Is smoking marijuana immoral?

[Jessica]

A friend asked me this ethical question, and I couldn’t answer it, so I was wondering if you could provide me with the Catholic standpoint.

My friend wants to know why smoking marijuana is morally wrong, whereas drinking alcohol is not. The Church teaches that alcohol can be consumed in moderation, but does it teach that marijuana can be consumed in moderation?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

The Church recognizes the authority of civil governments to regulate substances for just reasons. Marijuana is one such substance that the government can justly regulate. That is why the Church would say that it is wrong to smoke marijuana: Not because it is inherently evil, but because civil society has deemed it to be extrinsically dangerous.