As the pastor of a mostly African-American Baptist church near Houston, Timothy W. Sloan has known for years that he needed to talk about HIV and AIDS with his congregation.

He worried the 3,000 parishioners at St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church in Humble, Texas, could be offended and leave the church or curtail their giving.

"On a scale of 1 to 10 it was a 6," he said of his concerns.

Then, a year and a half ago, he joined a group of pastors organized by the NAACP to write a manual for church leaders like himself on talking to their congregations about a disease that has a disproportionate effect on the black community.

Sloan spoke to his congregation about the issue soon after. They surprised him with a standing ovation.

Now Sloan hopes others can use the manual he helped create to talk to their congregations. The NAACP this month released it and a 61-page activity manual at the group's convention in Texas.