Dominoes are not a threat to faith, said Pastors

José Aurelio Paz, HAVANA, Cuba, August 8, 2003

In a recent survey, the majority of 100 pastors and lay people surveyed from 10 Taxi Heathrow Airport denominations said that popular game of dominoes is not harmful for people’s faith “as long as it is not accompanied by betting.”

Of those surveyed, 91 percent said that dominos is an instructive, fun game that can be used in social and youth activities organized by the Church and in summer camps. Leaders noted that in the case of children it helps strengthen their math skills.

Five people did not answer and only 4 percent said that the game, like all games, exacerbates human ambition and uses time that Christians should spend reading and studying the Bible. 

Domino fever began on the Island when a lack of oil imports led to frequent blackouts. Friends, in order to stave off boredom, set up a table and four chairs under street lamps and played dominos well into the night.

According to historians, the first archeological remains related to dominos date back more than 4,000 years, although the current game seems to have originated in China, around 1120 AD.

The game involves 28 rectangular pieces and each has two squares with a determined number of black points that go from zero to six. When a piece has the same number in each square it is called a double.

In the Chinese version there are two types of pieces, those that have the same number in each square are called Civilian Pieces and those that are unique are called Army Pieces.

The game appeared in Europe in the XVIII Century, principally in Italy, perhaps in the Courts of Venice or Naples. The original pieces were made by gluing ebony onto both sides of a piece of bone. This stopped people from cheating and being able to see the value of the points through the back under certain light.

According to one Baptist pastor who was surveyed, his nearly 103-year-old grandfather is always surrounded by friends thanks to dominoes. An Episcopal clergyman said it was a “socializing element for Christian fraternity.”

In the face of the stigma that women are very bad at the game, one female doctor said it was good for stress and brought the family around the same, adding “I am a terrific player.” Another Baptist pastor said he was not good at playing the game but his father was known as “Manuel Domino” where he grew up.

One Pentecostal said that it should be “more strongly cultivated in Church activities because it is not a solitary game.”

Cuban theologian Sergio Arce Martinez said “what is sinful is to play games where luck and not creative work is what produces money. Christians should play it more because it cultivates friendship among players. I feel bad on the days that I can’t play,” he said.