Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2002. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Chicago Tribune - February 22, 2002
Graham, the son of evangelist Billy Graham, spoke last Sunday at a conference that drew more than 800 Christian workers from around the world who specialize in helping HIV-positive people and AIDS patients.
The AIDS epidemic is a "plague of biblical proportions," Graham said. It needs "the same level of commitment, zeal, money and resources that we have rightly applied toward combating terrorism."
Churches should put the problem "at the top of our agendas" rather than simply waiting for government to solve it, he said.
Graham conceded that, like most Christians, he didn't do enough early in the crisis. He also said believers should help remove the disease's social stigma.
"Regardless of how it is contracted, we should demonstrate the same love, compassion and care that Jesus Christ would if he were physically walking among us today," Graham said.
But he said Christian compassion also requires "telling the truth" about the disease "to give people a fighting chance," including educating people about the medical risks of sex outside marriage.
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