Talk About A Idiot

[destiny]

It sounded like the pastor believed in universalism to me. Jesus bore the sin and sickness of His people.. those who are the sheep of His fold, however if a person doesn't know the Lord then obviously this isn't true.

 

[handy]

I don't see where Pastor Skosana is preaching UR at all here. He is just trying to correct some very wrong opinions and myths regarding AIDS within the church:

"There is a concern that non-believers would mock Christ and try to generalise Christ as opposed to the powerful force we believe him to be."

But Pastor Skosana, who has been in the ministry for 24 years and lost two sisters to Aids, argues that religious leaders have to play a much bigger role in combating the spread of the pandemic in South Africa where more than 5.7 million people live with the virus - more than in any other country.

And he concluded the last of his three-part sermon by taking an HIV test in front of the congregation - after which 100 churchgoers followed his example.

"The message to the church is that it is not enough for us to give people food privately and give them groceries, we must create an environment that's empowering because most people who are HIV-positive will not necessarily die of Aids-related sickness but more of a broken heart, out of rejection," he says.
'Fear and ignorance'

Amid the controversy, Reverend Siyabulela Gidi, the director of South African Council of Churches in the Western Cape, has come out in support of Pastor Skosana, saying his standpoint is theologically correct

"What Pastor Skosana is clearly saying is that Christ at this point in time would be on the side of the people who are HIV-positive - people who are being sidelined by the very church that is attacking him," the Anglican priest says.

I like the fact that he took an HIV test in front of his congregation, because I have heard the reports that AIDS and HIV is so stigmatized in many of these nations, people will not get tested.

And, I believe that whether or not people are of the fold, are Christian, we still need to reach out to anyone who needs help, comfort or aid, and give it to them. What Pastor Skosana is doing in his church is James 2:15-16 in action.

I wonder if there would be this level of outrage (speaking of the article) if the illness in question was cancer instead of AIDS?

 

[Jude]

How about this pastor begin preaching the righteousness that is imputed to us as believers, and how Jesus was absolutely sinless, and that He is our healer and friend? How about preaching that we must be holy as He is holy?

Hard?

That is what should come from a responsible pulpit, as well as the people before it. The message of love is Jesus, who lived a sinless life and had no guile, and didn't recoil from lepers--and He was never tainted with illness. Lies don't help the MESSAGE--they hinder it!

Amen!

 

[l'Chante]

When Nelson Mandela’s son died of Aids the head lines read: ‘Aids – the stigma must stop’. To me that is like saying; ‘Crabs – the stigma must stop’. Aids is a predominantly sexually transmitted decease. Period. Live a holy live with a holy partner and voila! No Aids. Place your faith in the Lord and not in sangomas (witch doctors) that tell you to rape babies and infecting them in the process.

Millions have been spent on educating people on Aids. Millions. But take into account that these are simple people. You tell them that Jesus had Aids and they won’t attend church in fear of contracting Aids and dying of the ‘big eye sickness’. They won’t pray the holy (HIV infected ?!?) blood of Jesus over their children.

<O:pDon’t get me wrong; my heart goes out to all those who contracted Aids from unfaithful partners of because of medical procedures. It could have been me. And if I sound judgmental, I apologize. I’m not. We are all human and we all make mistakes. And as the cliché goes; it only takes one time...

 

[Lewis]

I have taken another view of this, and I am now with this pastor, and I am sorry to him for calling him a idiot, I am a idiot for calling him one.