Warren, prompted by his wife, Kay, has made AIDS a major focus of his international efforts. They are pouring the energy and profits born of his world-wide best selling Bible handbook, The Purpose-Driven Life, into health, social, economic and religious efforts carried out by local churches in African villages.
He’s held major AIDS events at his Saddleback Community Church in southern California for three years now with Hillary Clinton and Obama among hundreds of high-profile political, religious and medical speakers.
WORLD AIDS DAY
This is a sobering article on the effects of AIDS/HIV, its impact on health care issues other than itself, and the need to address priorities:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/…q_k6wD94PCE880
My very serious theological differences with the reverend notwithstanding, I applaud their charitable giving and efforts to combat this dreadful scourge.
Under the mercy,
[url=http://ad-orientem.blogspot.com/]John[/url]
An [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gj4pUphDitA]Orthodox [/url] Christian
AIDS in Africa is actually a label applied to a whole host of symptoms and diseases common to tropical areas with poor sanitation and hygiene. I applaud the charitable work, but the obsession with HIV/AIDS is misplaced. Africans are sick and have been sick because they practice poor public sanitation and poor personal hygiene. They are continually assaulting their immune systems with practices that range from the merely ignorant to the pathologically depraved. Simple things like potable water, animal husbandry, refrigeration, bathing and handwashing, monogamy, or even serial monogamy would deliver a huge bang for the buck. Instead, the obsession is with a virus that we are told is running rampant, even as it stubbornly refuses to spread beyond individuals engaged in high risk practices.
I couldn’t access the article, so if Pastor Warren is actually emphasizing these things, then Godspeed to him.
That is a very interesting perspective, Byzantine, and leaves me wondering if you could provide an article or something for further information. There is an aspect of the ‘AIDS fighting business’ that is just that, business, an effort to stimulate the sales of American-made anti-HIV medicines where they are perceived to be needed. That may be very laudable but it can’t address features of African social disorder that as you point out are the root causes, rather than just symptoms, of the spread there of HIV/AIDS. And of course orthodox Christians are inclined to believe that bringing people to Christ with the pursuant change in lifestyle which that engenders in a society could address the root causes quite effectively. I am still inclined to think this because of the success reported from Uganda. If that is what the Saddleback community are doing then of course it’s very commendable (I couldn’t access the article).
The WHO adopted the Bangui definition for AIDS in Africa because of the lack of equipment to test for the actual presence of HIV. The short and dirty version is chronic fever, chronic cough, and chronic diarrhea. Again, many people in a tropical environment with bad sanitation and hygiene are going to manifest these symptoms to some degree or another, and they are also likely to have TB, malaria, cholera, VD, etc. Google Peter Duesburg, who would be burned at the stake if the AIDS lobby thought they could get away with it, and also Tom Bethell.