THE OPIOID CRISIS AND THE SOUL OF AMERICA

The Opioid Crisis and the Soul of America

October 27, 2017 - FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL

When America's War on Drugs was reaching its zenith in the 1980s, the solutions seemed so much simpler. 

The slogan "Just Say No" was plastered everywhere, and made it seem like solving America's dependence on dangerous drugs was as easy as a simple denial. Sadly, as America's drug problem continued to creep into the next millennium, it has once again exploded in the form of prescription painkillers and other opioid drugs. "No" is no longer enough.

On Thursday, President Trump gave a speech declaring the opioid crisis in America a national public health emergency:

More people are dying from drug overdoses today than from gun homicides and motor vehicles combined. Think of it -- motor vehicle crashes, gun homicides, more people by far from drug overdoses.

These overdoses are driven by a massive increase in addiction to prescription painkillers, heroin, and other opioids. Last year, almost 1 million Americans used heroin, and more than 11 million abused prescription opioids. The United States is by far the largest consumer of these drugs, using more opioid pills per person than any other country by far in the world. Opioid overdose deaths have quadrupled since 1999 and now account for the majority of fatal drug overdoses. Who would have thought?

Indeed, who would have thought? The truth is that nearly all of us know someone who has been impacted by this crisis. I'm thankful that the president is addressing this issue. Throughout my career I've encountered people and families who have been affected by the abuse of opioid drugs. This is a crisis that destroys families, and as the president said, 

"Addressing it will require all of our effort and it will require us to confront the crisis in all of its very real complexity."

The president was right when he said that we need "to prevent our citizens from becoming addicted to drugs in the first place." But just saying no is no longer enough, and the truth is, it never was. 

Drug abuse is as much a spiritual struggle as it is a medical problem. 

Complete healing will never take place without God's intervention, and one of God's most prevalent means of intervention is through churches and other faith-based entities which focus on healing the whole person. 

The Daily Signal reported recently on studies showing that the use of illicit drugs strongly correlates with lack of religious attendance: "A large and growing body of evidence shows that not only can religion help prevent people from using illicit drugs, but it also plays a strong role in effective treatment programs."

The Trump administration has already shown unprecedented attention to listening to faith communities in his short presidency, and I'm hopeful that he'll continue to seek that input with this epidemic. I'm thankful that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is already seeking connection with faith communities to aid in this crisis with a number of resources, and I look forward to further efforts to utilize all the resources that faith-based organizations can offer.

President Trump said, "Ending the epidemic will require mobilization of government, local communities, and private organizations. It will require the resolve of our entire country." The church's role in that resolve is paramount. As Kathryn Butler, a trauma and critical care surgeon, wrote earlier this year in a powerful essay on the issue, 

"The opioid epidemic concerns not only the national consciousness, but also each of us as individuals within the body of Christ. Christ calls us to carry our joy beyond the safe boundaries of our churches each week and care for our neighbors (Luke 10:25-37)." 

She's right -- to impact lives, people of faith can't be merely reactive. The church doesn't have the option of sitting on the sidelines in this life-or-death crisis.

---

Tony Perkins' Washington Update is written with the aid of FRC senior writers.