Kay and Rick Warren at last year's Saddleback AIDS conference (Photo: Dan Wooding)

LAKE FOREST, CA (ANS) -- Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) is the first of six invited presidential candidates to confirm participation at the third annual Global Summit on AIDS and the Church to be held Nov. 27 through Dec. 1 at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif. and hosted by pastor and “The Purpose Driven Life” author Dr. Rick Warren and his wife Kay.

According to a news release sent to ANS, the Warrens have extended

invitations to leading presidential candidates. Five invitees, including former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.), former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, have expressed a desire to participate and are currently working on scheduling issues.

“Inviting politicians from different perspectives to the Summit is not a political decision – it is a humanitarian and Christian action,” said Rick Warren. “When millions are dying each year, we're interested in lives, not labels. We want everyone to become concerned about the AIDS pandemic.”

Sens. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) and Obama spoke at last year's Summit due to their previous work with AIDS and poverty. The Global Summit on AIDS and the Church was established on the conviction that AIDS cannot be ended without mobilizing the Churches' global distribution network, massive pool of volunteers and local credibility in villages around the world. This year's Summit will feature more than 50 world-class speakers and experts. Sessions will include leaders from business, government, medicine, non-profit and ministry sectors who are working locally and globally in an attempt to arrest the growing AIDS pandemic.

“The HIV/AIDS pandemic is so large that it can't be stopped without the combined efforts of leadership in the public, private/profit and faith sectors,” said Kay Warren. “Obviously, that includes whoever is elected as the next president of the United States. We are urging all of the current presidential candidates to continue and expand the international efforts of AIDS relief of the current administration. To stop what has been started would mean the deaths of literally millions of women, children and men who are alive today solely because of treatment and prevention strategies available through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).”

The HIV/AIDS initiative of Saddleback Church is a key part of the P.E.A.C.E. plan, an overarching humanitarian strategy launched three years ago. This worldwide effort is to mobilize 1 billion church members to Promote Reconciliation, Equip servant leaders, Assist the poor, Care for the sick and Educate the next generation. One session of the Summit will feature a report about the P.E.A.C.E. plan progress and the lessons learned over the past three years as a result of sending out more than 7,500 members to test the plan in 69 countries.

“I commend Rick and Kay Warren for their work to fight HIV/AIDS,” Clinton said. “Our churches have a powerful role to play in raising the consciousness of the nation and the world to this pandemic and urge compassion for the sick and the suffering. When we come together, seeking the common good, we can find solutions to our biggest challenges and reinforce our faith that a call to action can change lives. I am honored to participate in this 'coming together' at the third annual Global Summit on AIDS and the Church.”

Rick and Kay Warren are international advocates for the HIV/AIDS crisis. Kay chronicles her journey into the world of HIV/AIDS advocacy in her debut book “Dangerous Surrender” (Zondervan, November 2007). For more information about the Warrens and the 2007 AIDS Summit, visit www.AIDSandTheChurch.com

Dan Wooding is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma. He is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS). He was, for ten years, a commentator, on the UPI Radio Network in Washington, DC. Wooding is the author of some 42 books, the latest of which is his autobiography, "From Tabloid to Truth", which is published by Theatron Books. To order a copy, go to www.fromtabloidtotruth.com. danjuma1@aol.com.