looks at the roles of the Seventh Day Adventist and African Methodist Episcopalian Churches.

Members of the Southampton Seventh Day Adventist Church's youth group and choir, Voices of Triumph, believe that their church "works for them''.

And the mebers, aged between 13 and 18, say it gives them the foundation they need in order to make the right decisions in life.

Jevon Ray, 16, said the only differences he could see between himself and some of his friends who do not attend church, were the decisions he made with the help of his faith.

"God is the only way,'' he said. "Things are getting worse, the problems people face can only be solved by God -- no-one else.'' Asked if he was treated differently by his peers or if they ever tried to lead him to do wrong, he answered: "My friends know that I am in the church so they respect that. But I don't hang around the wrong kind of people in the first place so that is never really an issue.'' Fifteen-year-old Ruth Binns added: "When people know you are in the church they tend to hold you up to higher standards than everyone else, so if they see you doing something wrong, they're like, `You're a Christian what are you doing', even if they don't go to church they tend to keep you on track.'' Delbert Pearman, a member of the Seventh Day Adventist Youth Society, said in general young men and women who are in the church tend to carry themselves in a more upstanding manner than those who are not.

"Young men and women who have a Christian lifestyle tend to be more articulate, are more aware of their appearance and choose friends who will help them better themselves,'' he said. "And it is because of the strength and hope the Holy Spirit gives to them.'' Dr. Eva Hodgson, who prepared a report on young black males, noted: "Rastafarianism and other more recently arrived religions in Bermuda are often a direct result of the racism in society and the failure of the Christian churches to challenge this racism...Thus Christianity, instead of being seen as the solution, as it might have been or should have been, is seen as the `white man's religion', and no church, not even the AME church has developed a conscious study to show that Ethiopia and Africa play a significant role in the Bible, while England and America are not mentioned at all.'' Dr. Hodgson added that although the AME church had been more progressive in its thinking than others, it had been as reluctant as the rest of the black community to challenge the white power structure on the issue of race. She noted, however, that the AME church had established secondary education for blacks in the 1930s.

"During the days of the most rigid racism, during segregation, the church gave black people a sense of worth in a time when blacks were being disrespected and despised by the rest of the community,'' she added.

But Pastor Lorne Bean of AME disputed Dr. Hodgson's views -- and criticisms from young black males that pastors often lived better than their congregations.

"I wouldn't be a part of something that was a sham, or that I felt was corrupt,'' he said.

"I feel very strongly that this is my calling, and I do my best to preserve the integrity of what I do, and I know other ministers feel the same way. All those who deal falsely with God will be dealt with in God's time.''