A woman was removed from a church in Oklahoma City after church members mistook cilantro she brought as ganja. – File picture by CK Lim
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 24 – A woman in Oklahoma City, US, was kicked out of church after cilantro and oregano she brought for a soup dish were mistaken for ganja.
Ashley Ontiveros had gone to Redemption United Methodist Church for a programme with the Department of Corrections that allows inmates to attend service, to visit her incarcerated sister.
Ontiveros told KOCO 5 news channel that she the ingredients were for her Menudo soup.
According to LatinoFoodie.Com, Menudo is made with tripe, typically signifies a celebration of sorts, and takes many hours to perfect.
It is an important piece of the culture and is topped with seasonings like cilantro.
Ontiveros said she brought Menudo with all the fixings, such as onion, lime, cilantro and oregano in a plastic bag but church members refused to open the bag and smell the contents.
She said she had planned to eat the Menudo with her sister at the church, as she had done in the past, adding that she was left traumatised by the incident.
The sisters will now stop going to the church, added Ontiveros, despite this being the only opportunity for them to meet.
In a related development, the church said family members, visitors and guests are welcome to attend the services but they are not allowed to give food items to the inmates to take back to correctional facilities.
The Department of Corrections confirmed that this was policy.