Story highlights The spiritual Sisters of the Valley grow medical marijuana in California

They use the plant to make various products, including lotions and tinctures

(CNN) The Catholic Church often teaches that there is redemption in suffering, but the spiritual Sisters of the Valley hope to alleviate suffering through a centuries-old tradition familiar to many cloisters and abbeys.

They make salves and lotions and tinctures from plants that are lovingly grown on their California land, harvested around the lunar cycle and cultivated during prayer.

Their main ingredient, though, is decidedly more modern. The sisters grow potent varieties of medical marijuana they say are rich in cannabidiols, the chemicals thought to reduce nausea, suppress seizures, lower inflammation and help with anxiety and depression. They say their products have little or no THC, the chemical that gets users high.

While they wear habits and modest clothing, the two religious sisters who are a part of the business have no official connection to the Catholic Church. Their allegiance is to a feminist ideal, to each other, and to a mission they describe on their website: to "respect the breadth and depth of the gifts of Mother Earth, working to bridge the gap between Her and her suffering people."

Photographers Shaughn Crawford and John DuBois

Photographers Shaughn Crawford and John DuBois first saw the sisters' story on the local news around Thanksgiving. They knew immediately, without a doubt, what their next project had to be, even if they didn't initially have a commission for it. This would be the perfect passion project if they could talk the sisters into it.

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