Q&A: Gambling
Gambling
Question
The Shulchan Arukh says that gambling is forbidden because it is theft. Why is it theft? After all, I agreed to put up my money. So does that mean it’s forbidden to play poker with friends? Even if it’s mainly just for fun?
Answer
This is the topic of asmakhta, and it begins in the Talmud. The claim is that when a person enters a bet, he is counting on not losing, and therefore he does not have full resolve to pay if he loses. This depends on various distinctions and opinions. However, in my humble opinion, if it is clear that such full resolve exists, then it is valid. This is a factual question—whether there is or is not full resolve—and in that regard we do not follow the Talmud or the halakhic decisors, but rather our assessment of reality. There is another issue, namely that involvement in this reflects your being an idler who is not engaged in a productive occupation, and that disqualifies you from testimony. But that applies only if it occupies a significant part of your time.
Discussion on Answer
I didn’t say there is a sharp line. I said it’s a factual claim. The level of resolve changes across periods and places, so you can’t infer from then to today.
So in summary, can one say that a person who plays poker with friends once in a while for fun, and it’s not the main thing in his life, and he is aware that he will most likely lose, is it permitted?
Awareness is not enough. He has to understand it, internalize it, and be willing to bear the consequences. Yes.
Why is that a factual claim? It seems you can treat the degree of resolve as a spectrum, and they drew the line there on a normative basis.