Unfolding Religiosity and Spirituality: Towards an Integrated Theology of Holism in the Advent of New HIV Infections in Africa

Abstract

Although the fight against HIV/AIDS seems to be far from being over, subjective behavioural choices have been blamed for the new HIV infections, because of the decline in morality. Religious leaders and Faith Based Organizations have an important role to play in curbing the transmission of HIV infection through their advocacy for change in sexual behaviour. The religious normative approach in shaping human persons' behaviour has failed in mitigating the behavioural modes of transmitting HIV infections. The exercise of religiosity (the outward expression of beliefs as exhibited by behavioural practices and rituals focusing on the core system of doctrines, morals and norms as obligations) has failed to inculcate the value in the inner person of the moral agent. However, the drives of moral choices and hence action towards Christian wholeness and perfection go beyond obligations to that which adds value/worth to their being. Thus, internalization of valued religious normative foundations, which guide the sexual behavior of the moral agent, is important towards the perfection of moral Christian life. Spirituality (the inner experience of being in a position to define one's identity in terms of what is of value and worth in ones' life towards Christian perfection) directs the self towards practice. This paper adopts a hypothetical deductive paradigm to build a model that describes the relationship between application of learned religious normative directives and spiritual humanistic approach in ethical decision making with regard to an individual's health and well-being. The model proposes a valued internalization of learned religious norms. Spiritual internalization, though subjective permeates through the communal relational experience that defines our identity. This model identifies the practice of religiosity as the single factor accounting for the highest proportion of the causes of unethical behavior with regard to our sexuality. It therefore calls for subjective practice of internalized spirituality (spiritual theology) in ethical decision-making. In this model, spiritual capital influences positively the processes of moral decision making within a relationship network based on a high degree of virtue rather than on strict obligations. The paper enhances the understanding and practice of the ethical processes of sexual behaviors, as well as holding to the premise that religion positively influences the moral behavior of the society. It concludes with a research agenda that may prove beneficial not only to the Christian organizations but also to the behavioral approaches to HIV interventions.