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Zilos

Could cannabis be used legally if it's done for a religious purpose? One Illinois Central College Student's new ministry is testing the law.

20-year-old Joe Johnson says his path to practice his religion and find God is to use cannabis.

Johnson said, ''Through the use of it, I found out it was very profound and allows you to experience things otherwise you wouldn't experience, like ultra-states of consciousness through meditation.''

Johnson says he just became a reverend with a church associated with The Hawaii Cannabis Ministry or THC. His church currently has two members but is open to anyone from any religion.

He says it's not open to those looking for a reason to use the drug for recreation and not religion.

''I find that very offensive. That's like saying Catholics use wine to go get drunk,'' said Johnson.

Johnson says cannabis use is legal under the Illinois Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act even though neither document specifically says that.

East Peoria Police Chief Ed Papis said, ''If he practices indulging in marijuana or any illegal drugs, he'll be arrested and so will his parishioners.''

Johnson is awaiting a court date in Tazewell County for possession of marijuana after being pulled over for speeding.

He'll find out if his religion defense will work. Prosecutors, like police, say it won't.

Besides dealing with law enforcement, Reverend Joe could also be heading for problems with Illinois Central College and WoodView Commons Apartments where he lives.

John Avendano, ICC Vice President of Student Development, said, ''We're respectful of all the religious rights of all of our students. We try to help them in anyway except when it crosses the line. This is something that does cross the line.''

Avendano says the lease Johnson signed states if he's caught with cannabis that he'll be evicted but it doesn't mean he'll be kicked out of school.

Johnson says his congregation is looking for a vacant church besides his campus apartment to hold services and administer the sacrament cannabis.

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vladimir

some religions do some sick twisted ****, and its all protected by freedom of religion and people just stand by and watch it, yet when someone uses cannabis as part of their religion, its 'crossing the line'. bs.

.:.evergreen.:.

Marijuana is not nearly as harmful as some other methods that are bizarre as much as they are harmful to a person's health. Yet when we smoke a little bit of marijuana to help us relax and think in depth of philosophy and religion this is somehow illegal. Its quite funny how we celebrate people doing stupid, harming antics on tv yet when it comes to slightly "abusing" our body and mind apparently this is illegal. Its just a vice on control.

RL in IL

This is most curious to me. There is the religion of Rastafarianism.

It is true that cannabis can be used correctly and there is an anecdotal history of cannabis use in religious rituals.

It may again depend on the variety of cannabis used. I'm absolutely certain that the variety of cannabis is important to distinguish after watching the Montel Williams' show about medical marijuana. It showed that a certain variety of cannabis helped a young boy, to become lively and do well in school, and how he suffered when the government took it away and the mother could not find the same kind of cannabis as he was getting before. They tried all kinds of different kinds of cannabis, but, the one kind that the government took away which helped him could not be found again.

It could help the case by chipping away at the myth of US law that says all marijuana is the same and dangerous. Distinctive varieties can have distinct purposes.

Buzzby

I find it very strange that the US government permits Native Americans to use peyote for religious purposes under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act but denies marijuana to Rastafarians and members of the THC Ministry. Does anyone understand the reasoning behind this? The Native American Church started out with ancient traditional practices originating in northern Mexico and Texas but has spread to many groups for whom such use is not traditional. How does that differ from the religious use of marijuana?

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PotShot

Well, as far as religion and cannabis goes, I would be hesitant to organize a religion around it. I sometimes feel a great reverance, and have "spiritual" feelings about cannabis... I believe if there is some sort of intelligent creator, he surly put cannabis on this planet for us. The flexibility and varied uses of the plant has inspired divine thoughts in my like nothing else has.

But, I would not want to organize a religion based on it, for the simple fact that I dislike organized religion. I think religion is something each person should find on his/her own, a set or morals and thought patterns that you develop as you enter adulthood. I think it is fine to "sample" other patterns of thought, in fact that is the only way to learn things.

Hopefully "Reverend Joe's" plan will work though, anything to keep the government out of somebodies private drug use

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AlucardOrange3

Hey guys (and especially ADMINISTRATORS) I wish I'd saved the actual link to the news story I summarized below, but I figured somebody on the site would already have posted it (maybe they did and I just missed it).

Basically I read an article about how the Supreme Court had overturned a ruling by the Illinois Supreme Court which stated that it was unconstitutional for a drug dog to sniff a car at a routine traffic stop (speeding, etc.) unless there was probable cause to believe that illegal contraband was in the car. The case involved a guy driving 6 miles over the speed limit on the freeway who got pulled over and issued a ticket, at which point another cop car showed up with a K-9 unit and let the dog sniff the outside of the car. The K-9 unit alerted that there was an illicit substance in the trunk, and the cops opened it and found a few pounds of cannabis. Prior to the dog-sniff, the police did not detect any smells, sights, or sounds that would give them probably cause to search the vehicle, and the defense attorney's argument was that the dog sniff was equivalent to an unconstitutional search, violating the 4th Amendment. The Illinois Supreme Court agreed, which was good news for the MJ community, but then the Federal Supreme Court recently overturned the verdict, in essence allowing random drug dog sniffs at traffic stops during which there is no probable cause for a search.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, keep it real anyway,

AO3

SacredJellybean

AlucardOrange: Yep, that article was posted on this forum. You can find it here.

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"Every age has its peculiar folly and if Charles Mackay, the author of the 19th century classic, Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds were alive today he would surely see 'cannabinophobia' as a popular delusion along with the 'tulipmania' and 'witch hunts' of earlier ages. ... I also believe that future historians will look at this epoch and recognize it as another instance of the 'madness of crowds.'"
~Dr. Lester Grinspoon

Inhousecounsel

Strange, yes. Doubt that you're surprised, though, particularly since virtually all rastas are black. Basically, to use drugs for religious purposes you have to prove that the church is well-established, that doing dope is an integral part of the religion and that you are committed member in all ways. This prevents dope smokers from starting up a new religion and declaring their dope is religious.

There have been a couple of cases, or at least one that I'm aware of, where Rastafarians have used the defense and (kind of) won, but they got busted on other charges, importing or distribution, I believe. The Native Americans have much better argument on the well-established thing because they have been using peyote for centuries. (Not that I don't think the Rastas should be able to smoke. I do.)