December 1st, 2004

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The Long View
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Milk and Honey, Vaseline and Prayer

I don’t listen to the radio much. When I do, it’s mostly on Sundays when I’m driving around, and it’s always to the CBC. One of my favourite programs is Tapestry, ‘a weekly exploration of spirituality, religion and the search for meaning’. It’s that rare sources of spiritual discussion outside the framework of a particular religion. They’ll discuss, say, the modernization of Islam one week, and ordaining gay ministers the next. This week, I listened to a remarkable documentary about the church’s role in the AIDS crisis in South Africa:

As HIV-AIDS sweeps through South Africa, the churches are struggling with how to respond. If the basic tenets of faith preclude counseling prevention, what’s left for them to do? Tapestry presents a moving documentary from KwaZulu Natal province.

Collectively, the Christian churchs’ approach to managing HIV/AIDS is shameful. The Anglicans are the only church to offer condoms to parishioners, and even they seemed to do it reticently. The documentary’s title refers to the most common approach to the disease.

Comments: 3 Responses so far

Canadian Headhunter (Michael)
December 2nd, 2004
1:34 pm

It isnt just the churches. I recall reading that one of the leaders of ANC, in fact I think it was Mandela’s successor supported some out in left field idea that AIDS is not dangerous.

[Reply]

Darren
December 2nd, 2004
1:37 pm

Indeed, pretty much everyone (including nations like Canada) is to blame for the scope of the HIV/AIDS crisis throughout Africa.

Unfortunately, as you point out, President Mbeki did say, at an International AIDS conference in Durban, that AIDS was a disease caused by poverty, not by HIV. That didn’t sit well Mandela or nearly anybody else on the planet.

[Reply]

eas
December 11th, 2004
10:48 am

I’m sure it will give you all comfort that the latest recipient of the nobel peace prize holds views similar to Mbeki’s on the subject of AIDS.

[Reply]

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