The morning began with a worship service which centered our energies and gave us a spiritual foundation for the day. 

Immediately following worship the conference grabbed a powerful start with a plenary session that included 3 speakers.  Each offered a different perspective.  I have had the difficult task of picking and choosing among them in the limited time I have here between attending working sessions.  I pray that the reflections I have been able to choose will bless our future commitment to HIV/AIDS Ministry and the growth of our Global Justice Ministry and Movements.

Opening: Faith in Action Now Plenary

This plenary focused on “How religious leaders and people of faith are responding to HIV.”  Participants heard from religious leaders on the theological call to respond to the pandemic, the concrete ways for religious leaders to help, and what type of relationship religious leaders should have with people living with HIV and AIDS.  It is time for churches to continue to lead the way—restoring hope and health in the face of HIV and AIDS. The sick, the hurting, the hungry, the marginalized, the destitute, the orphan, the widow, and the dying, find hope through the services offered by churches.

Presentations

Faith and Church Response to HIV: How Church Leaders are Responding to HIV

Rev. Christo Greyling, Advisor, HIV/AIDS and Church/FBO Partnerships, World Vision International; chair of the African Network of Religious Leaders Living with and Personally Affected by HIV and AIDS (ANERELA+) (South Africa).

Rev. Greyling has been living with HIV for more than 21 years.  He offered his own changing understanding of HIV/AIDS.  In the early days of diagnosis he described being reticent to make longer term commitments.  As he lived longer and expanded his awareness of the opportunity for longevity Rev. Greyling decided to make a commitment to something long term.  He planted an olive tree, signifying willingness to imagine and envision a future with him in it. 

He challenged the audience to consider some complicated issues:

If HIV is treatable (or manageable as we are often told in the public health discourse) then why do we need a conference like this one?  His answer was simple.  “WE NEED A REALITY CHECK!” Things have changed, in some contexts improved, but many problems and challenges continue. 

Stigma, in particular, is still doing harm.  He told the story of a pastor he had encountered who used to preach in this way, “I would tell my congregation almost every Sunday…Those with HIV must repent.”  Rev. Greyling described the work ANERELA+ had been doing with pastors like this one and its influence on reducing stigmatization.  Rev. Greyling quoted the same pastor from a later date stating that he recognized he was the one who needed to repent. 

Theological Contexts

Rev. Greyling asked us to consider what our theological context for HIV/AIDS Ministry and activism needed to look like.  He offered scriptures for prayerful consideration.

Romans 3:24 - “…they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus…”

Ephesians 2:8-9 - “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God…”

2 Corinthians 5:20 - “So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us…”

Others he offered included - Ephesians 4:15; Romans 15:7; James 3:17; 2 Corinthians 5:14; 1 Peter 1:3; James 1:27; Matthew 25:31-46; and Genesis 1:27

He completed his comments by stating that superficial efforts and information are not enough for pastors and church leaders.  It is time for all of us to do serious education.  It is time to find a new calling from God and a long term commitment. 

He shared this Chinese proverb:

If your vision is for a year, plant wheat.
If your vision is for a decade, plant trees.
If your vision is for a lifetime, plant children.

Rev. Greyling is not only a long term survivor of HIV and AIDS, he is also a husband and father of healthy children.

In this vision of what would come of a dedicated faith community response to HIV/AIDS it was clear that God called us in the early days of the pandemic, is calling us now, and will call ALL of us until AIDS has been brought to an end.

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Rev. Christo Greyling is World Vision’s Global advisor on HIV and AIDS and faith based partnerships.  In this role, Greyling works to mobilize en equip faith communities throughout the world to participate in the fight against HIV/AIDS.  He tested HIV positive in 1987.  He publicly disclosed his status in 1992, while serving as a reverend in the Dutch Reformed Congregation of Windhoek-West in Namibia. Since then he has been involved in several projects to combat stigma, and to enable and equip individuals, communities and churches to respond with compassion and effective programming. Christo Serves as the Chair person for the ANERELA+.