Drinking alcohol and smoking pot – what are your thoughts?

[CopticChristian]

Since we are on the topic of drug abuse, if I was going to do anything at all.
I’d want to take D-bol and Aderall. I think that would be more productive. I have contemplated it a lot but I had an old co-worker who’s heart exploded taking D-Bol, and I don’t think I am ready for that kind of risk. He left a good looking corpse though.
Any friend I’ve ever had on Aderall has been a strait A student on his way to grad school.$$$ If your going to get high; those are the two drugs to take, not beer and pot.
There is a significant difference, I can’t imagine why anyone would take beer over D-bol
Look at the difference of a drinker after a 4 week cycle of Budweiser compared to a athlete after a 4-week cycle of D-bol.
Cheers! and God bless,

Jess,

D-bol as I understand it is steroid. This is bad stuff. Leave the steroids alone. Aderall as I understand it is for ADD and unless you have ADD you should not be taking this stuff.

 

[Jessup]

Sounds to me like you might want to take a second look at where your priorities are. You sound a little too excited about becoming an attractive alpha male making six figures.

Those are the only real priorities in life. Nothing in this life is handed to you,
women are competed for and men have to compete, for anything in life.
Don’t think because you are a nice guy and do everything asked in the scriptures that God is going to take care of you. I’ve seen at the university and in heavy industry, what being a "nice guy " gets you in classes, work place and in the social world. You can only live off of love for about a week, then you need some money. Most couples get divorced because they are poor and miserable as a result of their alcohol and pot addictions which is the habit of the weak and lazy.
When God decides to heal me, I’ll change my attitude. Until then I will always do what I can to make life miserable for pot heads and drinkers because that is what they have done to me my entire life.
The only other alternative to get the freedom from the absolute hatred that I carry in my heart for these people and have Christ’s healing is when I’m in the LDS church, where it is free from such non sense. But that’s for another post.

Sorry if I am to aggressive in my post.

 

[Usbek_de_Perse]

Apparently the Oregon bill had onerous restrictions about who could sell it and it failed because of these restrictions, not because Oregonians are any less friendly to cannabis.

I find it interesting that it passed in Washington but not in Oregon. Any ideas what happened between the two Pacific Northwest states on the issue of legalized pot?

 

[Christian_Unity]

Apparently the Oregon bill had onerous restrictions about who could sell it and it failed because of these restrictions, not because Oregonians are any less friendly to cannabis.

Thanks… I have heard that many politicians from both parties want to nationally legalize pot. Maybe it is similar to prohibition… in which organized crime becomes a bigger problem than alcohol or pot itself?

 

[Ghosty]

Drinking is ok in moderation; i.e don’t get drunk. Pot is not okay because it gets a person “high” immediately, unlike alcohol. Being able to control what you are doing is something that God made us to do.

This is simply not true regarding the effects of marijuana. One doesn’t lose their faculties of control after moderate pot use, and one doesn’t get “high” after one hit. I’m not sure where this myth got started, but I see it all the time on this forum and it’s very misleading.

There are 18 states and DC which permits medical marijuana usage. It is not illegal per federal law. Why would medical marijuana usage be any different than taking pharmaceutical drugs prescribed by your doctor?

Medical marijuana is indeed illegal under Federal law, they’ve just not enforced the law heavily in most states.

I find it interesting that it passed in Washington but not in Oregon. Any ideas what happened between the two Pacific Northwest states on the issue of legalized pot?

I don’t know about Oregon, but in Washington State the major population centers have decriminalized marijuana use for almost a decade. Most people here are used to the idea of marijuana use, and have seen that it doesn’t have a major negative affect on society at large.

I do know that the ad campaign was very strong in Washington, and backed by prominent law enforcement figures (including the former local head of the DEA) and local t.v. personalities like Rick Steves, while in Oregon they didn’t have a great ad campaign. My conservative, 75 year old, Southern Baptist grandmother-in-law voted for legalization in Washington, which tells you something about the effectiveness of the ad campaign here.

Peace and God bless!

 

[Ghosty]

Apparently the Oregon bill had onerous restrictions about who could sell it and it failed because of these restrictions, not because Oregonians are any less friendly to cannabis.

Interesting. I wonder how it was different from the Washington law which requires commercial licensing.

Peace and God bless!

 

[Christian_Unity]

This is simply not true regarding the effects of marijuana. One doesn’t lose their faculties of control after moderate pot use, and one doesn’t get “high” after one hit. I’m not sure where this myth got started, but I see it all the time on this forum and it’s very misleading.

Medical marijuana is indeed illegal under Federal law, they’ve just not enforced the law heavily in most states.

I don’t know about Oregon, but in Washington State the major population centers have decriminalized marijuana use for almost a decade. Most people here are used to the idea of marijuana use, and have seen that it doesn’t have a major negative affect on society at large.

I do know that the ad campaign was very strong in Washington, and backed by prominent law enforcement figures (including the former local head of the DEA) and local t.v. personalities like Rick Steves, while in Oregon they didn’t have a great ad campaign. My conservative, 75 year old, Southern Baptist grandmother-in-law voted for legalization in Washington, which tells you something about the effectiveness of the ad campaign here.

Peace and God bless!

Thanks you sister for that post I do like the progressive thinking on many issues on the West Coast. What is not done in faith is sin. If a Catholic or Protestant Christian can smoke legal pot to the glory of God, then that is between God and themselves. I think churches tend to create man made rule and regulation which leads to legalism and Christians become the modern day Pharisees in our society.

 

[Porknpie]

Thanks you sister for that post I do like the progressive thinking on many issues on the West Coast. What is not done in faith is sin. If a Catholic or Protestant Christian can smoke legal pot to the glory of God, then that is between God and themselves. I think churches tend to create man made rule and regulation which leads to legalism and Christians become the modern day Pharisees in our society.

CU -

From my post #72 which you did not respond to…again, which symptoms of using pot reflect our call to holiness?

Christian, from the Mayo clinic link, tell everyone which symptoms below are reflective to our call to holiness and give glory to God?

Poor memory.
Increased blood pressure and heart rate.
Red eyes
Decreased coordination.
Difficulty concentrating.
Slowed reaction time.
Paranoid thinking.

 

[Christian_Unity]

CU -

From my post #72 which you did not respond to…again, which symptoms of using pot reflect our call to holiness?

Sorry, I’m not a pot smoker. I do drink beer and wine with my wife in moderation. I would assume pot has similar effect with moderate drinking. If the medical profession can prescribe medical marijuana usage, then I would say pot is from God. Do you think believers can drink to the glory of God? Check out 1 Cor 10:31

 

[Porknpie]

Sorry, I’m not a pot smoker. I do drink beer and wine with my wife in moderation. I would assume pot has similar effect with moderate drinking. If the medical profession can prescribe medical marijuana usage, then I would say pot is from God. Do you think believers can drink to the glory of God? Check out 1 Cor 10:31

CU -

Do you understand the whole paragraph, in context of what St. Paul is speaking? He’s speaking whether one should eat food sacrificed to idols when the early church was visiting gentiles. Obviously there a problems here if “whatever I do” would be in the glory of God. I can think of many things that are not…

23 Everything is lawful, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is lawful, but not everything builds up.
24 No one should seek his own advantage, but that of his neighbor.
25 Eat anything sold in the market, without raising questions on grounds of conscience, 26 for the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.
27 If an unbeliever invites you and you want to go, eat whatever is placed before you, without raising questions on grounds of conscience.
28 But if someone says to you, “This was offered in sacrifice", do not eat it on account of the one who called attention to it and on account of conscience;
29 I mean not your own conscience, but the other’s. For why should my freedom be determined by someone else’s conscience?
30 If I partake thankfully, why am I reviled for that over which I give thanks?
**31 So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. **32 Avoid giving offense, whether to Jews or Greeks or the church of God,
33 just as I try to please everyone in every way, not seeking my own benefit but that of the many, that they may be saved.

 

[Christian_Unity]

CU -

Do you understand the whole paragraph, in context of what St. Paul is speaking? He’s speaking whether one should eat food sacrificed to idols when the early church was visiting gentiles. Obviously there a problems here if “whatever I do” would be in the glory of God. I can think of many things that are not…

23 Everything is lawful, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is lawful, but not everything builds up.
24 No one should seek his own advantage, but that of his neighbor.
25 Eat anything sold in the market, without raising questions on grounds of conscience, 26 for the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.
27 If an unbeliever invites you and you want to go, eat whatever is placed before you, without raising questions on grounds of conscience.
28 But if someone says to you, “This was offered in sacrifice", do not eat it on account of the one who called attention to it and on account of conscience;
29 I mean not your own conscience, but the other’s. For why should my freedom be determined by someone else’s conscience?
30 If I partake thankfully, why am I reviled for that over which I give thanks?
31 So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. 32 Avoid giving offense, whether to Jews or Greeks or the church of God,
33 just as I try to please everyone in every way, not seeking my own benefit but that of the many, that they may be saved.

Do you think Catholics can drink alcoholic drinks to the glory of God?

 

[Porknpie]

Do you think Catholics can drink alcoholic drinks to the glory of God?

Yes of course. We receive the Eucharist every week…the bread and wine turned into the resurrected Body and Blood of Christ

Again, read St. Paul in context…

 

[dzheremi]

Someone (Eastern Orthodox) commented to me recently that the Coptic Orthodox Church is probably the only “dry” Orthodox Church in the world. While I know that this is not exactly the case on an individual level (one of our priests here, after finding out that I grew up in the “wine country” of Northern California, was shocked to find out that I don’t care for the stuff: “Why not? Even Christ Jesus drank wine! It’s good for your heart.”), it is a common opinion in the Church, and one that I prefer to the alternative, although I am not dogmatic about it either.

Marijuana, however…it is kind of stretching it to say that it might be beneficial in the same way as wine can be in moderation. Don’t get me wrong here…when my own mother was dying of cancer about 20 years ago (so, a bit before ‘medical marijuana’ was a common phenomenon), she applied to the FDA or whoever regulated such things at the time and received a special license to use marijuana as a pain reliever. She tried it once and was so disgusted by how it made her feel that she tore up the license. I don’t know…maybe that feeling’s genetic, because when I tried marijuana in my early teens, I had the same reaction. I don’t need chemical help to want snacks or feel clammy and paranoid, y’know? So I see marijuana in a more unambiguously negative light, though also recognize that alcohol is really not “better” (alcoholism runs in my mother’s side of the family, so I’d probably avoid it even if I liked the taste).

Ultimately it comes down to abstaining from anything that would control you. As it says in the holy scriptures, “and do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.” (Eph. 5:18)

 

[Christian_Unity]

Yes of course. We receive the Eucharist every week…the bread and wine turned into the resurrected Body and Blood of Christ

Again, read St. Paul in context…

So, what’s the issue sister? I personally believe that Christians can drink or smoke to the glory of God according to their own conscience before God. We can disagree agreeably on the issue of pot. I don’t personally smoke pot, so it’s not an issue I have to wrestle with. The Apostle Paul writes quite a bit of man made regulations of do not taste, touch, etc. which seems to apply on these issues. I thought the topic of legalized pot would be interesting to discuss, but I think we beat the topic to death. Take care.

 

[Ghosty]

CU -

From my post #72 which you did not respond to…again, which symptoms of using pot reflect our call to holiness?

Those are the same symptoms as of alcohol use. Why make such a distinction?

Peace and God bless!

 

[Ghosty]

Thanks you sister for that post I do like the progressive thinking on many issues on the West Coast. What is not done in faith is sin. If a Catholic or Protestant Christian can smoke legal pot to the glory of God, then that is between God and themselves. I think churches tend to create man made rule and regulation which leads to legalism and Christians become the modern day Pharisees in our society.

Brother, actually.

For me it’s not a progressive issue, but rather about finding a functional drug policy that does more good than harm. My personal experience with pot was rather negative, and I don’t care for the stuff, but I think the current drug laws nationally are largely counter-productive just as alcohol prohibition was. If someone is going to make money off of pot I want it to be American farmers and shops, not Mexican drug cartels.

Peace and God bless!

 

[Christian_Unity]

Brother, actually.

For me it’s not a progressive issue, but rather about finding a functional drug policy that does more good than harm. My personal experience with pot was rather negative, and I don’t care for the stuff, but I think the current drug laws nationally are largely counter-productive just as alcohol prohibition was. If someone is going to make money off of pot I want it to be American farmers and shops, not Mexican drug cartels.

Peace and God bless!

I agree

 

[Porknpie]

CU,

This was your very first post on the subject before us, a thread that you started. You asked about the Catholic position and I and others are responding.

I’ve been to various Protestant churches…some discourage drinking, others prohibit it, and still others have no problem with it. I believe Catholics drink just like me. Since marijuana is now legal in Washington and Colorado, and medical marijuana is legal in many states, what do you believe about drinking and smoking pot?

The issue is highlighted in your words.

So, what’s the issue sister? **I personally believe that Christians can drink or smoke to the glory of God according to their own conscience **before God. We can disagree agreeably on the issue of pot. I don’t personally smoke pot, so it’s not an issue I have to wrestle with. The Apostle Paul writes quite a bit of man made regulations of do not taste, touch, etc. which seems to apply on these issues. I thought the topic of legalized pot would be interesting to discuss, but I think we beat the topic to death. Take care.

One’s conscience is poorly formed to believe that smoking pot is in keeping to our call to holiness whether you do it yourself OR another Christian does it. On drinking alchohol, the bible admonishing drunkeness but not drinking in moderation but I respect anyone who would chose not to drink at all.

1 Peter 1 below

13 Therefore, gird up the loins of your mind, live soberly, and set your hopes completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
14 Like obedient children, do not act in compliance with the desires of your former ignorance
15 but, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct, 16 for it is written,** “Be holy because I [am] holy.”**

Again, I ask…for the third time…which pot smoking symptoms are reflective of our call to holiness?

Poor memory.
Increased blood pressure and heart rate.
Red eyes
Decreased coordination.
Difficulty concentrating.
Slowed reaction time.
Paranoid thinking.

 

[Christian_Unity]

CU,

This was your very first post on the subject before us, a thread that you started. You asked about the Catholic position and I and others are responding.

The issue is highlighted in your words.

One’s conscience is poorly formed to believe that smoking pot is in keeping to our call to holiness whether you do it yourself OR another Christian does it. On drinking alchohol, the bible admonishing drunkeness but not drinking in moderation but I respect anyone who would chose not to drink at all.

1 Peter 1 below

13 Therefore, gird up the loins of your mind, live soberly, and set your hopes completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
14 Like obedient children, do not act in compliance with the desires of your former ignorance
15 but, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct, 16 for it is written,** “Be holy because I [am] holy.”**

Again, I ask…for the third time…which pot smoking symptoms are reflective of our call to holiness?

Poor memory.
Increased blood pressure and heart rate.
Red eyes
Decreased coordination.
Difficulty concentrating.
Slowed reaction time.
Paranoid thinking.

I’m not a pot smoker, but I will answer you that what you posted about pot is the same symptoms related to drinking alcohol. I believe Catholics and Christians can drink alcohol with these same symptoms as you listed above to the glory of God. Until you are willing to start a prohibition movement against drinking for Catholics, you argument holds no water from my perspective. I think you are in the wrong Christian circles because I do know Catholics laity and clergy drink quite a bit of alcohol. Your personal views on drinking and smoking fit well in Christian Protestant Fundamentalism with rules of no drinking, no dancing, or no dating women who do those things. Until the Catholic Magestrieum makes a dogmatic statement on legalized pot smoking, I think you should leave this issue to the individual conscience of your fellow Catholics. In addition, are you willing to fight a prohibition against medical marijuna usage for those who beneift from it?

 

[TimothyH]

I told my children that if I ever catch them with pot, that I will personally call the police and have them arrested, and then I will take their college fund and buy a ZR1 Corvette.

Anyone who smokes pot is an idiot, like I was for eleven years.

-Tim-