Hi, Johan —
First we have to distinguish what the media said,
the pope said, from what the pope actually said,
and take it in context. This is what the pope said:
"I would say that this problem of AIDS cannot
be overcome with advertising slogans. If the soul
is lacking, if Africans do not help one another,
the scourge cannot be resolved by distributing
condoms; quite the contrary, we risk worsening
the problem. The solution can only come through
a twofold commitment: firstly, the humanization
of sexuality, in other words a spiritual and human
renewal bringing a new way of behaving towards
one another; and secondly, true friendship, above
all with those who are suffering, a readiness — even
through personal sacrifice — to be present
with those who suffer. And these are the factors
that help and bring visible progress." |
First, he's saying that
sloganeering is not going to solve the problem. This
is true for almost any large-scale, intractable problem.
Politicians try to convince you otherwise but it's
overly simplistic to say that the problem will be
solved by any one action or strategy. So this is
a pretty safe opening.
He goes on to explain why sloganeering is insufficient.
He explains that solving the problem requires Africans
to help one another, it requires soul — hard
to define but I'd say a sense of community and humanity,
treating people as human beings and not as objects.
This is what he means by the humanization of sexuality.
By this he means that sex should not be a matter
of treating other people as an object for fulfilling
one's own sexual pleasure, but rather it should be
an expressed community of persons, a genuine act
of self-giving love rather than merely an expression
of lust or animalistic desire.
- Would you disagree
with this?
If so, think about this. Suppose your sexual partner
(wife, or whoever it happens to be) in their hearts
sees you not as a person to:
- be sought
- to have a relationship with, or
- to be someone to love with all the fullness of
their heart
but as an object, as an instrument she uses to obtain
selfish pleasure and is ready to discard if you no
longer suit her.
- Is this a good attitude to have or a bad one?
- Which attitude builds up society and contributes
toward the solution of this problem?
The goal here is stop the spread of AIDS by encouraging
responsible and healthy sexual activity, and also
to build a successful society.
Finally the pope points to the importance of friendship.
This is essential in any society. The more alienated
we become from one another, the more society falls
apart. It's hard to argue with that. This is important
for:
- for encouraging the care of those with AIDS and other
sexual diseases (and maintaining dignity for them),
and
- for cultivating a right view of human beings
as described above (not as objects for personal
gain, but as persons worthy of self-giving love).
Now let's look at practical factors. One interesting
fact is that Harvard
agrees with the pope that condoms won't solve
the problem.
“The pope is correct,” Green told National
Review Online Wednesday, “or put it
a better way, the best evidence we have supports
the pope's comments. He stresses that “condoms
have been proven to not be effective at the level
of population.”
It might be true that condoms would reduce cases
of infection if people did not change their behavior
when they used them. Unfortunately, studies have
shown that they do not.
They develop a false sense of security and increase
their risky sexual contacts when they use condoms.
Since condoms are about
70% effective if they are
used consistently and correctly, according to Planned
Parenthood this isn't enough to overcome the additional
risk people shoulder thinking they are protected
by condoms. You may find these articles and web pages interesting
as well:
The International Planned Parenthood association
indicates that the risk of contracting AIDS during
so-called protected
sex approaches
100 percent as the number of episodes of sexual
intercourse increases. (Cates Medical Bulletin,
IPPF 1997.)
Another factor is that due to the climate in Africa
(the heat in particular), condoms cannot be safely
stored very easily. Heat causes the latex to deteriorate and as you know, heat is a problem in Africa.
Also the cultural problem here is that the men go
away for long periods of time to work, acquire diseases,
and then come home to their wives. A large percentage
of infections occur this way. To slow infection,
the husband and wife need to use a condom, but this
would imply either a lack of trust (on her part)
or an admission of guilt (on his part), so they don't. Overcoming
that cultural taboo is hard.
Yet another factor is that there is an imperialism
angle. We, in the West, are trying to impose our culture
and values on an unwilling continent.
We think we know everything and know just the solution which
we are cheerfully ramming down the throat of Africa.
Not only that, American companies are profiting from
it. We make money off the condoms we sell to them.
It's a form of exploitation. The people need basic
medicine and we're shipping them boatloads of condoms.
Promoting condoms alone in Africa hasn't worked
so far. Promoting abstinence and sexual responsibility
in Uganda however has.
They have dramatically improved their HIV infection
rates since doing this (down 70%). See this article:
These are just a few of the reason why I suspect
the Pope is opposing the use of condoms in Africa — reasons
the New York Times won't tell you.
(Don't forget, they have an agenda and aren't afraid
to follow it.)
Eric
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