ing marijuana and hashish, claiming the effectiveness of medical uses of the drug. In 1996, however, the Catholic Church in Brazil expressed its rejection of apro-marijuana campaign launched in the city of Sao Salvador de Bahia by a Braziliandeputy. Moreover, evidence in the Bible does provide for the rejection of substanceabuse and the acceptance of natural herbs which should be use to heal oneself. Forexample, the following quotation displays the belief that the body is a sacred “temple,”which should not be abused. “Do you not know that your body is a temple to the holyspirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own, you werebought at a price, therefore honor God in all you do (1 Corinthians 6:19 - 20).” However,it should be made clear that abusing any substances, such as alcohol, cigarettes, etc.could fall into this category. The Bible also gives evidence that God put healing herbsfor the benefit of man. “The Lord created medicines from the earth, and a sensible manwill not despise them. Was not water made sweet with a tree in order that His powermight be known... By them He heals and takes away pain; the pharmacist makes ofthem a compound (Ecclesiasticus 38: 4 - 8).” Possibly due to an unclear response fromthe Bible, the church has not given a clear resolution to legalizing marijuana for medicalusage.New solutions can be found with societal changes in understanding the possibleuses of the drug. Ultimately a technology for the inhalation of cannabis vapors could bedeveloped, which in essence are less damaging to the lungs that inhaled smoke. Evenif smoking continued, legal availability would make it easier to take precautions againstpathogens and bacteria that could harm the plant. At present, the greatest danger inmedical use of marijuana is its illegality, which imposes much anxiety and expense onsuffering people, forces them to bargain with illicit drug dea...
