Articles, News & Events

---

Did you know that there are over 1 million people in the United States living with HIV? An estimated 15% of them (150,000 persons) DO NOT KNOW that they are infected with HIV. If you do not know if you are infected with HIV, you could be spreading it to others. The only way to know if you have HIV is to get tested.

October 15th marks National Latino HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. HIV is the virus which causes AIDS, and it is hitting Hispanics hard. HIV/AIDS is the fourth leading cause of death among Hispanics ages 35 to 44 in the Chicago land area.

This disease has no cure; there is no vaccine to prevent it, and it will not go away!

KNOW YOUR STATUS…GET TESTED…AND ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO GET TESTED

Free and confidential or anonymous testing is available in a community near you.

To find the nearest site you can:

• Call: (312) 948-6500, CDC Info/National AIDS Hotline
• Call: (800) 232-4636, Catholic Charities
• Visit: hivaidsservicesministry.org

A suggested petition to include at your daily or weekend masses and in private prayer:

"Heal us from the social stigma and discrimination of hiv/aids that leads us to lack of compassion and hurtful acts of isolation"
We pray.

Did you know that an estimated 40,000 new HIV infections occur every year in the U.S.? It is estimated that 15 to 20% of persons living with the virus DO NOT KNOW that they are infected. If you do not know that you are infected with HIV, you could be spreading the virus to others. The only way to know if you are infected is to get tested.

September 18th marks National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day. Although the number of deaths from AIDS is decreasing, the number of new infections and the number of persons living with AIDS are rising. Among the population groups increasingly at risk for HIV infection are those 50 years and older. As these numbers increase, persons living with AIDS will face the daily challenges of living with the disease as well as the daily challenges of aging.

September 27th marks National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show a sharp increase in the number of new infections among young (13-29) gay and bisexual men. Because of persistent and painful homophobia, stigma and discrimination people are afraid to be tested and seek treatment and health care.

Free and confidential or anonymous testing is available in a community near you.

This disease has no cure; there is no vaccine to prevent it, and it will not go away!

KNOW YOUR STATUS…GET TESTED…AND ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO GET TESTED

For more information call: (312) 948-6500 or go to hivaidsservicesministry.org

A suggested petition to include at your daily or weekend masses and in private prayer:

"Compassionate God, bless the millions of children who have been orphaned because of HIV/AIDS"
We pray

While great progress has been made in the prevention and treatment of hiv/aids and in reducing the number of deaths from the disease, we continue to see new infections. Of the 1 ¼ million people in the united states who are hiv+, 15 to 20% of these do not know that they are infected and are potentially spreading the virus to others. It is estimated that nearly 40,000 new hiv infections occur every year in the united states. Complacency about hiv/aids contributes to these numbers.

This month offers an opportunity to bring attention to the need to educate at risk populations in your community about the importance of testing and prevention, and seeking care for those who are hiv+.

KNOW YOUR STATUS…GET TESTED…AND ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO GET TESTED

For more information call: 312-948-6500 or go to hivaidsservicesministry.org

This disease has no cure; there is no vaccine to prevent it, and it will not go away!

A suggested petition to include at your daily or weekend masses and in private prayer:

“gracious god, make us one as we challenge poverty, ignorance and fear, prejudice and discrimination for those living with hiv/aids.” We pray.

June 8th is National Caribbean American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. This disease has devastated the Caribbean, and this population ranks 2nd only to sub-Saharan Africa in the existing number of persons living with AIDS.

June 27th is national HIV Testing Day. There are an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 new HIV infections in the U.S. every year. Some 15 to 20% of those persons living with HIV/AIDS DO NOT KNOW that they are infected with the virus and could be spreading it to others. The only way to know if you have the virus is to be tested. This national day of testing is an opportunity for people nationwide to learn their HIV status.

KNOW YOUR STATUS…GET TESTED…AND ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO GET TESTED

Free and confidential or anonymous testing is available in a community near you. For more information call: 312-948-6500 or go to hivaidsservicesministry.org

A suggested petition to include at the weekend Masses and in private prayer:

God of Hope, make us one as we pray for all caregivers, educators, researchers and those who work to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and to find a cure…We pray.

The Centers for Disease Control, (CDC), estimates that 1.1 million people in the United States were living with HIV at the end of 2016. Many of these persons have been living with HIV for years.

June 5th is a day set aside every year to honor HIV long term survivors and to raise awareness of their continuing needs, issues and journeys.

Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers!

For more information call 312-948-6500.

May 18th, is HIV Vaccine Awareness Day. Despite ongoing research, there still is no vaccine to prevent HIV/AIDS. This day is a great reminder to pray for the success of the thousands of people who are working to find a vaccine and a cure.

May 29th National Asian and Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The number of persons with the virus in this population continues to increase.

For more information call: 312-948-6500 or go to hivaidsservicesministry.org

KNOW YOUR STATUS…GET TESTED…AND ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO GET TESTED

A suggested petition to include in the May 16th/17th weekend Masses, bulletins and in your private prayers:

Compassionate God, for those millions who have died from AIDS and AIDS related illnesses, may they live forever in the light of your kingdom…We Pray

March 10th and 20th are days of national observance to encourage people to show support for persons living with HIV/AIDS and to raise awareness of its continuing impact.

March 10th, National Women and Girls’ HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, sheds light on the impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls. Despite tremendous progress against the disease in the U.S., women remain vulnerable to the infection---especially African American and Hispanic women. Currently there are 1.1 million people living with HIV/AIDS in the U.S., and nearly 1/4th or 23% of them are women.

March 20th is National Native (American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian) HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The day’s theme is “A Celebration of Life.” HIV affects thousands in these populations which have the 3rd highest rate of AIDS diagnoses in the U.S., despite having the smallest population. They are more likely to be younger than their non-native peers and have a shorter time between AIDS diagnosis and death.

KNOW YOUR STATUS…GET TESTED…AND ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO GET TESTED

For more information call: 312-948-6500 or go to hivaidsservicesministry.org

A suggested petition to include on the weekends of 3/7 and 3/8 and/or 3/14 and 3/15:

Compassionate God, strengthen all persons living with HIV or AIDS to live fully with hope and peace…we pray.

This national week of prayer brings national attention to the AIDS epidemic in the United States and to the extraordinary role that faith communities can and are playing in addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic—in AIDS prevention, education, service and advocacy. It is the coming together of all people of faith to unite with purpose, compassion and love. One of its primary goals is to strengthen our nation’s faith communities to influence social norms and thereby contribute to the prevention of HIV and provide compassionate support to those who are living with and affected by HIV/AIDS. Every church, mosque, synagogue, temple and home is invited to join in prayer, education, advocacy and service for the healing of AIDS in the United States and around the world.

In unity with this week of prayer across our nation, we offer the following petitions:
God of Compassion,
Make us one as we challenge poverty, ignorance and fear, prejudice and discrimination of those living with HIV/AIDS;
Make us one as we pray for all caregivers, researchers and those who work to prevent the spread of HIV;
Make us one as we walk with all who live with and are affected by HIV/AIDS;
Make us one as we pray for the millions of children who are now orphans because of AIDS and for the millions who have died of AIDS
St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Patron of Persons Living with HIV/AIDS and their caregivers, pray for us.

Catholic Charities HIV/AIDS Task Force for the Archdiocese of Chicago: (312) 948-6500

Did you know that there are over 1 ¼ million people in the USA living with HIV, the virus which causes AIDS? It is estimated that 20% of them DO NOT KNOW that they are infected with the virus. If you do not know that you have the virus, you could be spreading it to others. The only way to know if you have HIV is to get tested. Stigma, discrimination and shame---these continue to prevent people from talking about HIV, getting tested or seeking treatment. The HIV /AIDS epidemic is a health care crisis for Blacks, especially African Americans. On February 7th and throughout the year, please pray for those living with and affected by HIV/AIDS. For information visit www.HIVAIDSServicesMinistry.org, or call (312) 948-6500.

El 7 de febrero es el Día Nacional de la Concientización del VIH/SIDA en la Comunidad Afroamericana

¿Sabía usted que hay más de 1.25 millones de personas en los Estados Unidos que padecen del VIH, el virus que causa el SIDA? Una cuarta parte de ellos NO SABEN que están infectados con el virus. Si usted no sabe si está infectado con el VIH, puede estar contagiando a otras personas. La única forma de saber si tiene el VIH es haciéndose una prueba. El estigma, la discriminación y la vergüenza, impiden que las personas hablen sobre el VIH, hacerse la prueba o buscar tratamiento. Le epidemia del VIH/SIDA es una crisis de salud, en especial para los afroamericanos. Este 7 de febrero, y durante todo el año, por favor pida por las personas infectadas y afectadas por el VIH/SIDA. Para más información visite www.HIVAIDSServicesMinistry.org o llame al (312) 948-6500.

P.S.

Please ask your pastor and/or liturgy team to include a petition such as the following in the weekend masses of February 1st and 2nd and/or February 8th and 9th:

“God of Hope, make us one as we walk in solidarity with all who live with HIV/AIDS. Encourage our hearts and open our minds. We pray…”