HIV/AIDS is on the rise and there is a community of people that now, more than ever, need to be told about God's love. An estimated 40 million people worldwide are living with the disease, according to the United Nations.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church has long opened its hospitals to serving those infected with the HIV/AIDS virus, but more recently the protestant mainstream world communion has also opened its church doors. The local church is committed to uniting words of hope with hope in action.

A January 11 meeting in Kibuye, Rwanda paved the way for Adventist churches in that country in Eastern Central Africa to find ways to support those with HIV/AIDS. The meeting brought together a group of more than 120 that included pastors, teachers and other church leaders from as far away as the U.S.A.

This builds on work already established by the Adventist Aids International Ministry (AAIM) office in Johannesburg, South Africa, a ministry that teaches churches how to reach out to those suffering from HIV/AIDS in their communities.

Spearheaded by Drs. Oscar and Eugenia Giordano, AAIM helps Adventist churches in countries such as Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Uganda, Rwanda, and Swaziland to be organized so that "Every Church can become a Community Health Centre."

The Rwanda meeting discussed a initiating a goat project, said Dr. Alan Handysides, director for the Adventist world church's Health Ministries department.

"To a Western mind, a goat project may seem like a wacky idea, but for an African, a goat gives income and can provide a healthy diet, which is crucial when living with the disease," Dr. Handysides told ANN in a phone interview.

The concept of every church becoming a "cell" that will support those affected by HIV/AIDS makes use of its nearly 4 million Adventist Christians on the African continent who worship in approximately 20,000 local congregations.

Already some churches across Africa are running church-facilitated industry and subsistence activities that range from providing sewing machines and bakeries, to goat breeding as means of supporting the sick.

The Central Adventist Church in Nairobi, Kenya is a classic example of a church becoming a support centre for those with HIV/AIDS, Dr. Handysides said. He explained that this church has converted many of its Bible study rooms for HIV/AIDS care and use them for testing, counselling support, nutrition, clothing assistance, work rooms and activity centres.

The push to encourage churches to help those with HIV/AIDS fits into "Tell The World," the world church's vision to share the gospel through a variety of means, including community outreach, media outreach, and encouraging church members to spend more time reading the Bible and praying. One of the goals of "Tell The World" is to increase church members involvement in community service.

"The essence of 'Tell The World' is not just the spoken word," said Dr. Handysides. "We can be Christians by actions, not just words. It all fits in beautifully with 'Tell The World.' By reaching out to our communities, we tell them we care for them, we are interested in their health, that they are valuable and we want to be their friend."

According to UNAIDS/WHO figures from 2003 Rwanda is home to more than 380,000 infected people with HIV/AIDS. It also sees 22,000 deaths per year. There are 160,000 AIDS orphans hungry and in need of life's basic necessities. In Sub Sahara Africa there are 25 million HIV/AIDS infected people, with 2,2 million deaths per year. [Editor: Fesaha Tsegaye and Christian B. Schaeffler for ANN/APD]