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The HIV/AIDS Project

HIV/AIDS Project logo

INTRODUCTION

The Church of Scotland continues its essential work of raising urgently needed funds for its HIV/AIDS Project. Begun in 2002, the project has a mandate from the General Assembly to the end of 2010. This recognises that HIV and AIDS continue to be both a cause and consequence not just of ill-health and death, but also of poverty and lack of development around the world. With 10 people infected with HIV and six dying of AIDS every minute, every day, the need is obvious.

General Assembly’s clear position was stated in the 2006 deliverance which “recognises that HIV stigma and discrimination continue to act as barriers to effective prevention and care within and furth of Scotland; confesses to people living with HIV that the Kirk has been involved in unwitting and unthinking stigmatisation of them; and calls on all Christians in Scotland to work to overcome ignorance and prejudice about people living with HIV wherever they may be.”

Project aims

People living with HIV throughout the world do not look for our sympathy but our solidarity and practical support. The project aims to provide that support around the world through its partnership with Church-related and other faith-based organisations and so to bring hope.

The project's aims are to:

  • break the silence on HIV/AIDS;
  • stand together with partner churches;
  • offer practical support;
  • speak up for the voiceless;
  • involve every member of the Church.

Help bring hope and life today

Group at Toronto Conference
Christians at the Toronto International AIDS Conference 2006 unite to respond

Donations to the project's appeal will help raise awareness, provide home-based and orphan care, start income-generating projects, train peer educators, encourage voluntary counselling and testing, introduce theological education around HIV and build capacity in individuals and organisations.

You can bring hope and life in just a few moments by donating online now to our HIV/AIDS Project. Click here to donate. Every pound raised will help prevent a new HIV infection and provide support for those living with the virus.

For more information about the project's work and to find out how you can get involved or to apply for grants from the appeal, click on the links on the right hand side.

Message of support

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland for 2007-2008, the Rev Sheilagh Kesting, lended her support and encouragement to the project. She said:
Rev Sheilagh Kesting
"I paid a visit to the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva with a group of people holding leading positions in various Scottish churches. In our programme there were two sessions that involved HIV and AIDS. In one we heard about the World Council of Church's Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiative in Africa, which co-ordinates five sub-regional offices and enables the churches to access information, training, networks and resources to help deal with AIDS in their communities. It brings an ecumenical dimension to the African churches' care, education and counselling programmes.

The other session was about the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance (EAA) in which the Church of Scotland's HIV/AIDS Project participates.

The millennium promise was that the tide would have turned against HIV by 2015. That is not very far away and there is still a long way to go - including eradicating ignorance and stigma in our own country. Perhaps the saddest sentence in this year's report was the comment that a church member had asked a member of the Project Group whether 'she had not been concerned to have someone living with HIV stay in her home'.

HIV and AIDS is too big for a divided church - indeed, for a divided world. Working in co-operation with others and sharing resources is vital. I warmly commend the HIV/AIDS Project to you for support as a means of participating in the global, ecumenical movement, supporting those with HIV and AIDS, helping to eradicate the stigma that is still attached to this illness, and putting pressure on our government to take action along with other governments from the world's most powerful nations."

HIV/AIDS Project logo and link to donation pages Click here to donate online now!

Contact us

If you have any difficulty using this section of our website, please contact the webteam using our feedback form.

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In this section

Introduction to the HIV/AIDS Project
Welcome to the HIV/AIDS Project pages

News
Latest updates including project appeal news

Spinning Wheels
Spinning Wheels is a sponsored family cycle ride in Fife on Saturday 23 June to raise funds for the project

Take action
Practical activities to help support those living with HIV/AIDS

Supported projects
Where appeal funds are allocated and updates from these local projects

HIV/AIDS: the facts
Global estimates of people living with HIV and AIDS and the number of deaths each year

Resources and links
A range of information and resources to download

World AIDS Day
Resources and information about the annual event to help stop the spread of HIV and end prejudice

Applying for grants
How to apply for grants to support HIV/AIDS projects internationally and within Scotland

Donate online now!
Give to our appeal online and help save a life now

Contact us
How to get in touch with the project team

 

Back to appeals

Introduction
An overview of the appeals currently supported by the Church of Scotland across the world

 

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