Archbishop's web site Denver Catholic Register Parishes Catholic Pastoral Center
December 5, 2001
Bishop Gomez celebrates World AIDS Day Mass
Mass at St. Ignatius Loyola commemorates lives lost to AIDS
By Alwen Bledsoe
Tony Garcia has been HIV-positive for 8 years. Though only 42, Garcia has already watched many of his loved ones succumb to AIDS. On Nov. 30, the eve of World AIDS Day, he and about 50 others gathered for a Mass of Remembrance and Petition at St. Ignatius Loyola in Denver to commemorate the lives lost to AIDS and to pray for those with HIV/AIDS. It was the Archdiocese of Denver's 2nd annual World AIDS Day Mass.
"I am so grateful to see that we have a place," Garcia said. "The Catholic Church offers us support, healing and prayer."
The World AIDS Day Mass is meaningful to him, Garcia said, because it meets the spiritual needs of those with HIV/AIDS.
"The service can give me time to pray, time to heal, to remember those who have been dying and those who are sick now," he said. "It's wonderful to be surrounded by all of these people who show you love, care and support."
Father Tom Jost, pastor of St. Ignatius Loyola, explained that the church initiated the World AIDS Day Mass last year and partnered with the archdiocese's Social Concerns Office this year for the Mass.
"It's important to say the Church is concerned, really cares and that we really believe the healing ministry of Jesus continues in the Church today,"
he said. "In his lifetime Jesus was always where the people were suffering and really needed help, and the Church has to continue that in the present day."
Al Hooper, executive assistant for Social Concerns' Catholic Campaign for Human Development, said "(The Mass) is to create that sense of global solidarity."
He added that the archdiocese supports Catholic Relief Services' AIDS relief work around the globe and also cares for those in Colorado who suffer from HIV/AIDS.
According to CRS figures, 36 million suffer from HIV/AIDS worldwide. Though only 10 percent of the world's population resides in Sub-Saharan Africa, it holds 70 percent of those who are HIV-positive and 95 percent of the world's AIDS orphans.
Bishop José Gomez celebrated the Mass with Father Jost and Father Robert Fisher, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes.
Bishop Gomez noted that it was appropriate for the Mass to fall on the feast day of St. Andrew, a Christian martyr.
"In God's plan of salvation he uses suffering as a means of redemption," the bishop said.
But, acknowledged the bishop, when suffering comes through the death of loved ones, illness or emotional pain, faith is difficult.
"The question we all raise is `If God is good, why do we have to suffer?'" he said.
In his epistle to the Romans, Paul promises that "No one who believes in God will be put to shame, and that God is rich in mercy" continued Bishop Gomez.
"Well, if that is true, God sure seems to have a strange way to show it," he said.
The central question for those seeking faith in the midst of anguish, Bishop Gomez said, is "If God exists, where do we find him in suffering?"
The answer, he said, lies in "the mystery of the cross."
"Suffering is the means God uses to open our eyes to call us back to him, to see the importance of our lives in a clearer way," he said. "Jesus says, `Blessed are the poor, the needy, those who mourn.' It is in our grief, in our pain that we become the humblest and draw closest to God."
The two choices presented to those in pain are despair and hope, continued the bishop.
"If we choose hope, our suffering can become much more than itself — a kind of prayer," he said.
Bishop Gomez ended his message by speaking of the unconditional love of God.
"Scripture tells us that love is strong as death," he said. "We who know Jesus know love is even stronger than death."
Later he added: "God who is always a father never stops loving any child he creates. God's love is for all of us. He never takes it back."
After the homily those living with HIV/AIDS or other serious illnesses, the elderly and those facing upcoming surgeries were invited to receive the sacrament of the anointing of the sick.
About 10, men and women alike, came forward for the anointing, receiving the oil on their foreheads and hands.
Following the anointing, Father Jost opened a time of prayer for those who had died from AIDS or who now have HIV/AIDS. The names of men, women and those of various ethnicities filled the church, hardly a second passing without a name being spoken.
After the Mass Garcia said he had resonated with the bishop's words.
"It has been interesting to see him speak so openly about offering love and support," said Garcia. "He said we have to remember we are all the same, all equal. It was interesting for me to hear from him because sometimes it is difficult to believe that people think in that way — think that we are all equal."
Originally from Mallorca, Spain, where he worked as an engineer, Garcia now serves as the HIV regional resource consultant for the Federal government, overseeing AIDS services and organizations throughout Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana and North and South Dakota.
Despite the many horrible realities of HIV/AIDS, Garcia said, "HIV has been making my life much better."
Explaining his unlikely statement, he added, "I've deepened my time (here) by learning to enjoy each moment in my life."
Garcia said the friendships, the work and the education he acquired after being diagnosed have all felt much more meaningful than did his life before HIV.
"Being HIV-positive is not so beautiful, but at the same time, I feel so blessed," he said.
Garcia said that the greatest fear facing most people with HIV/AIDS is rejection. In many cases, he added, those with HIV/AIDS are abandoned even by their families and live lives of isolation.
"You just say `HIV positive' and people think you've misbehaved or that you're using drugs. That's not true in all the cases," he said.
Garcia said he has been amazed at the loving and supportive network he has encountered in the American Church, and he wants others with HIV/AIDS to know about it.
"There's a place in the Catholic Church where they can get some spiritual support, love, friendship, and someone who can listen to them," he said.
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