Catholics, Jews unite on AIDS care

Roman Catholic and Jewish leaders meeting in South Africa on Tuesday demanded unrestricted palliative care for those suffering from AIDS and HIV.

The call came following the end of the four-day International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee Meeting in Cape Town, the first time the gathering had taken place in Africa, the epicenter of the AIDS epidemic.

“We unreservedly unite in calling for unrestricted palliative care and appropriate attention for all those suffering, threatened and victimized by this tragic pandemic,” according to a joint declaration issued by the conference.

“This call goes out especially to governments and all who have the power, means and influence to implement it,” it said.

HIV/AIDS has cut life expectancy in many sub-Saharan African countries, leaving millions of children orphaned and reducing agricultural output in hungry regions.

The United Nations estimated last year that 26 million of the 40 million people infected with HIV worldwide lived in Africa, and that the continent saw about 3.2 million of the almost five million new infections recorded in 2005.

In addition to addressing the scourge, delegates urged Catholics and Jews to work together to combat anti-Semitism, bigotry and radical fundamentalism that was “Often coated in religious sentiment and terminology,” the declaration said.

They also recommitted themselves to working for peace in the Middle East and enhancing dialogue with Muslims.

Pope Benedict caused uproar in the Muslim world in September when he gave a lecture at a German university in which he quoted a 14th century Byzantine emperor in a passage seen as critical of the Prophet Mohammad.