Parshas Chayei Sara (5779)
As most of you have no doubt heard by now, Cannabis (marijuana) in Canada is now legal for both medicinal and recreational purposes.
The federal Cannabis Act came into effect on October 17, 2018 and made Canada the second country in the world, after Uruguay, to formally legalize recreational use of the plant. Canada is the first G7 and G20 nation to do so. In most provinces where cannabis was made available to buy at specific local stores, die-hard Canadians stood on long lines waiting to buy some weed - until the initial supply ran out.
What you may not have heard is that the government of Canada actually re-wrote its national anthem, “O Canadaâ€, to reflect the new pot-filled reality in the Great White North. Here’s the updated version, now called “O Cannabisâ€â€¦.
O Cannabis! Our home and native plant!
Smokey joints of grass, in all thy children’s hands.
With glowing hits we see weed rise,
The True North’s not drug-free!
From far and wide, O Cannabis,
We stand on line for thee.
Marijuana land, high as high can be!
O Cannabis, we stand on line for thee;
O Cannabis, we stand on line for thee.
All kidding aside, one has to marvel at the “wisdom†of the decision of the Canadian government to legalize marijuana even for recreational use. It’s not as if we don’t have enough trouble dealing with drunk drivers that we now have worry about “high†drivers!
And I am sure that there are many other serious issues that will arise now that every single adult Canadian (and G-d knows how many children) can legally access this mind-altering drug and escape from reality with relative ease. Oy, vay, Canada!
But I will leave that debate for you to hash out (or should I say “hashish†out?) with your pothead buddies. Instead, I would like to share with you a Torah perspective on marijuana use.
We find an early reference to taking drugs in the Talmud in Pesachim 113a: “Rav said to Chiyah his son: ‘Do not take any (unnecessary) drugs …’â€
The medieval Talmudic commentator Rashbam explains that Rav was cautioning his son not to take medicines unnecessarily, since he may develop an addiction to them and squander his money on the addiction’s support. Even if he needs the medicine to treat a disease, he should take it only if there is no other equivalent therapy.
Indeed, Rav’s concerns about taking drugs - even for medicinal purposes – very much apply today as well. As a person becomes addicted, his or her life is overtaken by the single need to get the drug. This obsession destroys relationships and the social group of the user, as he or she begins to hang out only with other users. The habit, in addition, ruins a person financially and often forces the user to turn to illegal means to support the habit.
The main reason why the Torah would frown upon recreational drug use is for reasons of health. There have been many studies done showing the negative effects of drugs. There is strong consensus that regular drug use causes damage to one’s body, whether it be to the brain, liver, or to the entire system. In Judaism, doing damage to one’s body clearly violates several Torah precepts (see Deuteronomy 4:9 and 4:15; see also Maimonides in Mishneh Torah Laws of Murder 11:4).
Of course, there are some who will say, “It’s my body, and whatever I do with my body is my own personal choice!â€. However, Judaism disagrees with this view. While we may use our bodies as can anyone who borrows an item from a friend, our body does not belong to us. It belongs to G-d, Who “lends†it to us. And like a borrowed item that must be properly watched even as it is allowed to be used and then returned intact, we have an obligation to watch our bodies and return them as intact as possible to G-d when we die – which rules out doing anything that brings harm to our body. [This is also why suicide is illegal in Jewish law – it is not our body to do with as we wish.] Therefore, taking drugs, which does harm to the body, would not be permitted according to Jewish law.
Rabbi Moshe Feinstein ZTâ€L writes in his collection of Halachic responsa Igros Moshe (Yoreh De-ah 3:35) that in addition to the damage that marijuana use can inflict on the body, it also harms the intellect and impairs one’s ability to think. This is even worse than damaging the body since it prevents one from understanding Torah, praying, keeping mitzvos properly, and connecting to G-d.
While taking drugs like marijuana may not be the smartest thing to do – and may even be forbidden according to Torah law for the reasons mentioned above – there is one amazing drug that is permitted according to Jewish law, is readily available, doesn’t cost a penny, and can get you really high – but not in an artificial way.
And that drug is the Torah itself … a true “drug of lifeâ€!
As the Talmud in Taanis 7a states: Rabbi Banaah used to say: If a person studies Torah for its own sake (to come closer to G-d) his Torah learning becomes a “drug of life†for him, for it says: “It is a tree of life for those who grasp it†(Proverbs 3:18).
[Sources: The Jewish Encyclopedia of Moral and Ethical Issues by Nachum Amsel, Jason Aronson Inc.]
http://www.torchweb.org/torah_detail.php?id=537