God's will and drugs

Reginald Vs the Christian: How Dogma Robs people from experiencing life at its fullest!

Every now and then I stumble on some poor soul lost in dogma trying to educate the masses on “how they should live”. And while it’s true that I too could be considered, “woefully under the dogmatic spell”, my spell of dogma is the relentless pursuit of “unlearning that which was taught but not sought”.

However, this wasn’t always so.

There was a brief time in my life that Dogma held my mind and spirit hostage. It limited me from experience life at its fullest. I was born into a Christian household, and while we weren’t “religious” per se, after the death of my father when I was 18, I sought out peace within the confines of my religion.

I completely “blue pilled” myself and went at the Christian thing hard.

Until I could audibly heard “God” tell me to leave the church because the people were blind. I started smoking weed again, and embraced meditation and other forms of self-discovery.

Now, twenty something years later, I can honestly tell you that while I’m still a slave to many of my personal limiting beliefs – I now no longer have a strong narrative that governs my every move, from boning the hottie who’s been sending me signals all night, to fapping like there’s no tomorrow. From getting a bit shit-faced on booze cuz you had a hard week, to smoking a bit of reefer to take the edge of.

All of these things are completely human…and one could argue that when done in wisdom, can provide great benefit to the soul.

Nonetheless, the poor soul I’m going to be using as an example is unfortunately trapped deep in the world of dogma and we’re going to be taking a closer look at the reasons he has for being miserable to the point of needing to convince others to be miserable with him.

A Summary of the Dogma of one Redditor

For the sake of not being an asshole myself, I will NOT be publishing the link of the redditor, however, here’s a quick summary of his main points:

Using weed is illegal in many places and therefore disobeying the law and disobeying God
Weed is referred to by some jokingly as the Devil's lettuce
It makes you think differently, and Your perception changes completely, Your point of view is turned around and you have what you think is a profound new perspective on anything that comes to mind.
Weed makes you think completely differently, usually in a very liberal manner, you'll get lazy, forgetful, stupid, unable to concentrate, eat too much, engage in crude behavior, and draws you away from God.
It will pull you away from family and friends and cause you to only want to hang around others who use it.
Psychedelics is even more dangerous than weed. They give you an experience and not to get high
But some of these things you see aren't always hallucinations.
What is true about their benefit is that they do work (for a while) in helping you overcome depression and PTSD, but it's not forever
They open you up to the spirit world and you don't know what you're communicating with.
People can end up addicted and it's hard to stop using them once they start
They can also cause long-term mental health issues
People may believe that the drugs will give them spiritual enlightenment but in reality, it is just temporary and doesn't provide true spiritual growth
The risks and negative consequences outweigh any potential benefits and should be avoided.
People should instead focus on healthy ways of coping with mental health issues and finding true spiritual connection.

And in order to keep this article concise – seeing that I love to ramble on about the silliest things, I’ll simply use these points to provide some perspective from someone who has been on all sides of dogma.

Disobeying the Law is Disobeying God

This idea is rooted in a thing called “Spiritual Authority”. The belief that monarchs and other leaders are "god-appointed" has been used throughout history as a means of control and justification for the subjugation of people. It has been a powerful tool for maintaining power and suppressing dissent, and it continues to be used by those in power today.

One of the earliest examples of this can be found in ancient Egypt, where pharaohs were considered to be divine beings, directly chosen by the gods to rule over the people. This idea of divine rule was also present in many other ancient civilizations such as Mesopotamia and Greece.

In the Middle Ages, European monarchs often used the concept of divine right to justify their rule. They believed that they were appointed by God to rule over their subjects and that any resistance to their rule was a violation of God's will. This idea was used to justify the suppression of dissent and the maintenance of absolute power.

As you can see, this idea continues to hold true as it’s being regurgitated on Reddit.

THE TRUTH:

To disobey unjust laws is your duty as a Christian. I can prove it. What would happen if a law suddenly passed that said, “Being a Christian is illegal”. If you were to follow the Spiritual Authority model, it would mean that “God said stop being a Christian”, but Christians would say, “it’s the devil!” Now – disobeying a law that limits your expression of faith would be considered a “holy action”.

Similarly, by disobeying laws that violate the nature of God – i.e Sanction the Individual’s Right to Express themselves…would also be your duty as a Christian. It doesn’t mean you gotta smoke weed – it just means that you can recognize that “God” didn’t make weed illegal…it was man…and it was for a reason.

The Devil’s Lettuce

The reason why it’s called “The Devil’s Lettuce” is due to Reefer Madness. Reefer Madness, also known as the "Marijuana Menace," was a term used in the United States during the 1930s to describe the perceived dangers of marijuana use. It was a period of intense fear-mongering and moral panic surrounding the drug, fueled by a campaign by the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and various anti-drug organizations. During this time, marijuana was depicted as a highly dangerous and addictive substance that would lead to insanity, violence, and other criminal behavior. The term "Reefer Madness" was popularized by the 1936 propaganda film of the same name, which was widely criticized for its lack of credibility and exaggeration of the drug's effects. The Reefer Madness era ultimately led to strict regulations and criminalization of marijuana use in the United States.

In other words, through deceptive tactics – a crop that the US relied on was made illegal.

THE TRUTH:
It was called the Devil’s Lettuce by literal devils. It’s as if Satan himself outlawed it by convincing Christians that it was his weed, when it was given to them by God!

“It makes you think differently”

No it doesn’t. You think the same, what’s different is how you see the world. You get a slight perspective shift, and suddenly the things that “seemed important” becomes less important. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes it’s not so beneficial – but most people who smoke weed becomes less dogmatic, and that is a problem for churches, governments, and institutions that rely on dogma for their existence.

THE TRUTH:

Unlike alcohol, drugs like weed doesn’t “change your behavior” as much as you’d think. It certainly does have an impact, however, it’s not like you’re going to become a mindless zombie and a slave to your impulses – you’re already that!

Weed Makes you Lazy

This has been empirically disproven – NEXT!

“It Pulls you away from your family”

This only happens when your family is as blue-pilled as you were. It creates division because people start deconstructing and questioning their dogma. When you’re in a room full of people who think the same, and you begin to challenge the status quo, it’s not that you’re pulling away – it’s that they are pushing you out!

Psychedelics are worse!
1. It can open up portals to spiritual worlds
2. It can make you addicted
3. Cause long term mental health issues
4. It doesn’t provide spiritual enlightenment

While it could be true that some of the things he mentioned is true, the vast majority is false. We don’t know if it opens up portals to the spirt word, however many psychonauts do agree that it might. However, this only means that your perception is elevated to be able to see these things, which are already there.

Secondly, psychedelics aren’t really known for “addiction”. Coke, Heroin, etc – sure…but you can only do psychedelics for so long before you gotta take a break. I would know, I did whole summers of tripping when I was young.

It can trigger mental health issues, but doesn’t cause them.

And finally, it can serve as a catalyst for spiritual awakenings. I have had some of my most profound spiritual awakenings on psychedelics, which I then integrated back into my life to evolve as a human being.

The Truth:

The person never consumed psychedelics and is telling you what’s what.

People should have healthier coping mechanisms for mental health

I agree, like meditation, yoga, deep breathing and plant medicine. This before you get pumped full of pharma drugs. Religion is also a temporary solution to mental health issues and often can exacerbate the symptoms. Like tell a Paranoid-Schizophrenic that the devil is chasing them and see what happens…

THE TRUTH:

While it’s true, psychedelics or weed isn’t a cure all – it certainly can help some individuals sometimes, and if it works better than pharma drugs – then that is a better coping mechanism…wouldn’t you agree?

Conclusion

Dogma, by definition, is a set of beliefs or principles that are considered to be true and unchangeable. These beliefs can be religious, political, or societal, and they are often passed down from one generation to the next without being questioned or critically examined. When people become too entrenched in dogma, it can lead to a rigid way of thinking that stifles creativity, personal growth, and freedom.

Dogma can suck the fun out of life in several ways. Firstly, by constricting personal growth, as people may be afraid of questioning or challenging their beliefs, which in turn prevents them from developing new perspectives and understanding. Secondly, Dogma also may encourage people to suppress their individuality and conform to certain expectations, which can limit their ability to be their true selves and to live a fulfilling life.

Additionally, dogma can also lead to feelings of guilt, shame, or unworthiness when people deviate from the established beliefs. This can make them afraid to explore different aspects of themselves or the world, leading to a lack of curiosity, and diminishing the joy of discovery.

Lastly, by promoting a certain set of principles, people may also become overly obsessed with adhering to them to the point of becoming rigid, which can lead to a lack of flexibility and joy in life. They may become too rigid in their thinking, and unable to adapt to new situations or experiences, which can lead to a sense of stagnation, or even depression and dissatisfaction.

In short, Dogma can stifle personal growth, suppress individuality, and restrict freedom, all of which can lead to a lack of joy and fulfillment in life.

So now that you know – spark a bowl and be a pagan for a bit.