April 10, 2003

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador - The president of the Nicaraguan Lutheran Church of Faith and Hope, Rev. Victoria Cortez Rodriguez, has called on church representatives in Latin American and the Caribbean to particularly focus on HIV positive children, and awareness raising among young people in the churches' HIV/AIDS work.

Rodriguez was addressing participants in the Conference of Bishops and Presidents of the Lutheran Churches of Latin America (COP) at their April 5 meeting in San Salvador, a day prior to the start of the Latin American and Caribbean region Pre-Assembly Consultation (PAC) to prepare for the July 2003 Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Tenth Assembly. The LWF member church in El Salvador, the Salvadoran Lutheran Synod, hosted the regional PAC, attended by 51 participants.

The COP welcomed the results of the October 2002 diakonia consultation in Florianopolis, Brazil, and the March 2003 HIV/AIDS consultation in Caracas, Venezuela. The aim of the Caracas meeting was to start the regional implementation of the Global LWF Campaign Against HIV/AIDS, officially launched in May 2002 in Kenya, and to develop a concrete action plan for the LWF member churches in the Latin American region.

In San Salvador, the COP noted that the starting point for the church's involvement with the HIV/AIDS issue, should be the recognition that persons affected by HIV/AIDS needed justice, and not sympathy. In addition, the churches should be actively involved in facilitating the integration of people living with HIV/AIDS in society.

The ten church leaders present also agreed to establish a regional network for diakonia - church social service. The network, they said, should support the exchange of experience and specialized skills, provide stimuli for theological reflection on diaconal work, and encourage the development of community and human rights work.

They also agreed to maintain a decision taken at their April 2002 meeting in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, to create a post of regional coordinator. It was emphasized that funding for the position to be based in the region, should not weaken the existing networks but should instead contribute to strengthening the ongoing work.

LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko, participating in the COP and regional PAC, commended the church leaders for their effective networking in Latin America. The COP is the only regional conference in the seven LWF regions that meets regularly - annually.

At the meeting, Rev. Angel F. Furlan, president of Argentina's United Evangelical Lutheran Church, was confirmed as COP chairperson for another one-year term.

Lutheran World Information