Why is smoking marijuana a sin?

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Le_Crouton

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Someone can easily just smoke a little bit just like someone else could have just one beer so what gives?
 
Who said it was? (depending on where you live)
 
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There are two explanations I’ve heard.
  1. It’s sinful to drink in order to become drunk. When you drink alcohol, it can quench your thirst, and you can drink it for the taste. These are good. When you smoke marijuana, it’s to get high. This is no different than drinking to become drunk.
  2. We are to obey the law so long as it doesn’t conflict with our Catholic Faith and morals. A state is entitled to make it illegal to use certain substances like marijuana. Doing so does not conflict with Catholic morals. Therefore by breaking such civil laws, we sin.
 
PBWY said:
My understanding is that it’s sinful if it’s unlawful or in excess.
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That’s also my understanding.

It’s primarily sinful because it is unlawful. If you are in an area where it is not unlawful, then it would be sinful if it was excessive or if it caused a health risk to the particular individual. For some, it might be a “gateway drug”, others might develop a dependency on it, and still others might be able to use it once in a while with no problem. Also, if it is legally and medically prescribed to a person, for a reasonable purpose like pain relief, then it isn’t a sin.
 
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Medical marijuana can be good and does not come with a high (or a noticeable one).
 
Drinking is:
  1. Normal
  2. Natural
  3. Necessary
Smokin’ a doob is:
  1. Cheech
  2. Chong
Just by the numbers drinking wins.

Seriously, why are you smoking something? Your body is not suffering because of a THC deficit. You are seeking, not refreshment, but a high. Voluntary intoxication - regardless of the substance - is a sin.
 
The OP didn’t mention medical purposes. He alikened it to drinking a beer, which is not medical treatment, so I didn’t touch medical marijuana.
 
Of course. Marijuana has a legitimate medical application.
 
po18guy said:
You are seeking, not refreshment, but a high. Voluntary intoxication - regardless of the substance - is a sin.
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There are degrees of intoxication, though. It’s not a sin to feel a little relaxed and slightly altered as opposed to completely out of your mind. To use the drinking analogy, I don’t think anyone thinks it’s a sin to drink to the point of being mildly tipsy.
 
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po18guy said:
Just by the numbers drinking wins.
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Huh?
The main reason everybody in the country drinks and see it as normal is because it has been legal and socially acceptable for decades.
Drinking alcohol is NOT necessary. You can easily have a happy life without ever consuming a drop of alcohol in your life.
And cannabis is about as “natural” as alcohol; both come from plants.

In any event, “everybody’s doin’ it” is not the yardstick for a behavior being a sin or not a sin. If that were the case, then premarital sex would be normal, natural and necessary and by the numbers, would win.

Muting this thread now. Marijuana sin threads always get ridiculous in a hurry. I’ve never used cannabis in any form in my life and I still think making it into a big sin while simultaneously defending alcohol use (I do sometimes drink) is silly.
 
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Fauken said:
There are two explanations I’ve heard.
  1. It’s sinful to drink in order to become drunk. When you drink alcohol, it can quench your thirst, and you can drink it for the taste. These are good. When you smoke marijuana, it’s to get high. This is no different than drinking to become drunk.
  2. We are to obey the law so long as it doesn’t conflict with our Catholic Faith and morals. A state is entitled to make it illegal to use certain substances like marijuana. Doing so does not conflict with Catholic morals. Therefore by breaking such civil laws, we sin.
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I would agree with this except I would edit the 1st to read…
If you smoke marijuana to get high, it is no different than drinking to get drunk. To say, “When you smoke marijuana, it’s to get high” is a fallacy, since not everyone smokes marijuana to get high. It can in fact serve medicinal purposes, both the CBD & THC. My understanding is there are varieties of marijuana that are lower in THC and can be smoked without “getting high.” (Others might also argue that you can smoke small amounts for the taste and to reduce anxiety/stress.)

Therefore it is sinful to knowingly abuse or overindulge in alcohol, marijuana, or any substance.

The 1st point also makes me think about cigarettes. Using the same logic, one could say smoking cigarettes is sinful. And even more so since cigarettes serve no medicinal purpose and also have serious toxic negative health effects not only for the one smoking them but also anyone who comes in contact with the second hand or third hand smoke/smoke residues. Not to mention the toxic chemicals used to grow the tobacco. But that’s just a sidenote I guess.
 
We can always talk about the border wall… 😬

In any event, it seems that almost no one has a catechism. Or they simply enjoy disputation as much as dank weed.
 
Agree, assuming that your nation and local government permit the use of Cannabis, why would it be sinful?
 
If it is legal where you live, then it is no different than alcool, coffee, cigarettes, tea, sweets… Using it is not a sin, abusing it is. If illegal, then it is a sin to use it unless your life depends on it (which it doesn’t).
 
A single beer can give you a buzz. It’s not like once you inhale a single hit of marijuana that you’re so high to the point where it impacts your reason
 
There’s varying degrees of high just as there is of drunkenness. Being buzzed isn’t a sin. Why shouldn’t that also apply to marijauna?
 
I meant drinking alcohol. And the body doesn’t need alcohol either. The same argument applies
 
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