Workers in AIDS ministry say roles have changed, but work remains

Published: 2005-12-05

ST. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) -- AIDS is not the death sentence it used to be, according to Brother John Mary Kaspari. When the Franciscan Brother of Peace started ministering to AIDS patients in the early 1990s, the house he and the other brothers ran for those who had the disease was a hospice setting. Today, people with AIDS are living longer, healthier lives. World AIDS Day was Dec. 1. On the eve of the observance, Pope Benedict XVI urged the world community to persevere in its fight against HIV/AIDS. He also expressed his solidarity with those suffering from the disease. As the face of AIDS has changed during the past 20 years, ministry to those who live with the virus is also evolving. "The support system (today) is really very positive, and it's because of the community of people," said Sister Joanne Lucid, a Sister of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She is the director of AIDS ministry in the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis, which in 1986 was the first archdiocese or diocese to establish an office of AIDS ministry.

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