Description
Book SynopsisHIV/AIDS continues to devastate the lives of individuals and families, communities and countries. A growing numbness about HIV/AIDS, however, infects many people. Many fail to recognize that the AIDS epidemic is still getting worse, now spreading rapidly in the world''s most populous countries. To help raise and renew consciousness about this threat to the world, Ethics and AIDS: Compassion and Justice in Global Crisis summarizes the basics of the AIDS epidemic and presents key themes insights based on the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. This ethical perspective is the result of decades of dialogue among Roman Catholics and other Christians, building on the strengths of the various traditions. This book offers a Christian view, with special emphasis on Roman Catholic thought; many of its ethical insights, however, can be shared by other faith traditions and by all people who desire to respond to the AIDS pandemic.
Trade ReviewOverberg's text is a sophisticated summary and synthesis of the best contemporary Catholic thinkers on these issues from Karl Rahner to John Paul II. Ethics and AIDS is a first-rate primer for those who want an introduction to the topic from a Catholic theological perspective. It will be a welcome resource for parish educators, undergraduates and Catholic study groups seeking to understand Aids and our response as a community of faith to what John Paul II has labeled 'this terrible evil which has come upon humanity.' * The American Spectator *
[Overberg's] careful portrayal and analysis of ethical complexities is commendable. He carefully analyzes the challenges raised by the many women who are caught in structures of poverty and oppression, recognizing that their abilities to choose life for themselves or their children are undermined by gender discrimination and societal pressures. O. captures many such dilemmas in ways that move religious ethical reflection on AIDS forward, past judgmental moralizing and simplistic solutions. -- . * Theological Studies, June 2008 *
Based on the Church’s defense of human life and dignity, in this comprehensive work Fr. Overberg seeks to join the AIDS epidemic to other themes developed in Cardinal Bernardin’s Constent Ethic of Life. Quite approachable discussions on topics which range from the promotion of justice and the ethics of HIV prevention to an understanding of the epidemic’s relationship to the fundamental option for the poor, all provide a hopeful sign that the Church’s ethicists and moral theologians are applying their efforts to some of the most pressing challenges of our time. -- Jon Fuller. S.J., M.D., associate professor of medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Center for HIV/AIDS Care and Research, Boston Medical Cen
Table of ContentsChapter 1 Introduction: Confronting Numbness Chapter 2 Chapter 1: Basic Facts about HIV/AIDS Chapter 3 Chapter 2: Ethical Foundation Chapter 4 Chapter 3: Ethics and the Beginning of Life Chapter 5 Chapter 4: Ethics and Relationships Chapter 6 Chapter 5: Ethics and the End of Life Chapter 7 Chapter 6: Ethics and Society Chapter 8 Chapter 7: Ethics and Global Structures Chapter 9 Chapter 8: Creating the Future Chapter 10 Appendix I: The Mystery of God and Suffering Chapter 11 Appendix II: Preparing Now for the Hour of Death Chapter 12 Selected Bibliography Chapter 13 Index
