In a quiet corner of Bermuda, within the walls of St. Mary’s the Virgin Church, in Warwick Pastor Carl Williams speaks with the conviction of a man who has seen too much pain—and too much potential—to remain silent.
“We have to let the lion hear the story of the hunter,” he begins, his voice steady yet weighted with meaning. “Because if we only ever hear one side of history, we lose sight of who we are and how we got here.”
Pastor Williams is not simply talking about history lessons. He’s talking about the deep, unspoken trauma that continues to echo through generations—the kind that began centuries ago, during the transatlantic slave trade.
“Black people were brutalized,” he says plainly. “And psychologists and physiologists now tell us about something called intergenerational trauma. Anxiety disorders, violence—these things can be passed down through our very genes. What we are seeing today may be the pain of our ancestors showing up in us.”
He pauses, his eyes thoughtful. “And it’s not just Bermuda. It’s happening in the UK, in Europe, in Africa. Across the world, we see Black people committing atrocities against their own. It’s heartbreaking, but it’s not without cause. There’s a root—and that root is pain.”
Pastor Williams believes that addressing this crisis requires more than government programs or political promises. “Each government has tried,” he acknowledges. “But we cannot rely on government alone. The long-term solution lies in two places: within our homes, and within our hearts.”
He recalls his own upbringing in Barbados—where mornings began with prayer, scripture, and family togetherness. “Before school, we’d gather in a room, read the Bible, share a memory verse. Then we’d do our chores. The family watched out for one another. If someone was struggling, the others stepped in. That’s what’s missing today.”
To him, the breakdown of the family unit is one of the greatest dangers facing young people. “Parents must watch their children—not to spy on them, but to guide them. To love them. To teach them values. When a child is trained in the way they should go, they won’t depart from it.”
His life is proof of that philosophy. He and his wife raised two boys who were not their biological children but were loved as their own. “Their father left. Their mother had little. So we took them in from the cradle,” he recalls. “We prayed with them, helped with homework, taught them discipline and love.”
The results speak for themselves. “One was valedictorian. Both earned scholarships to Saltus. Both became head boys. One graduated with first-class honors, went to Oxford for his master’s. The other earned his Bachelor of Science. And both came back to serve their community.”
He smiles. “Today, one of them leads a youth group at church. They begin every morning with prayer. They know that it all starts with God.”
That, Pastor Williams insists, is where Bermuda must return—to God and to love. “There’s been a turn away from God,” he says solemnly. “Until we bring spirituality back into the lives of our young people, we will continue to see violence. The Bible tells us: faith, hope, and love—but the greatest of these is love. Love is the excellent way.”
He emphasizes that love must extend beyond the family into the community. “We know who these young men are,” he says. “Are we visiting them? Reaching out to them? Love can change them. Even those who have taken a life—there’s still good in them. Just like Saul became Paul, transformation is possible. No one is beyond redemption.”
For Pastor Williams, the message is simple but urgent: Bermuda’s healing depends on its return to God, family, and community.
“The solution,” he says softly, “is to remember the Ten Commandments. The first four teach us to love God; the last six teach us to love our neighbor. ‘Thou shalt not kill.’ It’s right there. We are all made in the image of the Creator. And whatever we do, God’s name must be glorified.”
In a time of grief and violence, his words ring like a call to remember—not just where we come from, but who we were meant to be.
Any content which is considered unsuitable, unlawful, or offensive, includes personal details, advertises or promotes products, services or websites, or repeats previous comments will be removed.
User comments posted on this website are solely the views and opinions of the comment writer and are not a representation of or reflection of the opinions of TNN or its staff.
TNN reserves the right to remove, edit or censor any comments.
TNN accepts no liability and will not be held accountable for the comments made by users.