“Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan...” there is a warning given by the Lord in Exodus 22:22, as a clear evidence on how much our Lord is concerned about widows and orphans. “AIDS orphans and children” seek our urgent attention, as Christians. Christian AIDS/HIV National Alliance (CANA)/India, over the years have encouraged its members to get involved with Children at Risk programs, thus reaching out to hundreds of children vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. These children are from very difficult circumstances such as children of commercial sex workers, drug addicts, street children, poor and marginalized communities who are deprived of their basic education and nutrition. CANA is inspired by the compassionate God, our father, who is “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families. (Ps 68:5,6)”. CANA has recently launched UMANG* Program. This program advocates and raises support for AIDS orphans and children infected and affected with HIV/AIDS.

Major Problems Faced by AIDS Orphans
Along with numerous problems of orphans in general, (lack of family support, loss of proper care, education, food, and other basic amenities, dependency for financial, material needs, psycho-social, spiritual support, inability/restrictions to express feelings as children, control, misuse, prone for vulnerabilities such as trafficking, drugs, exploitation of others, loss of hope for their future, restrictions in taking their decisions, lack of consultative process etc), the AIDS orphans suffer from stigma, discrimination and judgmental attitudes. With the lack of social commitments and social securities, lower governmental and Church response AIDS orphans are left unattended. They have difficulty in finding foster care and homes to stay when both parents are lost due to AIDS, as well due to their own infection status as CLHAs (Children Living with HIV/AIDS).

*UMANG is a Hindi term means JOY.

They grow with questions on future; lose faith in God due to their difficult circumstances. As they grow, their education, settlement for life, marriage, etc., remain unanswered questions. Poor access and availability of pediatric Anti Retroviral Treatment (ARTs), nutrition and psycho-social support to maintain immunity of the CLHAs are common. Many times they are left alone to look after themselves.

Difficulties when you motivate churches
Once a gentleman commented “Church is a sleeping giant”. If it is really sleeping, we may wake it up, but it is “pretending to sleep”. It is the time for Church to wake up, when AIDS has become an unmanageable issue for the nations. Numerous difficulties/challenges are before us when it comes to motivate churches to care for AIDS orphans.

Within Church and Church based organizations, limited facilities to AIDS care facilities, mismanagement, inability to perceive the opportunity that “AIDS” gives for gospel outreach, project driven approaches, non-cooperation between denominations are few to name among the large number of problems. Many Churches are yet to overcome their mental, religious, and cultural barriers to extend their support to AIDS orphans and CLHAs. HIV/AIDS is not the priority of most Churches.

Some of the difficulties that most front line partners face while working for AIDS orphans are lack of resources, ignorance, apathy and unpreparedness by Church, general bias, lack of infrastructure, poor local support, burn-out, lack of prayer coverage, emotional, physical, and psychological pains while caring for these children over death etc.

But in spite of all these problems, AIDS is a large mission opportunity to extend the love and compassion of Jesus Christ.

Call for Action
There is a call to Action to Christians worldwide to respond to AIDS Orphans and HIV/AIDS issue. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” This is a promise of our Lord Jesus Christ to all of us. As a Christian, as Church if we miss this opportunity to care for AIDS orphans, God still makes His way, but we loose the opportunity that is with us today. Two humble request to the Church worldwide.

• Firstly, we are called to PRAY and mobilize prayer support for AIDS orphans and to those who are infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. Pray, pray and pray, and where ever and when ever possible mobilize personal and corporate prayers.

• Secondly ACT and mobilize ACTION. As James 1:27 says, our “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this- to look after orphans and widows in their distress”. Bible calls us to exercise our faith and deeds together.

In conclusion, responding to AIDS and supporting AIDS orphans is not only a reflection of Christ-like character while they are still in this world; this is also an eternal investment of saving those souls. If Christians shut their homes today, they will fall into the hands of our enemy, the devil, and be exploited for flesh trade, child trafficking, domestic servants, child labours, drug peddlers, terrorists, and the illegal sellers of body organs, and forced in to beggary etc and etc. It is an urgent call not to miss the opportunity today else, as Christians we ought to be accounted for. May our Lord help us to pray and act on AIDS and AIDS orphans.