Different religions have varying stances on the use of cannabis, historically and presently. In ancient history some religions used cannabis as an entheogen, particularly in the Indian subcontinent where the tradition continues on a more limited basis.
In the modern era Rastafari use cannabis as a sacred herb. Meanwhile, religions with prohibitions against intoxicants, such as Islam, Buddhism, Bahai, Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and others have opposed the use of cannabis by members, or in some cases opposed the liberalization of cannabis laws. Other groups, such as some Protestant and Jewish factions, have supported the use of medicinal cannabis.
Can Christians smoke weed with a clear conscience now it's legal in my home state? Is cannabis smoking a sin? The answer for a surprising number of Christians is yes, and they quote Bible scriptures. Kaneh Bosm as it is called in the Bible was used as a medicinal herb and is quoted in many passages.
Whether you buy into natural cannabis herbal use being OK under God, you need to accept some scholar's translation of the Hebrew Bible. You will also be the type of person that doesn't believe what the Federal Government has been saying for the past 70 years (before that hemp and cannabis medicines were perfectly legal in the US.). Few Christians know that all farmers in the original colonies were required by law, that farmers must grow hemp for its first hundred years of existence. The founding fathers were hemp farmers; Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington.
"The anointment of sacred objects was an ancient tradition in Israel; holy oil was not to be used for secular purposes. The sacred character or Hemp in biblical times is described in Exodus 30:22- 23, where Moses was instructed by God to anoint the meeting tent and all its furnishings with specially prepared oil, containing hemp. Anointing set sacred things apart from secular, normal from the godlike." - Benet, 1975 (paraphrase)
Perhaps a lot of people out there want to connect marijuana (cannabis) use to a spiritual practice and are delusional to connect the herbs and oils mentioned in the Bible. This is nothing new. Throughout history, man has been searching for material ways, and justification, to become more spiritual and closer to God.
If you think about it, and know something about the history of marijuana, it was generally legal throughout the world for thousands of years, with the notable exception being America. The pro-marijuana crowd claims that In the 1930's, the foes of marijuana, the industrialists with competing products of pulp and paper, oil, cotton and later the pharmaceutical industry conspired to make cannabis and its non-psychoactive cousin, hemp, off the market.
Bear in mind, that perhaps the majority of Christians think that the federal government is doing a lot of things to discourage, or even prosecute Christians. Certainly Christians that feel offended by the Feds might be willing to consider that cannabis is not what they say it is, an evil satanic substance.
