Court Says Church Can Use Hallucinogenic Tea

Daily Camera ^ | Sept. 6, 2003

[Wolfie]

COURT SAYS CHURCH CAN USE HALLUCINOGENIC TEA

DENVER - A New Mexico church was handed a small victory Thursday when a federal appeals court ruled its use of hallucinogenic tea was likely to be protected under freedom of religion laws.

The ruling, issued by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, upheld a preliminary injunction against the U.S. Attorney General, the Drug Enforcement Administration and other government agencies that sought to prohibit the tea's use.

The appeals court agreed with the U.S. District Court in New Mexico that the Brazil-based O Centro Espirita Beneficiente Uniao do Vegetal church had "demonstrated a substantial likelihood of success" of winning an exemption for sacramental use of the tea, which contains a drug barred by the Controlled Substances Act.

Jeffrey Bronfman, president of the church, sued the Justice Department after 30 gallons of hoasca tea were seized by U.S. Customs agents from his office in Santa Fe, N.M. No one was arrested in the 1999 raid.

Hoasca tea, used in some religious ceremonies, is brewed from plants found only in the Amazon River Basin.

The church originated in Brazil, and its U.S. operations are based in Santa Fe. About 130 people, many of them Brazilian citizens, are members of the U.S. branch, according to court documents.

[martin_fierro]

Pingão.

[freekitty]

Oh geez....

[shiva]

Vegetal church

A vegetarian church?

[Wolfie]

The translation from Portuguese is "Central Beneficial Spirit United in the Plant".

[shiva]

Thanks
:)

[mtbopfuyn]

What is Jeff (how many Brazilians are named Jeffrey?) planning on doing with 30 gallons? Sell it? Oh wait, selling a drug barred by the Controlled Substances Act would be against the law but taking religious tax-free donations is ok. That slippery slope is now a 1000' cliff.

[Wolfie]

The Catholic Church had an exemption during Prohibition. Precedent should apply, I suppose.

[catonsville]

Passover wine was also exempt during that time.

[Wolfie]

Here's an interesting tidbit:

In 1925, the Department of Research and Education of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ reported that "the withdrawal of wine on permit from bonded warehouses for sacramental purposes amounted in round figures to 2,139,000 gallons in the fiscal year 1922; 2,503,500 gallons in 1923; and 2,944,700 gallons in 1924. There is no way of knowing what the legitimate consumption of fermented sacramental wine is, but it is clear that the legitimate demand does not increase 800,000 gallons in two years."

[Britton J Wingfield]

they were bored, so they went to church a lot.

[Caipirabob]

Not your typical "Matte Leão" there, is it?

[martin_fierro]

Got so wired on this stuff once that I thought I was seeing Religious Portents and Visions.

They nickname Yerba Sara "the dirty girl" because "no se lava nunca" (she never washes [out]).

[Caipirabob]

You've got me curious now. That stuff's over $45 for a package. I found a smaller size but it's "sauve". Guess I'll hit the stores this weekend.

[Wolfie]

Found this while as well while researching Prohibition.

Doctors reportedly earned an estimated $40 million in 1928 by writing prescriptions for whiskey during Prohibition.

[jmc813]

WOD Ping

[robertpaulsen]

"when a federal appeals court ruled its use of hallucinogenic tea was likely to be protected under freedom of religion laws."

Awwww. Doesn't it just warm the cockles of your heart when the federal judiciary demonstrates it's religious tolerance?

Yep, as long as it's not a mainstream Christian church with centuries of United States tradition and hundreds of millions of members. And as long as it doesn't have anything to do with the Ten Commandments.

[PaxMacian]

GOD MADE HERB
GOD SAW THAT IT WAS GOOD
GOD GAVE IT TO MAN

Genesis 1:11
Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so.

Genesis 1:12
And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:29
And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.

[robertpaulsen]

Pax, ever hear of the acronym, MEGO?

Try something different for a change, huh?

[wideminded]

... the tea, which contains a drug barred by the Controlled Substances Act.

Shouldn't the article identify this drug? I looked it up. It's N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT).

Hoasca tea, used in some religious ceremonies, is brewed from plants found only in the Amazon River Basin.

Ditto for the plant. Looks like there are actually multiple plants added to the brew and it's not the same in all areas. Here's an article.