Jesus & jane

In an earlier blog , the author cleverly closed by quoting Acts 4:20, “As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Brilliant! We got thinking.... I wonder what things the Bible has to say at address 4:20??? Intense Bible study commenced! The result? While it may not qualify as great theology, it turns out there are actually some pretty interesting verses to be found at 4:20. Some are fun, some are heartwarming, some are silly, and some require a bit of a stretch, but hey... it’s 420! Let’s let our hair down a bit and enjoy a little break from the seriousness that life throws at us! We hope you enjoy these little shareable memes. If you think your friends might too, feel free to share them! This should be the “life verse” for every cannabis farmer!  Okay, maybe it didn’t exactly say it like this, but still doesn’t seem like a bad idea! So, go roll something up now, share it with the people with you, and sit down! What ar...

“Jesus Higher” by David Hayward   (This blog is the first in our series on Cannabis and the Church: Apologetics for Responsible Use . Jesus and jane is honored to welcome Rev. Karen Urquhart, Rector/Parish Priest of St. Christopher’s Anglican Church of West Vancouver, British Columbia as a guest blogger for this edition.) Last Sunday a long term member of my church in his 90s, who I’ll call “Jack,” came early to drop off a donation. He said he was going home and back to bed as his cancer had returned with vengeance and he was in so much pain. With tears in his eyes he said, “It’s really bad, and I’ve been tough up till now.” Today he told me that his GP said, “just take the opioids whenever you feel pain.” I know this pattern. I witness it far too often. When elderly people are in pain, the frequency of opioid administration accelerates and within a short time I am at their bedside as they breathe their last. The morphine appears to make their death less distressing and...

In considering questions surrounding cannabis use among Christians, it's important to understand prevailing views on all sides of the issue. As we do, we must remain open to influence while also living consistently with own convictions and confronting misunderstandings and legalism as we encounter it. As an organization promoting positive awareness of the benefits of cannabis within the church, Jesus & jane takes this responsibility seriously. Our position is that responsible use of cannabis is biblically permissible for Christian adults for both medical and recreational purposes. The reasons for this conclusion are based both on tenants of holy scripture and on an understanding of what cannabis is and what it offers.  Over the next several weeks, Jesus & jane will be publishing a series of blogs on topics directly related to the reasons we have for arriving at these conclusions, for instance: Health (Physical and Mental) Justice Freedom Grace If you lo...

Can we be honest? Because I think it’s kind of an important place to start. Honesty. It’s at the root of grace. It requires that we be open about our beliefs, actions, and struggles and that we give others the same freedom.  In contrast, dysfunction festers in the shadows cast by the limits on authenticity imposed by ourselves and others. Only when people are honest about the things they believe, do, and struggle with, can real relationships flourish. This is true both individually, as in between friends, and collectively as a faith community. Unfortunately, the floor of the church is littered with ancient and current examples of all the ways this has gone awry. Some of the fault lies in ourselves. We’re not willing to be truly honest because we want people to think we’re better than we are. But sometimes the problem is with others, when we find that honesty is rewarded with loss of respect, trust, or even by being made to feel unwelcome passively or actively. The u...

In part one of this blog we discussed at length how we’ve learned through decades of research that humankind’s fascination with mind-altering substances is nothing we contemporaries can take credit (or blame) for. It’s an ancient phenomenon that dates all the way back to prehistoric times. As Solomon famously concluded, “ there is nothing new under the sun .”   So why is this behavior so prevalent? Why is the attraction so powerful?  We’ll get to that question, but in a moment... First, let’s consider why it matters. Why ask why?  Because the reasons we have for using any of the natural resources God’s placed at our disposal are important. There are both healthy and unhealthy reasons and it’s important that we thoughtfully consider them. If a person is motivated to exercise as a means of keeping their body fit in order to live a full life, that can lead to very positive outcomes. However, if their motivation is an attempt to satisfy a negative and unreal...

Depending on who you ask, the Bible makes only vague references to cannabis or is entirely silent about it. The assumption commonly drawn from this is that cannabis was unknown to the writers of scripture. In fact it now appears more likely that a wide variety of intoxicants were known and in use throughout the ancient near east during and long before the time the of the Old and New Testaments. So jumping to conclusions based on alcohol-related references alone may yield an incomplete theology, at best. In this two part blog, we will be exploring not only what the Bible directly says (and doesn’t say) on this subject, but also the reasons why people have had such a long and consistent history with substances that effect our minds and bodies, specifically cannabis. PART ONE: What the Bible says about the use of psychoactive substances A recent review of decades of archaeological research concludes that humans worldwide have been using psychoactive substances including opium, alcoh...