A pastor has angered Christians in South Africa by preaching a sermon entitled "Jesus was HIV-positive" in an attempt to break what he regards as a conspiracy of silence by the South African church.
Xola Skosana said that HIV is stigmatised as evil and a sin in the country that has the world's biggest caseload.
Skosana (43) underwent a HIV test in front of his congregation last Sunday at the non-denominational Way of Life church in Khayelitsha, Cape Town. The test was also taken by 100 young people from the impoverished township.
The pastor said he chose the title for his three-part sermon to draw attention to "a very serious issue".
"In many parts of the Bible, God put himself in the position of the destitute, the sick, the marginalised," he said. "When we attend to those who are sick, we are attending to him. When we ignore people who are sick, we are ignoring
him"
Skosana cited a passage in the Bible where Jesus says: "I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me." But he has had a hostile reaction in some quarters.
"The scathing attacks I've received from Christians are unbelievable," he said. "They're saying you can't reconcile Jesus and Aids. They assume it means Jesus was promiscuous and had a louche lifestyle with many sexual partners."
Skosana lost two sisters to HIV/Aids. One died last month at the age of 44. The other died in 2003 in her early 20s.
He condemned the national church for failing to tackle the issue when nearly 1 000 people are dying from Aids-related causes every day. The South African government had been accused of Aids "denialism" but has more recently been praised for its prevention and treatment programmes.
Source: Mail & Guardian
Xola Skosana said that HIV is stigmatised as evil and a sin in the country that has the world's biggest caseload.
Skosana (43) underwent a HIV test in front of his congregation last Sunday at the non-denominational Way of Life church in Khayelitsha, Cape Town. The test was also taken by 100 young people from the impoverished township.
The pastor said he chose the title for his three-part sermon to draw attention to "a very serious issue".
"In many parts of the Bible, God put himself in the position of the destitute, the sick, the marginalised," he said. "When we attend to those who are sick, we are attending to him. When we ignore people who are sick, we are ignoring
him"
Skosana cited a passage in the Bible where Jesus says: "I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me." But he has had a hostile reaction in some quarters.
"The scathing attacks I've received from Christians are unbelievable," he said. "They're saying you can't reconcile Jesus and Aids. They assume it means Jesus was promiscuous and had a louche lifestyle with many sexual partners."
Skosana lost two sisters to HIV/Aids. One died last month at the age of 44. The other died in 2003 in her early 20s.
He condemned the national church for failing to tackle the issue when nearly 1 000 people are dying from Aids-related causes every day. The South African government had been accused of Aids "denialism" but has more recently been praised for its prevention and treatment programmes.
Source: Mail & Guardian
