The Church in the face of a crisis

Patients with HIV/AIDS are stigmatized. Does the church contribute to, or work to defeat, this stigma?

Allan Handysides, MB, ChB, is director of the Health Ministries Department, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Silver Spring, Maryland, United States.

As silent as a fall in temperature, an epidemic began its incubation. Unrecognized for some thirty years, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) was spreading like the sunrise—yet undetected.

On June 5, 1981, the weekly report of the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta published a report of five young homosexual men who had a disorder characterized by a loss of immunologic competency. They had Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

Within three to four years, the virus had been identified as the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, a retrovirus, which destroys the human immune system. An individual with this virus, over the course of a few years, will become the target of infections that, in normal situations, would be easily coped with by a healthy body.

Scientists calculate that this infection began in the 1950s with a key mutation—probably in a monkey immunovirus (simian immunovirus [SIV])—that permitted it to attack human cells. Since the recognition of the syndrome and the identification of the infectious agent, the disease has spread exponentially. Initially, it was thought to be limited to homosexuals and, thus, was met by many Christians with an attitude of pious immunity. However, before long it became apparent that this was an infection spread not only by homosexual behavior but heterosexual activity as well, through bodily fluids such as blood and plasma.

Indeed, the explosive nature of this epidemic has been documented in statistics of the prevalence of HIV infection among young, pregnant women attending prenatal clinics in South Africa. In 1990, less than 2 percent were infected; by 1994, some 7.9 percent were infected; by 1998, more than 20 percent were infected. Today, figures in countries such as Botswana and Swaziland total over 40 percent, and in sub-Saharan Africa, these figures range from 15 to 40 percent. Globally, the epidemic continues to strengthen its hold, especially among women; and in many countries, it hovers just below the 2 percent level.This level, believed to be the “tipping point,” indicates that beyond this an explosive outbreak can be anticipated.

How should we respond to this crisis? As Adventists, we recognize the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs of people. As church pastors, we often minister to those who have been confronted with physical and financial pain. Our response to their need does not require an appropriate reason as to why a person lives with an illness or as a homeless person or without money. Instead, we recognize their need and seek to meet it.

We must do the same for those infected with HIV and AIDS.

Stigma

We attach the “stigma” label to others, which implies that they are guilty, defective, less worthy, and less valuable than we believe ourselves to be. Even though we may offer them assistance, when we stigmatize people, our beneficence becomes paternalistic.

As pastors, we may find it easy to distribute food, clothing, money, or any other kind of assistance, but probably find it more difficult to enter a relationship with the recipients. Could it be that we are stigmatizing these folks? The accusation brought against Jesus by the Pharisees was that He ate and drank with publicans and sinners. That means Christ “eyeballed” the publicans across the table, sharing their food, theircircumstances, and their hopes and confronting their despair.

We as church leaders need to be aware of our own conflicts and prejudices. If we demean or judge those infected by HIV, how can we teach the members to do differently? How can we teach them to care?

Care

More than forty million have died from AIDS; approximately the same number live with the infection now. Hence, the need has become enormous, and the costs of care can be overwhelming. Not only the cost of medication and professional care, but the loss of income as well leads millions into poverty, which in many cases deprives the whole family of housing, food, clothing, education, and other necessities. The emotional costs to orphans, widows, and family are incalculable.

We don’t consider it difficult to care for our immediate family, our church members, and our local community. As we get further from interacting with individuals, it becomes increasingly difficult to sustain interest, compassion, and care. The insulation from the needs of those removed from us by time and space leads to a decline in the sense of mission. However, the HIV and AIDS epidemic has emphasized the common vulnerability of us all.

As ministers, we have a responsibility to keep well-honed to global needs the sensibilities and sensitivities of our members. In fact, a church involved in mission, engaged in collaborative effort, and guided by the Holy Spirit will share from its human and financial resources. The Holy Spirit produces an attitude of caring and compassion.

Church ministries

With the AIDS epidemic overwhelming, its scope has gone beyond the resources of many nations. What can a pastor do before something as big as this? What can the church do? Clearly, the church can play only a part in dealing with this epidemic, but that part can be crucial.

Prevention should be identified as one essential place for the pastor to be involved. Education has been used, but as a stand-alone strategy it has failed to stem this epidemic. Education and transmission of values occur only through the conduit of relationships and connection. The pastor, then, must foster and develop within the church mentoring relationships with the youth. Initiatives such as Youth ALIVE! (www.youthalive.org) and a new mentoring program developed in Australia seek to build such relationships in an effort to help young people make healthful lifestyle choices.

In addition to the building of relationships, the church has sought through its HIV and AIDS ministries to introduce into our educational institutions curricula regarding the disease and its prevention.

Within the role of a pastor lies the obligation to encourage families to teach appropriate attitudes toward human sexuality. Following a Commission on Human Sexuality, the Family Ministries department of the General Conference produced a manual that is a curriculum framework on sexuality from infancy to maturity.1 Pastors could bless the parents within their congregation(s) by promoting this curriculum.

The goal of several ministries of the Church—Youth Ministries, Family Ministries, Health Ministries, Women’s Ministries, and Children’s Ministries— includes helping prevent the spread of this disease, with each one fostering the empowering relationships. Yet pastors, in their pivotal roles, act as gatekeepers of the flow of information.

Mission clinics and hospitals Like many other faith-based institutions, Adventist mission hospitals care for people infected by HIV. Many find up to 75 percent of their patients are HIV-positive; they also care for many HIV patients in the communities in which they operate. An example would be Maluti Adventist Hospital in Lesotho— the leading hospital in the country. One among some 13 hospitals, it renders HIV care for some 20 percent of the total care given to those with HIV infection in Lesotho.

Seventh-day Adventists have over 29 such hospitals in Africa, but they are often underfunded and have seen cutbacks in their support since mission giving from the developed world has become more project-driven. HIV has become a major problem in the Caribbean, second only to Africa. In Eastern Europe, we have seen some of its most rapid acceleration. Places like India, China, and Southeast Asia have large populations with HIV. Our hospitals are involved with HIV care wherever their location, but this problem can be described as much too massive for them alone.

Every church a community health center

As a part of the integrated mission of the church to “Tell the World,” Adventists seek to utilize each church congregation as a center of health and healing. This concept finds an outreach in many health-related programs; in Africa this focus has increasingly become an HIV and AIDS one. The concept of each congregation as a community health center casts the pastor as a director of community health care.

The church’s humanitarian agency, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency, has worked extensively at national levels in the arena of HIV. However, because the church recognized the need for individual involvement in the healing ministry of Jesus, it established a coordinating HIV and AIDS office in Africa. Since 2002, this office has existed for the purpose of stimulating and integrating Adventist Church involvement at a grassroots level in the mission of care for those affected by HIV and AIDS.

The director of the continental ministry in Africa, Dr. Oscar Giordano, assisted by his wife, Eugenia, who is also a physician, leads a resurgence in care for those affected.2 They work closely with the Health Ministries directors of the divisions, and also with our health-care institutions and union HIV and AIDS coordinators, in fostering congregational involvement in HIV and AIDS support and care.

Orphaned children often become heads of their families. With churches in Africa organized to assist such families by offering support, training, and opportunities, we have seen churches transformed into centers where sewing, baking, and training takes place. Small income-generating projects such as poultry or goat raising have provided an income to persons not gainfully employed but affected by HIV. Educating trainers and leaders in this work has been methodically implemented in an ever widening number of countries. Some three years ago, four men gathered as a group to study the HIV program; a few months ago, a similar gathering of leaders mustered more than 25 country coordinators, each engaged in making their respective churches a community health center.

With South Africa as a country where about 20 percent of the population are diagnosed as HIV-positive, the need has become enormous. Pastors can be leaders of change to help address this need.

One example

For instance, upon retiring, Pastor Paul Mawela returned to his homeland among his Venda people. With no Adventist church in the area, he visited the pastors of several other denominations. He became aware of the massive numbers of people laid low by HIV and collaboratively—along with these pastors—started a home-based care program. Simply by visiting the homes of the sick, they saw the great need and began to address it.

With Pastor Mawela’s wife Martha as a nurse, the home visitation program was soon augmented with a feeding program for orphaned children. When the work began, they visited 20 homes per week. Today the team visits in excess of 600 homes each week, and each lunchtime scores of children are fed and given help with their homework. Assisted with support by the North American Division’s program Hope for Humanity, (formerly the Ingathering program) this project has grown so vigorously that a new church has been built and continues to thrive.

Pastor Mawela was invited to preach at another denomination’s church. He replied, “You know I am a Seventh-day Adventist and will preach from my Adventist perspective.” The other pastor replied to the effect that if an Adventist perspective led to such caring individuals, perhaps they all needed that perspective.

This dreadful disease has opened a window that lets the light shine on our commitment as Christians; it opens doorways for us to become engaged in compassionate care. Though not a welcomed disease, it has focused the attention of the faith-based community on service. It calls for pastors to assume new responsibilities in organizing and training our members. It re-emphasizes the concepts involved in mission.

Service binds us close to others and to our Lord. A challenge to the church today includes equipping pastors who will lead the membership to become involved in caring for those in need, whether the need is next door or across an ocean.

1 This manual can be purchased at www.ministerialassociation.com.
2 See “A Ministry of Compassion to the HIV/AIDS Community,” Ministry, October 2007, 17–19.

 

 


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Allan Handysides, MB, ChB, is director of the Health Ministries Department, General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Silver Spring, Maryland, United States.

December 2007

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