Interview with Jeffrey Bronfman, Representative Mestre for the Uniâo do Vegetal Church in the United States

Abstract

A telephone interview was held in November of 2004 with Mr. Jeffrey Bronfman, representative mestre for the Uniāo do Vegetal Church in the United States, which utilizes ayahuasca as a religious sacrament. At the time of this writing, the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case in which a large quantity of the ayahuasca tea was seized in the U.S. destined for sacramental use in church ritual. Mr. Bronfman discusses his church's attempt to seek remediation in the courts on this freedom of religion issue, in conflict with current drug legislation outlawing the ayahuasca tea as a scheduled drug.

Keywords:

• ayahuasca
• psychedelic sacrament
• religious freedom
• religious sacrament