California's "Weed Nuns" (Are Not Really Nuns)

[Gabriela]

From http://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-marijuana-nuns-idUSKBN17M2EK?utm_source=34553&utm_medium=partner

Quote

U.S. | Fri Apr 21, 2017 | 5:12am EDT

California's 'weed nuns' on a mission to heal with cannabis

By Omar Younis | MERCED, CALIF.

The Sisters of the Valley, California's self-ordained "weed nuns," are on a mission to heal and empower women with their cannabis products.

Based near the town of Merced in the Central Valley, which produces over half of the fruit, vegetables and nuts grown in the United States, the Sisters of the Valley grow and harvest their own cannabis plants.

The sisterhood stresses that its seven members, despite the moniker, do not belong to any order of the Catholic Church.

"We're against religion, so we're not a religion. We consider ourselves Beguine revivalists, and we reach back to pre-Christian practices,” said 58-year-old Sister Kate, who founded the sisterhood in 2014.

The group says its Holy Trinity is the marijuana plant, specifically hemp, a strain of marijuana that has very low levels of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound in the plant.

 

California 'weed nun' Christine Meeusen, 57, who goes by the name Sister Kate (L), and India Delgado, who goes by the name Sister Eevee, trim hemp in the kitchen at Sisters of the Valley near Merced, California, U.S., April 18, 2017. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

 

 

Members turn the hemp into cannabis-based balms and ointments, which they say have the power to improve health and wellbeing.

More than two dozen U.S. states have legalized some form of marijuana for medical or recreational use, but the drug remains illegal at the federal level. California legalized recreational use of marijuana in November 2016.

"A sister becomes a sister through a commercial relationship and earning a wage or a commission and we want to grow this way because we want to free the women, we don't want to make them more dependent," said Kate, whose real name is Christine Meeusen.

She said the group had roughly $750,000 in sales last year, the most since it started selling products in January 2015.

President Donald Trump's administration and his Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a longtime critic of marijuana legalization, have worried some in the country's nascent legalized marijuana industry.

But the "weed nuns" say the new administration has strengthened their resolve.

"The thing Trump has done for us is put a fire under our butts to get launched in another country," said Kate. "Our response to Trump is Canada." The group makes online sales to Canda, and hopes to launch an operation there in two months.

Sister Kate adopted the nun persona after she took part in an Occupy Wall Street protest in 2011 dressed as a Catholic nun, a look that led her to be known by protesters as "Sister Occupy.”

“We've gotten a few hate calls but, by and far, the Catholics understand what we're doing," she said.

 

Let's try to keep discussion charitable.  

Edited April 22, 2017 by Gabriela

[Nihil Obstat]

"The sisterhood stresses that its seven members, despite the moniker, do not belong to any order of the Catholic Church.

"We're against religion, so we're not a religion. We consider ourselves Beguine revivalists, and we reach back to pre-Christian practices,” said 58-year-old Sister Kate, who founded the sisterhood in 2014."

So they are a bunch of irreligious heathens, essentially. And they have decided to play dress-up and co-opt a sacred institution. Is this not what liberals are whining about when they complain about cultural appropriation?

They are committing a sin of sacrilege at the very least.

[Gabriela]

8 hours ago, Nihil Obstat said:

"The sisterhood stresses that its seven members, despite the moniker, do not belong to any order of the Catholic Church.

"We're against religion, so we're not a religion. We consider ourselves Beguine revivalists, and we reach back to pre-Christian practices,” said 58-year-old Sister Kate, who founded the sisterhood in 2014."

So they are a bunch of irreligious heathens, essentially. And they have decided to play dress-up and co-opt a sacred institution. Is this not what liberals are whining about when they complain about cultural appropriation?

They are committing a sin of sacrilege at the very least.

Ahem...

10 hours ago, Gabriela said:

Let's try to keep discussion charitable.  

But I do see your point. I mean, despite their unwarranted reputation as renegades, even beguines were pious Catholic women. So I don't understand at all why these women want to be in habit, unless it's just for the attention and shock value...?

That being said, I'm at least glad that they openly acknowledge to anyone who asks that they aren't affiliated with the Catholic Church. We've seen orders before that don't do that, so it could be worse!

[Antigonos]

I'm probably the last person who ought to make this kind of observation, but doesn't this sort of contravene the rules of VS, discussing a group like this?

[dominicansoul]

One of my facebook friends who smokes copious amounts of weed tagged me on this story.  Lol.  He smokes it for medicinal purposes.  I had to let him down and tell him this was not a Roman Catholic convent and these women were just playing dress up.

Although I do remember that time when a monastery I'm fond of found cannabis growing in their enclosed convent garden, once.  I wish it were legal where they are located!  They could raise funds selling blunts and call their product "Holy Smokes!"

[vee]

 

Ds

 

[Nihil Obstat]

12 hours ago, Gabriela said:

Ahem...

 

It is perfectly charitable, IMO. Though I would entertain arguments that it is not strictly polite or 'nice'. To which my response would be:

 

I see their fake order as a pretty serious sacrilege and a frankly juvenile hijacking of a sacred institution. They should stop pretending to be religious.

[Gabriela]

9 hours ago, Antigonos said:

I'm probably the last person who ought to make this kind of observation, but doesn't this sort of contravene the rules of VS, discussing a group like this?

I thought of that when I posted it, but I don't think that rule applies to a group that's blatantly not Catholic. The rule, as I understand it, is meant for religious communities that try to pass as Catholic but that are not actually in union with Rome. The idea behind the rule is that people not be tempted to join a house that isn't really Catholic. Who in the VS would ever think of joining this place?

[Makarioi]

Fake news, fake orders...what's next.  Who are the Catholics who they say 'understand' what they're doing? 

[Pax17]

This seems like a tasteless marketing gimmick.

[beatitude]

I will pray for them. Beyond that, I don't really know what to say. I don't understand their reasoning at all, any of it. I can only hope that there is something genuine about the religious life that appeals to them - I've known people who described themselves as anti-religious who still had a great curiosity about nuns. If there is something real there, I pray that Our Lady will use it to make herself and Jesus known.

[Nunsuch]

This sort of reminds me of the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence." Except I do think that the "weed" folks DO get a lot of street cred with some people who do think they are "real nuns." And the Perpetual Indulgence group actually does do some constructive community service.

For Perpetual Indulgence, if you are not familiar, see this: https://www.thesisters.org/ 

[Feel free to delete this post if it violates policy....]

[Nihil Obstat]

3 minutes ago, Nunsuch said:

This sort of reminds me of the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence." Except I do think that the "weed" folks DO get a lot of street cred with some people who do think they are "real nuns." And the Perpetual Indulgence group actually does do some constructive community service.

For Perpetual Indulgence, if you are not familiar, see this: https://www.thesisters.org/ 

[Feel free to delete this post if it violates policy....]

I think linking to that group is highly inappropriate.

On 4/22/2017 at 5:50 PM, dominicansoul said:

One of my facebook friends who smokes copious amounts of weed tagged me on this story.  Lol.  He smokes it for medicinal purposes.  I had to let him down and tell him this was not a Roman Catholic convent and these women were just playing dress up.

Although I do remember that time when a monastery I'm fond of found cannabis growing in their enclosed convent garden, once.  I wish it were legal where they are located!  They could raise funds selling blunts and call their product "Holy Smokes!"

I know a guy through church, I guess we are kind of friendly acquaintances. Nice guy, young family, and he is a chronic pain doctor. He recorded a short vlog a couple months ago about his opinion specifically as a chronic pain doctor on medical marijuana, and I found it really fascinating.

The gist of it was that he acknowledges the medical benefits of some of the compounds in marijuana, and he is perfectly fine with them inasmuch as they are medically useful. But his issue with medical marijuana is the extent to which it is marijuana use with some ancillary health benefits, rather than health benefits that happen to come from marijuana. If you follow my meaning.

He was saying, if we are really serious about the potential health benefits therefrom, then spend some time studying those compounds and isolate the beneficial parts. But in his opinion, the way medical marijuana is approached right now, the message is basically "get high, and one of the effects will be somewhat useful for you." He believes that it is medically irresponsible for a prescription for pain to be "smoke this to get high." He says, do the research, isolate the useful stuff, subject it to medical trials and responsible regulation, and use it in that context.

Anyway, he explained it better than I did, but that was what I got out of his video. I found it interesting, since his perspective is certainly more informed than mine.

[Antigonos]

Well, rather than making soap or cheese, I can't see why, in those localities where growing medical marijuana is legal, a religious order can't produce it.  But, contrary to the common perception that "marijuana" invariably involves smoking joints to stay perpetually high, marijuana processed for medical use [it seems to have significant benefit in chronic pain conditions and those suffering the side effects of chemotherapy] doesn't get the user high, and is available on prescription only.

At least these people do make it clear they are NOT a legitimate Catholic religious order.

[Norseman82]

So let me guess....their favorite Bible passage is 1 Maccabees 4:20?