cannabisnews.com: Big Isle Preacher Spreading Gospel of Marijuana Big Isle Preacher Spreading Gospel of Marijuana Posted by FoM on October 16, 2000 at 09:49:33 PT By Dan Nakaso, Advertiser Staff Writer Source: Honolulu Advertiser Roger Christie — make that the Rev. Roger Christie of the Hawai‘i Cannabis Ministry — knows he could use his remote patch of land on the Big Island to perform his first wedding ceremony with marijuana as a sacrament. But Christie doesn’t want marijuana for religious or medical reasons to be hidden away, even in a beautiful corner of the Puna District such as Kehena Beach. No, Christie wants his church services to draw a crowd. So he’s looking for just the right place in Hilo for his first wedding that includes marijuana. His friend and fellow marijuana advocate Jon Adler held a blessing yesterday for a marijuana greenhouse on Adler’s property in Puna. Adler’s two-story house serves double duty as the Hawai‘i Medical Marijuana Institute and Adler’s Religion of Jesus Church, East Hawai‘i Branch.Adler sent invitations to 100 people, including 35 federal, state and county officials — from the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration in Hawai‘i to the Big Island Police Department’s vice division.Christie, 51, and Adler, 48, have long been known for pushing their marijuana agendas on the Big Island. Last year, they tried to impeach the mayor and six county council members on grounds that they had not conducted a critical review of the county’s marijuana eradication program.Now, Christie and Adler are moving ahead with plans for marijuana-based ministries, which they believe insulates them and their crops from successful prosecution. The ministries, they say, mean patients can avoid the delays that plague the implementation of Hawai‘i’s medical marijuana law.Doctors and patients on O‘ahu have complained that marijuana for medical reasons remains illegal despite the law signed by the governor in June, because state officials have yet to put any procedures in place.'Doctors Scared'"Doctors are scared of marijuana," said Christie. "Cannabis as a sacrament is the ideal way. Jesus had a healing ministry, and he bent the law of his day. I have a healing ministry, and I push the law of my day."Christie distributes what he calls a "cannabis sacrament kit," which includes a statement that the person is a religious practitioner, and he cites legal cases and Biblical passages. The kit includes tags for marijuana plants declaring their medical and religious purposes.Twelve people who had Christie’s kit have been arrested in Hawai‘i on marijuana charges. None of them, including Christie, who was arrested in 1998, was prosecuted, he said."(The kit has) helped in cases where the handcuffs were being brought out or had just been put on," Christie said. "When the paperwork is presented, the arrest stops right there or the arrest continues, but there’s never a prosecution. We’ve had a 100 percent success rate."Big Island police say marijuana remains illegal, even for medical reasons. And around the country, no one has won a marijuana case arguing religious freedoms, according to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML)."I know individuals that are serving federal prison sentences who came forth with articulate and clearly written tenets of what they view their First Amendment religious rights to be," said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of NORML in Washington, D.C.With its vast stretches of land and ideal growing conditions, the Big Island has long been the center of Hawai‘i’s marijuana trade and has been the focus of a massive federal, state and local law enforcement crackdown for the past 24 years. With Christie and Adler openly pushing their religious positions, the Big Island also could become the center of efforts to legalize marijuana.The Big Island’s war on marijuana suffered a huge loss last month when the police department returned $265,000 in federal drug enforcement money for marijuana eradication.'Eradication Plan Crippled'Faced with questions about the success of the marijuana war and personal concerns for their liability, council members voted to return the money."It’s crippled our eradication program," said vice Lt. Henry Tavares, who is in charge of marijuana eradication for the eastern half of Hawai‘i County. "We’re doing what we can."The federal money paid for things such as training equipment and helicopters, which were critical for spotting marijuana operations and dropping officers in and out to destroy plants.That doesn’t mean Tavares has given up the war on marijuana.He was the only government official who showed up at Adler’s greenhouse blessing yesterday. There were no marijuana plants to be seen, and Tavares watched the ceremony and chatted with Adler and Christie for about 45 minutes.The law is clear, Tavares said. Marijuana, even for medical purposes, remains illegal until the state narcotics enforcement officials approve forms and procedures sometime in December.Until then, Christie and Adler will continue to test the law."There’s no doubt that social change usually begins with the act of one or two people," St. Pierre said. "That’s been true for all of human history." Source: Honolulu Advertiser (HI)Author: Dan NakasoPublished: Monday, October 16, 2000 Copyright: 2000 The Honolulu Advertiser, a division of Gannett Co. Inc. Contact: letters honoluluadvertiser.com Address: P.O. Box 3110 Honolulu, HI 96802 Fax: (808) 525-8037 Website: http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/ Related Articles & Web Sites:NORML: http://www.norml.org/Drug Policy Forum: http://www.drugsense.org/dpfhi/ Medical Marijuana Law Deserves a Fair Test: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread7310.shtmlRed Tape Thwarts Legal Use of Marijuana: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread7281.shtmlBig Isle Rejects Anti-Marijuana Funds: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6914.shtmlHawaii Decriminalizes Marijuana for Medical Use: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6061.shtmlHawaii Governor Signs Medical Marijuana Bill: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6060.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #5 posted by FoM on October 25, 2000 at 18:22:06 PT: Related Article Editorial Unfairly Belittled ChurchSource: Garden Island (HI) Author: Dennis ShieldsPublished: Tuesday, October 24, 2000Copyright: 2000 Kauai Publishing Co. Address: P.O. Box 231 Lihue HI 96766 Fax: (808) 245-5286 Website: http://kauaiworld.com/ To the Forum:As a member/minister of the Religion of Jesus Church, I take great offense at your paper belittling our religion (Editorials, Oct. 18: "Pot for religion quest is just a smoke screen").I joined the Religion of Jesus Church in 1973 at the Church Divinity School located on Kaua'i in Kekaha.We use cannabis as a mandated sacrament of our religion, and comply with the three-prong test of the religious use of cannabis outlined in Hawai'i case law, State vs. Blake, as to the sincerity, genuineness or our belief and our mandate of the use of cannabis.One of our ministers is Rev. Lynette Shaw, who owns and operates the Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana, one of the three clubs left open in the wake of the federal lawsuit in California, as religious an undertaking in today's world as was the religious ministry to the lepers, in the days of Jesus' apostles.Recently, the supreme court of Guam has recognized the rights of Rastafarians to religiously use cannabis. What makes the editor of the Garden Isle newspaper so much less wise than these justices with regard to the religious rights of believers?At one time the garden isle was less prejudiced and more open than is reflected in your jaded opinion, but then what can one expect if all appears yellow to a jaundiced eye?DENNIS SHIELDSBig IslandMentioned Article:Editorial: Pot-For-Religion Quest Is Just A Smoke Screenhttp://mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1587/a07.html?31890Feedback: http://www.kauaiworld.com/kauai/letterstoeditor.nsf/webletter?openform [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by freedom fighter on October 17, 2000 at 19:10:29 PT Oh, I am so glad to meet you people least on the Net. :)May Peace be upon you..\/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Rev. Jonathan Adler on October 17, 2000 at 12:00:12 PT: Adler/ Christie Religious use in Hawaii! Thank you for spreading the word that we are indeed "engaged in a lawful activity" here in Hawaii at the Hawaii Medical Marijuana Institute; aka; www.medijuana.comMuch Aloha to Dr. Ethan Russo PHD. who by the way is approved for migraine headache research by the Feds, but has no legal access to product! Ethan, please call me at 1-877-medijuana to discuss my assisting you soon! Our phyto-sanitary "volcanic organic" medijuana (TM) is well received wherever it goes! We are out here in the middle of the ocean in Paradise and the VICE squad's boss knows we have already won. He was here at my greenhouse with Roger on Sunday and we discussed issues, lisences, defenses, allowable quantities, limitations on number of legal recognized facilities and other pertinent subjects. We agreed that arrest was not an option as the courts were unable to prosecute me yet in three years of public cultivation and distribution within our statutory limitation which have changed for the better with the Governor's support. We agreed to progress and discuss our options. He stated that he respected our efforts, which had cost him $265,000 earmarked to fly drug choppers this year and our sincere attempts to create a legal distribution system. I am filing a protective restraining order to our courts soon. Public Safety says December will offer forms for personal use and one care-giver. I currently have helped and am helping hundreds. This is just a start. Please help our cause with any donations of a heart-felt nature to: Rev J. Adler Box 742 Hilo, Hi. 96721 Mahalo to all and to all a good puff! Hawaii Medical Marijuana Institute [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Antianti on October 17, 2000 at 08:16:12 PT: Except for Comrade Nepelka and her Ilk The firestorm is coming. It MUST BE MET with equal fervor from our side. We must not aqcuiesce like we did 20 years ago. National Marijuana Lobbying Website [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Ethan Russo, MD on October 16, 2000 at 09:56:44 PT: Two Sincere Individuals Whatever people might think after reading this article, I can say that I know Roger, and have spoken to Jon several times. Both are absolutely sincere, intelligent people who believe fervently what they speak. No one should question that. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: