Here at the ULCM blog, we have been monitoring trends in psychoactive drug use as a form of sacrament or communion with God. In a recent blog article, we discussed state control of psychoactive drugs and how such action might constitute impingement on spiritual freedom; we also discussed the growing tolerance towards cannabis use, reflected in the increased relaxation of marijuana laws in numerous U.S. states. But perhaps there are other religious purposes for drugs than the sacramental one; perhaps traditionally taboo or highly restricted drugs serve the purpose of healing, or at least pain relief, in which religious organizations can play an instrumental role.
This is the approach of Wayne Dagit, who became ordained online with Universal Life Church and set up a cannabis “club” in Michigan’s Williamston Township when that state legalized medical marijuana in 2008. Green Leaf Smokers Club serves as a sort of bar for medical marijuana patients, who arrive with their identification and medical marijuana cards. The medicine which Rev. Dagit dispenses ranges in form from the traditional joint to cannabis brownies and coffee laced with “New York Diesel” cannabis. Perhaps ironically, Rev. Dagit set up the club to combat the effects of drug abuse: having lost friends to prescription drug overdoses, he preaches against the harm of prescription drug addiction while advocating the use of cannabis to counteract the ill effects of such drugs. For doctors to administer such harmful drugs to patients in order to combat their illness, Dagit argues, is like saying, “You are going to die and we will help you, but we are going to let you feel good going.”
So how does Dagit bring the church into the picture? Not only is he an ordained minister, but he and his business partner, John Olson, operate Green Leaf Smokers Club as an outreach branch of Dagit’s church, known as the Church of Compassionate Care Ministries. According to Andy Balaskovitz of the Lansing weekly City Pulse, the goal of CFCC and its cannabis club is “to get people off hard prescription drugs and offer them a way to God without being ostracized in a typical church setting”. “If you’re not interested in being thrown out or made a pet-project by most churches, come to mine,” says Dagit. “You can stink, be a biker or a prostitute, I don’t care. We are not a resort for saints—we are a hospital for sinners.” The church even runs a school—Green Leaf University—a program which offers free classes and certification in cannabis-growing. Even the church shop sells fluorescent lamps for patients who wish to grow their own cannabis at home.
But does CFCC constitute a real church? One test is whether it has a regular meeting place. Beyond a physical place of worship, though, the traditional church worship service includes a sermon, liturgy, or ritual followed by a reception where congregants gather to have refreshments. CFCC has a gathering place–the Roadhouse Driving Range and Banquet Center in Williamston; in addition, Dagit holds sermons here from 10 a.m. to noon Sunday mornings, followed by a free lunch and reception where patients can exercise their right to smoke cannabis. During the sermon, Dagit read a passage about liberation from the book of Luke in the Christian Bible, using the text to emphasize the right to practice religious healing without persecution.
Attitudes towards the church vary. Law enforcement authorities have shown suspicions over the organization’s club and public outreach branch, which has been “dubbed one big party by the county sheriff”, according to Balaskovitz. But, in Balaskovitz’s words, the Reverend maintains, “it is close-minded to believe everyone is there just to get high”. “If a marijuana user becomes a patient, it often means they have already been prescribed opiates”, he points out, asking, “If it’s only about getting high, they already have the best drugs to do that—why would they need pot?” Debbie Warner, who leases Dagit his office space and owns the church building with her husband, sees his actions not as blight, but as a boon not just to the church’s congregation, but to the larger community: “He is a good man,” she said. “With us, it’s all about community service and that is exactly what he is doing.” Low-income patient Mandy Swee, who relies on the club for much of her cannabis dose as well as social support, echoes this sentiment, stating, “There is a world of difference between a sick person using marijuana and some 18-year-old just trying to get high”.
It certainly seems as though CFCC and its pastor are on the right track regarding the use of medical cannabis; after all, one of the duties of religious organizations is to care for and minister to the sick. And it seems even more reasonable for ministers to provide their laity with drugs which mitigate the ill effects of more damaging prescription drugs. Perhaps drugs indeed have a religious function, and not just as a sacrament, but also as a healing remedy.
Source:
City Pulse
[...] argued that allowing one church to use the substance would be a dangerous step closer toward legalization of marijuana. At the heart of the issue is the question whether a drug which is reasonably harmless, but which [...]