The perception of stakeholders in one church in South Africa of the church's educational efforts to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic, their basic knowledge and theological perspectives related to the disease with attention to cultural assumptions

This qualitative research study explored the level of knowledge of HIV/AIDS of the stakeholders and the theological content communicated through the non-formal educational program of Ennerdale Uniting Reformed Church (EURC) on AIDS prevention and care for people living with AIDS describing how subjects have understood and have responded to what they learned (with special attention to competing cultural assumptions.) With the help of an assistant the researcher interviewed 32 individuals in four categories of participants representing the providers (minister/teacher and lay leaders) and most vulnerable learners (youth and PLWA).;The study was limited to EURC and their efforts to address the AIDS pandemic through prevention. The researcher attempted to identify what it is that make this congregation effective in its AIDS ministry and to extrapolate principles that can be helpful in the design of other programs and build the capacity of the church at large in its ministry to those infected and affected by the AIDS pandemic. The purposive sampling procedure limits the generalizability of the findings (Creswell 1994, 111) to other churches in South Africa but does support the goal of this research (Patton 1990, 169).;The understandings or insights of the case (Merriam 1998, 178) have been categorized according to themes that are present in the five research questions. Potentially meaningful segments of data have been categorized as follows: Biomedical: Knowledge concerning HIV/AIDS of the stakeholders; Theological: Theological and Biblical integration in the HIV/AIDS knowledge of the stakeholders; Cultural assumptions: Knowledge of and belief in HIV/AIDS related myths among the stakeholders; Responses (affective): Affective responses of the stakeholders to the AIDS pandemic; Pedagogical understanding: Pedagogical methodology of the teachers at EURC as perceived by the major stakeholders.;EURC and their pastor, Rev. Terrance Wessels, appear to be positive deviants whose example and experience will hopefully enable other churches to change their HIV/AIDS ministries to such an extent that in the near future EURC will not be a deviant congregation anymore but simply one of many churches whose ministries make a spiritual and physical difference in the lives of many infected and affected by the AIDS pandemic in South Africa.