(PATCH) — Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of the Catholic Diocese of Arlington said he saw no need for Northern Virginia to have casinos, during Monday’s episode of The Walk Humbly Podcast.
Burbidge told podcast co-host Tom Shakely that the church has tolerated “what have historically been called games of chance” such as cards, lotteries, friendly wagers and bingo.
“But the Catechism states that games of chance become morally unacceptable when they deprive someone of what is necessary to provide for his needs and those of others,” he said. “We see the difference there. If you're having a friendly game of cards and you lose a quarter, it's not going to be that big of an impact. But if you're taking $500 or so to the casino and you end up losing it all, that $500 was supposed to be for other purposes. Now we can’t do what we’re supposed to do.”
