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POPE-SICK Sep-29-2004 (670 words) xxxi
Pope says African AIDS victims need moral, spiritual, medical help
By John Thavis
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- With millions of Africans suffering from diseases like AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, the continent desperately needs good Samaritans to bring moral, spiritual and medical help, Pope John Paul II said.
In his annual message for the World Day of the Sick, the pope said that in its efforts to curb the spread of AIDS, the church is right to underline education against "irresponsible sexual behavior" as a means of prevention.
The pope's message was published Sept. 29 at the Vatican. The African country of Cameroon will host next year's World Day of the Sick, celebrated Feb. 11.
The pope said a great deal of Africa's suffering could be traced to inadequate health care facilities. Diseases are devastating Africa, he said, citing in particular the "scourge of AIDS, which is spreading pain and death" throughout the continent.
The many African conflicts and wars aggravate the situation, because medicines and other health recourses often cannot reach those in need, he said.
"In refugee camps lie people often deprived of even the indispensable provisions needed for survival," he said.
The pope said that in the eyes of the church, AIDS represents not only a health problem but also a "pathology of the spirit" that attacks the whole person.
"To combat it in a responsible way, its prevention must be fostered through education in the respect for the sacred value of life and through formation in the proper practice of sexuality," he said.
He said that although many Africans are infected with the AIDS-causing virus through the bloodstream, in particular during pregnancies, many more cases are transmitted through sexual contact.
"These can be avoided above all through responsible behavior and the observance of the virtue of chastity," he said.
The pope said that during the African synod of 1995, several bishops mentioned the role of "irresponsible sexual behavior" in the spread of AIDS. He said they also rightly emphasized the importance of Christian marriage and fidelity and the "safeguard" offered by chastity.
The pope did not mention the use of condoms in AIDS prevention. Some Vatican officials have opposed anti-AIDS campaigns that rely on condom promotion, saying it encourages sexual promiscuity and does not provide real protection against the disease.
Everyone should become involved in the fight against AIDS, the pope said in his message.
Governments and civil authorities have a responsibility to provide "clear and proper information" about its spread and to dedicate resources to its prevention and treatment of patients, he said.
International organizations should promote initiatives inspired by "wisdom and solidarity" that always defend human life and human dignity, he said.
The pope said the pharmaceutical industry deserves strong praise for lowering the costs of medicines used in treating AIDS patients. While higher prices might help underwrite further research on the disease, he said, the first priority should be saving human lives.
He asked the church's pastoral workers to continue to give AIDS sufferers "all the comfort possible, whether it be material or moral or spiritual." He said that many of them, imitating the good Samaritan of the New Testament, are spending their lives in the care of AIDS patients and their families.
Likewise, he said, the thousands of church-run health care institutions in Africa are helping, often in a heroic way, those with AIDS and other serious diseases.
The pope said he was pleased to note that his previous appeals on behalf of AIDS sufferers "have not been in vain." He said several countries and institutions had substantially increased programs aimed at the prevention of AIDS and care of patients.
The papal message explained that the church is motivated to help AIDS sufferers not simply out of compassion, but out of a need to imitate Christ.
He concluded his message with a prayer to Mary, asking her to look in a special way over AIDS patients, the "mothers crying over their children" and relatives struggling to care for orphaned children.
END
Copyright (c) 2004 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
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