Plague: Untold Stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church
America Media
In "Plague" journalist Michael O'Loughlin investigates stories of the AIDS epidemic and the Catholic Church. Mike is America’s national correspondent and he’s c...
How Dorothy Day inspired gay Catholic Workers to respond to AIDS
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In this bonus episode of Plague, Michael O’Loughlin visits a Catholic Worker House in Syracuse, N.Y. to explore how Dorothy Day’s movement responded to the H.I.V. and AIDS crisis. Journey into a part of the Catholic Worker that is rarely discussed: how one of the church’s most welcoming and radically hospitable ministries struggled over the issue of homosexuality, even in the face of AIDS. Hear gay Catholic Workers, journalists and authors, long-term H.I.V. survivors and individuals who worked alongside Dorothy Day speak about the complicated reality they faced.
Links:
Read more about the Friends of Dorothy Catholic Worker House in O’Loughlin’s article, How the Catholic Worker Movement inspired one couple to open their doors to people with AIDS.
This episode coincides with the release of O’Loughlin’s new book, Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics, and Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear.
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Lessons from Plague for LGBT Catholics today
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In this bonus episode, host Michael O'loughlin has a conversation with Michael Vazquez, religion and faith director for Human Rights Campaign, about issues affecting LBGT Catholics today .
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36:06
AIDS, the Catholic Church and LGBT issues today
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In the series finale of ‘Plague,’ Mike looks at what’s happening in the church in HIV and AIDS care today and then reflects on comments and questions from listeners about the ongoing debates over LGBT issues in the Catholic Church.
In Rustenburg, South Africa, where today AIDS is disproportionately impacting girls and young women, a Catholic bishop and religious sister promote education and empowerment, and offer a pro-life argument for the use of condoms in HIV and AIDS prevention.
Then, returning to the United States, Mike speaks with medical doctor and Jesuit priest Jon Fuller about the stubbornly high rate of HIV within marginalized communities, and how remembering the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 90s can break down intergenerational barriers between people living with HIV and AIDS.
Finally, the series wraps with a reflection on the key takeaways from the podcast—and a consideration of what’s at the heart of the broader debates over LGBT issues in the Catholic Church today.
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A Catholic Sister learns to serve people with AIDS
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In the fifth episode of "Plague," Mike visits the small Midwestern city of Belleville, Illinois, where a Catholic Sister broke ground in the 1980s by opening an organization to provide services for people living with HIV and AIDS. Though she was a trained ICU and ER nurse, Sister Carol Baltosiewich had much to learn about the disease before she could help treat it. So she journeyed to New York City with another sister to volunteer at Catholic hospitals on the front lines of the AIDS crisis.
That experience dramatically changed Sister Carol's perspective. She witnessed firsthand the suffering people with AIDS experienced, along with their partners and family members. But it was the deep love present amidst the suffering that truly changed her. She would come to realize that ministering to people with HIV and AIDS first required a sincere self-examination. As she put it, "You can't even deal with AIDS until you first face your own prejudices and biases."
Sister Carol returned to Belleville and got to work. She set up a helpline to answer questions about HIV and AIDS, which turned into a highly respected AIDS service organization known as "Bethany Place".
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You can follow Mike on Twitter @mikeoloughlin.
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35:52
A gay Catholic Church in the Castro
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In the fourth episode of “Plague,” Mike visits a Catholic Church in the Castro–San Francisco’s LGBT neighborhood–that transformed itself during the 80s and 90s into what parishioners called a “gay church.” It took the delicate balance of an innovative pastor, committed gay parishioners, and open-minded old ladies to bring life to the now iconic church.
But the parish didn’t just survive. It transformed itself into a place where the neighborhood it served could rely on it for spiritual sustenance and physical help during the height of the HIV and AIDS crisis. As one member put it to us, Most Holy Redeemer became a place that helped save souls, and save lives.
In short, it became a model for what a parish should be.
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You can follow Mike on Twitter @mikeoloughlin.
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Acerca de Plague: Untold Stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church
In "Plague" journalist Michael O'Loughlin investigates stories of the AIDS epidemic and the Catholic Church. Mike is America’s national correspondent and he’s covered Catholicism for more than a decade. Mike is also gay and Catholic—and he’s curious how others manage this sometimes complex identity. No time in modern history has been more volatile for gay Catholics than the height of the AIDS epidemic. So he spent the last few years interviewing people who were right in the middle of it. People who fought, worked and grieved through it.
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