Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Cape Town (Agenzia Fides) - During their recent Plenary Assembly in August the Catholic Bishops of Southern Africa voiced deep concern for the situation of AIDS orphans. “It is not only a questions of funds” the Bishops said. “These orphans need not only food but also psychological and pastoral care, a healing process of the whole person.” It is necessary to train operators in psychology and social sciences. “At the political level there is a lot of talk but little action” the Bishops denounced. The local Catholic Church has launched a programme to supply anti-retroviral drugs to people affected by the HIV virus and to provide spiritual and pastoral assistance for HIV/AIDS patents. These efforts have been internationally recognised. In fact the Office of AIDS of the Southern African Bishops Conference (SACBC) is the subject of a study by the United Nations’ AIDS prevention programme.
The SACBC is convinced that only proper education can lead to effective prevention. It complains that public institutions choose the way method of distributing preservatives instead of supplying proper education on human sexuality and AIDS prevention.
During their Plenary the Bishops approved a pastoral statement explaining the incompatibility of the Catholic faith with the cult of ancestors of Traditional African Religion, ‘Ancestor Religion and the Christian Faith’ of which Fides published several excepts (see Fides 30/8/2006). (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 5/9/2006 righe 23 parole 242)
