Cultural Beliefs and Religious Values Related to HIV / AIDS Essay

Collaborative Learning Community on Issues Related to HIV / AIDS

Culture refers to a complex set of material, intellectual, spiritual and emotional characteristics that define a social group or a society. It comprises of fundamental rights, ways of life, traditional beliefs, and value systems in society. Some cultural beliefs, practices, and norms related to sexuality contribute to the spread and increased risk of HIV acquisition. Cultural beliefs such as negative attitudes towards the use of protective mechanisms such as condoms as well discussing its use among societies is one among the contributing factors. For example, men in some communities do not prefer using condoms because they consider flesh-flesh sex with masculinity and promotion of health.

Practices such as the male circumcision influence the risk of HIV disease. Studies show that the social practice significantly reduces the risks of HIV disease among them male during penile vaginal sex. Social practices embedded in the culture like alcoholism predisposes alcohol abusers to sexual assault, more so among the young people. This may result to the disease. Social characteristics such as gender inequality and dominance of the society by the male predispose the female to the risks of HIV disease. Male dominated society predisposes women to social injustices such as sex harassment and lack of their contributions to matters related to the sexuality resulting in the predisposition (Hall, Hall, & Cockerell, 2011).

Cultural practices like female genital mutilation (FGM) among various societies predispose women to HIV disease. This occurs due to poor hygiene related to the practice. Commercialization of sex in some societies contributes to the spread of the disease. This often occurs in communities that view sex as an economic resource. As such, this contributes to the massive spread of HIV among the population. Cultural practices like dry sex cause injuries to the vaginal walls, thereby predisposing individuals to the disease. The cultural norm that young women should prove their fertility before marriage increases the risks of disease. Such individuals engage in unprotected sex with the aim of getting pregnant to prove their fertility. Cultural practices such as polygamy and wife inheritance increase the risk of spread and disease of HIV (Jenkins et al., 2003).

Religious/spiritual beliefs and values related to HIV / AIDS

Various religious beliefs influence the spread and the quality of life of the victims in different countries around the globe. Traditionally, religious bodies viewed the infected and their families as "sinners who deviated from the God's teachings." The victims of HIV / AIDS were seen in the society s harbingers of the society apocalypse, and a combination of God's penalty for their evil behaviors. This belief operates on the premise that, failure of the society members to comply with the societal/community norms of issues related to sexuality resulted in death as a penalty (World Bank, 2001).

Religious/spiritual bodies defined HIV / AIDS basing on the individual's morality and failure to adhere to societal norms. Therefore, this considers the disease as an extension of a sinful character associated with evil behaviors and promiscuity. According to the Christian Bible, God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because of evil behaviors witnessed among the people of these cities. Similarly, religious bodies considered HIV / AIDS as a penalty sent from God due to the high evil behaviors witnessed around the world (Stolley & Glass, 2009).

However, the recent past witnessed a significant change in the ways in which the religious bodies viewed the disease. For example, churches in the past few years have changed their beliefs and adopted strategies such as discussing issues related to HIV / AIDS with their congregations. Belief-based organizations have changed supported the religious bodies by providing HIV related services such as education and provision of care to those in need. Religious values such as that of the Catholic Church influence the spread of the disease across the world. For example, Pope Benedict XVI statements such as stressing that abstinence and faithfulness are the only methods of preventing HIV in Africa hinders the strategies adopted to curb the disease in the continent. Interplay between the religious…