legal prostitution and gambling is not more sinful


Las Vegas

When most people thinks about Las Vegas they picture some combination of gambling, burlesque, night clubs and legalized prostitution—the pleasures that earned Vegas the nickname Sin City. But when Sociologist Lori Fazzino thinks about Las Vegas, she pictures churches.
Seventy-seven percent of Las Vegas residents say they are religious, mostly Christian; and Vegas caters to a largely Christian population of tourists, many of whom party hard on Saturday night and then attend one of the 30 churches surrounding the strip on Sunday. And yet, the city’s public image makes it a target for revival meetings, “church planting” and missionary outreach by conservative Christians who see the city as ripe for redemption. According to Fazzino, that makes Sin City a fascinating place to study religious belief and non-belief. (By Valerie Tarico)”

http://www.salon.com/2015/08/22/atheist_are_as_moral_as_theists_an_interview_with_a_sin_city_religious_sociologist_partner/

I was in Las Vegas only once. There, I did go to casino, show, out to eat and a Church. Perhaps, I did have some alcohol but I am not so sure about it. I enjoyed my experience of Las Vegas. I did not stay in the city. I stayed in the suburbs. They had parks, schools and libraries there. It was just a regular place like any other suburb in any other city. In some way I did not feel much different there than in any other big city like New York, D.C. Atlantic City or Chicago.  Just because the prostitution and gambling are legal there it does not make it more “sinful” than any other place.

I like to play Bingo. Bingo is a form of gambling. I have played Bingo in two places: schools and churches. Sex… We can have in any place. We might not always pay directly for the act but dinners, movies, time together… Yes, we spend money during those activities. Just because something is more established and known it does not make it more sinful. It only makes it more honest.  

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