They would be influenced by a message that had Christian morality attached to it. If Gene saves only 10 people with his message, that would be great. But I'm sure it will be greater numbers. Blake says of those congregations wishing to focus attention on AIDS in Africa. But seminars, conferences, and resolutions about AIDS are meaningless, according to Rivers, if the issue of promiscuity isn't broached.
Bond denies that promiscuity is taboo.
I heard Jesse Jackson talk about this. Eva Thorne, a member of Rivers' 21st Century Group, contends blacks have long been shy in airing their troubles from within. Rivers, a minister in the Church of God In Christ, is being courted by the presidential campaigns of both George W. Bush, the Texas governor, and Vice President Al Gore. He plans to circumvent traditional black leaders and appeal to the major political parties, as well as the Roman Catholic Church, to help him and his organization address the plight of AIDS sufferers in Africa. For decades, black Americans have had a spiritual connection to Africa.