Sunday, October 11, 2009

Father Poker and PokerStars Million Dollar Challenge

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

Father Andrew Trapp will be a contestant on a brand new poker show called PokerStars.net Million Dollar Challenge. Contestants take on Team PokerStars Pros for cash. The first episode is aired today at 4:30pm ET on Fox.

I did a double take when I heard about a priest playing poker on TV. I had not seen that in a while. I grew up Catholic and my theology teacher in high school was known as "The Bukidnon Bookie" where he ran a football betting pool in which the proceeds went towards helping raise money for the Bukidnon province in the Philippines.

The Catholics are actually pro-gambling.... well, they allow gambling in moderation. Otherwise their bingo games (huge source of community fundraising) would get shut down by the Pope. Although the Catholic Church might think that poker is a game of chance (and not skill), the act of gambling is still kosher acceptable. The Catechism of the Catholic Church previously addressed gambling issues...
"Games of chance (card games, etc.) or wagers are not in themselves contrary to justice. They become morally unacceptable when they deprive someone of what is necessary to provide for his needs and those of others. The passion for gambling risks becoming an enslavement. Unfair wagers and cheating at games constitute grave matter, unless the damage inflicted is so slight that the one who suffers it cannot reasonably consider it significant."
It's a major PR coup that a priest from South Carolina is hitting the felt to help raise money for his church. It might help sway those folks in the Bible Belt who are on the fence about cards. Moralists fear that hold'em is the devil's game. They are dead wrong. PLO is the devil's game.

Check out Fr. Trapp's audition video...



And here's the promo for PokerStars.net Million Dollar Challenge...


The first episode is aired today at 4:30pm ET on Fox. Check local listings.

Click here to download PokerStars software.


Original content written and provided by Pauly from Tao of Poker at www.taopoker.com. All rights reserved. RSS feeds are for non-commercial use only.

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