Cambodian AIDS hospice needs interreligious support, says U.S. priest

Published: 2003-12-02

BANGKOK, Thailand (CNS) -- For many visitors, it may seem strange to hear Buddhist nuns praying and chanting with people residing at a Catholic-run hospice in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. But Maryknoll Father Jim Noonan, who is involved with "The Seedling of Hope," the Maryknoll-run HIV/AIDS project in Cambodia, sees interreligious cooperation as essential in caring for the hospice's mostly Buddhist patients, reported UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand. He said there is a great deal of cooperation between the program and two Buddhist temples. Father Noonan, 69, of Burlington, Vt., spoke to UCA News in Bangkok where he was attending a late November interfaith AIDS conference. "We invite Buddhist nuns to pray and chant with our hospice patients. This is much appreciated," he said. Program staff also ask monks to teach classes in Buddhism for children affected by AIDS who come from Buddhist families. The children need to know their religious tradition, Father Noonan said.

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