The church’s view
The church’s Official Lawful Notice describes its sacraments as “ALL "Earth-Based" Sacred Sacraments and medicinal substances - Plant, Herb, Mineral, Metal & Fungus.”1 Ayahuasca, a brew of a vine and a leaf, is one of the sacred plant traditions most often discussed beside the church’s own, and the court decisions about it shape the law of religious freedom for every entheogenic church.
The Amazonian sacrament
Ayahuasca is made, in its classic form, by boiling the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with the leaves of Psychotria viridis (chacruna). The leaves contain N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT); alkaloids in the vine, such as harmine, allow it to take effect when drunk. The brew has long been used by Indigenous peoples of the Amazon basin in healing and ceremony, and the Quechua name is usually translated “vine of the soul” or “vine of the spirits.”2
The Brazilian churches
In the twentieth century ayahuasca became the sacrament of new Christian-influenced religions in Brazil. Santo Daime was founded in the 1930s in the state of Acre by Raimundo Irineu Serra, known as Mestre Irineu, drawing on folk Catholicism and Amazonian tradition.3 The União do Vegetal — “Union of the Plant” — was founded in 1961 in Porto Velho by José Gabriel da Costa, Mestre Gabriel; its members call the tea hoasca.4
Ayahuasca in American courts
DMT is a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law. In 2006, in Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act the government had failed to show a compelling interest in barring the American branch of the UDV from its sacramental use of hoasca.5 In 2009 a federal court in Oregon reached a similar result for a Santo Daime congregation in Ashland, in Church of the Holy Light of the Queen v. Mukasey.6 Colorado’s Natural Medicine Health Act names DMT among the substances the state may add to its regulated program.7
These cases are explained alongside the First Amendment, RLUIPA and AIRFA on the religious freedom page. Nothing here is legal advice.
Questions and answers
What is ayahuasca?
Ayahuasca is a sacred brew of the Amazon basin, usually made from the Banisteriopsis caapi vine together with the leaves of Psychotria viridis, which contain DMT. Its name is usually translated from Quechua as “vine of the soul.”
Which churches use ayahuasca as a sacrament?
The best known are two Brazilian religions: Santo Daime, founded in the 1930s by Raimundo Irineu Serra, and the União do Vegetal (UDV), founded in 1961 by José Gabriel da Costa.
What did the Supreme Court decide in O Centro?
In Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal (2006), the Court ruled unanimously that the government had not shown a compelling interest, under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, in barring the UDV’s sacramental use of hoasca tea.
Sources
- Official Lawful Notice — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
- Ayahuasca — Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Santo Daime — history, with references
- União do Vegetal — history, with references
- Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal, 546 U.S. 418 (2006) — Justia
- Church of the Holy Light of the Queen v. Mukasey, 615 F. Supp. 2d 1210 (D. Or. 2009) — overview
- C.R.S. § 12-170-104, Natural Medicine Health Act definitions
Scholarly claims about sacred plants in history are summarized with their sources, and contested claims are marked as contested. The church’s own beliefs are quoted exactly and linked to the page where they appear.