Umbrellas - A Training Resource on Religion and Sexuality Issues

Developed by Bridges of Hope Training for use by faith-based organisations (FBOs), this training resource is designed to explore and help reconcile religious and moral principles and teachings around love, sex, sin, HIV, condom use, and caring responsibly for one's own health and the health of others.

The resource uses a metaphorical story to explore these issues. The story is about a village chief and the issues faced by his family and community around using umbrellas. The umbrella is a metaphor for a condom, and in an indirect way the story explores attitudes and moral/religious issues that people face around sex, sin, HIV, condom use, and health. After each of the four sections of the story, the resource offers notes and questions that can be used to facilitate discussion on the issues raised.

The development and pre-testing of this resource was done with support from Canon Gideon Byamugisha, founder of the African Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Personally Affected by HIV/AIDS (ANERELA), and Tearfund partners throughout Africa.