Overview

The true role of religion in the AIDS epidemic in Africa has been debated for years: some scholars and activists claim that religious groups have provided much-needed education and assistance to those afflicted with the disease, and others argue that religion has contributed to the spread and stigmatization of AIDS. Drawing upon extensive fieldwork in Malawi and survey data from 26 other sub-Saharan African countries, Jenny Trinitapoli and Alexander Weinreb provide the first comprehensive empirical account of how religious groups affect the spread of knowledge, prevention, and mitigation of AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. Trinitapoli and Weinreb identify religious patterns in the infection of HIV, examine differences across religions in risk and preventive behaviors, and discuss the role of religion in the provision of assistance to the sick and their families. Their study also shows how religious groups shape social and cultural interpretations of AIDS, addressing such issues as the discouragement of condom-use and the promotion of restrictions on sexual behavior. This volume confirms the central role played by religious narratives and institutions in the epidemic -- a reprise of religion's role in historical plagues. Yet the book also shows that different religious traditions and denominations vary widely in their approach to the AIDS epidemic, particularly in their approach to care of the sick and their families. These different approaches have significant implications for the trajectory of religious change, and, more broadly, for social solidarity in African states.

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9780195335941

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<br> A terrifically important book. While academics and policy makers are often so ignorant about religion, Trinitapoli and Weinreb bring the best evidence and argument to a topic of massive significance, showing once again that we simply cannot understand our world without taking religion seriously-not imposing prejudices and ideologies, but understanding real religions empirically, from the inside, in all their complexity and consequence. --Christian Smith, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Sociology and Director of the Center for the Study of Religion and Society, University of Notre Dame<p><br> In response to AIDS in Africa, the role of religion is often framed as a nemesis and/or barrier to that promoted by the secular west. The authors brilliantly present extensive evidence of the important role that Africa's religious groups have had in shaping local responses. These responses range from providing care for the sick and dying to stimulating interpersonal and group debates on appropriate community action. As more so-called biomedical breakthroughs come to pass, it is critical that health and development organizations not forget the powerful adaptive features that characterize many religions in Africa and that they take advantage of such capital in a cooperative and constructive manner. --Rand L. Stoneburner MD, MPH, Former Senior Advisor, Strategic Intelligence and Analysis, UNAIDS, Geneva Switzerland 2009-2011 <br><p><br>

Author Information

MDR: Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of TexasAW: Assistant Professor of Sociology, Hebrew University of JerusalemJT: Doctoral Candidate in Sociology, University of Texas

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