Cannaterians are fighting for religious liberty.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON DC: A church devoted to the legalization of marijuana held its first service in Indianapolis on Wednesday.
The First Church of Cannabis, founded in March of this year with members who identify as Cannaterians, is seeking to legalize marijuana in Indiana as a religious liberty. The church is citing the state’s controversial Religious Freedom and Restoration Act, which went into effect on Wednesday.
According to Time:
The law, which permits companies and individuals to defend themselves in legal proceedings by citing religious beliefs, has been attacked by opponents who argue that it could be used by those who want to discriminate against LGBT people. But the First Church of Cannabis hopes to turn that concern on its head, using the law to allow for legal marijuana use.
The church’s leader, Bill Levin, who calls himself the institution’s “Grand Poobah,” noted during a service that Indianapolis’ police chief and the local prosecutor warned last week that church members could face arrest if they smoked pot during the service, according to News-Sentinel.
“If we weren’t intimidated this would be the sacrament box, folks — this is the box we keep our sacrament in,” the 59-year-old said, holding up a small wooden box that a fellow church member presented to him. “Unfortunately, there’s no sacrament in it today, so just pretend, folks.”
Most of the congregants followed suit, pretending to pass joints and puff from them, reported News-Sentinel.
The New York Times cited legal experts who said Levin may have trouble proving that the use of marijuana is truly tied to religious expression, but he seemed untroubled.
“This is an honest-to-God religion,” he told The Times. “Other religions have sins and guilt. We’re going to have a really big love-in.”