Site
Contents
 |
General Information about the Area Office
North Indiana Conference Office
South Indiana Conference Office
Prayer Guides
(Courtesy of the NIC Prayer Team)
Area United Methodist
Foundation
For resources to assist your congregation in welcoming guests,
click here
Seashore District Volunteer Center VIM project -- Completed
Hoosier United Methodist News Archives
| Hoosier United Methodists together |
November/December 2006 |
Internet gambling ban signed into federal law
The U.S. Senate approval of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (HR4954) caps seven years of intense work and dogged determination by the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society and a diverse coalition of Christian and family organizations that has supported this legislation for the last three years.
… prohibits illegal Internet gambling. |
The bill was signed by President Bush last month as a part of the Safe Ports Act.
In addition to GBCS, this group includes: The Christian Coalition, Family Research Council, Focus on the Family, Concerned Women for America, National Coalition Against Gambling Expansion, the National Council of Churches, the Presbyterian Church USA, and the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. They also were joined in this effort by major sports organizations, including: the NFL, NCAA, NBA and MLB.
According to the Rev. Cynthia Abrams, director of the Alcohol, Other Addictions and Health Care Program of the GBCS, the bill, which enforces the ban on illegal gambling through the Internet, passed in the Senate in the early hours of Sept. 30. The House passed the bill in July. It is designed to enforce current law, by specifying enforcement measures to the Wire Transfer Act, which prohibits illegal Internet gambling by preventing the use of current payment methods on the Internet such as credit cards, electronic withdrawal, and PayPal to make wagers or bets on illegal Internet gambling sites.
United Methodists in local churches and conferences throughout the United States were instrumental in activating members of Congress on this issue. A key turning point was an Iowa field hearing in September in which Iowa Area Bishop Gregory Palmer testified in support of the legislation at the hearing.
Present at the hearing were Rep. James Leach (R-Iowa) and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.). Following the hearing, Frist threw his support behind the legislation. Rep. Leach pointed to the instrumental work of The United Methodist Church in his speech on the House floor in July calling Abrams "an example of a fine American."
Speaking on behalf of the bill in the House of Representative, Leach said, "I want to conclude with this observation. This is not a partisan bill. It is not an ideological bill … this is a family bill … This is for the good of the American people, and in the development of legislation like this outside groups do play a role.
"Sometimes they are nefarious; that happens around here. Sometimes they are high-minded ….When I think of Cynthia Abrams from The United Methodist Church, I think of really fine Americans who have indicated that we should act in this area, and I am honored to work with them."
For more information about the General Board of Church and Society, log on to www.umc-gbcs.org.
Last updated on 25 Apr 2008