Reflections on World AIDS Day: December 1

The Lazarus Effect By Ulysses Burley, MD, Columnist   37 The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. 3 He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” (Ezekiel 37:1-3) December 1st of every year marks World AIDS Day when organizations and individuals around the world endeavor to increase HIV/AIDS awareness, and rally to eradicate HIV related stigma to move closer toward ending the HIV epidemic. The 2020 international theme for World AIDS Day is “Global solidarity, shared responsibility” to highlight the necessity of oneness, togetherness, and connectedness in the HIV response at a time when COVID-19 has forced us apart and stretched already scarce public health resources. As Ezekiel envisions himself in this valley of dry bones, he gazes at all of the death and despair at his feet and he reflects on what was. Then God asks him to consider what could be. Can these bones live? Ezekiel is any healthcare professional, or caregiver, or beloved family member during the dark age of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in the 80s. These bones were of people dying from HIV. And just as Ezekiel was only able to envision what was, they said, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of [Israel]the living.” God again reminds them of what could be. Since the identification of HIV and AIDS in the early 1980s, an estimated 38 million people have died from the disease worldwide, leading many to still believe HIV and AIDS to be a death sentence. So often when we think about HIV and AIDS, we think only about what was; we think only about the dying. But we don’t have to anymore; HIV no longer has to be synonymous with death. God has gifted us a new covenant in God’s son Jesus Christ and we cry out to him as the sisters of Lazarus did, “Lord, the one you love is sick.” The ones you love are sick. And Jesus responds with the possibility of what could be; “This sickness will not end in death.” Since the advent of antiretroviral (ARV) therapy in 1996 people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWH) could begin to depart from what was and arrive at the possibilities of what could be. The near-dead have literally been brought back to life because of this revolutionary antiretroviral treatment, causing many in HIV and AIDS services to adopt the phrase “The Lazarus Effect” to describe its resurrecting power. People are now living with HIV and AIDS and no longer dying at the rates in which we saw during the early years of the epidemic. In fact, today there are approximately 38 million people living with the virus, nearly as many people who have died from HIV and AIDS-related illnesses in the last 39 years. Yet there is still much work to be done. Of the nearly 38 million people living with HIV globally, only 25.4 million PLWH have access to these life-saving medications, leaving the lives of some 13 million people to chance. Despite having the science and medicine to relegate HIV and AIDS to a chronic disease, access to treatment remains the common variable in turning the tide in the epidemic. That’s why this World AIDS Day, people of faith and goodwill from all over the world are joining the 13 MILLION CAMPAIGN, in a sign of solidarity and shared responsibility. The 13 Million Campaign is a global interfaith campaign engaging faith leaders, individuals, and communities to promote access to health services for the 13 million children, women, and men living with HIV who are not yet on antiretroviral treatment because of geography, or poverty, or identity, or belief systems. Imagine if Lazarus didn’t have access to God’s mercy and grace? Imagine if he was cut off from the healing power of Jesus Christ because of his race, culture, religion, or socioeconomic status – Lazarus’ tomb would not be empty, Martha and Mary would still be mourning, and the promise of tomorrow would be uncertain. The Lazarus Effect is about much more than the life-resurrecting treatment itself. The Lazarus Effect is about access to life-resurrecting treatment -- because solutions are only as effective as the problems they can reach. So while the ultimate goal remains – getting to zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination, and zero AIDS-related deaths, this World AIDS Day is all about global solidarity and shared responsibility in reaching the 13 million people who are disconnected from the solution to their problem. Jesus wept about the reality that Lazarus’ life had ended, so Jesus acted to change that reality and restore the hopes and dreams of tomorrow, not just for Lazarus, but for his family and his community. Today, let us act in the same way – let us be authors of a new reality so that the only end in sight is not that of life, but that of death. Let our weeping be that of joyful tears and not sorrow. Let our living be committed to ending HIV by increasing access to that which sustains life. To learn more about the 13 Million Campaign and sign the campaign visit: 13 Million Campaign | Health Interfaith Platform (interfaith-health-platform.org)