[Ecumenical News International] Churches in India have taken the lead in initiating an interfaith response to the scourge of HIV/AIDS, which in India is reaching massive proportions.

“We realize that an interfaith response to HIV/AIDS is very crucial,” it was said in a declaration issued at a November 29-30 AIDS conference, jointly organized in New Delhi by the Church of North India and the National Council of Churches in India, which groups 29 Orthodox and Protestant Churches.

“The size, scale and speed of this pandemic has compelled us to come together on one platform despite our differences in faith and belief,” noted the declaration. The conference included an interfaith session in which Bahai, Buddhist, Hindu, Jain, Muslim and Sikh leaders expressed readiness to move with the churches in the fight against the AIDS pandemic.

India’s National AIDS Control Organization has acknowledged there are 5.1 million HIV/AIDS infections at present, although non-governmental organizations and health experts say this estimate is far below the actual numbers. This would give the world’s second most populous nation the highest HIV/AIDS total of any country.

Mufti Mukarram Ahmed, a leading Muslim cleric in New Delhi, told the conference that AIDS called for a response “beyond medicines.” He said the disease was rooted in “immoral behaviour,” asserting “through religion, we can cure the society by educating our youth on sticking to the moral teachings.”

Mohinder Singh, director of Bhai Vir Singh Sahitya Sadan, a leading Sikh research center in New Delhi, said, “Many religious leaders do not have the courage to come out openly and address the [AIDS] issue.” He stressed that an interfaith initiative to address AIDS collectively would change this attitude.

“This is a deeply religious country. Religious leaders command great respect and can play a great role in spreading awareness on AIDS,” P. K. Samantaroy, chairman of the Church of North India Synodical Board of Health Services, told Ecumenical News International.

At the beginning, Samantaroy said there had been “lots of obstruction and denials” about the pandemic, but “with determination, we have overcome these [issues] and are able to reach out.”

Still, the response of the Christian clergy had been “far from satisfactory until now,” he said. “If we can motivate more the clergy and others, we can do much more in fighting the epidemic.”

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