Message from the Chairperson
Lazarus Mungure
“This is what the Lord asks of you: only this, to act justly, to love tenderly, and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)
We are a small group of people committed to being a sign and witness to the presence of God in the midst of a church and society affected by and infected with HIV and AIDS.
Our trustees and supporters are from diverse walks of life and backgrounds. We reflect a variety of theological and ecclesiological views within a broad Catholic Christian tradition.
We know that within the UK and Irish churches today, HIV and AIDS is generally ignored. The panic and immediacy of HIV and AIDS as it presented in the 1980s and 1990s has subsided since the introduction in the UK of more effective treatments. That of course is something to thank God and science for. People diagnosed with HIV today can expect to live well for many years with the correct support. However, infection rates continue to rise both here and abroad, and the deeper significance and challenges of HIV and AIDS are still to be understood.
The tasks of education, prevention and care and support remain with us, and are important. We believe that active Christian faith and involvement can contribute positively to raise awareness, educate, prevent new infections and reduce the stigma that still blights the lives of people diagnosed with HIV.
To this end we hold public events, especially around World AIDS Day, to promote awareness, to educate, and to reduce the stigma that is still associated with HIV and AIDS in the churches. We share the conviction that stigma and prejudice is best overcome when people have the opportunity to confront the realities of HIV and AIDS in their parishes, colleges, and work-places. We also work in partnership with secular HIV agencies, in order to assist them to maximise their understanding of and access to, the rich resources of Christian faith and community. Events and opportunities for dialogue, reflection and encounter, enable us to change and grow in understanding.
We are few and the mission is great. We are here to act as a reference point and resource for anyone, in the churches or in wider society, who wishes to understand more about the ways in which Christian faith and HIV interact.
The majority of our time and resources are currently applied to support the peer ministry PositiveFaith. You can find out more about PositiveFaith using the link About Positive Faith above, or by reading the article ‘Extending the Bonds of Christian Love’ on our resources page. (Please note that this ministry was formerly called ‘Positive Catholics’ – we changed the name to PositiveFaith to better reflect the inclusive nature of our community.)
We are very pleased that you have visited this website. We hope that you will find it useful. If you feel inspired to help us in our mission, or if you feel that we can help you in some way, please do get in touch with us.