An Antidote to Addiction

I recently read a profound article in the Catholic Herald UK titled Pope Benedict knows that this is the age of addiction   At the end of the article, the author states that the Gospel is an "antidote to addiction."  I totally agree!  What a powerful burden addiction has on society today. 

I think about all of the families torn apart by addiction to painkillers, hard core drugs, alcohol,sex and even food.  (Sugar has similar effects to cocaine.  Scary!)  How many mothers have abandoned their children because of meth amphetamine addiction?  How many wives have been abused by their drunk husbands?  How many kids have flunked out of school because they are partyin' hard, getting high off of marijuana, crystal meth, ecstasy, and other pills?  How many people have been thrown into jail for dealing heroin? How many women have prostituted themselves for drugs? How many people have died from a drug overdose?  Thousands and thousands of people! Addicts are growing by leaps and bounds.  Frightening!

In such a negative, depressive and lonely society, people often turn to drugs as an escape.  They may even want to fit into the crowd.  Drugs are stronger and more powerful than ever before.  Drugs are cheaper and easily available.  Technological advances, such as the Internet, makes access to the poison of choice convenient.  Television shows like Intervention and Dog the Bounty Hunter often highlight the deleterious effects of drugs on the lives of addicts and their families, but people do not always get cleaned up. It doesn't help that drug advertisements on television have added to an increase in prescription pill usage. (I don't have stats on this.  Just a hunch..)

Even in biblical times people faced addictions but nothing like what we see today.  I'm sure Jesus when he was alive cured many people from addictions.  He can do the same thing today:  It just takes faith, love, and hope.  It takes a willingness to fight the demons of addiction and to be made whole again.  The antidote to addiction is handing over oneself completely to Our Lord!  Through prayer and a commitment to recovery, addiction can be overcome.  Love and support from family is the key.  I suspect many people who do have an addiction of some kind feel alone and vulnerable.  They lack the self-worth to get cleaned up.  As a Christian community, especially as Catholics, we have a social and moral obligation to help those who are struggling with addictions.  I hate the idea of allowing these suffering people to hurt themselves and their families.  Each one of them are children of God and created in God's image. 

Addictions are a miserable reality of our society.  Each one of us knows of at least one person struggling with an addiction.  It's up to us to reach out and try to help in anyway possible.  We should turn to Jesus Christ and his Blessed Mother in fervent prayer.

Drug addiction is the Devil's delusion of grandeur! It's time to fight with Divine assistance!

-J.