just for a holy week or what so ever the thing is except we have a program at our worship center and even as that we didn't see it as bad practice or something that is forbidden for someone not to gamble. I can say that when I am seriously occupied by something I wouldn't have that time to start thinking about gambling or anything that is not relevant the me in fact I put more effort to those things that are my priority first before considering any other thing gambling inclusively. Therefore, If there are things more important to me I won't create out time to start surfing around casinos and gambling site to make predictions or something else leaving my priorities.

I'm not a particularly religious person so from what I can tell you is that I don't really have done this kind of thing before, the closest thing is probably the vacation part and I really don't do any kind of break or phase before I gamble, I don't gamble a lot anyways so technically I've got a really long phase no matter, vacation or no vacation and although I'm like that, I can feel that I wouldn't be able to do the long phase before gambling again because when I gamble, I almost always want to quit playing but I want to pass the time so I continue doing so, I'm the obsessive kind of person so whenever I feel like I love what I'm doing, I don't want to stop doing it and the breaks in-between that activity is always full of excitement.

What an amazing practice you have in you country! I'm not from Spain, but from now on I'm buying a lottery ticket when I'm in a different location. (Unfortunately can't travel during the last two years, but I'm sure it's temporary thing). Did you or any of your friends won anything from betting on holidays?

If you're a religious person you will likely slowly down or stop your gambling activity, this is to focus the mind and the body to become immense in religious activity, I usually do this, here in our country, a week before the holy week people can easily feel the religious activity especially the holy week in the Christian world, its a month of the year that we should reflect on something beyond this world and forget all human pleasures, it felt good to the mind and also to the body.

But it isn’t not the simulation that makes it seen as a sin. In fact I have conversed with a few religious people, and none of them has been able to tell me why they think evil when it comes to gambling. For me I think it has to do with the fact that one of the characteristics of a gambler is greed. There’s no way someone is gambling and has never or isn’t currently being greedy on their returns. So maybe that’s why.

I also don't tone down my gambling activities only because of the upcoming holidays. I still take breaks, and it mostly depends on my current situation, as sometimes you can't avoid those times when it's starting to feel like you're overdoing a certain activity.

It's still a good way to take a step back if you need a reason to do so since it's one of the rare days of the year when you can shift your focus to something else.

As it should be but sadly there are people who do really missed out on doing the right thing but instead they do go into the opposite side of things on which they do really believe that they could really be able to
make gambling as some sort of job or income making on which we know that this something that most gamblers do really have in mind and the actual reason on why they are putting themselves into such
huge trouble with their finances because of those kind of false hopes on which gambling could really be ring.

When it comes into these kind of religion connected situation on which there are some stopping of any activity or some sort of,then it would really be just that depending
on someones approach whether they would really be that having that kind of behavior on continuing or not.

precisely! sometimes we need a break just to relax our mind, so  for the next time you play gambling, your brain will be refreshed and you will be able to focus more on what you have to do. It also helps to stop a little so that your playing does not lead to addiction and of course to avoid running out of money, gambling should only be done occasionally, not everyday and it should be done and treat as a normal entertainment not a job.

I'm a catholic so I usually stop all forms of gambling before the Holy Week I wrap up and use all my bankroll so I can concentrate and reflect on the meaning of the Holy Week, we have this week of the year that have to stop for a while and reflect on our existence.

I'm just glad that I'm not deep in gambling and I still have control so I can stop anytime if I want to, and it's worth it that we can stop from time to time it's good for the body and the mind, and just come back a week after the Holy week so it's a two-week rest of body and mind.

As far as I know, gambling is prohibited in Islam, so a person who is Muslim and is religious, wouldn't gamble in the first place because it's considered sinful and you wouldn't want to do sins when you are religious. If a person isn't extremely religious and gambles even being Muslim, I believe they might not gamble when the month of Ramadan is here just to respect the religion.

For me, I don't gamble too much nor I'm extremely religious, so for me, as I mentioned above, I don't gamble when there is a religious festival or time going on just for the respect of the religion that I'm a part of, and I start when there is nothing special going on.

Shaming people for gambling only on certain days is kinda whack. If you think it's bad, shouldn't it be bad all the time, right? Like, a sin is a sin, no matter the date on the calendar. Now, I'm not judging your gambling habits, but personally, I ain't got no beef with it as long as it's chill and doesn't mess with your values. You're not addicted, you ain't neglecting everything else for a quick buck, then go for it, even during holy seasons. Your conscience is clean.

But here's the thing, different folks, different strokes. Some cultures and religions see gambling as a straight-up no-no, while others are cool with it as long as it's responsible. So, banning it during holidays might be a way to respect those beliefs. Plus, gambling addiction is a real problem that can wreck lives. While responsible gambling is ideal, sometimes restrictions during vulnerable periods, like holidays, can be like putting training wheels on a bike – a temporary measure to prevent someone from going off the rails

Going on gambling breaks just to honor certain religious events sounds like a joke to me. You feel gambling is wrong but gamble all year and take a break only during special events just to do the right thing.  Choose which side you belong to irrespective of what your religion preaches. If you feel gambling is a sin, what is the point sticking around gambling and waiting for a  special moment not to sin. If gambling is a sin to you, avoid it by all means and all year so you will be at peace with your conscience.

I am a Christian and I see nothing wrong with gambling, as long as I am gambling responsibly and it hasn't affected my personal life in anyway.  I do not see the need for gambling breaks during special religious events, what difference does it make when I gamble all other time? I am not a religious person that condemns gambling, those who preach against gambling should stick to not gambling at all.

On the other hand there may be some religions or beliefs that consider or claim that gambling is a sin and should not be done or prohibited in their religion, and maybe there are also those who do not question it at all or mean to allow their people to gamble. I am not a religious expert, but I think and in my view is that most religions will prohibit gambling activities for their people because as we know that gambling is an activity that can stimulate the human brain which also has the possibility to eventually end up with a lot of problems in his life and even I have gamblers who are desperate to end their lives due to the wrong approach to gambling, and one of the reasons why I believe in this is because all religions provide rules that lead to the good of each of their people.

Everyone has their own point of view on some things, some say gambling is a positive activity and some say that gambling is a very negative activity that should not be done, but the main point in this case is, regardless of your point of view on gambling, it is important and recommended for you to be able to divide your time according to portions, meaning that you must be able to treat gambling naturally in the sense that when you have other activities in the real world such as religion then obviously you must put gambling aside at that time.

Lol, this topic makes gambling look like a crime for those who are religious, I don't consider myself as a big religious person, I do pray but I don't go to the church no more, because of my own reasons but if you are religious its a sign of disrespect for your religion if you are still gambling.

Going for your holy period is not bad, but after what happened? You go back to your gambling den, I think it is a very bad thing to do, if you are a gambler and you can't stop you need to pick a side, stop committing more sins just in case hell is real, have some damn respect for your religion.

There is no man of God, pastors and others that I can caught gambling and will still respect, because they are not respecting their God, why should I really respect such people?

No, yes, I'm a Catholic and I follow the holy week, but that doesn't mean I will also stop playing gambling if I want to. I don't know if gambling is a sin based on our religion, but for me, it's fine because I'm not affecting other people or involving other people in my gamble, and I'm using my own money for gambling, and that money I'm using is allocated only for gambling, so no matter what happens to it, it's fine. 

Maybe in some religions gambling is a sin, but I don't think there's no one who will disobey it and will play gambling without others knowing, especially now that there's a lot of online casinos, so you can play gambling all you want, anywhere or anytime, without being caught. So the question is, in some religious person in this forum, how do you will gamble when you still gamble despite your religion's rule about gambling?.

I also think it’s personal which is why I asked the OP if he thinks it’s a sin (I have my own belief). And about what I believe, it isn’t necessarily religious. If you’re going on a vacation with your family, I think it’s respectful to your family that you don’t spend time using your phone because it’s a time you are to spend with them, and It applies everywhere. If you believe in God then when doing a religious activity or whatever related, it is proper to respect him by cutting off any distractions (not just gambling).

Well your first and last paragraph are more like answering to your question. If you are asking whether people feel that gambling is a sin and in the last you feel it is disrespectful to God then that means you are seeing it as a factor that distract you with the worship of God and I think that was why those gamblers at the synagogue were chased away by Jesus Christ because they are distracting the worship as people began to gather around to watch those gambling.

Anyway, it is a personal conviction of people to do as their conscience have led them and truly things that has to do with religion are to be left to individual and I believe that the family has a major influence to how someone will interpret or follow the things concerning religion.

Religion is the opium of the masses and whatever they have been convinced on, you can hardly wash that away from them. If a cleric has come to convince someone about gambling, that is what that person carry on with. So whether it is sin or not could be subjective depending on one's conviction but it was not encouraged in the bible if you want to go through the bible and the holy books.

Hell no. My family are Christians and so I do tend to follow them whenever there are events and the like related to religious activities but I've never let it restrict me in terms of whatever I want to actually do. I don't think there are any restrictions whatsoever and my family knows I gamble and they never really make me stop whenever such events happen. Ofc I still have the decency to not gamble whenever I'm in the church or when I'm participating in any related events but that's about it.

If anyone were to argue that I'd have to make adjustments to my habits or activities because I'm religious, then they'd better prepare an argument that does not stem from the idea that gambling is being "unholy" or something related since I'd immediately write them off as a religious fanatic, which would equate to needing no conversation since it really isn't going to go anywhere.

Apart from religious activities which are truly sacred, gambling will not actually affect anything, as long as we can become religious believers who can truly prioritize worship then gambling will not be problem whatsoever.
Everything will depend on how each gambler is also religious follower, this will be related to sense of responsibility and also awareness that religious activities or worship are the most important.
However, it is not possible for everyone to do it because everyone perspective and mindset is different, there are many people out there who are religious or have belief in God but do not want to carry out religious activities and worship.

And from what you say there are many truths that can be found in reality.
There are even some areas that do have charity lottery bets and they manage them with the aim of using the profits to help people in need, this will actually still be considered gambling but has very good benefits.

You already have good attitude and from here you can know to determine what is obligatory and what is not and you can even decide what is good and bad for living life.
I myself also have no influence on anything, I know what I have to do and when to do it so there will be no problems related to contexts like this.

That's my reasons to leave gambling for a while. I often do this, take a breaks from gambling because I have another activity to do. I don't forces myself to playing gambling often because I know that will affect my finance. With stay away from gambling for a week or two during the holy week, I can attending religious celebrations with my family.

Yeah, that will help me to distracts my minds from thinking about gambling. Even if no religious celebrations, staying away from gambling is a must to avoid addiction and doing other activities. If we can take a breaks from gambling, we will not depends on gambling for pleasure.

We need to manage our times to do many things, not just playing gambling, to balance our life. By doing that, we can use gambling for a fun and enjoy our life.

I will share to you not my own experience but this is my uncle's experience, Since he is developing gambling addiction and his family is devoted Roman catholic, he finds it as a difficult phase in his life every year because when holy week season comes, He and his family are going to province just to commemorate holy week and that means, no more gambling for that week. He is not allowed to do anything related to gambling because for sure his wife will be more angry to him, He said to us that in order for him to stop looking for gambling, he focused his attention on doing other things in the province such as helping with cooking, taking care of housework and going for a walk during holy week. Their family often went to church so that was one of the things he did and believe me, after a few years of this happening to him, he noticed that he was able to limit himself from gambling, unlike when you are in the city , anytime you can go to the casino houses.

I’d like to know your honest response to this: do you think gambling is a sin? You seem to be a Christian so answer this. While i hope for your answer, do you stop the gambling because you think it is wrong or you’re trying to pay more attention to the events or whatsoever?

For me if I wanted to gamble anytime I would but i can say that there would be moments when you think that gambling would give you a divided attention or maybe it could be disrespectful to God.

If anything I gamble more on holidays especially the holy ones, I guess this all varies by religion but I dont find there is a conflict especially so long as im not risking anyone's life or livelihood like the next food budget and we'll starve.   That would be pretty grim but betting is often part of church they run lotteries to fund the church expenses and the prizes are quite moderate, its all seen as being charitable as you allow the church to run a small enterprise easy to setup and the prizes can be donated even.

The game ultimately is for fun and thats my overall attitude to gambling, I hope never to take it too serious or I would probably lose more when doing so from nerves!

For the sake of respect whether you're a believer or not and if that's what everybody is doing, I might just stop and wait for sometime to gamble again when they're done and goes back to their old lives. Maybe a day or two will be enough already right with all of these stoppage and paying respect to the religions that everybody has on my neighborhood and relatives? If not, then I'd wait patiently for the time when I resume because if that's what they think is the right thing to do then I'll just go with the flow so that I won't get bashed by these people and will hear that I have no respect for them, for their belief and religion.

Because it's so hard to move nowadays that every single thing of your action will have a counterpart and feedback from anybody. So, with that, we just want to get perfect with those moves so that we will hear no one telling things that are going to make us problematic about it so, it's better to hear nothing and just follow the tradition than to hear something and have a hard-head of not following them.

I have high respect with religion so I make sure I have no gambling activities during that time. And I can’t say that I am slowing down since I’m not into gambling most often, I just gamble when I have this instinct of winning, but the rest of the days I just work on my trades as well as being active in the forum.

Majority of the religions see gambling as a bad habit. So regardless of what kind of religion we are in, it’s normal to see gamblers slowing down their activities to pay respect to their most valuable days in their religion.

In the season of Lent, I usually take things easy and reflect on the activities that I do. I still gamble, but most of the time I'm out there just minding myself and trying to slow things down, be it work or whatever. I am not a devout Christian nor am I someone who is very religious, but I still follow and observe the activities of Christians all around the world in the season of Lent.

After that though, I still go back to my old habits, with a clear head and understanding that I am not to be consumed by these activities but rather I can put an end to it if need be.

I don't this is really a big deal to some people because holidays are holidays but there is something special about Holidays, I don't joke about it, I spend it wisely and throughout these period I don't do anything, not work nor do anything that will take much of my time, even if I have a client, I tell them that I'm not available and refer them to others that love to do much work but as for me, a holiday is a break to cool down the brain, spend time with your family or relatives, go to outdoor activities, not everything has to be money and money all the time, gambling is not too fun to me.

Gambling that will make you do research when making picks, look at the head to head, each performance of the team and what there place and because you will be making may picks, you will have to do more of it. When will I have time for my religious activities, it's better to just let's things be as most of the time predictions in this period is always difficult to.win, even the teams will focus on the holiday than the next games they have and will make you lose games.

There's nothing like celebrating holidays with a little bit of special Christmas gambling
I'm not criticizing this but it feels a little funny to me because in some places people see gambling as an offense against religion and, as you're proving, in other places there's tradition that involves gambling during these days of celebration.
I usually do what I feel like doing, so if it's allowed to go to work during holidays, or to drink alcohol, have fun with friends in a pub, why not gamble? We wither limit ourselves in every way and spend time with our families, or we go out and have fun. It depends on the tradition in the place where you live. In my area holidays are just days where you don't have to work and can relax. If you relax playing cards, or watching football, you can do it.

Yes because you will not experience any problems if you have the right approach to gambling, meaning that gambling activities will in no way interfere with the activities you have in real life, and healthy people are those who can manage everything according to their portions whether in terms of time or in terms of the amount of budget when you are involved in gambling.

I think it is only those people who take gambling too seriously that make them have to think about how to divide gambling time with other activities in life such as dividing time with religious activities, because for someone who only treats and addresses gambling as an activity that is not too important then indirectly they do not need to have a plan to divide the time between gambling and doing other activities in life, it is very easy for you to do if you have a rational mindset in looking at gambling.

I personally don't slow down during the Holly Week, in fact I use to take a little trip and it is common practice in my country to buy lottery tickets when you are on vacations in a different location.

On the other hand, I have already talked about it several times, but in Christmas we have a special lottery with a 70% of participation,
the biggest by far compared to any other game. So, at least in Spain, gambling activity increases in holidays, no matter if these are religious holidays or not.

Right? There's nothing wrong with it. It's a belief so people wont get too attached to worldly things. It's that once you start to distance yourself from gambling during the holy week, you'll learn to analyze what is really important and discipline yourself. The intentional distancing from certain activities during religious events can indeed foster reflection and discipline. It's a unique way to prioritize what truly matters

I think this is a good caption for this because there is no point going back and forth of gambling as you are trying to pretend to yourself about your gambling habit during the time that it is not religious reserved season and going back to what vomit you have had.

If someone will drop your habit because of some certain purpose and after picking it up then they are playing a double standard and living a pretentious life style. So it is better to stay with one life style that will make people know where you belong instead of jumping in and out because you don't want people to judge you whereas you are already judging yourself with the habit of dropping gambling and later picking it.

When you said holy week I believe you are talking about the fasting period? Both Christian and Muslims always stop their bad habits in this period of time, drinkers, smokers, gamblers, they all stop and go holy for the weeks or months, but after this period is over they return. 

You are to stop your gambling activities if you want to participate in the holy activities, and when the holy period is over you can return, mind you, I believe we are just deceiving ourselves, if you are a real Christian you won't go into anything that's forbidden by your holy book.

Going back to gambling makes me believe that you knew what's wrong and what's right, meaning you are a fake Christian, you are just deceiving yourself, there are millions of people like you, all in the name of God forgives you are intentionally going against his words.

Gambling is a perfect fit for those who are not religious, intentionally going back and forth is making your sin massive.

First off, to even consider these things you have to be a religious person. I'm not. I don't want to say that I don't believe in God, but all religious organizations in the world don't satisfy me, so to speak. So my gambling activity isn't affected by any religious events in any way. To be honest, I often don't know why people are greeting me in a particular day.

I always respect my religious activities therefore I don't gamble during this periods, I'll take a break one week before the activity and will also stay some days or one week after the activity. I don't gamble everyday therefore taking a break isn't a big deal for me. I know there are some gamblers that are addicted to gambling and they'll be doing it every time even when they're in their religious places or having a program that they need to connect with their creators but that's their problem not mine.

During this religious periods I'll spend time with my family and friends as most of them are having the same beliefs like me therefore we'll all be free during this period and since are always busy, it's always a good time for us to meet  and catch up with things that are going on in our lifes. I don't like to gamble in public or let anyone close to me to know that I'm gambling therefore I won't think about gambling.

It's interesting how you draw your view about gambling, when you say your gambling habit is about being able to make time it rather than feeling like you need to take a break from it simply means you're not and addict but have total control of your gambling life which is very impressive.

And yes gambling isn't something that should be tied to a religious activity or something, I mean gambling isn't an illegal activity that people should hide and do, some countries only prohibit it, not because it's illegal but because of its danger. So whether as a Christian or Muslim or any other religion, you can gamble when you're free even in the midst of a program (not in the middle of a service though, for Christians)

The Muslim religion might frown against gambling but that doesn't stop some Muslim faithfuls from gambling in their quiet time. I know a few Muslim friends that observes and keep to the Muslim rites and worship activities but yet they do gamble, but however they don't do that publicly like myself but one thing I know for sure is that they don't gamble within those days of their fasting periods.

To myself, I don't gamble on regular basis or more like a career that I needed a break from gambling at certain religious observation periods and mostly with the holidays that accompany such periods it's even more fun with as you have to play the gamble with a few colleagues that their work schedules don't give the chance of you guys always hanging out together at the casino.

I just believe that whatever thing you do there should be a level of moderation to avoid abuse irrespective of your religious perception about that activity.

It shows respect for our beliefs and allows us to reflect that's why it's good to slow down or take a break from gambling for sometime. Taking a pause before and after the event is helpful to focus on what is meaningful to us.

What I understand here is that you assume gambling is an obligation like work.
For me, gambling is not a job, so I don't need to worry about deciding when to gamble because there are religious days.
Moreover, in certain religions gambling is prohibited because it is considered a sin, so I think it is difficult to align with religious morals. Maybe if to honor a religious day you take a short break to gamble, that's your decision.

I am not a religious person so I am not strictly observing this. And even if I am a religious person, I am gambling moderately anyway so I think there is really nothing to be more mindful about during religious commemorations.

I also don't think I need to wait for the Holy Week for example just to take a pause and reflect on my vices. I think I'm doing it every now and then. Everything is in check and under control.

But if I am strictly practicing my religion, I might also not only slow down but maybe stop all my gambling activities for the time being.

doesn't every religion have rules that are clear and good for its adherents?
I don't really understand what the rules are in other religions but what is certain is that every religion has rules not to do anything excessive which has a bad impact in the long term, such as gambling is an excessive activity for a gambler who cannot control himself and in this case every human being has different mindsets, for example in the Islamic religion that we are talking about, there are still many people who gamble, even though it is clear that Islam prohibits gambling, but for muslims who gamble, they think that good fortune will come from all directions and God will give it in some way. whatever and if a muslim gambler wins from gambling, they consider that it is a blessing from God, only through gambling.
and I know a friend who is muslim, he is also very orderly in carrying out his worship, but he also gambles almost every day and when someone says that he blames him if he gambles, he replies that God will provide a way of sustenance from anywhere, the most important thing is that his worship of God is never abandoned.

In this case, it seems that all religions are right and all religions provide quite clear rules for the good of their adherents, but what is wrong here is only humans who have their own patterns of thinking.

Lol  

Are you serious about this? Yes, maybe God will help your luck so you can win your gambling.

I myself don't dare to engage in gambling activities during prayer or during religious rituals, I feel guilty if I gamble before my God. I still think gambling is wrong in God's eyes, so I don't dare do it during religious rituals.

Each person will be responsible for all his or her actions. And in every religion, gambling is seen as a bad thing that will only harm the perpetrator and is clearly a prohibited and haram activity for religious people to gamble.

Here I don't mean to want to separate your religious life from the gambling activities you do. Because after all religion regulates all aspects of human life. But I think we are all mature enough to be able to differentiate between what is good and what is bad, what is halal and what is haram to do. and we will be responsible for it, both to ourselves and to the God we believe in. And we need to know that not everyone is religious and not everyone believes in the existence of God, and we need to respect that.

Meanwhile, if we talk about worship, let it be a matter between a servant and his God. And I cannot say that he who is often at the casino table is an expert in hell and worse than us, nor can he say that he who is always at the place of worship is an expert in heaven. Because whether or not someone enters heaven or hell is God's prerogative.Because who would have thought that those who are often at the casino table worship more diligently and are more confident in the existence of their God, than those of us who are said to often visit places of worship but do not believe in the existence of their God and still like to criticize and think badly of other people

I have placed a bet in church before and surprised that I won, I felt it was the hand work of God, how about I do that again when I am having any church program like fasting and prayers.  The thing is, I can gambling at any time I want, unless my phone is not with me.

This is a different approach that I have seen with the posts around here but it's interesting to talk about.

I think some people practice it and make it their focus when it comes to religion. If you practice but don't follow those norms, why bother right? It's kind of counter-productive in terms of yourself and somewhat of a hypocrite if you don't follow.

In terms of myself, since I don't gamble frequently anymore, it doesn't come to mind.

AFAIK, gambling is considered as sin in every religion and people who follow their religion can't gamble at all.

I pray too but not that much religion but for the sake of my boost if things are not going in the way I wanted, now talking about gambling I will say I gamble only on the vacations and I take my days too seriously cause it's a lesson learnt in very hard way so I am not gonna burn money when I have something important to do.

I usually don't gamble at all during major holidays in my religion.

Maybe I did that to respect my religion because honestly gambling is an activity that is not permitted by my religion. lol

In my religion there are religious days that last for a whole month. When that day comes, I don't gamble at all, I use it as my gambling holiday. And usually when I don't gamble for a month, I don't really have the urge to gamble. I can start gambling again the following month

I don’t slow down or take any vacation, even during the festive period, I do keep on gambling, just like I did before the festive celebration. Gambling is not what I do alway, it’s what I do whenever I am bored, so even during the festive period, if I am bored at home, I will still take out my mobile device and gamble, but if I am occupied, then I won’t even open my gambling app, so it’s my activity during the festive period that’s going to determine if I am going to gamble or not, but I don’t see anything bad in gambling during a festive period, the only people I am against are the addicted gamblers.

I'm a Catholic, and while there's definitely some explicit rules and regulations to follow when the holy week comes around I never really took them to heart. Not because I wanted to offend people or anything, but only because I know that being a good person runs deeper than fasting, not gambling during the days where we're supposed to commemorate the sacrifices made by the Lord for our sins or whatever, and all that type of crap. You can be religious and still be an asshole, and you can bet your sweet bippy you're going to hell (if that even exists lol).

On the topic of me gambling during the holy week however, I haven't personally tried it only because I forget, or I don't really put in the effort to offend people's beliefs. Besides, I took regular breaks from gambling anyway so it's not like I'm required to take the holy week break to maintain my sanity. It's just that my gambling behavior's not tied to whatever religion's big at the moment, nor is it tied to my personal ethics and morals. I gamble when I want to, I quit when I know I have to. Simple as that.

I hope the religious folks in this forum don't take offense on what I said, simply speaking the truth here as a genuine person with real thoughts and feelings not dictated by someone who claims they could speak to the lord.

In my case, I'm not religious but I always play very sparingly, for example I've been placing sports bets on the weekends because I bet on games in the big leagues in Europe, and these are games that take place on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. and these league games always take vacations when the league games end and I also take vacations during this period. As I don't place many bets and only do so in these leagues, I don't see any reason for me to be worried. I see this way I adopted as a very responsible way of playing, I don't spend a lot of money on games, I also don't spend my time on religion, that's because I see religion as a way that some people found to manipulate other people and unfortunately that resulted

and nowadays, with the great advances that science has made, it is starting to become very clear that science and religion are distancing themselves very quickly, while science frees man, religion enslaves man, unfortunately. those people who stop gambling to dedicate themselves to religion, it is their right to do so, but they need to make sure they are not breaking the rules of the same religion they believe in, because many religions dominate gambling, forcing their believers to stop playing. gambling and believers, who have been brainwashed, give up gambling because they believe that religion is right. I've seen many cases of this type here in my country. I saw many people who destroyed their lives because of religion, they became religious fanatics

I completely agree, that gambling by itself is not "sinful" but it usually brings the greed out of people and that is why they associate gambling with sin.

I find it funny since the religious people I grew up with like to preach about how bad it is to commit a sin yet they themselves love to do it.

Religious activities are activities that should be prioritized in life because it is our belief or is something that underlies our beliefs and beliefs in running life, I believe most people will prefer to take a break from gambling when they are or close to religious activities which are mandatory things to follow and do. But for me, I'm not that active in gambling, so I think it's definitely not an issue for me.

I will only gamble when I have free time like on weekends for one, the point is if I have other activities no matter how small in life then I will give more importance to it than gambling, because for me gambling is just an activity to fill boredom that should not be prioritized and also that should not be taken seriously. But I think it's clear that no matter what the situation is, it won't matter if you're already an addicted gambler, because you'll definitely do everything or even justify all means just to gamble, which is the wrong approach if you put your seriousness and hope in a place that is basically nothing more than an amusement park.

So what does gambling have to do with religion, will gambling's religious affairs be damaged? if you are a devout person you will not gamble, friend, gambling activities are sinful, there is no need to look holy, if you are a devout person you will not gamble at any time, I am also a Christian

Why should I slow down or take a break when I am in control of my gambling habits? Any gambler with a timetable will not need an external force to determine their frequency based on a religious or a secular activity. However, I do acknowledge and respect the people who honour such events and puts their gambling on hold. We all can't be the same people therefore the beauty of life.

Then you are someone who takes it seriously. Some people may have superstitious beliefs that it mat be bad mojo if they gamble when a spiritual activity is going on because they feel that it will bring them bad luck and may losses.

During times of religious activities there are many other activities in our lives that are advised to be suspended for the time being so the full focus can be put on the religious activity about to be embarked on. It is not always because these activities are bad it's just that they can be distracting and take away the focus needed to really get results from engaging in spiritual exercise or activity. Spiritual activities are not all the time so I will not find it difficult to suspend my gambling for the time being until my spiritual activity is completed.

In my case, it's a very simple thing to answer. I don't do anything because I'm not religious, so I don't change anything in my habits during any religious holidays.

It's not all black or white even when you're religious, because I know many Christians who fast and don't eat meat on certain days, but others do. It's a bit like some Muslims who don't drink alcohol, when others do it and in both cases these people will say they're religious and live according to rules of their religion, it's just that they interpret these rules in a different way. I don't allow stupid rules to take over my life. When I want to eat something or go somewhere, I do it.

Gambling is not my main priority activity, gambling is just entertainment that is best played when we have free time. Meanwhile, if we talk about worship, it means we are talking about our obligations as religious people which we must carry out. However, this comes back to each individual, because discussing worship is a matter between you and the God you believe in, therefore I cannot interfere too deeply, except just to remind each other.

fellow religious people, and regardless of what religion you follow and which god you believe in, I just want to remind you not to gamble too often, and if possible, manage your gambling as well and wisely as possible. Because if not, then the gambling activity you do could be one of the factors that can distance you from your God. Because if you are too focused on gambling, this could make you neglect to carry out the orders.

Gambling is not inherently sinful unless one becomes greedy during the act. However, it is unlikely for a gambler not to experience greed. LOL. And of course, it depends on how deeply you follow the words of God as a Christian. The majority of Christians and members of other religions do partake in gambling. It is true, although not necessarily humorous, many find it to be an enjoyable pastime.

There are many ways to reduce the intensity of gambling to stop gambling. Some gamblers succeed in reducing the intensity of gambling because they realize that gambling is not the best way to multiply their money, they start to shift their plans to long-term investments and gamble just for fun.

Religious holidays may also be a way for a heavy gambling addict to reduce the intensity of his gambling. They can try not to gamble for some time and try to avoid all forms of gambling until the big momentum is over. However, it is still best not to make gambling part of how we double our money, that is the wrong mindset about gambling. If the mindset is changed from earning money to just having fun, then the intensity of gambling can be reduced, and they can even stop because of it.

I do gamble a lot when I have the time to do so, and I can as well stay off from gambling for more than four days. This is due to some work loads, business activities, and family concerns too. Since I usually gamble on sports games, I could just make my prediction, stake in the games I want, and allow them to run. If, for example, I staked in matches that were supposed to last for like four or five days, I would only have to check for scores once each match was over. 

During any religious practice, I don't use it as an excuse not to gamble; if I actually have time to do so, I will definitely gamble. If I go to any religious gathering, I will definitely return home after the service is over, and if I feel like gambling when I am relaxing, there is nothing wrong with such a habit. What I was doing at that time was just gambling and not committing murder. Come, do we forget that gambling is not something that is bad? It's the way people handle it that makes it look bad, but it's not. 

It is good to have such confidence in yourself. If you can keep this in mind then you shouldn't have a problem with gambling  Gambling attracts many people for non-stop gambling but if one can control himself then gambling addiction can not have much effect on him. Gambling is bad addiction but not for everyone. Gambling is easy and fun for a person who can control himself, but gambling is very difficult for an addict.

from what I remember according to them gambling is connected to greed, thus making it a sin and also one of the "deadly sins" that they believe in their religion. The funny thing is, the majority of Christians and other religious people I know love to gamble and I play with them from time to time.

As a Catholic, I can still practice my usual religious activity even on Holy Week without affecting my usual activity including gambling.

Just to be clear even though I won't take a break from gambling during Holy Week, it's considered already a form of disrespect.

I'm a religious and spiritual person but not like those people who have a too deep religious belief as a devotee. I'm sure the Man above won't feel bad about my activity during Holy Week. After all, how religious the person is, depends on their inner-self and not on their respective behavior during any religious important event.

There's no stopping, I usually just slow down the intensity of my gambling activities. Gambling has become a means of seeking entertainment for me, so what if I have no entertainment at all? it will be boring days or weeks.


Really? do you really think like that? remember that fasting in Ramadan isn't a monthly agenda, it's like you don't commit sins from 04:00 AM to 08:00 PM then after 08:00 PM you do what you enjoy again, such as gambling, etc. But thanks for the advice, I will think about it in the next few days before Ramadan comes.

Personally, religious activities is everyday and I do not have dedicated time for religious activities. The greatest requirement of my religion is to love humanity, do good to all and always seek divine guidance in the activities of life. Gambling does not constitute a distraction to my religious practice in any way whatsoever.

I am also from a country where there are several religions with relative religious freedom. So there is no compulsion from anyone on the basis of religion neither is there restriction on gambling on the same basis.

I am not a regular gambler. I only gamble when I feel like having adrenaline rush. Otherwise I do not gamble to earn money at all. If I am able to earn money, that's a plus and usually use such money into philanthropic causes or donate to religious places.

So usually during religion festivities, my gambling goes down to zero as I usually do not have time to anything else. But there's no religious reason for me to stop gambling. If I don't feel like, I don't gamble.

So

i already stopped being a Christian. when i got old the story turned out to be like a fairy tale as well. whether there is a holy week Christmas, the gambling doesn't stop. although i rarely gamble offline, they are all available in the city because the casino house is open all the time, and even on sunday, the cockpit arena welcomes people rivaling the attention, and churchgoers are diverted to those places.

the people in holy week though respect the belief that's why most Christian in my country are already taking this week as a time to commemorate Christ.

Religion is a strong tool for control and to order obedience in followers and during religious activities, some certain behaviour do reduce because those followers who are known to be involved in all those would desist from it. Take for example those who smoke, womanize, drunk or even gamblers stop or reduce their rate of committing such until the festive period is over.

This is not just about the Christian Religion or Islamic but those in traditional worship do have their sacred days that followers would have to stay away from certain behaviour or activities and that is abstainance just like the Christian or Muslim do.

The must popular of them is Christian activities and Muslim. In such times it is well noticed that there is abstainance in certain activities because of the numbers of followers who involve in such activities. People who smoke stay away, also those who do alcohol and gamblers try to stay away even though they could be doing that in secret. They stay away in the guise to seek for the face of God through the holy period, like for example there is the lent period going on for Christians and that will cause the reduction of sale of alcohol and others. I also seek to keep such season holy and that is the normal thing for religious believers.

It will no longer be a requirement but simply a matter of balancing one's own life, even if it is not religious and affected by holidays, from the perspective of an occasional chess player, I see it as similar to some other activities in society. Everything needs to know the enough factor and don't overdo it. If everything happens naturally, imo don't see any problem before or after.

But I also think there will be people who feel really influenced by their actions, like you're driving leisurely and a police car is chasing you and asks you to stop to check and then still going.

Whether there's some religious event or something or having none then there would really be no difference since when it comes to gambling then everything is still on moderation.
I do play when im bored and when im seeking up for some entertainment and never ever make myself that being impulsive or trying out to approach and gamble out into those
unneccessary moments as long i do have that control then thee would really be no issues. The wrong thing only about on people who do keep on playing gambling is on the time
that they do lose of control and dont really be able to make themselves not mindful about into those important things that they should really be doing from the start.

While the bible is not clear about saying things directly against gambling, it's very clear against chasing money and wealth:
Matthew 19:24
In my own personal view most of Christianity is very hypocritical in these things. The bible was very much against money, and yet there's almost no church that speaks out against governments that try to profit from medicine, private healthcare or gambling nevertheless. The pentacle of this ironic situation is that it's mostly governments in Christian countries that implement these policies and still support their local Christian churches. It's a very peculiar dynamic.

I have no judgment for what individuals choose to do, but we have to admit that many things Christian churches turn a blind eye to are very antithetical the even the bible itself.

If we are being realistic here, I really don't see any way in which our religious activity affects our gambling life. A gambler can choose to do when ever he feels like playing and when he doesn't. If we often tangle religion with gambling, then may be there won't be much gamblers than we see today. I know that everyone has their own belief or religious rules they try to abide to, but how do we know that  some respected religious leaders don't involve in gambling and make it look strict on the face of his follows. So what I'm saying here is that what ever you choose to see it as should be yours.
For me I don't gamble frequently so when ever Im less busy I just pick up my phone and go online to play some games. So it really don't !atte rif you are in a religious week, if you feel like playing then you may choose to.

In religious events or sacred events, gambling activities must be stopped far away from this day what I do even though some people say slowing down is not a problem because it returns to those who carry out activities.

I gamble not for all the time sometimes on weekends for fun or when more money is available, but suppose there is no extra money to gamble there are more important affairs in the real world then it will leave gambling it is not a priority anymore not even an income earner so why do we need to slow down even if taking a month or more break is not a problem right?

For all Christians, this season is known as the "Lenting" season, a period of deep self reflection, fasting and Armsgiving to the poor and people in need, mostly observed by Catholic and other dinominations all around the world. The "Lenting Season" symbolize a period of 40 days which Jesus fasted both day and night in the wilderness, and hence every year Christians are expected to observe such deep self reflection to strengthen their faith. So in a period like this, it's okay for a gambler to reduce the pace at which he/she gambles if only he can't stay away from it during this 40 days Lenting period.

Just as most have said - I’m not a frequent gambler, there are times I go without gambling I mean weeks without open wing my gambling account and if I should observe that any of my religion activities is around the corner that requires my total commitment I’ll simply just put my gambling on hold (which I’m quite familiar with) and do what needs to be done.


Is this necessary? You could have just answered the question without having to first attack any religion - no matter the religion I believe in, I still feel it is wrong to talk bad about the other even if your beliefs are different you should respect them also (atleast all religions preach about respect and love).

It varies really.

I may stop or not whenever I want but with these feasts or celebrations, I don't think that I'll even be affected by them. And those that are religious, it doesn't matter whether you stop.

Why? because you're still gambling after the feasts and your devotion will just be in vain when you gamble again. And that's based on the belief of the religion that you are in.

On my end I do stop gambling on those days however not because of the ocassion or to give honor of it, but because most of the family members are out of their work and I just don't want to miss the bond with them. Also, gambling I think is not really stated in bibles and are justmorally wrong with societal views. Gambling made an impression to many people as an addictive activity. And with religious beliefs, many people are not really putting that much emphasis of it.

If ever I will be in a mood to gamble during that period then I'd probably do. It just happens that gambling is never my priority. There are still other activities which would consume my time and taking breaks from gambling is a good idea. Gambling more often means bigger tendency to lose more as well, given that we have no control of the winning outcome. Exposure to gambling is our exposure to risk.

What I can't do at any time of the year due to religion is not worth doing at all as I do not think my conscience will be taking me anywhere. No matter the region you practice, I do not advise you to be lukewarm in it, just do it faithfully and not with pretence or half in and half out. You who will gamble well before the fasting and breaking time but will not do it during the Christian fasting and breaking time is no less than a pagan and it means that you are not proud of gambling on its own if you treat it that way.

Let me even ask you, is gambling truly a sin? If yes, please cite that part of the Bible, I want to learn from you. I want the one that is so plain, and not the one that is a mere confused passage like many would say. But for me, I do everything I want to do at the season I want to do it without thinking twice, or else, I will quit it entirely.

I only gamble when I have free time and have extra money to gamble as well. Then, of course, we have to give respect to the beliefs of other religions as well, no matter what.
We know that most religions do not like gambling. If there is something like that, we also need to be with religious people, like what you are saying.


You may have a point in what you are saying, but gambling doesn't do good when a gambler has an addiction to something like this to be honest.

Obviously, I'm of the same opinion as you, except the gambler takes gambling wholly as the only source of income and has to gamble on daily basis to make a living or aside that, the gambler is becoming way closer to being addicted to gambling that its gambling activities has to disrupt his or her religious activities in such a way that the gambler needs to go on a vacation when during a religious celebration......

For me, I don't gamble often and my activities with gambling have no way of disturbing any of my religious activities, I do things according to time.

I never thought about this, i just gamble when i feel like it, no matter what's the occasion since you can just open your phone/computer to bet. But if it's a land based gambling, it's prohibited anywhere in my area for any religious occasion so ye.

Yes, there's no text saying that "gambling" is forbidden, but there are lots of text there that describe to avoid such activity, like love of money and get-rich-quick schemes for the cause it may affect the user — evil thoughts due to money... But just like you said, who cares, millions of christians do gamble.

It's personal choice, we can't do about that, gambling exists even before the BC era, or even the religion was first introduced where there are many holy people believing into it, how much more now where too many liberated minds and etc.

If my wife and kids will go on vacation with her mother then I bet I won't have anything to do so I might still gamble but yes, it will be slowed down.
A time to just have a peaceful week and think about the Lord.
I'd probably marathon "The Bible" series again or I could just watch any series out there to get out of boredom.
Still, I think it's the time to think about many things and not just about religion. For me, the Holy Week is about that and not the New Year. Resolutions are always broken so I don't believe that.
But we don't really have a tradition of going to someplace. Just being with the family in silence and resting is our tradition and I think that is enough. Avoiding bad habits too will be a good thing. No drinks, less gambling maybe, or better no gambling at all at this time. Well, there's a lot of things that we can do thanks to the internet so I don't think I need to force myself to gamble just because of boredom.

There is no single verse in the Bible that discusses gambling, so I don't know where religious teachers got the teachings that gambling is forbidden in Christianity. The Bible only talks about being in a rush to get wealth which can also be related to other life endeavours including gambling. The Bible focuses more on moderation in anything you do including drinking alcohol. I will not agree that Christianity is weird but I will concur that it is different religious teachers that come up with different teachings that are making the religion complicated. Some preachers will tell you that drinking alcohol is a sin, but this is not the position of the Bible. It is better to read and study the Holy and also pray yo get understanding.      


Islam has a clear law about gambling and every faithful know that it is a sin. Any Muslim who gambles are committing sin. But this is not the case in other religions where followers rely on preachers for the interpretation of the Holy Books. I have seen many Muslims who drink alcohol, that's proof that they are not good Muslims just like those who gamble.  

I knew it’s ironic to mix religious belief on gambling especially slowing down on gambling due to certain religion activities but I often do this because my conscience makes me think that I’m heavily committing sin when gambling while others is participating on religious event despite I’m not a devotee on religion.

Sometimes our conscience play an important role on skipping gambling when there’s other activity related to faith. I said it’s ironic because religion is strongly opposed gambling while we knew that most of the gamblers doesn’t have strong faith but in my case I still slowing down as I view it as bad luck when my conscience doesn’t agree to what I’m doing.

In fact, you either play or you don't play. If your religion forbids you to play, then this prohibition applies for life. It is wrong to think that you are not being watched by a higher power. You can't hide from them behind a curtain. And interrupting the game during religious activities has no effect. You have to be honest with yourself - that's where it all starts

I think the biggest event that led me to control my gambling sprees/temptations was the pandemic.

Before the pandemic, I was frequently visiting physical casinos with my brother as we tried all sorts of games that were offered. Additionally, in our casino here in the Philippines, the gambling establishment offers lots of free and complementary drinks and amenities in order to fully utilize their offers. We experienced both winning and losing at the same time but the experience and time we had were really unforgettable.

Then the pandemic happened- this stopped our gambling sprees and it gave us some time to reflect on the decisions what we have made and the opportunities that we should have maximized. Even though there is an influx of online casinos presently, I think we just decided to quit gambling for the meantime and focus on our real-life obligations.

@un_rank said Muslims do not gamble. There is no gambling for them whether Ramadan or Eidul-Fitar or any other holyday.

For us who are nonbelievers who only worship the Sun, I think there is no sin in gambling, any day can be a gambling day. But what if there is a boxing or MMA event at the time of religious week are you not going to sneak out using your phone and bet on the main event where you could practically make a large sum?  Missed opportunities are never going to wait for you.

Oshosondy it seems you have deviated from the main argument of the ops which is based on religious activities and not just the festive period.

Taking a break that the ops means is when you are engaged in religious activities like the Christians that the ops mentioned have the fasting period and even the Muslims do too,  so the ops want to know how we as members of those religions handle our gambling during the period of fasting and other religious spiritual things such as prayer and fasting.

For me,  during a time when we are involved in anything that has to do with consecration, I usually stay away from activities that could engage my mind with anything negative so I stay off gambling and all other fun-seeking activities to focus on the program.

what do you mean by weird? it's not christians who are weird, but individuals who violate their religious rules who are weird. because in christianity gambling is prohibited and has been explained clearly. so when someone violates this, it is not the teachings that are "weird" but the individual who violates this, and it is entirely the individual's fault.

and not only christians, but muslims too. in my country, which is the largest muslim, there are millions of people who gamble, even when the government prohibits it. does this make muslims "weird"? that's not, because muslims clearly forbid gambling, and when an individual violates that, it is completely that person's sin and has nothing to do with the teachings of his religion.

I think this is a good way do reduce people's gambling problems.

Remember, If during Ramadhan you can stop gambling for more than 1 month you can keep continuing and break the 3-month number. The first 1-2 weeks will be hard for some people my advice transfer all the money into some trustee person.

Ask them, to manage your financial economy.

Gambling is forbidden in Islam, so a Muslim is already committing Haram if he engages in gambling. In Christianity, it is the Roman Catholics that recognise the Holly weeks of Lent which lasts for forty days before the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I don't know about any other religion, during the holy weeks in my religious sect, you are mandated to avoid food, water or any activity that gives you pleasure or fun. So one might decide to abstain from gambling as part of the things to avoid during this period. Due to an increase in religious activities, my gambling life usually suffers during the holy days. Sometimes I might not have the spare time to engage in gambling because I need to be more focused on some religious rituals. However, I don't take a break because I still gamble with the little time I have, since gambling is not a sin in my religion.  

Christianity is a weird religion.

In recognized holy religious texts there's no mention of gambling. However most priests will say it's a mortal sin to gamble, play cards or derive enjoyment from such games.

And still in almost all predominantly Christian societies there's little to no stigma against gambling. People will do it, sometimes daily. In villages, in the cities. There's TV commercials, legal online casinos, team sponsorships... It's a very weird dynamic actually.

So while during Christian holidays priests will urge people to stay away from such "sinful" activities even more, nobody listens. Festive gambling activities are even higher than on average actually. My country is a great example of this. While the vast majority will gladly state that they are devout orthodox Christians here in Greece, only if you account for the licensed online casinos, they had a turnover of like 30 billion EUR in a year. It's crazy.

Honestly I don't judge people for wanting to partake in religious activities. And hiding their gambling habits through online casinos is also their right in my book.
But I can't understate how pretentious I find it of so many Christians to play a role of a devout man, while behind closed doors they're wasting their money on gambling online.
Of course governments here in Europe also have a role in this by giving a green light to all forms of gambling promotion while doing absolutely nothing to provide meaningful means for people to get off-addictions. All this while our local governments also heavily favor Christian Churches. So the biggest hypocrites in all of these are governments again.

Muslims do not gamble at all, so you can take that off your thread. For the other religions, I do not think anyone should gamble so compulsively that they would need a break from it during religious activities.

I gamble in my spare time and it does not interfere with my day at all.

- Jay -

I see no reason for adopting gambling restrictions due to yearly religious events. I think it's hypocrisy to avoid gambling only in determined days of the year justifying religious reasons. If you think gambling is wrong and it's against your personal values, you shouldn't gamble at all, doesn't matter the day or period of the year. A sin will be still a sin, despite the day of the year.

Personally I don't have any issues with gambling and I don't consider it an offense to my spiritual values, rather I consider addiction to be the issue. So, if you gamble, but aren't an addicted and don't put money above everything else, there isn't any problems and you are free to gamble during holy seasons without harming your conscience.

I will stop my gambling activities until the religious event is over. It doesn't matter if the event lasts for two weeks or more because I am not an active gambler who often gambles.

Those are the times I relax for a while by not thinking about gambling. And at that time, I will follow the event too and enjoy it with my family. It will be an exciting moment for all of us.

I can back to gambling after the event is over. I can save my allocated funds for gambling because I stop it until the religious event is over.

I am not gambling frequently. So why the need for me to take a break. If I have the time to gamble, I will gamble. If I do not have the time, I will not gamble. My gambling activities is not about festive period. It is about having time to gamble. During the festive period, I might have time to be with friends and gamble together which is fun for me.

I'm talking about religious activity..

The Christians have the Holy Week and it lasts for a whole week.


The other religions I did not mention have activities or festivities that their followers and believers must observe.

Did you slow down or are you taking a vacation? how long is your vacation before and after the religious activity?

In my case, I usually slow down and stop all my gambling activity, two weeks before the religious activity so I can fully reflect on my religion, and after the religious activity, I usually take a week before I get back to my normal gambling activity.

You participation in this discussion is appreciated.