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“After saying this, He spat on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing”.
A commentary in my Bible says, “In this story, Jesus corrects a commonly held notion that suffering comes because of sin. The healed man became a loyal spokesman for Jesus. His testimony, however, failed to convince the Pharisees, who also rejected Jesus’ teaching about why the man had been born blind. John wove together the incident with Jesus’ comments on a different kind of blindness”.
There are a number of examples of stigma and discrimination in the Bible. These are among the human frailties that Jesus with His selfless love came to deal with through His crucifixion and resurrection.
Stigma and discrimination mean different things to different people and they also depend on the medical condition. Among family members, the community one resides in, workplace, etc people prone to stigmatising various medical conditions will do so differently. But in this church age, people with medical conditions are still baffled that some health care givers in hospitals and clinics and some church assemblies continue to stigmatise and discriminate against people with certain medical conditions.
The most common is stigma and discrimination is against people living with HIV and Aids, maybe just like leprosy in the Bible. The sin label is usually applied just like in the Biblical story. Below is a story of a woman who believes that she was being told that she sinned:
On January 28, a 25-year old Bulawayo woman who is living positively with the HIV and Aids condition was turned away by some health professionals at one of the biggest Government referral hospitals in Harare. She had travelled from Bulawayo to get a transfer letter to enable her to access ART and to also get her allocation of ARVs.
After travelling such a long distance and spending the whole day in a queue, the woman who declined to be identified said that the nursing staff were not only very rude to patients, but when her turn came, she was asked why she was not collecting her ARVs from Bulawayo hospitals or clinics. When she tried to explain, one of the nurses told her, “Please, give me a break. I’m not the one who transmitted that virus to you”.
She left the hospital hurt, bitter and without the letter and medication. She said she did not know whom to turn to for advice.
Instead, she used the little money she had to buy some ARVs from a pharmacy, which were to last her 10 days. This is despite the fact that she was supposed to get them free of charge.
The woman said that she would still return to that hospital this week. As she narrated her ordeal crying, she said, “I was married a virgin and I am faithful to my husband. I was infected with the HIV virus when I was in the family home. Now, my two children and I are living positively. Are the authorities not aware of this ill treatment? When I come back, will I be treated differently or I will still return empty-handed?”
I say to this sister, when all else fails, she should know that there is one name JESUS, which has all the answers to all her problems.
I also say to her, no one is perfect, but there is a power source that we can tap into – that is the Lord through His Word – which, corrects, rebukes and encourages. (2 Timothy 4:2) Let us therefore ALWAYS renew our minds with the word of God. (Joshua 1:8)
The Bible also says, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres”. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7, NIV). The caution from Proverbs 10:11-13 is also one of many ways we can transform the culture of stigma and discrimination: “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, but a rod is for the back of one who has no sense”.
And, in 1 Peter 4:8, we are reminded about why it is important to love one another, as the Lord loves us: “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins”. I pray to the Almighty, in Jesus’ name that the Bulawayo woman will seek solace from the Lord, forgive, for it is an important pillar of her Christian walk. She, together with her family should seek renewal of their minds by staying in the Word, believing it and making positive declarations about their condition, for nothing is impossible with God.
When she proclaims that divine health is her portion, she should believe that this would change her testimony.
Events calendar
Please send full details of your forthcoming events: event name; date(s); venue; time; theme; host; guest speaker; other speakers; contact numbers including e-mail, website, Facebook and/or Twitter feeds.
Event: Empowerment Summit — Heartfelt International Ministries
Dates: February 22 to 23
Venue: Dan van Zyl Recreational Centre, Cnr Rex and Plantation Street, Newlands, Johannesburg, RSA
Theme: 2013 – The Year of Open Gates
Speakers: Apostle T and Pastor C Vutabwashe
Contact: +263-4785906; +27710176346
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Event: Gumhano – The African Apostolic Church (VaApostora veAfrica)
Dates: February 9
Venue: Mutake Primary School, Domboshava
Speakers: Archbishop Paul Mwazha
Contacts: 0772622175; 0773048103; 0773305530
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Event: Single Women Ministry International Leadership Seminar (for leaders ONLY) — Zaoga FIFMI
Dates: February 22 to 24
Venue: AMFCC Harare International Conference Centre
Theme: 2013 – A year of Revelation, Wisdom and Discernment
Hosts: Zaoga FIFMI
Contact: +263 292 2957
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Event: Women on Fire 2013 Conference – Heartfelt International Ministries (A conference to embolden, uplift, inform and inspire women in all circumstances to live their power — but without the loss of lovely, feminine tenderness)
Dates: April 25 to 27
Venue: To Be Advised
Theme: 2013 – The Year of Open Gates
Contacts: +263-4785906
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Event: Believers Convention – Forward in Faith Ministries International, NZ
Dates: February 21 to 24
Speakers: Dr. E.H. Guti and Dr. Eunor Guti
Contacts: +263 292 2957
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Event: Impact Christian Centre — Free cocktail soothing music for the married unmarried
Date: February 16
Time: 1:00pm to 4:00pm
Venue: Customs Building, 2nd Floor, Western wing, Cnr South Avenue/Inez Terrace
Topic: What causes love/marital relationships to become dysfunctional?
Speakers: Pastors Davison and Gwendoline Kanokanga
Contact: 0776404193; 0776607717
“Sin is not ended by multiplying words,
but the prudent hold their tongues”. (Proverbs 10:19, NIV)
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