Pope, Vatican official mark World AIDS Day with calls for action

Published: 2003-12-01

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope John Paul II and the head of the Vatican office for health care offered their prayers for people with HIV/AIDS and encouraged Catholics to care for those with the disease and to educate people in chastity to prevent the spread of AIDS. At his midday Angelus address Nov. 30, the day before World AIDS Day, the pope said that unfortunately the disease continues to spread, "especially in the poorest countries." The pope said, "While I pray for those struck by this plague, I encourage all those in the church who provide a priceless service of welcome, care and spiritual accompaniment to these brothers and sisters of ours." Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan, president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers, issued a special message Dec. 1 expressing the church's love for people with AIDS and their families and suggesting ways to fight the disease.

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