The
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
is a major provider of medical care to
HIV/AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...
patients. Much of its work takes place in developing countries, although it has also had a presence in the global north. Its opposition to
condom
A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of in ...
s, despite their effectiveness in preventing the spread of HIV, has invited criticism from public health officials and anti-AIDS activists.
Catholic views on condoms
The Catholic Church's opposition to contraception includes a prohibition on condoms.
It believes that chastity should be the primary means of preventing the transmission of AIDS.
The Church's stance has been criticized as unrealistic, ineffective, irresponsible and immoral by some public health officials and AIDS activists,
who note that condoms prevent the transmission of HIV.
The use of condoms specifically to prevent the spread of AIDS has involved Catholic theologians arguing both sides.
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
pointed out that when a male prostitute uses a condom "with the intention of reducing the risk of infection, can be a
first step in a movement towards a different way, a more human way, of living sexuality."
He said that the concern for others suggested by this action is laudable, but does not mean that either prostitution or condoms are in themselves good.
1980s
In 1988, a debate within the Catholic Church over the use of
condom
A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of in ...
s to prevent
AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
sparked an intervention from the Vatican. The Church in 1968 had already stated in
Humanae Vitae
''Humanae vitae'' (Latin: ''Of Human Life'') is an encyclical written by Pope Paul VI and dated 25 July 1968. The text was issued at a Vatican press conference on 29 July. Subtitled ''On the Regulation of Birth'', it re-affirmed the teaching of ...
that chemical and barrier methods of contraception went against Church teachings. The debate was over whether or not condoms could be used, not as contraceptives, but as a means of preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS and other
sexually transmitted diseases
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), also referred to as sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and the older term venereal diseases, are infections that are spread by sexual activity, especially vaginal intercourse, anal sex, and oral sex ...
. In 1987, the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...
issued a document suggesting that education on the use of condoms could be an acceptable part of an anti-AIDS program. In response,
Joseph Ratzinger
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
, then-prefect of the
Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsible f ...
, stated that such an approach "would result in at least the facilitation of evil", not merely its toleration.
In the 1980s, Catholic hospitals received a waiver from the
State of New York
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. state ...
from the requirement to offer condoms and other services that conflicted with Church teaching in return for state funding. In the same decade, the Archdiocese of New York would not lease classroom space to the New York Board of Education to hold classes on AIDS education unless the board agreed to waive parts of the curriculum that the Church found objectionable. It also objected because the curriculum made "no mention of modesty, chastity, premarital sexual abstinence or even marital fidelity."
1990s
Pope
John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
upheld the church's traditional prohibition on condoms.
His position was harshly criticized by some doctors and
AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
activists who said that it led to deaths and millions of AIDS
orphan
An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died.
In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...
s.
It was also suggested that his position on condoms cost him the
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...
, which he was widely expected to receive.
In September 1990, John Paul II visited the small town of
Mwanza
Mwanza City, also known as Rock City to the residents, is a port city and capital of Mwanza Region on the southern shore of Lake Victoria in north-western Tanzania. With an urban population of 1,182,000 in 2021, it is Tanzania's second largest cit ...
, in northern
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
, and gave a speech that many believe set the tone for
the AIDS crisis in Africa.
John Paul II said that condoms were a sin in any circumstance.
He lauded family values and praised fidelity and abstinence as the only true ways to combat the disease.
In December 1995, the
Pontifical Council for the Family
The Pontifical Council for the Family was a pontifical council of the Curia of the Roman Catholic Church from 1981 to 2016. It was established by Pope John Paul II on 9 May 1981 with his motu proprio ''Familia a Deo Instituta'', replacing the Com ...
issued guidelines saying that "parents must also reject the promotion of so-called 'safe sex' or 'safer sex', a dangerous and immoral policy based on the deluded theory that the condom can provide adequate protection against AIDS."
2000s
In 2005, Pope Benedict XVI (formerly Ratzinger) listed several ways to combat the spread of HIV, including chastity, fidelity in marriage and anti-poverty efforts; he also rejected the use of condoms.
In 2005, a senior research scientist at the
Harvard School of Public Health
The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. The school grew out of the Harvard-MIT School for Health Officers, the nation's first ...
,
Edward C. Green
Edward C. (Ted) Green (born 1944) is an American medical anthropologist working in public health and development. He was a senior research scientist at the Harvard School of Public Health and served as senior research scientist at the Harvard Cen ...
, stated that while "in theory, condom promotions ought to work everywhere ... that's not what the research in Africa shows."
Green also indicated that strategies that worked in Africa were "strategies that break up these multiple and concurrent sexual networks – or, in plain language, faithful
mutual monogamy or at least reduction in numbers of partners, especially concurrent ones."
There was much media attention about Benedict's comments on condom use after his interview with Peter Seewald in 2010. In the interview, Benedict discussed how the Church was helping people with AIDS and the need to fight the trivialisation of sexuality. Replying to the interviewer's comment that, "It is madness to forbid a high-risk population to use condoms", Benedict stated:
This explanation was interpreted by many as a change of tack by the Vatican
which necessitated a clarification from the Vatican that "the pope does not morally justify the disordered exercise of sexuality, but maintains that the use of the condom to diminish the danger of infection may be "a first assumption of responsibility", as opposed to not using the condom and exposing the other person to a fatal risk.
Due to confusion over a translation, it was later clarified that Benedict's comments did not just refer to men, but women and transexuals as well.
[
As John Haas, the president for the American National Catholic Centre for Bioethics, noted, Benedict did not address the issue of whether condoms are effective at preventing HIV transmission. The new statement from Benedict was criticized by conservative Catholics such as Jimmy Akin, who described Benedict's statements as "private opinions" as opposed to "official Church teaching".]
2010s
After a trip to Africa, in which he spoke little on AIDS but visited with HIV positive children, Pope Francis
Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
dismissed the question of whether or not condoms should be used to fight transmission. An annoyed Francis said the church's views on condom usage was a small issue compared to a lack of clean water and malnutrition.
Dissent
There have been a number of Catholics and theologians who have dissented from the Church's position on the use of condoms.
A number of episcopal conferences have suggested that condom use may be acceptable in some circumstances to prevent AIDS. One of the first episcopal conferences to take such a stance was the Bishops' Conference of France
The Bishops' Conference of France (french: Conférence des évêques de France) (CEF) is the national episcopal conference of the bishops of the Catholic Church in France.
Presidents
Presidents of the Assembly of Cardinals and Archbishops of Fr ...
which asserted in 1989 that the "whole population and especially the young should be informed of the risks. Prophylactic measures exist." In 1996, the Social Commission of the French Bishops' Conference said that condom use "can be understood in the case of people for whom sexual activity is an ingrained part of their lifestyle and for whom hat activity
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
represents a serious risk." In 1993, the German Bishops' Conference
The German Bishops' Conference (german: Deutsche Bischofskonferenz) is the episcopal conference of the bishops of the Roman Catholic dioceses in Germany. Members include diocesan bishops, coadjutors, auxiliary bishops, and diocesan administrato ...
noted: "In the final analysis, human conscience constitutes the decisive authority in personal ethics ... consideration must be given ... to the spread of AIDS. It is a moral duty to prevent such suffering, even if the underlying behavior cannot be condoned in many cases. ... The church ... has to respect responsible decision-making by couples."
Carlo Maria Martini
Carlo Maria Martini (15 February 1927 – 31 August 2012) was an Italian Jesuit, cardinal of the Catholic Church and a Biblical scholar. He was Archbishop of Milan from 1980 to 2004 and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1983. A towering i ...
, the archbishop of Milan
The Archdiocese of Milan ( it, Arcidiocesi di Milano; la, Archidioecesis Mediolanensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has l ...
, opined that when one spouse has HIV but the other does not that using condoms could be considered "a lesser evil". But he quickly noted that the church should not acknowledge these considerations publicly because of "the risk of promoting an irresponsible attitude."
Kevin Dowling, bishop of Rustenburg, South Africa, believes that the Catholic Church should reverse its position on the use of condoms to prevent HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
transmission. Following this, he received a number of rebukes from the South African papal nuncio
An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international org ...
. The bishops' conference condemned his words, describing condoms as "an immoral and misguided weapon" in the fight against HIV, and argued that condom use could even encourage the spread of HIV by promoting extramarital sex.
Scientific assessment
According to sex education experts, abstinence-only sex education is not effective, and comprehensive sex education
Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) is a sex education instruction method based on-curriculum that aims to give students the knowledge, attitudes, skills, and values to make appropriate and healthy choices in their sexual lives. The intention i ...
should be used instead. Research has found that abstinence only education fails to decrease people's risks of transmitting STDs in the developed world.
The Church's stance has been criticized as unrealistic, ineffective, irresponsible and immoral by many public health officials and AIDS activists. Empirical evidence suggests that condoms reduce the numbers of those who are infected with an STD, including HIV. Some researchers claim that the primary challenge is getting people to use condoms all the time.
The Church's rejection of science on condoms, the main preventative measure in an epidemic that killed millions, caused misery and increased mortality from the epidemic.
Medical care for AIDS patients
The Catholic Church, with over 117,000 health centers, is the largest private provider of HIV/AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...
care. While not allowing the use of condoms, Catholic Church-related organizations provide more than 25% of all HIV treatment, care, and support throughout the world, with 12% coming from Catholic Church organizations and 13% coming from Catholic non-governmental organizations.
According to the Vatican, care providers include 5,000 hospitals, 18,000 dispensaries, and 9,000 orphanages located both in rural and urban environments. Much of the Church's aid effort is concentrated in developing nations – in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Catholic medical centers treat those already infected and make efforts to prevent the spread of the disease. Catholic hospitals were among the first to treat HIV/AIDS patients in the early 1980s.
United States
By 2008, Catholic Charities USA had 1,600 agencies providing services to people with AIDS, including housing and mental health services. The Archdiocese of New York
The Archdiocese of New York ( la, Archidiœcesis Neo-Eboracensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroug ...
opened a shelter for AIDS patients in 1985. In the same year, they also opened a hotline for people to call for resources and information. The Missionaries of Charity
The Missionaries of Charity ( la, Congregatio Missionariarum a Caritate) is a Catholic centralized religious institute of consecrated life of Pontifical Right for women
established in 1950 by Mother Teresa, now known in the Catholic Church as ...
, led by Mother Teresa
Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu, MC (; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa ( sq, Nënë Tereza), was an Indian-Albanian Catholic nun who, in 1950, founded the Missionaries of Charity. Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu () was bo ...
, opened hospices in the Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
neighborhood of New York, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco in the 1980s as well. Individual parishes also began opening hospices for AIDS patients.
Australia
AIDS arrived in Australia in the 1980s. Soon after, the Sisters of Charity
Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, but others are unrelated. The ...
began to admit patients with the new disease at St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney
St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney is a leading tertiary referral hospital and research facility located in Darlinghurst, Sydney. Though funded and integrated into the New South Wales state public health system, it is operated by St Vincent's Heal ...
, in Sydney's inner city, which became a world leader in HIV research. However, despite its geographic proximity to the infected community, it was reported that the atmosphere at St Vincent's was initially homophobic in the early 1980s, but hospital administrators took action to correct the situation.
Africa
The African Jesuit AIDS Network was established in 2002 by Jesuits
The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
from Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
and Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
as a network of organizations that fight against HIV/AIDS [ Based on the outskirts of ]Nairobi
Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...
, they develop responses that meet the needs in the local context to the disease, including education, prevention, and treatment. The founding of the network was in response to a major effort by the Jesuits to make AIDS in Africa a major priority.
The Community of Sant'Egidio
The Community of Sant'Egidio ( it, Comunità di Sant'Egidio) is a lay Catholic association dedicated to social service, founded in 1968 under the leadership of Andrea Riccardi. The group grew and in 1973 was given a home at the former Carmelite ...
is "among global leaders on HIV/AIDS" with a large presence in Africa. Its Drug Resource Enhancement against Aids and Malnutrition
DREAM (short for "Drug Resources Enhancement against Aids and Malnutrition", formerly "Drug Resource Enhancement against AIDS in Mozambique") is an AIDS therapy program promoted by the Christian Community of Sant'Egidio. The Community of Sant'Egi ...
(DREAM) program is one of the most studied approaches to HIV / AIDS treatment in the world, with many of the roughly 100 papers attesting to its efficacy. DREAM takes a holistic approach, combining highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) with the treatment of malnutrition, tuberculosis, malaria, and sexually transmitted diseases while emphasizing health education at all levels. The program was initiated in Mozambique in March 2002 and has spread throughout the continent in dispersed health centers. Funding has come from various international organizations including the World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was l ...
, as well as from Italy's winegrowers.
Ministry to people with HIV/AIDS
With the advent of AIDS, the Church initially responded nervously but soon began actively providing ministry and medical care to people with AIDS.[
Parishes and dioceses have instituted various forms of paid and volunteer ]pastoral care
Pastoral care is an ancient model of emotional, social and spiritual support that can be found in all cultures and traditions.
The term is considered inclusive of distinctly non-religious forms of support, as well as support for people from rel ...
and special activities for people with AIDS[ and in the 1980s, some dioceses began hiring staff and commissioning priests for AIDS ministry. In 1989, the top services provided in the United States were health and hospice care, AIDS advocacy, and education and prevention; others were drug treatment programs, housing, legal services, advocacy on behalf of those with AIDS, financial assistance, information about the disease and referrals for services, psychological and emotional support for both patients and family members, meals and groceries, and transportation services.][
Saint ]Aloysius Gonzaga
Aloysius de Gonzaga ( it, Luigi Gonzaga; 9 March 156821 June 1591) was an Italian aristocrat who became a member of the Society of Jesus. While still a student at the Roman College, he died as a result of caring for the victims of a serious epid ...
is the patron saint
A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
of those with AIDS and their caregivers.[
]
Popes
During a 1987 visit to San Francisco, a city hit hard by the pandemic, John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
physically and verbally embraced AIDS patients at Mission Dolores Dolores, Spanish for "pain; grief", most commonly refers to:
* Our Lady of Sorrows or La Virgen María de los Dolores
* Dolores (given name)
Dolores may also refer to:
Film
* ''Dolores'' (2017 film), an American documentary by Peter Bratt
* ' ...
in San Francisco's Castro district
The Castro District, commonly referred to as the Castro, is a neighborhood in Eureka Valley in San Francisco. The Castro was one of the first gay neighborhoods in the United States. Having transformed from a working-class neighborhood throug ...
. One of those he hugged was a four-year-old boy who had contracted AIDS through a blood transfusion. His visit was not welcomed by all, and one AIDS patient termed it "a deliberate slap in the face" given the proximity to the city's gay district. John Paul II spoke of the Church's activism to "prevent the moral background" of HIV/AIDS and of the importance of giving medical care to people with AIDS; in later statements, he would condemn discrimination against people with AIDS, while also saying that it resulted from "abuse of sexuality".
Pope Francis
Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
visited a hospice on Holy Thursday
Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday (also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, among other names) is the day during Holy Week that commemorates the Washing of the ...
while he was archbishop of Buenos Aires
The Archdiocese of Buenos Aires (''Archidioecesis Bonaerensis'') is one of thirteen Latin Metropolitan archdioceses of the Catholic Church in Argentina, South America.
The Archbishopric of Buenos Aires is the Primatial see (protocollary first-ra ...
to wash and kiss the feet of 12 drug addicts with AIDS. While attending World Youth Day
World Youth Day (WYD) is an event for young people organized by the Catholic Church that was initiated by Pope John Paul II in 1985, sometimes nicknamed in later years as the "Catholic Woodstock". Its concept has been influenced by the Light-Li ...
in Panama, he visited a Church-run home for those infected with HIV.
United States bishops
While insisting that there was a personal responsibility to avoid risky behavior, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...
rejected the notion that there may be "innocent" or "guilty" victims of the virus. Anyone with the disease, whether acquired through a tainted blood transfusion, hetero- or homosexual sex, drug use, or otherwise, should be afforded the same care and compassion.
The Conference was the first church body to address the pandemic in 1987 with a document entitled " On "The Many Faces of AIDS: A Gospel Response". In the document they said the church must provide pastoral care to those infected with HIV as well as medical care. It called discrimination against people with AIDS "unjust and immoral". It also rejected extra-marital sex and the use of condoms to halt the spread of the disease. They reiterated the Church's teaching that human sexuality was a gift and was to be used in monogamous marriages.
In Always Our Children, their 1997 pastoral letter on homosexuality, the American bishops noted "importance and urgency" to minister to those with AIDS, especially considering the impact it had on the gay community. Also in the 1980s, the bishops of the United States issued a pastoral letter, "A Call to Compassion", saying those with AIDS "deserve to remain within our communal consciousness and to be embraced with unconditional love."
Joseph L. Bernardin, the Archbishop of Chicago, issued a 12-page policy paper in 1986 that outlined "sweeping pastoral initiatives" his archdiocese would be undertaking. In 1987, the bishops of California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
issued a document saying that just as Jesus loved and healed lepers, the blind, the lame, and others, so too should Catholics care for those with AIDS. The year before, they publicly denounced Proposition 64, a measure pushed by Lyndon H. LaRouche to forcibly quarantine those with AIDS, and encouraged Catholics to vote against it.
Others
With the spread of the disease to North America, the Church in the United States established the National Catholic AIDS Network to provide care to AIDS patients, their families and loved ones. The Network hosted conferences and served as a clearinghouse of information to Catholic AIDS ministries. The National Catholic Educational Association
The National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) is a private, professional educational membership association of over 150,000 educators in Catholic schools, universities, and religious education programs. It is the largest such organization ...
published materials beginning in 1988 for use in elementary, secondary, and college classes.
Vatican AIDS Conferences
1989 conference
In 1989, the Vatican held a conference on AIDS. The three day affair drew over 1,000 delegates, including church leaders and the world's top scientists and AIDS researchers, from 85 countries. It included Robert Gallo
Robert Charles Gallo (; born March 23, 1937) is an American biomedical researcher. He is best known for his role in establishing the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as the infectious agent responsible for acquired immune deficiency syndrome ( ...
, the co-discoverer of HIV, Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
winners, theologians, hospital administrators, and psychologists.
At the opening session of the conference, Cardinal John O'Connor urged the public to be treated with respect and not as public health hazards, as outcasts, or shunned and left to die. This included, he said, those in prison who were often put in solitary confinement until they died. O'Connor also reiterated his opposition to condoms as a method to prevent the transition of HIV.
At the closing of the conference, John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
called for a global plan to combat AIDS and pledged the full support of the Catholic Church for those who were battling it. Doing so, he said, was fundamental to the mission of the Church. He said the church was called to both help prevent the spread of the disease and to care for those infected with it. He also deplored what he viewed as the destructive behaviors that spread the disease.
2000 conference
The held a two-day conference in 2000 that coincided with World AIDS Day
World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The acquired immun ...
.[ Dozens of AIDS experts attended.][ It had been thought that the conference may open the door to condom use][ but the church reaffirmed its position that condoms were morally impermissible.][ Archbishop Javier Lozano Barragan, the president of the council and convener of the conference, said at the opening of the conference that the use of condoms did "not respect the absolute dignity of the human person."][
At the conference, a draft of a ]vade mecum
A handbook is a type of reference work, or other collection of instructions, that is intended to provide ready reference. The term originally applied to a small or portable book containing information useful for its owner, but the ''Oxford Engl ...
, or handbook, for people who minister to those with AIDS was presented.[ Fiorenza Deriu Bagnato, an Italian social researcher, also spoke at the conference.][
]
2011 conference
In May 2011, the Vatican sponsored another international conference with the theme of "The Centrality of Care for the Person in the Prevention and Treatment of Illnesses Caused by HIV/AIDS", during which church officials continued teaching that condoms were immoral and ineffective" Due to sometimes conflicting comments by Benedict, who did not attend the conference, AIDS activists had hoped for a change in the Churches outlook on the use of condoms but they were disappointed. Experts in the field discussed 'people-centered approaches' to prevent HIV transmission, treatment and care of those infected with it, and economic support to those in greatest need. Attendees included theologians, health officials and AIDS researchers.
Zygmunt Zimowski
Zygmunt Zimowski (7 April 1949 – 13 July 2016) was a Polish prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Archbishop Zimowski had served until his death in July 2016 as President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers, ...
, President of the , stressed victims behavior as a cause. "Were promiscuity not endemic, HIV wouldn't be an epidemic." He said it could not simply be considered a medical or public health issue and that a holistic approach should be used for AIDS prevention and treatment.
Church officials also condemned the fact that those in poorer parts of the world receive substandard medical care.
Social justice
Across the globe, Catholic authorities have spoken out and written about the need for the Church to address the AIDS pandemic in a manner consistent with its mission. Archbishop Fiorenzo Angelini
Fiorenzo Angelini (1 August 1916 – 22 November 2014) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers in the Roman Curia, and was elevate ...
, the convener of the 1989 Vatican Conference on AIDS, said "victims are our brothers and we should not sit in judgement of them."
During a 1990 visit to Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over s ...
in East Africa, which had one of the highest rates of AIDS infections in all of Africa, John Paul II urged the world to work on behalf of AIDS patients and to promote "the true well-being of the human family". Likewise, he condemned the public authorities, which, out of either indifference, condemnation, or discrimination, did not act to alleviate their suffering.
During the 2001 Special Session of the United Nations on HIV/AIDS, John Paul II raised special concern about the transmission of the virus from mother to child and access to medical care and life-saving medications.
Cláudio Hummes
Cláudio Hummes, OFM (; born Auri Alfonso Hummes; 8 August 1934 – 4 July 2022) was a Brazilian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy from 2006 to 2010, having served as Archbishop of Fortaleza fr ...
, then-Archbishop of São Paulo
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...
, speaking at the 2003 Plenary Session of the United Nations on the Implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, criticized pharmaceutical companies for making medications prohibitively expensive for many of the world's poorest.
Ethicist Lisa Sowle Cahill has said that the "primary cause of the spread of this horrendous disease is poverty. Related barriers to AIDS prevention are racism; the low status of women; and an exploitative global economic system which influences the marketing of medical resources." Medical anthropologist and physician Paul Farmer
Paul Edward Farmer (October 26, 1959 – February 21, 2022) was an American medical anthropology, medical anthropologist and physician. Farmer held an MD and PhD from Harvard University, where he was a Harvard University Professor, University ...
and David Walton, along with the priest and moral theologian Kevin T. Kelly, have all argued that to address the AIDS crisis that society must also address poverty and the low status of women. Their arguments, along with others published in ''Catholic Ethicists on HIV/AIDS Prevention'', examined the issue of HIV/AIDS in the context of social justice considerations.
In 1989, the United States Bishops Conference, in an attempt to move the discourse around AIDS from a medical context to a social one, said AIDS was "a product of human actions in social contexts ... shaped by larger cultural and social structures." They placed the epidemic in a different context than how many public health officials typically considered the issue. Arguing that social factors, including historic political and social oppression and marginalization of infected populations, played a role in the spread of the pandemic was similar to those being made by left-leaning
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
AIDS theorists. The said several social factors, including changing sexual mores, economic poverty, and the drug use that often accompanies it, were driving causes of the epidemic. The bishops said to ignore these issues when addressing AIDS was not only intellectually dishonest but also unfair to those in risk-prone populations.
2016 meetings with pharmaceutical companies
According to the Catholic News Service
Catholic News Service (CNS) is an American news agency owned by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) that reports on the Catholic Church.
The agency's domestic service is set to shut down at the end of 2022, but its Rome bur ...
, Church officials have consistently lobbied drug makers and governments in poor nations to increase the provision of antiretroviral medicines to children. Pope Francis
Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
invited pharmaceutical executives to meetings in Rome with Pontifical Academy of Sciences
The Pontifical Academy of Sciences ( it, Pontificia accademia delle scienze, la, Pontificia Academia Scientiarum) is a scientific academy of the Vatican City, established in 1936 by Pope Pius XI. Its aim is to promote the progress of the math ...
officials and representatives from the United Nations and the United States. At the meeting, UNAIDS
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) (, ONUSIDA) is the main advocate for accelerated, comprehensive and coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
The mission of UNAIDS is to lead, strengthen and support an e ...
Director of the Community Support, Social Justice, and Inclusion Program Deborah Von Zinkernagel reminded church officials that it was also important to work to lessen the stigma of having AIDS.
Church officials recognized that there was not a great deal of profit to be made in selling drugs to this demographic, so they instead made moral arguments for why the companies should work in this area. Following those meetings in April and May 2016, new targets were written into a document signed at the United Nations' High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS in June. The targets called for getting medications to 1.6 million children within two years.
The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
The United States President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is a United States governmental initiative to address the global HIV/AIDS epidemic and help save the lives of those suffering from the disease. Launched by U.S. President Geor ...
, a United States government agency that funds global AIDS response efforts, and the World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most juri ...
credited the series of meetings with making progress in an area where previous efforts had stalled. Within a year the program expanded to include getting diagnostic equipment into poor and remote areas of sub-Saharan Africa so that children and their parents could learn their HIV status.
Priests with AIDS
In the 1980s, dioceses in the United States varied in how they responded to clergy with AIDS. Some were compassionate while others ostracized those infected. There was no national policy on how to handle priests with AIDS at the time, but a spokesman for the bishops' conference said the church should not be punitive but rather provide them with the same care and support as any other sick person. In 1998, evidence suggested that the vast majority of priests with AIDS were treated with dignity and provided ample medical care. In 2005, most dioceses offered health care and housing to priests with AIDS until their deaths. There is no global policy on how to handle priests with AIDS.
By 1987, at least 12 of the 57,000 priests in the United States had died of AIDS. By 2001, over 300 priests had died of AIDS. In 2000, the Kansas City Star
''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and as ...
released a three-part report that claimed priests were dying of AIDS at a rate four times greater than the general population. The report gained widespread coverage in the media, but the study was criticized as being unrepresentative and having "little, if any, real value". The total number of priests who have or have died of AIDS is unknown, partly due to their desire to keep their diagnoses confidential, and estimates vary widely.
Many priests acquired the disease by having sex with other men. Others became infected while working as missionaries in parts of the world with poor health practices and systems. In the past, seminaries did not teach anything to seminarians how to handle their sexuality. This was, according to Auxiliary Bishop Thomas Gumbleton
Thomas John Gumbleton (born January 26, 1930) is an American social activist and retired prelate of the Catholic Church. Gumbleton served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit from 1968 to 2006. According to Gumbleton, the Vatic ...
, a "failure on the part of the church" that led to priests dealing with it in unhealthy ways. A 1972 report found that most a large majority of priests did not have a healthy sexual identity and were psychologically underdeveloped. Many dioceses and religious orders
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practi ...
now require applicants to take an HIV test before being admitted as a seminarian.
One of the first priests to gain widespread attention because of his AIDS status was Michael R. Peterson. The month before he died, Peterson and his bishop, James Hickey, sent a letter to every diocese and religious superior in the United States. Peterson said that by coming forward he hoped to gain compassion and understanding for himself and others with AIDS. Hickey said Peterson's diagnosis was a call to reach out with compassion to others with the disease.
Relationship with homosexuality
The church's condemnation of homosexuality, even while it provides care to AIDS patients, has been a locus of controversy with regard to its relationship to AIDS. Instances of homophobia, and related AIDS-phobia, within the Church have led to harmful practices and attitudes among some members of the clergy and laity. Catholic teaching on condoms and opposition to homosexuality, seen as exacerbating the pandemic, has led groups such as ACT UP
AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) is an international, grassroots political group working to end the AIDS pandemic. The group works to improve the lives of people with AIDS through direct action, medical research, treatment and advocacy, ...
to hold protests such as Stop the Church
Stop the Church was a demonstration organized by members of AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) on December 10, 1989, that disrupted a Mass being said by Cardinal John O'Connor at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. One-hundred and el ...
. Most mainstream AIDS organizations, however, have worked with the Church to bring an end to the pandemic.
See also
* Islam and AIDS
* Religion and AIDS
The relationship between religion and HIV/AIDS has been an ongoing one, since the advent of the pandemic. Many faith communities have participated in raising awareness about HIV/AIDS, offering free treatment, as well as promoting HIV/AIDS testing a ...
Notes
References
Works cited
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External links
*Vatican.va
Family values Versus Safe Sex: A Reflection by His Eminence
Alfonso Cardinal López Trujillo
*Caritas Internationalis
Caritas Internationalis is a confederation of 162 Catholic relief, development and social service organizations operating in over 200 countries and territories worldwide.
Collectively and individually, their missions are to work to build a bett ...
HIV & AIDS
Catholics for AIDS Prevention and Support
a UK based Charity
{{DEFAULTSORT:Catholic Church And Aids
Catholic health care
Catholicism-related controversies
Religion and HIV/AIDS
LGBT and Catholicism
Condoms
Religious views on birth control