The book "Church: Drugs and Drug Addiction, Pastoral Handbook", edited by the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers (since August 2016 merged into the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development), published by the Libreria Editrice Vaticana, expresses the Church's solicitude towards all those who suffer in the world due to the destructive problem of drugs.
The manual intends to offer indications that can help Bishops, priests, religious men and women, parents and health care professionals in their pastoral work.
The volume opens with the words of Pope John Paul II on the serious problem of drugs. The Holy Father speaks of three particular actions for a pastoral care to face this challenge: prevention, rehabilitation and supression.
The first two are covered in the manual: prevention and treatment. Supression, to which the Pope refers, is not sufficient in itself, and he affirms that we must all fight against the production, processing and distribution of drugs in the world.
For complete volume.