AIDS, Ebola, and Fear

This is World AIDS Day and I feel it is important to continue to recognize this occasion. We are fortunate in Canada that HIV is now largely manageable, to the extent that some activists feel that HIV and AIDS should be viewed as distinct conditions rather than one being the inevitable outcome of the other. But there are tens of millions of people living with AIDS around the world. In Africa there are large numbers of AIDS orphans who are being raised by grandmothers and extended family under difficult circumstances. The Gates Foundation and faith groups are doing important work with those living with HIV and AIDS in Africa, but it is still a huge challenge.

This year I am pondering the power of fear in addressing an unknown disease. I have written before about my experience on the fledging AIDS committee of Sudbury in the late 1980's . I had to overcome my own anxieties in order to visit AIDS patients in hospital. I was the father of young children at the time and AIDS still carried a considerable stigma, a combination of moral censure and medical uncertainty. Was I putting my kids at risk by visiting these folk? While there were assurances from medical personnel on the committee, I was still unsettled, at least initially.

As we have witnessed the recent epidemic of fear, to the point of panic, about Ebola we need to be reminded of Jesus' willingness to engage with those of his culture who were outcasts for many reasons, including physcial illness. He touched them and healed them even though they were rejected, often with religious justification.

Any thoughts about our human tendency to fear the stranger, including those who are physically ill? Is it still important to acknowledge World AIDS Day? Do you agree that there is a connection between our response to AIDS 30 years ago and Ebola today?