Archbishop Aquila warns about cultural acceptance of weed – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver on Friday released a pastoral letter on the Church’s teaching on recreational drugs, with a particular focus on marijuana, aiming to “help Catholics intelligently dialogue with the 70% of Americans who currently believe marijuana should be legal.”

“I write to you out of pastoral concern for the salvation of souls, and I am convinced of the need to address the impact marijuana use is having on individuals, families, and society in general,” Aquila wrote Nov. 10.

“We cannot pretend that the legalization and growing cultural acceptance of drugs do not have disproportionate effects on the most vulnerable in our society. Not only that, but it is an assault on human dignity, taking advantage of the vulnerable for the sake of financial profit.”

Aquila said he hopes the letter, titled “That They Might Have Life,” will serve as “among the first of many future resources made available to help fill the void that exists in the Catholic space on this burgeoning and critical issue.”

“The most important thing we can do as Christians in response to a drug culture is to proclaim the Gospel. It is through the love, mercy, meaning, and hope found in Christ that people will be deterred from drug use or inspired to break free of its influence,” the archbishop wrote.

“I pray for those who turn to drugs to escape reality, to avoid pain, to deal with loneliness, rejection, emotional wounds, or to deal with the struggle to find…