December 1, 1995
With those words, in 1987, we the Catholic Bishops of Florida began our Pastoral Letter on AIDS. Today, in our second letter concerning this disease, we wish to repeat that the griefs and anxieties of people living with HIV/AIDS, their friends and families, are also the griefs and anxieties of the Body of Christ. As Catholic Christians, we are called to respond in the manner of Jesus, with care and compassion. As the U.S. Bishops wrote in their 1989 pastoral letter, Called to Compassion and Responsibility: A Response to the HIV/AIDS Crisis: "Our response to persons living with AIDS must be such that we discover Christ in them and they in turn can encounter Christ in us." Sadly, since our last letter, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS continues to grow making AIDS an unparalleled pandemic. According to the World Health Organization, by the year 2000 as many as 40 million people will be infected with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus). The industrialized world is not immune. In the United States, AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is now the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 25 and 44. Closer to home, Florida ranks among the three states with the highest rate of AIDS cases. According to the Centers for Disease Control, our state has over 48,000 AIDS cases. Since 1980, more than twenty-nine thousand children, women and men have died of AIDS in Florida. Persons living with HIV/AIDS, their friends, and families especially need to feel the warmth and caring of their Catholic brothers and sisters throughout their journey of living with this disease. "The one who is seriously ill needs the special help of God's grace in this time of anxiety, lest he or she be broken in spirit and subject to temptations and the weakening of faith." (Introduction to the Rite of Anointing and Care of the Sick) In our last pastoral letter, we committed the church in Florida to active HIV/AIDS ministry involving education, pastoral care, advocacy and collaboration. Each of Florida's seven dioceses has designated a person and/or office to coordinate the pastoral care of people with HIV/AIDS, their friends and families. Representatives from each diocese also participate in the recently established Florida Catholic AIDS network (FCAN). While much remains to be done, much has been done. In the Florida Catholic Conference, Guidelines for AIDS Policies for Catholic Charities Agencies and AIDS Guidelines for Catholic Schools have been accepted by the Bishops for use in the dioceses. All of our dioceses have developed policies to ensure that people living with HIV/AIDS are treated compassionately and without discrimination. All of us need to engrave in our hearts the conviction that discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS is more than illegal. It is immoral and unethical by any Christian standard, for it contradicts Jesus' paramount commandment: "Love one another." We must provide ongoing education about HIV/AIDS in our parishes and schools. We must become pro-active in education, service, and compassionate understanding of those suffering from this disease. The Centers for Disease Control have identified teenagers as one population segment most at risk for contracting HIV/AIDS today. Long before they reach adolescence, we must tell them, in language appropriate to their age level, that bodies are gifts of God and temples of the Holy Spirit. Adhering fully to the moral principles of the Church, we must teach them about abstinence, chastity and the transmission and prevention of this disease, and make everyone aware that no one, no matter what age is immune. In this, as in all other matters, parents should be the primary educators of their children, with our Catholic schools and religious education programs playing an important supportive role. An education in Catholic values requires a partnership between families and the church. Neither can do it alone. Each must reinforce what the other teaches. Therefore, as in our first Pastoral Letter on AIDS, we commit ourselves as Church, as the Body of Christ in Florida, to assure that people living with HIV/AIDS, and their friends and families, experience the comforting love and hope of Jesus. Each diocese has designated a coordinator for HIV/AIDS to assist with education and pastoral care in the parishes and schools. We urge our schools and parishes to implement education about HIV/AIDS for children, teenagers, and adults. Such education need also focus on helping people form a compassionate attitude toward persons living with HIV/AIDS, their friends, and their families. We encourage parishes to appoint HIV/AIDS ministry coordinators and form "care teams" to minister to the physical, pastoral, and spiritual needs of people with HIV/AIDS, their friends, and their families. Where possible, this pastoral care should include the provision of direct services as well as support services. We further encourage HIV/AIDS coordinators in each diocese to collaborate with FCAN and other local, state, and national organizations whenever possible. At the same time, we also call for more adequate funding for research, medication, and care for people living with HIV/AIDS from our local, state and federal governments. We commend the members of the medical nursing and social service professions for their dedication and leadership in facing this crisis. We affirm our Catholic health facilities for all they have done and continue to do in serving the needs of those people living with HIV/AIDS, and remaining true to the healing, reconciling ministries of the Church. We call upon all Catholics and people of goodwill in our state to pray for people with HIV/AIDS, their friends and families and for the discovery of a cure for this disease. We encourage our liturgists to mark December 1, WORLD AIDS DAY, by including pertinent prayers of the faithful on Sundays near this date. As followers of Christ, we will strive to be His compassionate presence to people, friends and families living with HIV/AIDS. We call on all people to make this time an occasion for grace, conversion, and healing. We recommit ourselves to responding to Jesus' call to be the hand that reaches out and the voice that carries His words of love and compassion. John Clement Favalora John J. Snyder Norbert M. Dorsey John M. Smith J. Keith Symons John J. Nevins Agustin A. Roman |