Richard Taylor looks like a fairly typical British priest, except for the large green tattoo of a marijuana leaf on his arm.

The tattoo is a reminder of Mr. Taylor's former life as a drug addict and hardened criminal.

Mr. Taylor, is the director, founder and associate minister at the Renewal Christian Centre in Solihull.

He has appeared on the British television programme 'To Catch A Thief', and he has a biography out by the same title.

He was in Bermuda this week to speak at National Men's Day, organised by the group Phenomenal Women.

The event at Bernard Park, on Saturday, also featured Dr. Michael E. Connor, author of 'Black Fathers: An Invisible Presence in America'. He will be featured in The Royal Gazette, later this week.

National Men's Day organiser, Margaret Giloth said it was Mr. Taylor's book that inspired the special day.

"My sister-in-law in Wales sent me his book," said Mrs. Giloth. "As soon as I finished reading it I was inspired to organise this day.

"I said we have to do something similar here to create the kind of change that happened to Richard.

"It is a book about personal transformation, and that is what we want for the men in Bermuda."

While in Bermuda, Mr. Taylor lectured, and also toured West Gate Correctional Facility.

His hope was to eventually set up a branch of his charity, The Gateway Foundation, in Bermuda.

"The charity was established to bring transformation to people's lives especially those in prison," said Mr. Taylor. "The gateway operates through a board of trustees that help with the administration of funds."

The charity was born out of his book, which was bringing in at least thirty letters a week from prisoners who had read it.

"We correspond with them when they are in prison," Mr. Taylor said. "On release from prison we would meet them at the gate of their correctional facility.

"The Gateway Foundation is a weekly meeting and centre. We discuss abuse, life controlling issues, and all the things connected to drug addiction and alcoholism."

At the end of the programme, The Gateway Foundation works to get people trained, often by providing scholarships for further education.

"I spoke to people in Westgate prison yesterday," said Mr. Taylor. "There are 60,000 people on this island. When people here come out of prison they can't get a job. How can they get a job? You are not going to employ them; they are ex-convicts. They need something to replace their old lifestyles."

Mr. Taylor said it wouldn't be difficult to set up a Gateway Foundation in Bermuda.

"It is based on networking and relationships," he said.

Mr. Taylor was born in Llanelli, South Wales near Swansea. He grew up on a council housing estate (run by a local government authority) in a working class family.

"When my father wasn't working, he was drinking," said Mr. Taylor. "He wasn't a bad man, that was just the way it was."

Mr. Taylor's parents eventually broke up and his life began to get very bad. He turned to drugs and entered an escalating cycle of crime to feed his habit.

"I started injecting drugs at 15 years old," he said.

He stole anything from cars to oil paintings to Royal Dalton figurines.

"I definitely wasn't a professional criminal because I got caught, a lot," he said.

He was remanded in Swansea prison for the first time at 15 years of age. At that time there were no separate prisons for younger offenders.

"We were in a separate wing, but in the same jail as the adults," he said. "I was banged up in a cell that was 8 X 6 with a steel table and a bucket in the corner. There was one hour of association in the evening. You were allowed to get some fresh air once a week on a Saturday."

"Human rights have changed since then. Now everyone has a television in their prison cell."

Mr. Taylor said that prison should be tough.

"I think prison should be a punishment," he said. "Every criminal will tell you that 'if you've done the crime you do the time'. Today, prison has become a home for a lot of people."

He said when people are let out of jail they often find that they can't get a job because they have a criminal record and are addicted to drugs.

"So they say to themselves, 'you know what, it was easier in jail. At least I had three square meals and a roof over my head. I have all the amenities. The only thing I haven't got is the freedom to walk to the park'."

He said the result is that the reoffending rate is very high in England.

"Within days or weeks they are back with the same people doing the same things," he said.

This was certainly the case for Mr. Taylor as a teenager.

His transformation, didn't come until he was caught for breaking into a stately home in a better part of town.

He found himself behind bars again, facing a long stint.

"I was sitting in my cell and I had run out of tobacco papers," said Mr. Taylor. "In prison you get drugs. I had cannabis, but I had run out of papers to roll a spliff.

"In the cell there was a Bible placed by Gideons International. I picked the Bible up, ripped a chapter out and smoked it."

An hour later he wanted another joint, but this time instead of tearing up the Bible again, he started to read it.

"I didn't come from a religious background," he said. "I read chapter one, and I couldn't put it down. I didn't read chapter three because I smoked it."

After reading the Bible, Mr. Taylor cried out to God to change his life, but nothing happened immediately.

Slowly though, he started attending prison church services, and he continued to read the Bible in his cell at night.

Mr. Taylor was eventually helped by a group from South Wales called Victory Outreach. They ran a Christian rehabilitation centre.

"They didn't call it a rehab, they called it a home," said Mr. Taylor. "On the first night I was welcomed with arms wide open. I was a bit put off at first. I thought they were the ones on drugs."

While at Victory Outreach, Mr. Taylor went through a religious epiphany.

"I wanted to change," said Mr. Taylor. "But I couldn't find my way out of the trap my life had become.

"I needed something outside of myself to give me the power and strength to change my life."

He had tried doctors, therapy and other rehabilitation centres, but none of it worked.

"All that did was change the environment," he said. "I needed an inside change, which was more permanent.

"I got on my knees. I had a vision. I saw Jesus Christ. He spoke to me and told me that he wanted to forgive me and had a plan for my life. I was quite shocked. I thought that the drugs had gone to my head."

At that moment, Mr. Taylor burst out crying. He hadn't cried since he was 10 and his father left home.

"I'd vowed never to be hurt," he said. "All this stuff was in me just came out. I cried until I was hollow. While I was on my knees I physically felt something happen to me. I felt like warm water was being poured into me. It went from my feet right up to my head.

"I felt incredible. I felt like a new person. Like this is whom I am supposed to be. It was like all the drugs I had ever taken put into one bag, but without all the symptoms and side effects that came with it. It was unbelievable. It has been 13 or 14 years and I am still on it. It is fantastic. Some people call this being born again, some theologians say you were regenerated."

Mr. Taylor claimed that after that his drug addiction was gone.

"It was a modern day miracle," he said. "I wasn't on methadone. It was completely gone. It was life transforming."

After that Mr. Taylor devoted his life to religion. He attended the Birmingham Bible Institute, and obtained a degree from the University of Swansea.

He has been a minister now for over ten years. He is married, and he and his wife, Jill, have four sons ranging from nine years old to six weeks old.

"I was told by my teachers that I was thick and stupid and I would never go anywhere. I was told by everyone in authority," said Mr. Taylor.

"Now here I am."

For more information about Phenomenal Women go to the website: http://www.rolemodelproductions.com/phenomenalwomen .

For more information about The Gateway Foundation go to http://www.gatewayfoundation.org.uk