The Vatican will host international scientists at a conference on AIDS in late May, an encounter church officials hope will help clarify Pope Benedict XVI’s recent comments on condom use in AIDS prevention, a Vatican official said. Following the one-day conference May 28, the Vatican plans to publish a handbook of pastoral guidelines for Catholic health care workers on AIDS care and prevention, Msgr. Jean-Marie Mpendawatu, undersecretary of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry, said Feb. 3. Msgr. Mpendawatu said the Vatican conference and the subsequent guidelines would take a “global” approach to the AIDS question, and not focus on condoms. But he said the condom issue would be addressed, in the wake of the recent debate over Pope Benedict’s remarks and a Vatican doctrinal note that followed.
In the book-length interview, “Light of the World,” published in November, the pope said that while condoms were not the answer to the AIDS epidemic, the use of condoms may be a sign of moral responsibility in some specific situations when the intention is to reduce the risk of infection. He gave the example of a prostitute. The papal comments sparked discussion and debate, including among Catholic health care professionals. In December, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued an explanatory note saying the pope’s remarks did not signify a change in the church’s moral teaching or its pastoral practice, in particular on birth control.
VATICAN CITY (CNS)