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Initial Study
According to (7.1 Drug Use in History, 2016) substance abuse or drug abuse has been
around since the ancient of days and the first well known drugs had a plant id. The bible states in
(Genesis 1:29 English Standard Version) that he gives us all seed-bearing plants as food. People
of the time would ingest or just chew on the leaves, and it would give them feelings of euphoria
in many ways. Alcohol is seen added to this list around 8000 BCE, but this alcohol was not from
the vine, wheat or rice like the customs of today are and according to (7.1 Drug Use in History,
2016) it came from fermented honey.
Drugs and the abuse of drugs have been around for a long time. Today in America many
Americans (millions) suffer with some form of substance use disorder (CDC, 2024), whether it is
cocaine, heroin, acid, shrooms, crack, meth, marijuana, pills, and the list goes on. Addiction is
not a respecter of persons, and affects homo sapiens of all ages, races, social status, etc.
Addictions to various forms of narcotics can come from depression, mental health issues, sexual
abuse, child abuse, homelessness, etc.
Not only does addiction affect millions of Americans, but it also starts early in many.
People grow up with trauma and most of the time have not addressed the root cause of their
trauma, therefore they substitute feeling with substance abuse. Some start with alcohol,
marijuana, and cigarettes and then their addiction manifest from there into some that becomes a
serious problem and even leads to death.
In 2022 studies were done on 12th grade students and the use of drugs. Below shows the
reported findings expounded upon by (Miech et al., 2023). During a 30-day use, 12th graders
submitted in a survey that they had used heroin, cocaine, hallucinogens, as well as anabolic
steroids not prescribed by a doctor, abuse of opioid prescription medications and ADHD
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(attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder) medications. What is this world truly coming to?
Moral Theory
There are many different forms of treatment and recovery options for whoever wants to
break the chains of addiction like outpatient counseling, inpatient rehabilitation, behavioral
health care, medicated assisted treatment (MAT), and various forms of therapies, theories, and
techniques.
Christian ethics or moral theory states that human’s knowing the truth, choose to rebel
and sin against God which causes disconnect and discord in their lives (Yeung, 2021). Christians
are taught early on to repent and be baptized in the newness of life through the Holy Spirit. When
this happens, it starts the process of denying the old self and former way of life which was
stained by previous fleshly desires (Ephesians 4:22-24 New International Version), something
that most Christians know as the process of sanctification.
In Christian counseling, counselors focus on doctrine from the bible with a psychological
intuition, and a manufactured all-inclusive approach to spiritual and emotional welfare of their
client. There are so many verses of scripture that speak to the absence of substances that take the
believers heart and mind from God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Christians are called to be sober
minded and watchful of the day drawing near (1 Peter 5:8 English Standard Version). Insobriety
creates delirium in a believer’s mind as well as a path of reverie (Drugs, n.d.) which will keep
one’s soul of the narrow path that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14 ESV). Moral theory
helps a believer to turn from their immoral actions that are rooted in drug addiction and seek to
restore one back to a right mind and prevent relapse involving whatever substance they were
abusing.
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Strategies and Techniques
While there are many options when it comes to recovering and the preventing relapse of
substance abuse, recovering from any kind of sin for that matter, especially that of drug
addiction, requires the power of the Holy Spirit, and religion adapted cognitive behavioral
therapy (R-CBT). In the article written by (de Abreu Costa & Moreira-Almeida, 2021) there is
enough evidence to prove that religion adapted protocols to psychotherapy are just as effective if
not even more than your average secular protocols. When looking into the general realm of
psychiatry, research has concluded that clients are eager to have their clinician bring to light the
religious issues (de Abreu Costa & Moreira-Almeida, 2021). It’s like God has had this plan to
integrate psychiatry and religion since the
beginning to help his people.
So, what exactly is religion adapted cognitive behavioral therapy (R-CBT)? R-CBT is a
form of cognitive behavioral therapy that allows one to incorporate one’s faith, spirituality, and
religion into their behavioral therapy and can be used primarily for changing one’s immoral or
bad behavior. RCBT according to (Ciarrocchi et al., n.d.) is a 10-session treatment plan that
counselors go over with their clients in different stages to help their clients find the pattern of
wrongdoing and fix it through assessing, identifying, challenging, and coping. While these
sessions take place clients learn to have gratitude in the little things, learn generosity, and gain
hope for future afflictions of the mind so they may be properly equipped with scripture and
psychosocial techniques that will help prevent relapse (Ciarrocchi et al., n.d.).
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References
7.1 Drug Use in History. (2016, March 25). Open.lib.umn.edu; University of Minnesota
Libraries Publishing edition, 2015. This edition is adapted from a work originally
produced in 2010 by a publisher who has requested that it not receive attribution.
https://open.lib.umn.edu/socialproblems/chapter/7-1-drug-use-in-history/
CDC. (2024, April 25). Treatment of Substance Use Disorders. Overdose Prevention.
https://www.cdc.gov/overdose-prevention/treatment/index.htm
Ciarrocchi, J., Schechter, M., Pearce, Harold, G., Koenig, & Pearce, M. (n.d.). Religious
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy 10-Session Treatment Manual for Depression in Clients
with Chronic Physical Illness. https://spiritualityandhealth.duke.edu/files/2021/11/RCBT
anual-Final-Christian-Version-3-14-14.pdf
de Abreu Costa, M., & Moreira-Almeida, A. (2021). Religion-Adapted Cognitive Behavioral
Therapy: A Review and Description of Techniques. Journal of Religion and Health, 61(1).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-021-01345-z
Drugs. (n.d.). The Christian Institute. https://www.christian.org.uk/issue/drugs/
Miech, R., Johnston, L., Patrick, M., O’Malley, P., Bachman, J., & Schulenberg, J. (2023).
National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2022: Secondary School Students.
https://monitoringthefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/mtf2022.pdf
Yeung J. W. K. (2022). Faith-based intervention, change of religiosity, and abstinence of
substance addicts. Revista brasileira de psiquiatria (Sao Paulo, Brazil: 1999), 44(1), 46
56. https://doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2020-1576
