Debate: why should we talk about drugs when people are young?
“All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything,” Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians, 6:12). Based on this statement, the militant youth of the Good Will of God of various ages debate the importance of talking about drugs when young; send in your opinion too.
The topic was chosen due to the increasingly alarming facts that require our attention and serious approach to the subject. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), in 2016, around 190,000 people die due to illicit drugs every year.
Below is an extract from the debate and invite you to reflect on it with us!
André Franchi, 21, Music Production undergraduate student, Buenos Aires (Argentina): It’s very important to deal with this subject especially when people are young, because that’s when we begin to have contact with the world and we want to be independent, to meet new friends. This is the time when our character is formed. We have to educate society on the importance of prevention!
Nayara Preda, 23, Social Communication, Marketing, and Advertising undergraduate student, Brasília (Brazil): Every day we have news proving that drugs are somehow harmful to our physical body. In the Religion of God, of the Christ, and of the Holy Spirit we learn that our spiritual body also suffers a lot with this. So, if we want to have control over our body and over our life, we cannot have any doubts when the subject is drugs.
André Franchi: Young people like to experience strong emotions and are often worried about what others think of them. And then company comes along, “friends” who offer drugs. So they don’t want to be left out! They end up accepting them, which becomes a one-way road because they become addicted. Drugs put an end to our lives, our happiness, our goals, and our reasoning. Why submit ourselves to this type of life if we can be happy being healthy?
Marco Dametto, 38, radio broadcaster, father of two children, São Paulo (Brazil): For a long time educator Paiva Netto has been saying that if the tide is wrong, then we should swim against the tide. So, is it just because someone says that I have to use drugs to be better looking, more successful, or more this or that that I have to accept them?! No way! And it’s very important that parents don’t drink and smoke, because the example begins at home.
Almost 4% of all deaths in the world are attributed to alcohol. Drinking alcohol in excess is intrinsically linked to psychiatric problems, epilepsy, cirrhosis, cardiovascular diseases, and several types of cancer. Data from the World Health Organization (WHO), in its 2011 Global status report on alcohol and health.
Nayara Preda: It’s important to say that it’s not easy! None of us is immune to the situation of receiving an invitation or becoming addicted to some drug. That’s why it’s essential to have a healthy routine, so we can be strong when invitations like this appear. And this is done by cultivating good family habits good reading, and even with prayer.
Marco Dametto: Even for those who end up getting into this situation and thinking: “Oh, so am I lost?” No! After all, Jesus, the Heavenly Thaumaturge, says in His Gospel according to Mark (2:17): “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” And all of us can be cured and guided by the Divine Master every day, regardless of whether we belong to some belief, ethnic group, or specific culture. It’s up to us to seek this cure, by joining willpower and medical treatment with an unshakable Faith under the protection of the Heavenly Medicine. So, let’s say no to drugs and yes to Life!
Educator Paiva Netto writes: “(...) Problems have a solution when human beings are willing to solve them. It is a question of respect for the divine privilege of existing. That is why this quote by Henry Ford (1863-1947), who once described Good Will as the greatest force of Life, is so opportune: ‘Times of wealth are not born by chance. They come about as the result of a lot of effort and tenacity.’
“We must devote this same effort to combat drugs that cause misery to so many families and provide the due rehabilitation for users. Crack, alcohol, and tobacco, to name but a few, are thus wretched Armageddons we must defeat.”
If you have any question and/or comment about this and other topics, send them to the Religion of the Third Millennium. Let the Ecumenical Spirituality become a part of your life! And if you felt good reading this article, share it! It might touch the heart of other people too.
Version: Rob Dinham
Revision: Rosana Bertolin and Felipe Duarte
