Last year, I was asked by the pastor that we work with in Philippi to attend a meeting with a pharmaceutical representative. She was an African woman who had been hired by drug companies to find women in the township of Philippi to serve as guinea pigs for HIV preventative drugs. These drugs were reported to protect women from being infected with the HIV virus. Women were told that they would receive the drugs for free and that they could then have sex without worrying about contracting AIDS. Women were lining up for these trials, because they didn't want to get HIV/AIDS. What they were not being told is that there was literally no proof that they worked. This was the first test that the drug companies were running and because the community of Philippi is very impoverished and the average educational level is very low, the drug companies felt that it was a perfect location to carr out their tests. Thankfully the pastor we work with saw through this heinous invitation and not only turned it down, but confronted the woman on what she was doing.

You might ask, "Why would they choose to run these tests in Africa?" "Why would they choose impoverished people?" I believe the answer is not merely that there are more people with HIV/AIDS in South Africa than any other country, but that they believe the desperation and fear in the lives of our friends here will cause them to try anything. They also feel that due to their lack of education and resources, they are "safe" for testing purposes. Who will they turn to, when these drugs fail? How will they know that they are being treated like guinea pigs?

Sometimes we wonder...what does this have to do with us? What should we do? Listen to God's instruction regarding our role with those who are in these situations:

Proverbs 31:9 (NLT)
Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.

Proverbs 14:31 (NIV)
He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

Acts 20:35 (NIV)
In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"

Galatians 2:10 (NIV)
All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

Please consider how you can live out this passion of God's in your community and in the world. Feel free to share your thoughts with others this week in the BLOG.

Dennis Wadley
Bridges of Hope International

"Sooner or later, you are going to learn, just as I did, that there is a difference between KNOWING the path and WALKING the path."
~Morpheus, from The Matrix~

Feel free to contact me for further ideas on how to make a difference at:

Dennis@bridges-of-hope.org
www.bridges-of-hope.org
PO Box 7294
Stellenbosch, 7599
South Africa