Smoke Signals, Wednesday, October 28, 1970—Page 3
Sermon Printed Upon Request
God or Grass ?
(The following sermon was
preached in the College chapel by
the Reverend Wright Doyle,
Pastor, St. Barnabas’ Episcopal
Church, on September 15. It is
being reproduced for “Smoke
Signals” upon the request of
some members of the student
body.)
When I was trying to decide
what to talk to you about today, I
first thought of telling you about
the wonderful entertainment
opportunities available here in
the Greater Murfreesboro
Metropolitan Area, sometimes
called the “fun capital of the
world.” But, then I realized that
that would take 15 seconds at the
most. Therefore, I decided to
address myself to an activity that
is spreading like wildfire and
growing like a weed.
Today I want to talk to you
about smoking pot. There are not
many rational things being said
about this drug and its use. I
would like to speak my mind on
this vital subject, in the hope of
giving you what I think is the
Christian point of view. Rap later
at Purgatory (the coffeehouse
sponsored by St. Barnabas’
C3iurch).
Here is my point in a nutshell:
smoking pot is wrong, because it
is “idolatry.” What do we wor
ship, God or grass? Where do we
get our pleasure, our purpose,
our power for life? Where do we
find the truth? Where do we find
true peace? Where do we find the
abundant Ufe? What offers us
real hfe, God or a weed?
To smoke pot is to settle for less
than second best. It is to miss out
on what life could be like. You
have a life to live, and pot has
nothing to give. It is Jesus who
gives the abundant life. It is
Jesus who shows us the truth and
the way. It is Jesus who justifies
us and imparts meaning to our
lives. And it is Jesus who infuses
us with his Holy Spirit, so that we
can love God and men.
To look for life in a joint is like
trying to gain Olympic strength
and ability in a bowl of Wheaties.
To believe the claims that are
made for pot is just as ridiculous
as believing that you will win the
Miss America pageant if you use
Ultra Brite!
Now, I shall give you two
arguments against the use of pot
from a Christian point of view:
First, smoking pot is wrong
because ’’getting intoxicated” is
wrong. Although the Bible
nowhere condemns moderate
drinking of alcohol, from one end
to the other, it prohibits
drunkenness. Getting high is
wrong, unless you get high on the
Spirit of Christ.
Jesus said: “Take heed to
yourselves lest your heart be
weighed down with dissipation
and drunkenness and the cares of
this life, and the day of judgment
come upon you suddenly like a
snare; for it will come upon all
who dwell upon the face of the
earth. But watch at all times,
praying that you may have
strength to escape all these
things that will take place, and to
stand before the Son of Man.”
Paul warned the Ephesians:
“Look carefully then how you
walk, not as unwise men but as
wise, making the most of the
time, because the days are evil.
Therefore do not be foolish, but
understand what the will of the
Lord is. And do not get drunk with
wine, for that is debauchery; but
be filled with the spirit. . .;
always and for everything giving
thanks in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ.”
In both of these passages,
drunkenness is condemned
because it keeps us from living
the life we were made to enjoy. It
is wrong to be intoxicated,
because then we aren’t able to
know God fully and properly. God
is the God of sobriety, of truth
and rational thinking, as well as
of elevated emotions. He wants
us to know him with our minds,
and we can’t do that if our minds
are darkened and our judgment
is impaired. We can’t understand
the “Bible,” which is God’s word
to us, unless we are in full
possession of our judgment and
reason.
Intoxication is wrong also
because it keeps us from
“praying” to God. In order to
communicate with the Lord we
have to be alert and in control of
our minds. And prayer is our
chief link with our Creator.
God wants us to keep sober
because, thirdly, we must be
sober to find out what his will is
for us; how we are to serve him?
How are we to love our fellow
man and do good works for him,
if we can’t accurately perceive
what God wants us to do and how
to do it?
Finally, intoxication is wrong
because God wants us to be in
toxicated with his Spirit, and
nothing else. I shall return to this
later.
I have heard many pot smokers
object at this point: “But grass
isn’t intoxicating like alcohol. We
aren’t drunk when we are
smoking it.” I dispute that claim
for these reasons^
The National Institute of
Mental Health has published a
pamphlet giving the results of the
latest research on marijuana.
Listen to what this cautious
document says: “It has no known
use in medicine. It is used mainly
for its intoxicating effects. . . .It
acts on the brain and nervous
system. It affects the user’s mood
and thinking. Users may get
talkative, loud, unsteady, or
drowsy, and find it hard to
coordinate their movements. . . .
A person using marijuana finds it
harder to make decisions that
require clear thinking. And he
finds himself more easily open to
other people’s suggestions. Doing
any task that takes good reflexes
and thinking is affected by the
drug. For this reason it is
dangerous to drive while under
the influence of the drug.” The
report goes on to say that, ac
cording to the size of the dosage,
toe effects range from elation to
panic, and may include
hallucinations, illusions, and
delusions.
What do people call this ex
perience when they’re talking
about it casually? They say, “I
got high on grass.” Or, “I got
stoned on pot.” High, stoned:
intoxicated. Intoxication is
wrong.
Now, I must move to the second
argument against the use of pot.
Not only does God forbid getting
intoxicated on anything but the
Holy Spirit, but to disobey God in
this matter is to miss out on the
greatest experience of life?
What does Paul mean by being
filled with the Spirit? Let’s see.
The Holy Spirit is the spirit of
Jesus. To be filled with the Spirit
is to have Jesus living in you and
working wonderful things inside
your life.
Pot smokers say that the weed
makes them see things more
clearly. But Jesus himself is the
"truth;” he is the “light” of the
world. Pot may give you a
sharper sense of colors, but
knowing Jesus gives you a
sharper sense of who you are.
What is the meaning of life? How
do we find the abundant life?
Jesus answers these questions,
and many more. Pot can’t.
Pot smokers tell me that grass
gives them peace of mind and
release fi'brt tensions. The
problem is, this peace is shallow
and temporary. Jesus brings
deep and abiding peace. The
most dangerous enemy of peace
of mind is guilt: we do things we
shouldn’t do, and our conscience
tells us we’re no good. Jesus tells
us that we are truly guilty, but he
has died for us. He has taken our
penalty upon himself. For those
who repent of their sins and trust
In the cross of Christ, there is
peace with God; and peace with
God means peace of mind,
forever.
Another threat to tranquility of
heart is fear of the future. But
when we are convinced that
Christ has died for us, and we
know that he is alive from the
grave and will raise us up at the
last day, and fear of the future is
gone. Jesus told his disciples: “In
the world you have tribulation.
Be of good cheer. I have over
come the world.”
Pot smokers usually tell us that
their lives have little purpose or
meaning, except to go on getting
high, and enjoying the colors and
the music. But Jesus gives all his
true disciples real purpose. He is
the Lord of history. To know him
is to love him; to love him is to
serve him; to serve him is to tell
others about the life Christ
brings, and to love them and do
all we can for their welfare. Jesus
has died for us, so that whether
we live or die, we do it for him. He
is our goal and our purpose in life.
Jesus gives his disciples power.
People high on LSD and Speed —
and sometimes pot — think they
can do anything. Art Linkletter’s
daughter thought she could fly
out of a window. But Jesus
transmits “real power:” power
over fear, power over anger,
power over selfishness, poser
to love others and to forgive
them. Jesus gives us power to
endure troubles with patience
and joy. That’s real power!
Pot smokers claim that the
weed gives them love for others.
Sure, it makes you more tolerant
of irritations, just as a
tranquilizer will. If you get a few
thousand people together on pot
for a day or two, you can prevent
a riot by putting them under
sedation, which is what pot does.
But absence of conflict is not
love.
Jesus brings real love. True
love says: “Okay, you irritate
me, and you do things I don’t like,
but through Christ’s Spirit I
freely forgive you.” Jesus loved
the unlovable. By his spirit his
disciples forgive their enemies
and go out of their way to in
convenience themselves for
others’welfare. Charity is almost
unknown In the Oriental world
CJiarity on a large scale was
invented by the Christian Church.
“In this is love, not that we love
God, but that he loved us, and
gave his Son to be an offering for
our sins.” When this God puts the
Spirit of his Son into your life,
then you begin to imitate Jesus,
although never perfectlv.
Finally, Jesus offers life. He
offers freedom from basic
anxieties: from guilt, fear, and
hatred, here, in this life. He offers
a relationship with God that
never fails and never disap
points. Jesus is alive, now, In
heaven, he will take all his true
disciples and make them alive
too, after they have lain dead in a
cold grave. Jesus created all in
life. Jesus makes this sorry
existence worthwhile. Jesus
promises to give eternal life to all
who trust him and follow him
faithfully. The ultimate high is
heaven. The colors, the music,
and the friendship of a dark
smoke-filled room littered with
isolated bodies is nothing com
pared to the beauty and the glory
and the splendor and majesty and
eternal bliss of being with Jesus
forever.
What will you worship? The
Oeator or one of his creatures?
Which will it be: God, or grass?
Christ, or pot? Life or death?
There is no compromise
Contruction Boom
May Have Started
Ah, Sweet Victory!
Fans carry Coach James Garrison on their shoulders at the end of the Ferrum-Chowan
game. Brave boosters were over-joyed at the 10-6 victory over their arch rival.
Consfifutional Amendments Reviewed
RALEIGH (AP)—A proposed
rewrite of North Carolina’s Con
stitution includes some substan
tive changges, but none that will
impair individual rights or shift
any of the powers of state and
local governments.
The rewrite, or editorial re
vision, is one of seven amend
ments to the Constitution which
will be put to the voters Nov. 3.
The editorial revision is in
tended to make the language of
the document more understand
able and direct and delete sec
tions that are obsolte or contra
dict the U.S. Constitution.
If passed, it will be the first
total revision of the document
since it was written in 1868.
North Carolina’s is the only Re-
No Retiring
For Davis
HOLLYWOOD (AP) — Sam
my Davis Jr. says he is going
into virtual retirement, but a
spokesman assures the enter
tainer’s admirers he didn’t real
ly mean it.
Davis, 44, told a weekend
audience at Seattle, Wash., he
planned to quit show business
except for one appearance a
year because “mentally and
physically I’ve had it.”
His Hollywood spokesman
said Tuesday Davis actually
will cut down to working per
haps 26 weeks a year and won’t
meet any more three-a-day
committments.
construction - era constitution
which has not been rewritten at
least once.
The revision was proposed in
1968 by the 25^nember state
Constitution Study Commission
initiated by former Gov. Dan K.
Moore and headed by former
North Carolina Supreme Court
Chief Justice Emery B. Denny.
The measure went through
seven roll-call votes in the 1969
General Assembly with only one
vote recorded against it.
No organized opposition has
been voiced since.
Among the 40 or more minor
substantive changes are:
—The “Declaration of Rights”
in Article I was strengthened by
the addition of the first state
guaranteesof freedomof speech,
equal protection of the laws and
protection from improper dis-
CTirninatipn by the state. ■■
^ Since citizeiife are already'’
guaranteed these rights by the
U.S. Constitution, their inclusion
is considered symbolic of the
state’s recognition of their im
portance.
—Racialprovisioninvalidated
by the courts and the U.S. Con
stitution have Ijeen eliminated.
These include the old provisions
forbidding mixed marriages and
the Pearsall Amendment insert
ed in 1957 to skirt public school
integration.
—The compulsory school term
is lengthened from six to nine
months, a goal already accom
plished by statute years ago.
—Aprohibitionhas been added
against voting or office-holding
by anyone convicted of a felony
in another state or in federal
court. Presently, the prohibition
applies only to those convicted
in North Carolina state courts.
—It eliminates possible con
flict between the superintendent
of public instruction and the
Board of Education by making
the superintendent chief admin
istrative officer of the board.
—Another provision specifies
that local governments assigned
by the legislature to share re
sponsibility for financing public
education are authorized to fi
nance both public schools and
community colleges and techni
cal institutes without a popular
vote.
—It makes the lieutenant gov
ernor and attorney general ex
officio members of the Council
of State.
—Anditprohibitstheexclusion
of anyone from jury service on
account of sex, race, religion or
national origin rrrrrrrr-rr
The measure, if approved,
would take effect July 1, 1971.
Any of the other six amend
ments that were adopted would
become part of the revised Con
stitution.
By JOHN CUNNIFF
AP Business Analyst
NEW YORK (AP) - Judging
by a sharp rise in the number of
housing permits being issued,
the long forecast boom in resi
dential construction may al
ready have begun.
Early this year the rate at
which permits were issued
dropped to only 90 per cent of
the annual rates of more than a
decade earlier. By August, this
rate had rebounded all the way
to 112 per cent of the 1957-1959
average, still low but rising vig
orously.
The number of units on which
work already has begun also is
rising, and although still near or
below 1.5 million a year, a reli
able study just issued projects a
rise to a 1.7 million annual rate
in 1971.
This study, by the F.W. Doge
firm, bases its estimate on a
growing availability of mort
gage money, plus a huge back
log of demand that has built up
over the past tew years of tight
money and high interest rates.
The turnabout was bound to
come. Many thousands of young
couples-products of the mar
riage Iwom that followed World
War Il-have moved into the
housing market.
At the same time, a con
siderable amount of housing
wasdeteriorating. Estimates by
the National Association of
Home Builders indicate that
one-half of one per cent of exist
ing housing is demolished each
year.
Combine just these two fac
tors with a deep recession in
housing construction, the result
primarily of a diversion of capi
tal to areas of the economy
where higher rates could be
earned, and you realize how
critical is the shortage.
Another way of measuring the
demand is the startling increase
in sales of mobile homes. In just
one year, from 1968 to 1969, this
industry expanded from sales of
318,000 units to nearly 413,000.
TTiere was a clearly under
standable reason tor this. Mo
bile homes are inexpensive.
With housing prices rising
through the roof, they repre
sented the only affordable hous
ing for many people.
Moreover, such homes could
lie piffchas^ without many of
the financial blocks encountered
in obtaining convention home
mortgages. Banks were much
more favorably inclined to
grant short-term loans at high
interest rates on mobile homes
than long-term mortgages and
low rates for conventional
homes.
In short, the demand for hous
ing is there, as can be demon
strated in many ways. And now
that the construction industry is
beginning to attack the prob
lem, many people are inclined
to think the worst will l)e over in
a decade.
,*u OTJiqgn
Panther Goes Down
The strong Chowan defensive unit stop a Ferrum halfback at the line of scrimmage
Chowan**^ 10-6 win over the Panthers.
m
• M ^ M
Rep. Whitehurst is a crowd pleaser
G. William Whitehurst of the 2nd Congressional District,
Va. spoke in assembly October 15. His subject varied from
his beginnings in politics to his views on Ihe draft. Students
indicated that they enjoyed this speaker very much and
would like to hear more speakers with liis manner ot
speaking.
AMERICAN NEWSPAPERS
YEARS OF
FREEDOM
Nowhere is there a greater news
gathering organization than the American
Press. Reaching to the four corners of the world
tn search of the truth and without restrictions,
t !S the major link between peoples of the
community, the community and the world at large.
This freedom has been defended in the past and will
be again whenever it is threatened, so that there
will always be an open line of communication betwe«.
the peoples of this country and the world. We are
proud to be a part of this Freedom.
200 YEARS or FREEDOM
1770-1970