Health authorities estimate that altogether in Africa 12 million people have already died from the AIDS epidemic.

They've left behind a staggering 10 million orphaned children.

The crisis is drawing many Christian responses. Christian activists are finding creative ways to teach AIDS prevention, including this cycle relay event through nine southern African countries.

The cycling trip was organized by the Christian relief organization, World Vision.
A core group of two dozen participants started in Malawi and cycled 3,600 miles.

They urged people in meetings along the way to become aware of the AIDS problem and to prevent the spread of the deadly infection.

28 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are already infected. That enormous number of victims touched the heart of American cyclist Brian Peterson.

Peterson said, "Those kinds of statistics may help us understand the gravity of the situation. And the need for Christians-those who really take seriously the message of Christ-having to do with compassion and mercy. If we take that message seriously we will see that this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to really demonstrate Christ's words in action."

World Vision's African leaders say that a generation of development work on behalf of African children could be wiped out by the deadly AIDS epidemic.

On the Web: www.worldvision.org.