[Avodah] Hilchos BINGO

[Saul Guberman]

On Wed, Jun 3, 2009 at 13:57, Micha Berger <micha at aishdas.org> wrote:

> Someone posted on Areivim a link to suggestions put together by R Saul
> Zucker and R ary Friedman for running a more affordable school. In the
> list of small things that could be done immediately (among suggestions
> that would be of more substantial help) was BINGO night.
>
> To which R Chanoch Bloom asked on Wed, Jun 03, 2009 at 9:02am EDT:
> : Isn't gambling (i.e. Bingo) assur according to the Maran Beit Yosef?
>
> Moreso than the commmonplace Chinese Auction? Or buying a lottery
> ticket? Or dreidl of kvitlach paid for money?
>
SNIP

> RMF (IM EH 3:40, OC 4:35) does not forbid BINGO, and permits it if the
> school needs funds. He does consider it inappropriate, and not permissable
> to be held at the actual maqom Torah / tefillah, but not assur.
>

I think that both of you are missing part of the mitzuis here.  Chinese
auctions that are run by Jewish organizations are a once a year fund raiser
aimed at the general Jewish population of the area.  Bingo is a nightly or
weekly activity that is aimed at the general population.  It attracts few
Jews & no Torah observant Jews.  Have you ever been to a Bingo hall?  I
volunteered as a teenager a few times for my shul.  Really not a great
experience; although now that you can not smoke indoors in public, it may be
a little better.    There are real moral issues with running BINGO.
Genrally these are not people with large amounts of disposable income.

Saul
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