A pastor has angered Christians in South Africa
by preaching a sermon entitled "Jesus was HIV-positive" in an attempt
to break what he regards as a conspiracy of silence by the South African
church.
Xola Skosana said that HIV is stigmatised as evil and a sin in the country that has the world's biggest caseload.
Skosana, 43, underwent a HIV test in front of his congregation last Sunday at the non-denominational Way of Life church in Khayelitsha , Cape Town. The test was also taken by 100 young people from the impoverished township.
The pastor said he chose the title for his three-part sermon to draw attention to "a very serious issue".
"In many parts of the Bible, God put himself in the position of the destitute, the sick, the marginalised," he said. "When we attend to those who are sick, we are attending to him. When we ignore people who are sick, we are ignoring him."
Skosana cited a passage in the Bible where Jesus says: "I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me." But he has had a hostile reaction in some quarters.
Source: Guardian.co.uk | David Smith in Johannesburg
Comments |  RSS |
|
