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Abstract
The World Health Organization (2016) reported an estimated 36.7 million people areliving with HIV, among them are the 1.1 million people living with HIV in the US (CDC, 2015). While the health benefits associated with spiritual coping in response to chronic illness are well established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2015), research suggests that access to faith-based supports is complicated by the threat of encountering stigma for people living with HIV/AIDS, due to moral preoccupations involving sexual health and behaviors (Benton, 2008; Ford, 2011; Martinez, Lemos, & Hosek, 2012; Szaflarski, 2013).Given this potential for encountering both supportive and stigmatizing messages in faith-based contexts, this study used Collective Memory Work (Haug, 1997) coupled withParticipatory Video (Lunch & Lunch, 2006) as a framework that explored how eight peoplemade meaning of HIV through spiritual coping. Findings included themes associated withexistential questioning, the need for unconditional love, the process of spiritual meaning-making, and acquiring a sense of heightened purpose, oftentimes manifested as a personal call to action through HIV prevention and education efforts. Moreover, this study used participatory video as a medium to record and share participant stories in affecting change, with an intended audience, in demystifying the complexities of living with HIV while engaging in faith-based supports.