Pope Benedict XVI | 03/17/2009 8:35 am
Pope: Condoms 'Aggravate' HIV/AIDS
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Pope Benedict XVI made his take on condoms quite clear yesterday, when he insisted that such prophylactics do nothing to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. In fact, he claims they only help increase the bug’s numbers.
Said the pope, who made his first trip to Africa yesterday, "[AIDS] is a tragedy that cannot be overcome by money alone, and that cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which even aggravates the problems."
Benedict’s stance should come as no surprise, of course — the Vatican is officially pro-abstinence, but this is the first time Benedict has spoken publicly on the matter. Many Catholic missions on the continent actually support using condoms, so Benedict’s comments may ruffle some feathers.
They certainly ruffled the feathers of the World Health Organization. Said the WHO, according to the Times: "These incorrect statements about condoms and HIV are dangerous when we are facing a global pandemic, which has already killed more than 20 million people, and currently affects at least 42 million." Those are some ungodly statistics.
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16 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment
"They have NOTHING to do with the message of love and light and goodness."
Isn’t that the truth. The Catholic church’s have said they wanted politic to stay out and now they are turning more politic themselves.
~ His father should have used it.
Imagine that….
A pedophile supporter doesnt think the use of condoms is helpful.
It’s revealing to see that this Pope has no compassion for the many married and faithful women who find themselves with a diagnosis of AIDS. Women in Africa and around the world find themselves dying because unfaithful men have no regard for their marriage vows. It’s interesting that the Catholic Church finds more value in male energy right or wrong and constantly disregards the feminine. The only female The Church has ever valued is one that is capable of "A Virgin Birth" . Please tell me when women will walk away from The Boys Club of any fundamental religion and just start respecting themselves?
Although I agree with everyone here about the Pope, I think his words are being misconstrued. I think the point he was trying to make is you can’t just throw money and condoms at people and expect AIDS & HIV to disappear. Thinking that it alone will solve the crisis just aggrevates the issue more.
There’s so much emphasis on using protection to help prevent AIDS and less on helping women stand up for their right to say no and teaching guys to not go around spreading their seeds. It aggrevates the problem because people just assume "Well, if I used a condom here, then I can go back home and have unprotected sex with…" They (condoms) are not 100% fail proof, even when used correctly. And then you’re spreading it to children who have no say in the matter at all. There’s not enough education in Africa. Plain and simple.
Yes, the Catholic Church has such a hard stance when it comes to sex and religion but their foundation of marriage is based off of value and respect a husband and wife should have for each other. Everyone, including the Church itself seems to have forgotten that. That’s why it’s so out of touch with reality in today’s society.