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Pray

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is called to discern at the foot of the cross what it means to be a church that is HIV-positive—a community that suffers when one member suffers and that celebrates the joys of each member. By God’s grace, this church and its members will experience the deep repentance

and conversion of heart that so often results when Christ is recognized in the face of a marginalized or excluded neighbor. When it acknowledges the brokenness of Christ’s body and its own vulnerability, this church will open itself to experience God’s healing in new ways and will gain renewed strength and freedom to engage the world with vigor.

The formation of Christian identity among members, congregations, and all parts of the ELCA in the midst of the AIDS crisis involves heart, head, and hands. Such formation will happen through the study of Scripture and deep theological reflection undertaken with people living with HIV and AIDS. It will be undergirded by prayer and energized by worship and participation at Christ’s common table. It will be strengthened by intentional and respectful moral deliberation, which will enable members to grow in awareness about HIV and AIDS and strengthen their will to respond in the world.

Learn more about resources for prayer and worship.

“As Christians, when we come to the Eucharist, the meal of forgiveness and unity, let us remember that the Christ who is present there for us, who welcomes us, who forgives us, who gathers us, who sends us to be Christ’s body for the life of the world, is the one whose hands bear the stigmata of exclusion and discrimination and vulnerability. It is finally by God’s grace and mercy that we are called and free to become Christ to our neighbor.”

ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson,
International AIDS Conference, Mexico City,
August 1, 2008