Looking Back and Forward
The Church Plays a Major Role in the Way Christians Address Aids
I had the opportunity to work on the planning committee for the National
Catholic AIDS Network’s 2006 Conference, “Are We One Body?” It
was a wonderful team; everyone’s goal was to make the conference a
good spiritual experience and still educate those working in AIDS ministry.
We answered the question: We are one body. We are all responsible for the
welfare of everyone and for making sure that testing and medicine are available
here and abroad.
HIV/AIDS is one of the priorities for the National Black Catholic Congress, and a major issue in the Black Catholic community. It is not just because of Africa; in the United States, it affects the African American community in an alarming rate. An HIV/AIDS curriculum has been created to teach children and parents in our Catholic schools about the disease. This is still waiting on the final approval of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. It is important for the church to address these concerns from a spiritual standpoint, and to let people know that we care about what is happening in our communities and in our dioceses.
Living in the South, I see the importance of education about the disease because people are not completely aware of how the disease spreads. The church could be a major player by having testing at parishes, and dioceses with AIDS ministries where individuals can call for help, as well as HIV/AIDS lay ministers to help them with information and how to get assistance if they are HIV positive.
I enjoy working with young people. It was sad to hear at a Catholic youth event about a 17-year old dying in 2006 from an opportunistic infection because he did not know he was sick until he developed AIDS. The role of the church in the area of youth ministry is very important, to help them in opting for abstinence and healthy relationships.
Being involved in the Network has been a wonderful experience. But we need to raise awareness among our parishioners, our priests and our bishops about the importance of continuing AIDS Ministry in every diocese. We must remember that HIV and AIDS are social justice issues. The National Catholic AIDS Network may be closing but it is important to continue the ministry, be it at parish or diocesan level, and even if we need to band together in our various regions.
Martha Carter-Bailey
Director for African Ancestry Ministry
and Evangelization in the Diocese
of Raleigh
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