American faith communities have launched the single largest US response in the history of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, with programs organized by at least 5,000 formal and informal faith-based HIV/AIDS organizations. Their actions are creating new models for cooperation among diverse groups, including the forging of new partnerships among religious, secular, and philanthropic organizations. Faith groups are playing critical roles in HIV/AIDS prevention, education and support.
As more faith communities begin to speak out and embrace the AIDS issue, other religious organizations continue to be silent about the epidemic or remain paralyzed by the issues that AIDS presents.
What is a faith community?
According to the AIDS National Interfaith Network (ANIN), the term "communities of faith" is a broad one, meant to encompass a group organized around any set of beliefs or practices that involve a belief in a higher power or order, a larger organizing principle for life and the universe, or a system or code that links our values and actions to the idea that there is reason and purpose to our existence on Earth.
Faith-based responses to AIDS take diverse forms and exist at all levels. Some involve single denominations or communities, while others are interfaith programs. Many programs originated in individual congregations and have evolved into separate agencies, incorporating multiple groups.
Faith-based programs provide members with a way to express their faith and give of their energy and talents. Interfaith programs provide opportunities to link personal values to those of others. [See the Interfaith Declaration.]
Community responses
Most faith-based services at the community level focus on primary care or support services. Some congregations have included HIV prevention and education programs.
There are numerous examples of highly successful community-level services organized and funded by local faith communities or by interfaith coalitions. Their ministries include food and meal services, food banks, pastoral care and counseling, shelters for homeless HIV-positive women and their children, drop-in day care centers, hospices, housing, support services, training of care providers, support groups, substance abuse ministries and AIDS education programs.
National responses
In the spirit of social justice, many faith-based organizations have established national networks to coordinate AIDS services among their members. Following are some examples of these national responses:
-
The Balm in Gilead represents the seven historic African-American denominations. It provides leadership for the black church's response to HIV/AIDS in America.
-
The National Catholic AIDS Network hosts an annual national Catholic HIV/AIDS Ministry Conference and has developed a new HIV/AIDS resource entitled "Many Threads, One Weave."
-
The Joint Committee on AIDS of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations and the Central Conference of American Rabbis produced the video "Jewish Responses to AIDS."
-
The National Episcopal AIDS Coalition distributed 100,000 copies of a federal report on AIDS to Episcopal parishes, dioceses and schools. They designed HIV/AIDS prevention materials through their "Teens for AIDS" peer education program.
-
The Buddhist AIDS Project networks Buddhist communities and existing AIDS services with Buddhist resources. It provides free information on resources and alternative HIV/AIDS services.
-
The United Methodist Church's AIDS Ministry Network operates the Computerized AIDS Ministry Resource Electronic Bulletin Board to increase communication among AIDS-involved persons.
-
The Presbyterian AIDS Network sponsored a national conference to train care teams in the support and care of the HIV-positive and their families.
-
The United Church of Christ has written a full curriculum on HIV/AIDS prevention, graded for all age levels, from pre-school through senior citizens. It is entitled "Affirming Ourselves, Saving Lives."
-
A national newsletter is designed to increase communication and linkages among American Muslims affected by HIV/AIDS.
-
AIDS National Interfaith Network was created by diverse faith leaders to foster communication and education about HIV/AIDS among various religious communities. They also convene the Council of National Religious AIDS Networks, comprised of 14 national faith-based organizations.
An Interfaith Declaration
In an effort to develop an appropriate response to HIV/AIDS from the faith community, the Council of National Religious AIDS Networks, an interfaith coalition, came together in 1993. They developed the following statement, portions of which were taken from The African-American Clergy's Declaration of War on HIV/AIDS (The Balm in Gilead Inc., 1994) and from "The Atlanta Declaration" (AIDS National Interfaith Network, 1989). Communities are welcome to adapt this or use it as a model.
| We are members of different faith communities called by God to affirm a life of hope and healing in the midst of HIV/AIDS. The enormity of the pandemic itself has compelled us to join forces despite our differences of belief. Our traditions call us to embody and proclaim hope, and to celebrate life and healing in the midst of suffering. AIDS is an affliction of the whole human family, a condition in which we all participate. It is a scandal that many people suffer and grieve in secret. We seek hope amidst the moral and medical tragedies of this pandemic in order to pass on hope for generations to come. We recognize the fact that there have been barriers among us based on religion, race, class, age, nationality, physical ability, gender and sexual orientation which have generated fear, persecution and even violence. We call upon all sectors of our society, particularly our faith communities, to adopt as highest priority the confrontation of racism, classism, ageism, sexism and homophobia. As long as one member of the human family is afflicted, we all suffer. In that spirit, we declare our response to the AIDS pandemic:
|
The website of AIDS National Interfaith Network has links to many other AIDS-related, faith-based websites: www.anin.org