Friday Night Theology

A Safe Bet for the Archbishop

15 February 2008

Of all the jobs in the world, there's one I'm very glad I don't have at the moment. The Archbishop of Canterbury. Luckily for me, I'm a woman, so the odds of me ever being in that position are somewhat slim. I wonder if, like me, you're intrigued that the debate around the Archbishop's comments are still raging, hitting the headlines and being widely discussed days after his speech. Few stories it seems, capture our attention spans for quite so long.

I can't help wondering though, if the reason the headlines are still so interested in reporting this story, is not so much because they are deeply concerned about the issues involved, but rather because of the opportunity it has presented to criticise such a high profile Church leader. From the media, you might think all the General Synod discusses is Sharia law. However, the Times has succeeded in reporting some positive news concerning the Archbishop, regarding his comments to the General synod about the the gambling trade. He calls for the gambling industry to clean up its act in light of the addiction gambling causes and the subsequent financial, family breakdown and mental health problems that frequently follow. The Archbishop referred to the campaign against gambling as going back to William Wilberforce, the slavery abolitionist. Slavery after all can take many forms, and one of those is the slavery of addiction. Good on the Archbishop - he's drawn attention to an issue that many overlook, but that can have huge social and personal consequences. Ironically perhaps, it's also an issue Muslims and Christians agree on.

The number of people affected by gambling is huge. Excluding the National Lottery, 48% of the population last year participated in gambling. Around 284,000 are recognised as problem gamblers, gamblers who carry on despite harmful negative consequences and with no desire to stop - that's a lot of families and individuals who are potentially going to be impacted by associated financial, relational and mental health issues. Consequently the Archbishop has called on the Church to act and to help "combat the detrimental effects of gambling in various forms." He urges the Church to get involved with any local consultations on new casinos, something we can act upon at local level. The raising of this issue is also a reminder for us to try and get along side and help those we may know who may be affected by gambling.

Now I'm not for one minute saying we should turn all our attention to gambling and ignore the debate about Sharia law and the potential impact and implications for the cultural and religious life in Britain. In fact, if you would like to comment on this issue, the Evangelical Alliance is inviting you to help set the agenda and provide us with your feedback. But, in the midst of all this, let's not lose sight of the many other issues out there affecting British life and about which the Church can have something positive to say. And let's not forget too, to pray for our Church leaders, as they try to navigate the way ahead for Christians, the Church and other people of faith in an ever changing culture.

Susannah Clark, Public Theology Researcher