Former Prison Fellowship Bermuda executive director Glenn Caines is back on the Island to help Shiloh Gospel Chapel revamp its ministry.

Rev. Caines, who left the Island 13 months ago to pursue a degree at Philadelphia College of Bible, has suspended his education for the time being and is currently a pastor at Sharon Baptist Church in West Philadelphia that boasts a membership of nearly 2,500.

One of seven pastors at the church, Rev. Caines said his return visit was part of an ongoing relationship that Shiloh, on Church Street, and Sharon Baptist has formed during the past year.

He said Shiloh was in the midst of developing new methods of ministry in order to keep up with changing times in Bermuda.

Rev. Caines will meet with Shiloh's elders today to discuss how they can "realistically put a vision in place which takes the church into the 21st century''.

He will also deliver the sermon at Shiloh's 11 a.m. service tomorrow.

Rev. Caines told The Royal Gazette Shiloh held a very special place in his heart because his father Kenneth Caines was an elder there and he last preached there before leaving for the US.

When he originally left the Island with his wife, Tina (a former radio deejay and civil servant) and two young daughters, Kassandra, four, and Ariana, three, it was his intention to come back to the Island in the year 2000.

However Rev. Caines said this was no longer the plan.

"God has planted me there (at Sharon Baptist) and he is growing me and fruit is coming from this growth,'' he said.

While Rev. Caines said he also believed that God was developing him to help Bermuda "to grow'' spiritually.

He said Shiloh was a perfect example of how he intended to help Bermuda churches with the experience and knowledge he received at Sharon Baptist.

Today he will be talking to Shiloh's elders, deacons and their spouses about leaders making a difference.

He said Shiloh was redirecting its ministry, mission statement and aims with a biblical focus.

"Shiloh is saying in order for things to change we have to stay abreast with the changing times,'' he pointed out. "The church is looked at as an institution, but it should not become institutionalised. The church must be a leader in the paradigm of progression.'' Rev. Caines said the way things were done in the 1950s was not the way they should be done in the 1990s. He cited the example of the youth in Bermuda.

"Is there harmony and balance in who we say we are and what we do?,'' he asked. "If you plant apple seeds don't come back later and expect to pick oranges.'' He also stressed that it was important for older Bermudians to listen to the youth.

He said recent incidents involving CederBridge Academy students in Hamilton should show Bermudians the youth were acting out deep frustration.

"Those students out there were leaders, they are the future leaders of this country,'' Rev. Caines said. "It's just a matter of how and where they will lead us.'' Rev. Caines said matters like these were concerns the church needed to be at the forefront of, if Bermuda wanted to reach the potential God has for it.

The Rev. Glenn Caines