Why Christians should oppose gambling

Last year Americans spent a record amount of money on gambling. Casinos raked in $92 billion in 2021, with $53 billion going to commercial casinos and $39 billion to Indian tribal casinos. Commercial sports betting also generated revenues of $4.33 billion, while Americans spent $105 billion on state lotteries. Betting on horse racing also brought the industry $12 billion.

Brent Leatherwood elected ERLC president

Brent Leatherwood has been elected to fill the role as the next president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission by the organization’s trustees.

The ERLC board of trustees voted unanimously to appoint Leatherwood during its first session on Sept. 13. Leatherwood, 41, has served as the organization’s acting president since September 2021, following the departure of Russell Moore. The vote occurred during the trustee’s annual meeting, Sept. 12-14, in Nashville, Tenn.

This Week in Washington, D.C.

This week, Senate Democrats postponed a vote on the Respect for Marriage Act until after the upcoming midterm elections, hoping for more Republican support.

In other news this week, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to vacate a previous stay by Justice Sotomayor and deny Yeshiva University’s emergency request to intervene in its dispute over recognition of an LGBTQ group on campus.

Yeshiva University is a Modern Orthodox Jewish center of higher education. The university was petitioned by a student LGBT group (YU Pride Alliance) for recognition, which the university declined. The university argued that doing so would violate their deeply held beliefs and mission as a religious training center.

The Supreme Court sends the case back to New York where state courts can provide relief. However, in the dissent of the denial, four justices state that they “are likely to vote to grant certiorari if Yeshiva’s First Amendment arguments are rejected on appeal, and Yeshiva would likely win if its case came before us.” This is a hopeful signal that if Yeshiva does not find relief in the state courts, it may likely return to the Supreme Court to again seek protection.

The ERLC joined a brief in support of Yeshiva University and will continue to monitor this case as it progresses. You can read more about the case and ERLC’s involvement here.

Featured Podcasts

On the ERLC podcast, Lindsay celebrates Brent Leatherwood as the newly elected president of the ERLC. Then, Lindsay and Brent discuss the latest update with the Yeshiva University case, the delay of the Respect for Marriage Act vote, and the legacy of Queen Elizabeth II.

From The Public Square

How to Fix America’s Child-Pornography Crisis
The Atlantic

The country could do much more to control this scourge, and it could do so without violating the First Amendment.

Lawmakers in South Carolina at odds over proposed abortion bans
ABC News

The Senate went on to pass a separate bill that has an exception for fetuses born with a fatal anomaly. Both the House and Senate versions included exceptions for pregnancies that are a result of rape or incest; however, the Senate bill only allowed this exception if the abortion is performed within the first trimester of pregnancy.

Miami-Dade school board rejects LGBTQ history month over fears it violates ‘Don’t Say Gay’
Politico

Miami school board members passed a similar resolution acknowledging LGBTQ history month in 2021 by a 7-1 vote but found themselves in a different situation this fall under the Parental Rights in Education law.

Marriage is Increasingly an Institution of the Highly Religious: Why That Might Be a Problem
Institute for Family Studies

New research is painting a clearer picture of the adults who still marry: more and more, they tend to be highly religious.

What You Need to Read

Jenny Marcelene with 3 ways your family can participate in Children’s Mission Day

As our families settle back into school rhythms this fall, we can kick off the new school year with an important tradition: Children’s Mission Day. Since 2008, Southern Baptist churches have celebrated Children’s Mission Day. Held on Sept. 17, the Women’s Mission Union (WMU) established this day to practically connect children to a world in need of the gospel by getting out into their local communities.

Champ Thornton with How to teach our kids faithfulness in today’s culture

We must protect ourselves and our children against the lure of an idolatrous culture that is increasingly hostile toward Christianity in a demonstrable way. We must not retreat. We must not give up out of fear of something bad. But we must stand with the calm assurance that no matter what happens, our God will provide.

Sam Rainer with How we became “the heroin church”

When the community started calling us “the heroin church,” we knew we were banging on hell’s gates. We chased the dealers out of our parking lot—literally. Then we started a 5K road race in our neighborhood to raise awareness. The road race brought together several groups who did not know each other. Our church became a gatekeeper for the small, local ministries trying to solve the addition epidemic.