Global AIDS Fund
Whereas, we seek to be disciples of the One who came to bring good news to the poor and who sent his disciples out to witness and to heal, and Whereas, over 40 million persons globally are living with HIV and AIDS, and 9,000 people die from AIDS every day, and Whereas, every month the death toll from AIDS surpasses the total deaths from the terrible Asian tsunami, and Whereas, the AIDS pandemic causes five million persons to be infected and three million lives are taken each year, and Whereas, there are more than 15 million AIDS orphans in Africa alone, and Whereas, the 2004 General Conference of The United Methodist Church established a Global AIDS Fund with a goal of $8 million in Special Askings this quadrennium, and Whereas, one-fourth of funds raised within our Annual Conference for this Fund remain within the Conference to be distributed as our Conference Global AIDS Committee deems fit (either locally, regionally, and/or internationally), Whereas, the United Methodist Church over the past twenty plus years primarily has only written resolutions instructing others what to do, but has failed to demonstrate its own financial commitment to combating HIV/AIDS, and Whereas, United Methodist Bishop Felton May says, “Churches cannot conquer AIDS alone, but it will not happen without us”: Be it resolved, that The Virginia Annual Conference establish a minimum quadrennium Advanced Special goal of raising an average of $1.00 per member by special projects, offerings, or whatever way each local church deems best during this quadrennium, beginning in 2006. (Over the quadrennium this amounts to only 25 Cents per member per year.) Be it further resolved that The Virginia Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church encourages each local church to observe a Global AIDS Awareness Sunday each year for the remainder of this quadrennium, that the Health and Relief Mission Team of the Conference Board of Global Ministries be authorized to (a) provide educational and promotional materials for this observance, and (b) determine the distribution of the 25% of the funds designated for conference use. Since the HIV/AIDS epidemic began, AIDS has killed a total of 21.8 million people - almost three times the population of Switzerland. In 2005 alone, a total of 3.1 million people died of HIV/AIDS-related causes. Sub-Saharan Africa is by far the worst affected region in the world. An estimated 25.3 million Africans were living with HIV at the end of 2000. By that time, a further 17 million had already died of AIDS - over three times the number of AIDS deaths in the rest of the world. By the end of 2005, 40.3 million people were living with HIV/AIDS, including 17.5 million women and 2.3 million children under the age of 15. World-wide, only one in ten persons infected with HIV has been tested and knows his/her HIV status. Individuals and churches can designate contributions to the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund (Advance #982345) by sending their gifts directly through their church treasurer, who will forward the funds to the conference treasurer. |
At its Annual Conference session in June, 2006, the Virginia Conference passed the following resolution supporting the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund: