Episcopal Press and News
AIDS: Caring for the Care Givers
Episcopal News Service. July 2, 1987 [87141]
NEW YORK (DPS, July 2) -- What can the Episcopal Church do to help those who care for persons with AIDS?
That was the subject recently when the Presiding Bishop's Task Force on AIDS invited care givers from a dozen cities to New York to share their stories, talk with staff and, in small groups, develop ways the Church can assist them in their ministry.
According to the Rev. Lynne M. Coggi, coordinator for the Church's response to the AIDS crisis, one thing many of the care givers discovered they have in common is a background in the civil rights movement of the 1960s -- "we are always marching for causes." She added, "We may have held hands at marches then and never knew each other until now."
As both a care giver herself and someone who works out of the Episcopal Church Center, Coggi said she could see both sides: how "terribly important" is was to the care givers that those on the national level should hear their stories and equally so for staff to learn the varieties of programs and stories those in the field had to tell. For many participants, it was the first opportunity they have had to share their stories with those involved in similar work.
Suggestions from the conference -- among them that a strong theological statement on AIDS be made, that the Church speak out more on AIDS issues and that more such conferences be held -- are now being collated and will be sent to participants and to the Presiding Bishop.
A few weeks prior to the New York meeting, Coggi participated in an interfaith forum on "AIDS and the Ministry" held at the Cleveland Clinic. Other Episcopalians among the 200 clergy and lay participants included the Rt. Rev. James R. Moodey, Bishop of Ohio, and the Rev. Elden Smith of Trinity Episcopal Church in Findlay, Ohio. Moodey's comment that "College students don't want to come to grips with AIDS, nor do their parents, or society -- because it will involve a change in our lives" was similar to those expressed by others at the conference, including keynote speaker the Rev. John Saltzman, a Benedictine monk from Glastonbury Abbey in Massachusetts, who said AIDS "pushes all the buttons that make us uncomfortable" as a society. But there are some positive aspects, too, as Coggi told one of the workshops there: "people are learning to be pastors to each other. That is the revolution taking place."
Elsewhere, the Diocese of Connecticut has announced a gift of $15,000 as seed money to establish an AIDS ministry which it intends to develop into "an ecumenical ministry which engages the religious community with state and civic groups." The initial program will include workshops, creating and training regional care teams and working with other concerned groups to create a "model" residence for persons with AIDS. Diocesan director of program and mission, the Rev. Douglas T. Cooke, who will be supervising the project, identified the Rev. Thaddeus Bennett of Hartford as director. Cooke said, "Fr. Bennett's involvement in our national Church program, his leadership in our New England AIDS Network [which he chairs], as well as extensive statewide involvement in community groups and state agencies provides the experience and contact necessary for such a ministry to take place."
The Province I AIDS Network is planning the Second Annual New England Episcopal Conference on AIDS, to be held Sept. 24-26 at the Mt. Marie Conference Center in Holyoke, Mass. The conference will center on "empowering parishes, care giving institutions and individuals to minister in the face of the AIDS crisis." Keynote speakers and skill building workshops will be directed at giving participants specific material and practical resources to help them in their work. Related issues dealing with the theological, spiritual and moral implications of AIDS will also be addressed. For further information, contact: the Province I AIDS Network, c/o 155 Wyllys Street, Hartford, CT 06106.
For further information about the Episcopal Church's AIDS program, contact the Rev. Lynne M. Coggi, Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10017.