More than 100 Christian ministry leaders across Ohio have signed a letter urging Gov. Mike DeWine and the state Legislature to reject a proposal to legalize online poker and virtual casino gambling. The letter calls the proposed expansion of gambling a threat to the state’s most vulnerable populations and a violation of biblical principles.
In the letter, organized by the Center for Christian Virtue, the pastors warn that the legislation would result in a “predatory gaming” system designed to extract wealth from low-income Ohioans and funnel profits to out-of-state corporations.
The letter criticizes the plan for using addictive games as a revenue model and argues that it would disproportionately harm the poor, young men and those already struggling with mental health challenges.
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“Expanding access to 24/7 online gambling — especially through smartphones and computers — turns every living room into a casino and every struggling Ohioan into a potential target for financial exploitation,” the letter states.
The pastors cited data from the Ohio Casino Control Commission showing that gambling addiction carries one of the highest suicide rates among addictions.
The letter also draws attention to a Rutgers University study on legalized gambling in New Jersey, which found a sharp rise in online gambling among young men. According to the study, a third of young men were gambling online in 2023, four times more than in 2017, and 19% were classified as being at high risk for problem gambling.
The ministry leaders warn that expanded online gambling would worsen this trend in Ohio, especially among younger men who are already showing lower rates of workforce participation. They argue that the state should be helping these individuals build strong families and productive futures, not offering them a pipeline to addiction.
Drawing on scriptural references, the pastors called the proposed legislation “morally indefensible.” They quoted Psalm 140:12 and Isaiah 10:1 in condemning policies that would prey on the poor, and Proverbs 31:8–9 in calling on lawmakers to “defend the rights of the poor and needy.”
The letter argues that relying on gambling losses to fund state operations represents a betrayal of public duty.
From a pastoral perspective, the signatories said they have seen the direct consequences of gambling addiction: “broken marriages, lost homes, mental health crises, and children left behind.”
A 2023 national survey by Lifeway Research found that most Evangelical pastors across the U.S. share similar objections to legalized gambling.
Of the 1,004 Protestant pastors surveyed between Aug. 29 and Sept. 20 that year, only 13% supported legalizing sports betting nationwide, while 55% said they believe it is morally wrong.
Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research, noted that many Americans are drawn to gambling as a shortcut to financial gain, especially through unpredictable sports outcomes. But he said most pastors viewed sports betting as fraught with moral hazards and damaging to the broader society.
The survey also revealed that Evangelical pastors (62%) are more likely than Mainline pastors (50%) to consider sports gambling morally wrong. Among denominational lines, Baptist (65%) and nondenominational (63%) pastors showed higher opposition rates than Lutheran (42%) and Presbyterian/Reformed (46%) pastors.
Regional and demographic differences also emerged, with pastors in the South and Midwest more likely to oppose gambling than those in the West, and younger and black pastors somewhat more open to legalization.
In a 2022 column for The Christian Post, Richard Land, former head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, wrote that gambling causes addiction, covetousness and family breakdown, while corrupting the role of government by turning it into a profiteer from vice.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in 2018, many states have legalized various forms of gambling.
Ohio has previously approved casino operations and sports betting, but the proposal to legalize online poker and virtual casinos would represent a new and more expansive phase.
