Dear Editor,
 
We write as pastors to address a blatant attempt to beguile the general public and church members alike that there are many pastors who are in support of legalizing the currently illegal web gambling shops in The Bahamas.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Contrary to the impression that the "We Care" gambling coalition and Rev. Dr. Philip McPhee are seeking to convey to the general public, the church in The Bahamas is not divided on the issue of legalizing the numbers business, nor does it support the commencement of a national lottery.
After speaking with several of the pastors who attended the meeting organized by McPhee, it is clear that they were unwittingly used to promote the cause of the gambling coalition and McPhee.  One pastor stated that they were "bamboozled" and "tricked" by the whole procedure, and regrets that he was used in this way.  The meeting was advertised as a face-to-face meeting with web shop owners, where pastors could make the church's position against gambling clear.  However, published comments from McPhee concerning the meeting leave members of the public with the impression that these pastors were largely in support.  Again, such an impression is false.
Obviously, a campaign has already started to seek to deceive voters into believing that a significant number of pastors either "support'' or are "not against'' the proposition to legalize the selling of numbers, thus weakening voters' resolve to vote against the referendum.  Furthermore, it was a wretched attempt to undermine the authority of the president of The Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) who was away burying his father and who is on record as saying that the BCC is "diametrically opposed" to gambling.  No doubt, the president will be responding on behalf of the BCC in due course.
For the record, we are compelled to state that Rev. Dr. Philip McPhee (whose sailboat Thunderbird is known to be sponsored by the web shop Asue Draw) has compromised his voice on this issue and is not authorized to speak on behalf of the BCC, the Baptist community, and the church in general (and we suspect his views do not even represent the majority his own church members).
If we buy McPhee and the gambling coalition's argument that because they give out a few dollars to help charities and regattas we should legalize the numbers business, then a similarly flawed argument can be used to legalize the illegal drug trade because many drug dealers, like convicted drug smuggler Samuel "Ninety" Knowles, have used and continue to use their ill-gotten gains to assist the poor.  Further to this, what does it say about the "law" when owners of these illegal web shops are publicly stating that they use their illegal proceeds to try to buy legitimacy?
We have every confidence that the voters in this country will not be duped by the spurious arguments being put forth by the coalition, and will soundly defeat the gambling proposition because there is no economic, social or moral justification for doing so.  Further, we hasten to add that it would be criminal for the Bahamian government and the Bahamian people to exploit the gambling addiction of poor Bahamians by taxing their gambling addiction for the benefit of the government and a handful of already filthy rich illegal gambling operators.
It is clear that, as we approach the referendum on gambling, battle lines are already being drawn with operators of gambling houses using their illicit gambling proceeds to seek to finance a referendum outcome in their favor; this includes attempts to pedal their influence even within the church community.  However, while they have money on their side, gained from successive governments (Free National Movement and Progressive Liberal Party) aiding and abetting their exploitation of the poor, the truth about gambling is not on their side; and that truth is that gambling (especially numbers gambling) further impoverishes the already poor and makes no economic sense.
While we speak as ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we believe we speak for the majority of Bahamians who on our nation's 39th independence anniversary still believe the words of the preamble to our nation's constitution that affirm that the preservation of our "freedom will be guaranteed by a national commitment to self-discipline, industry, loyalty, unity and an abiding respect for Christian values and the rule of law."  Gambling is and will always be contrary to these values, and our prayer is that the majority of Bahamians will continue to hold this to be so and will vote "no" to gambling in the upcoming referendum.
 
- Pastors Lyall Bethel, Allan Lee, Cedric Moss, Dr. Myles Munroe, Mario Moxey, Alfred Stewart
 

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