Praise Cheez-its! Church of Cannabis opens doors in Indiana
INDIANAPOLIS - Dozens of people wearing shirts with tie-dye or images of marijuana leaves have gathered at a pot-smoking Indianapolis church that was formed as a test of Indiana's new religious objections laws.
But participants in Wednesday's inaugural service at the First Church of Cannabis were planning to celebrate the gathering without their illegal sacrament, days after authorities threatened arrests if the congregation lit up during the rites.
Neighbors who object to the church and other critics point out that marijuana is illegal in Indiana and say the church isn't a good fit for the neighborhood.
Church founder Bill Levin says he decided to keep marijuana out of Wednesday's service to ensure he can test the religious objections law in civil court instead of on criminal grounds.
The Internal Revenue Service recently notified the Indianapolis-based church that it had been granted tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the tax code, which covers nonprofit organizations. The designation means the First Church of Cannabis will get the benefits of being considered a public charity, such as exemption from federal income tax and allowing donors to deduct their financial contributions.
The church generally keeps an upbeat attitude about everything. Its tenets include feel-good instructions such as, "Spend at least 10 mins a day just contemplating life in a quiet space," and "Laugh often, share humor. Have fun in life, be positive."
Some of the tenets apply to modern issues as well, such as "Do not be a 'troll' on the Internet, respect others without name calling and being vulgarly aggressive."
Levin said: "These are things that weren't thought about when they wrote the old books. We have a modern religion for modern times."