Medical Marijuana is about compassion, mercy and helping someone in need. These are values that a person of faith should support. Medical marijuana is natural, safe, and effective medicine that has helped thousands of patients with their debilitating medical conditions. Religious leaders from many denominations have spoken out and supported medical marijuana. Won’t you?
What Faith Groups support Medical Marijuana?
The Interfaith Drug Policy Initiative states, “Licensed medical doctors should not be punished for recommending the use of medical marijuana to seriously ill people, and seriously ill people should not be subject to criminal sanctions for using marijuana if the patient’s physician has told the patient that such use is likely to be beneficial.”
This initiative is a nationwide effort to bring together people of faith to promote drug policy reform. Supporters include:
- United Methodist Church
- Presbyterian Church (USA)
- United Methodist Board of Church and Society
- Episcopal Church
- Unitarian Universalist Association
- Union for Reform Judaism
- United Church of Christ
- Progressive National Baptist Convention
Several major denominations and other religious groups have official positions supporting medical marijuana. We’ve listed some of these official positions below.
The United Methodist Church adopted the following position at their General Conference in 2004 by a vote of 877-19:
“Some countries permit the use of marijuana in medicines. Recently, some states in the United States have passed legislation permitting the medical use of marijuana. The medical use of any drug should not be seen as encouraging recreational use of the drug. We urge all persons to abstain from all use of marijuana, unless it has been legally prescribed in a form appropriate for treating a particular medical condition.”
Subsequently, the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society signed on to the following statement: “Licensed medical doctors should not be punished for recommending the medical use of marijuana to seriously ill people, and seriously ill people should not be subject to criminal sanctions for using marijuana if the patient’s physician has told the patient that such use is likely to be beneficial.”
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