"A Lenten Journey to Harm Reduction" with Faith in Public Life

A Lenten Journey to Harm Reduction

Blyth Barnow

Day 1 of 4: The Sacred Power of Harm Reduction

“Lent calls each of us to renew our ongoing commitment to the implications of the Resurrection in our own lives, here and now. But that demands both the healing of the soul and the honing of the soul.”
-Joan Chittister, The Liturgical Year: The Spiraling Adventure of the Spiritual Life

There is no resurrection without first tending to the realities of death. It is a reality that over 68,000 people died of an overdose in 2018. It is a reality that half a million people are incarcerated as a result of the war on drugs, and people who are Black are nearly four times as likely as whites to be arrested for drug offenses. It is a reality that between $8.6 billion and $10 billion was made by the legal marijuana industry, run mostly by white men, while this death and incarceration continues. This Lent we must confront the deadly impact of the racist war on drugs for our loved ones, our community and our country. Together we must journey to reclaim the resurrecting spirit of Harm Reduction.

As people of faith, we must address these issues because there are people in our community that are suffering and dying preventable deaths. And we know that these beloved children of God are not losing their lives and freedom simply because of drug use. It is shame, stigma, isolation and criminalization that is truly to blame.

Unfortunately, faith communities have often been part of perpetuating the problem. Now we need to be part of the solution.

People who use drugs are waiting to hear some good news from the church. As Christians, we are called to cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers of our own making, and cast out the demons of shame and stigma. (Matthew 10:8)

All year long, Christians are called to be Easter people, resurrection people, in a Good Friday world. Which means that it is our spiritual responsibility to reject the death-dealing forces of the war on drugs in order to embrace our Gospel call to life.

This Lenten season, let us attend to the healing and honing of our soul by embracing the sacred power of Harm Reduction.

Call to Action: Read the Principles of Harm Reduction, created by the Harm Reduction Coalition

Day 1 of 4: The Sacred Power of Harm Reduction

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