Page 24 - Florida Sentinel 5-28-21

Black Pastors Have Faith In Medical Marijuana Treatment
Editor’s note: This commen- tary is provided by the Medical Marijuana Education and Re- search Initiative (MMERI) of Florida A&M University. ——————-
Marijuana has long been a target of condemnation in Black churches. And for good reason: Pastors have seen how the racially biased enforcement of marijuana laws has impacted their communities and congre- gations. Blacks are nearly four times more likely than Whites to be arrested for related offenses, even though both races share similar usage rates, and serve time for related convictions at a greater rate than their White counterparts.
But three Black pastors in Florida reflect a national trend
DR. ERTA C. LIVINGSTON, JR.
in changing attitudes toward cannabis, particularly its legal use for medicinal purposes. Dr. Erta C. Livingston, Jr., Pas- tor Leo Stoney and Dr. Lon- nie Davis Wesley, III, all support medical marijuana as a physician-authorized treatment,
PASTOR LEO STONEY
saying its use is no different than taking any prescribed drug. The church leaders also share com- mon ground on the subject of le- galizing recreational marijuana as a legal drug in Florida.
Dr. Livingston is the Sen- ior Pastor of the Church of God
DR. LONNIE DAVIS WESLEY, III
by Faith #1 in Gainesville and Director of Patient Services for UF Health, Jacksonville. In the latter position he oversees chap- lains, interpreters and other pa- tient services. A Pentecostal pastor with 40 years of experi- ence, Dr. Livingston takes a hardline approach to marijuana but makes an exception when it’s used medicinally to treat people in pain. Working in hos- pitals changed his perspective, he said.
“I see pain every day, and I see people trying to get relief from pain. I lay hands on them, I do all the spiritual things I need to do, but sometimes the pain continues. So, in a compassion- ate way, I want to support what- ever it takes to relieve pain. I want to support them in that as long as it’s legal,” he said. “If medical marijuana is prescribed by a doctor, you have my sup- port. I’m not going to put you on the altar and send you to hell.”
Added Pastor Stoney of The MaxOut Church in Mel- bourne: “This is definitely a taboo topic because we are pas- tors, right? Like, what are you all even talking about? Don’t you believe in prayer? Well, I go back to this. If there’s medicine for cancer — there’s medicine for COVID now — and there’s med- icine for everything else, why can’t there be a medicine pre- scribed by a doctor that has been tested and proven to make someone in pain feel better?”
(“Chronic nonmalignant pain” caused by a qualifying medical condition can be treated with medical marijuana under Florida law. Go online to https://knowthefactsmmj.com/ for more information on qualify- ing conditions and other facts about medical marijuana treat- ment in Florida.)
Dr. Wesley has spent 16 of his 24 years in the ministry as pastor of the Greater Little Rock Baptist Church in his hometown of Pensacola, and he serves on MMERI’s External Advisory
Council. He said congregants re- ally shouldn’t concern them- selves with a church’s position on medical marijuana.
“It isn’t the church’s busi- ness what medicine your doctor has prescribed for your medical care,” he stressed. “Do what you have to do medically to help you have a better quality of life.”
The pastors all agreed that education about medical mari- juana was key to their accept- ance of the drug.
“As I learned about medical marijuana, I became more open and I didn’t allow my back- ground or my upbringing to iso- late me from knowing more,” said Pastor Stoney. “The scripture says, ‘My people are destroyed because of a lack of knowledge,’ which also means we formulate opinions and thoughts that aren’t based in anything. So, we’ve got to evolve our thinking.”
On the topic of recreational marijuana, all three voiced reservations on legalizing it re- gardless of whether that’s done by the state or federal govern- ment.
“I wouldn’t want to legalize something that could cause havoc to families and relation- ships,” said Dr. Livingston.
While Dr. Wesley could see legalization as a step toward ending the discriminatory en- forcement of marijuana laws, his belief that “weed” is a gateway drug poses a high hurdle he isn’t ready to clear.
“You know, that’s just how a lot of people get started into drugs,” he said. “The cocaine user started with weed. The crack user, I think, will say I started with the joint, so it’s just a heavy subject that we cannot jump into. We have to really do serious due diligence and weigh the pros and cons.”
“I totally agree with my col- leagues,” said Pastor Stoney. “We’re already a disenfranchised people, so I think we have to be a little bit wiser before we jump the gun on this.”
Visit bit.ly/MMERI_Reli- gion_Forum to watch MMERI’s Conversations on Cannabis Vir- tual Forum featuring Reverend Lonnie Wesley (Greater Little Rock Baptist Church), Pastor Leo Stoney (MaxOut Church), Elder Doctor Erta Livingston (Church of God by Faith #1 in Gainesville) on YouTube.
For more information on medical marijuana, visit MMERI’s website at http://mmeri.famu.edu.
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