Bishop of Bermuda.

In a recent sermon at Bermuda Cathedral, the Rt. Rev. William Down said AIDS is an "astronomical'' problem, which has "the very real potential to be catastrophic, not only for Bermuda, but for the whole world.'' With 177 people dead from AIDS in Bermuda since 1985, "as Christians we cannot say that it is not our problem,'' the Rt. Rev. Down said. "We have a duty to be both responsible and positive.'' As well as praying for a cure, the leader of the Island's largest church called on Bermudians to: Minister to those living with AIDS. Regardless of how they contracted the disease which attacks the body's immune system, "it is not for us to judge or condemn people,'' he said. "Our calling as Christians is to love people.'' Preach morality to prevent people from contracting AIDS. "If both partners come to marriage as virgins, live together faithfully, and do not get involved in drug abuse, they do not get AIDS,'' he said.

Be honest with their partners about their own sexual behaviour. "Momentary lapses can happen to us all -- but we cannot avoid living with the consequences,'' the Bishop said.

Try to understand how those with AIDS or the AIDS virus HIV feel, and not shun or avoid contact with them.

The Rt. Rev Down stressed that AIDS is contracted through sexual intercourse and use of infected needles, not through "shaking hands or hugging,'' or from "toilet seats, food, animals, or insects like mosquitoes.'' But he also sounded a warning. Symptoms of AIDS may not appear until the HIV virus is well-advanced, "but even if no symptoms have appeared, a person with the virus can transmit the infection to other people.'' The World Health Organisation estimates that by the year 2000 there will likely be 45 million to 90 million people with HIV, he said. "The deadly menace of AIDS cannot, and must not, be understated.'' In 1991, 16,087 Bermudians, or 28 percent of the population, identified themselves as Anglican.