CLERGY DEPLORE DRUGS EPIDEMIC

Members of the Church of England's General Synod yesterday unanimously
backed a motion deploring the destructive effects of drugs on individuals
and communities, writes Clare Garner.

The attempt to address the issue head-on was the first time that the Synod
had debated the subject in its 27-year history.

Synod members, meeting in York, called for the Government to do more for
drugs education, and commended efforts to give practical help to those
whose lives have been blighted by drugs. Quoting from a passage in
Ecclesiastes - "Without God, many of us will adopt the philosophy; let us
eat and drink, for tomorrow we die" - Phillip Gore, a lay member, urged the
Church to plug the spiritual gap.

The Very Rev Stephen Platten, Dean of Norwich, said: "The worry . is that
we can easily snipe at society from behind the blockades or, even worse
still, steer off a subject which is just so difficult to contemplate, at
least as difficult as sexuality."

The Rev Charles Razzall, Area Dean of Oldham, urged clergy and
congregations to be "at the heart of the drugs mis-use scene". He said:
"Each simple encounter with those who use or mis-use or abuse drugs is an
encounter with our crucified Lord."

A number of young people were invited to address Synod. Philip Blackledge,
from Liverpool, said: "Most of my friends take drugs. They are no more drug
addicts than you are alcoholics if you have a pint in the evenings. Each of
us must confront our fears and complacency.