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Propositions 26 and 27: Both initiatives seek to legalize sports betting. Prop 26 legalizes it on Tribal lands and horse racing tracks, while Prop 27 legalizes it online and promises revenue for remediating homelessness.
While there are many arguments for and against each of these propositions, I will focus on Jewish views of gambling. Once again, an essential reminder about any Jewish perspective is that it’s complicated and nuanced.
The Mishnah (200 C.E.), in the tractate called Sanhedrin, famously says that someone who plays with dice is prohibited from serving as a witness in a trial, should that person be a professional gambler with no other occupation. The rabbis suggest that because this person makes their living from such games of chance, their reliability as a witness is suspect. They do not, however, condemn all gambling. Gambling is only condemned when it becomes thievery—i.e., when the gambler’s intent is to deceive another. Anyone who’s ever watched the three card monte scam on New York City streets has witnessed such deception. Here again, there are notable disagreements. Gambling against the house in casinos or through the purchase of lottery tickets is not considered theft by some rabbis, while lotteries are considered illegal by others. It is notable that Israel has a publicly-sponsored state lottery.
Having said all of that, compulsive gambling is indeed considered a vice, and known excessive gamblers were denied synagogue honors. Of course, the occasional Hanukkah dreidel game—clearly a form of gambling—was permitted to all! This form of betting, though— either pennies or Hanukkah chocolate—hardly leads to penury. The overwhelming concern expressed by Jewish sources centers on the addictive and potentially destructive capacity of gambling for an individual and their families. In this case, stringent warnings and even prohibitions are voiced.
Clearly, the question of Jewish values here is not about the legality or even permissibility of occasional gambling; it is in the potential for the gambling opportunities being offered to lead to addiction and its destructive results.
—Rabbi Ron Stern