Faith-Based Response to the HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Botswana Aims to Break Stigmas

To some people, a faith-based response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic means trusting that God will protect them instead of taking responsibility for sexual practices. To others, it means spurning modern medicine in favor of prayer. To the Botswana Council of Churches (BCC), a proper faith-based response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic involves a practical, multi-pronged approach that aims to halt the spread of the disease that currently infects one in three of the people in Botswana.

The Botswana Council of Churches was started in 1986 and currently consists of sixty member churches. Reverend Mpho Moruakgomo, a presiding elder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and member of the BCC HIV/AIDS Commission, took time out of his busy schedule to meet with the African AIDS Awareness Campaign. Reverend Moruakgomo is something of a local celebrity, appearing frequently on local television and radio stations. He has a commanding presence and a clear passion for his work. He speaks frankly and from the heart; it is clear that he enjoys breaking stereotypes about clergy. He openly tackles controversial and sensitive issues, taking whatever stance is most appropriate and practical.

Reverend Moruakgomo speaks at an interfaith HIV/AIDS conference

Reverend Moruakgomo was sorry to report that the church was slow to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. He states, "Churches as institutions have been slow to speak and to act — that many Christians have been quick to judge and to condemn many of the people who have fallen prey to the disease." In response to this shortcoming, the BCC formed a vision that involves a "transformed and life-giving church" that will "open the door for all those who dream of a viable and achievable way of living with HIV/AIDS and preventing the spread of the virus." The BCC’s new policy looks specifically at three different areas of response to the crisis: pastoral care, social ministry, and education/prevention.

With regard to pastoral care, Reverend Moruakgomo says that there is a strong need for pastoral counseling. According to Reverend Moruakgomo, a typical HIV test involves fifteen minutes of counseling before and after the test. He believes that this is not sufficient, and that it is the role of the church to counsel those living with HIV/AIDS as well as those indirectly affected by the disease. The BCC is currently preparing its pastors through workshops and training courses that are designed to improve their counseling skills.

Additionally, pastors are now being trained to create a church community that is caring, safe, and supportive towards those with HIV/AIDS. One goal of the BCC is to "reframe the language we use in worship to ensure that it is non-stigmatizing and all inclusive." Reverend Moruakgomo believes this to be crucial because "the church is still accusing and pointing fingers at sinners." In response to those who judge those living with HIV/AIDS, Reverend Morkuakgomo says, "I shun the self-righteous folk. Yes, I said the word 'shun.' I serve a kind, loving, compassionate God. They are misguided and you can quote me on that."

The second major component of the BCC’s response to the crisis is social ministry. The BCC encourages its churches to make their buildings and property available for support, training, and care for people living with HIV/AIDS. They also have programs to support children-headed families, vulnerable children, widows, widowers, the elderly, and those who have become destitute following the death of their breadwinners. The BCC tasks its churches to make efforts "to reach out to places where particularly vulnerable people are found like prisons, the army, police forces and certain villages." In a country where 65 percent of the population is below 40 and 87 percent of parents are unmarried, Reverend Moruakgomo says that the church must fill in the necessary roles.

The third prong of the BCC’s response is education and prevention. In order to effectively respond to the crisis, the church must not hesitate to face topics such as sexuality, condoms, gender inequality, and homosexuality, while remaining firm on biblical principles. Reverend Moruakgomo says that the church must "serve an unchanging Christ in a changing world. God remains God even as the world changes."

With regard to sexuality, Reverend Moruakgomo acknowledges that the church first teaches abstinence. However, he does not hesitate to discuss condoms as a means of prevention. He feels that "Medical discoveries come from God. God gives us inventions to deal with life." Reverend Moruakgomo says that the church must work to equip adolescents with life skills. He feels that discussions of sexuality in the church should be open. "The church has failed sexuality. Sex is not a sin. It is a precious gift from God." The BCC deals with issues of sexuality through youth groups and also through parent/children partnerships, which creates a forum for children and parents to speak openly about issues of sexuality. Reverend Mouakgomo feels that young people must be equipped with the necessary life skills to survive in today’s world, and that in order to do this there must be open dialogue in all areas.

The BCC education program also approaches the subject of gender. This is especially important in a male-dominated society that tends to disempower women. The BCC aims to "challenge the traditional gender roles and power relations within the churches and society that have contributed to the disempowerment of women, and consequently to the spread of HIV/AIDS." This viewpoint is applied to youth education, family and marital counseling, and sermons.

When asked about his views on homosexuality, Reverend Moruakgomo responded, "The church is choosing to ignore homosexuality and stay in its comfort zone. It is slow to respond, just as it was with HIV/AIDS. The reveille has sounded. Christians must remember that homosexuality is in the same verse as lying before they judge homosexuals." This openness to breaking stigmas and discrimination is a step in the right direction. It is also helping to create an environment where people will feel comfortable approaching the church for help.

Reverend Moruakgomo feels that the church must act as "a life-giving organization, not a institution for the burial of the dead." In Botswana, where more than ninety percent of the population is Christian, the church is in a unique position to influence society and national policy. Reverend Moruakgomo is committed to using all of the church’s strength to "open the door for all those who dream of a viable and achievable way of living with HIV/AIDS and preventing the spread of the virus." The BCC and its member churches are doing their best to lead Botswana toward this goal.


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