Konstytucyjna wolność uzewnętrzniania przekonań religijnych a posiadanie i używanie konopi (innych niż włókniste) w celach rytualnych
The constitutional freedom to manifest religious beliefs and possessing and using cannabis (other than hemp) for ritual purposes

Summary/Abstract: The article examines the question whether possession of an intoxicating drug (specifically cannabis) for the purposes of one’s religious practice is allowed in the light of the constitutional provisions that guarantee freedom of conscience and religion as well as the right to manifest one’s religion by religious worship, prayer and participation in rituals and that prohibit compelling anyone not to participate in religious rituals. Freedom of conscience is not the same concept as the freedom to practice a particular religion. It follows from the Constitution that the freedom to express one’s beliefs may be limited due to, inter alia, health, morality or public order. Therefore, the author takes the position that although freedom of religion is an important right among other human rights and freedoms, the right to manifest one’s beliefs must often give way to a higher-order good. Hence the conclusion that there are no grounds to consider the process of deliberate intoxication as religious worship that enjoys constitutional protection.

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