A free presentation aimed at educating the island’s religious community about problem gaming is set to be held this month by the Bermuda Gaming Commission.

“Awareness of Gambling Addiction in the Faith Community”, scheduled to be held on March 27 at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute, will see international experts discuss the issue and how to deal with problem gaming.

Among the presenters will be Deborah Haskins, director of counselling programmes at Trinity Washington University, and Keith Whyte, the executive director of the National Council of Problem Gambling.

In addition to the presentation, the event will provide a training session for attendees to be accredited through the International Gambling Counsellor Certification Board.

According to Mr Whyte, who has been working with the BCGC to minimise the negative impact of casino gaming on the island, international studies show between one and three per cent of people who gamble will become addicted.

“Communities of faith are some of the most important anchors in the health of a community so the more we can do to help the faith community understand some of the roots, causes and warning signs of gambling addiction, the more we can do to help members of the congregation protect themselves,” Mr Whyte said.

“We want to help church leaders have those conversations so that if someone comes to them with a problem concerning addiction, they can provide a safe harbour for anyone who may be struggling with this invisible disease, who may not know where else to turn.”

Meanwhile, Dr Haskins said: “There tends to be a lot of myths that exist in the faith community around gambling and some of the messages that are shared aren’t encouraging for believers, but can be shame-based like ‘gambling is a sin’, ‘if you’re in trouble you can just go to God’, ‘you just need to pray more’ or ‘you must not be strong enough in your faith if you are not able to stop gambling’.

“What I have seen in cultural communities and spiritual communities, especially in the body of faith, is people aren’t always supported in ways they need to be. However, churches are able to function at their best when they are able to meet people at their need.

“The reality is you can be a person in daily life relying on your faith and you can use gambling as a form of recreation. Some faith communities participate in gambling activities like bingo or raffles for example.”

Richard Schuetz, executive director of the BCGC said: “Creating a gambling experience that meets the needs of the Bermuda community has been our goal from day one of this effort.

“We are committed to building a vibrant and robust programme for problem gambling and ensuring it’s properly in effect before the first casino doors open on the island.”

The event is scheduled to will begin with the presentation from 11am until 12.30pm, with the training session running between 1.30pm until 4pm.

All attendees are encouraged to RSVP by e-mailing admin@bcgc.bm or phoning 400-2100 by March 17.