A minister narrowly avoided being shot when a man aimed a firearm at his face and pulled the trigger. Afterward, he conveyed his forgiveness to the gunman.
In the middle of a sermon about walking in God's ways, an individual in a black T-shirt nonchalantly walked towards the pulpit and aimed a gun at Germany's face. The pastor froze in fear, but his body sprang into action. Covering his head with his hands, he quickly ducked behind a lectern to hide. The whole incident was captured on the church's live-streaming video.
Clarence McCallister, the man operating the video camera, was around 20 feet away when he saw the gunman aim at Germany's head and pull the trigger. However, the gun didn't fire. The gunman's weapon had jammed. McCallister, a former cross-country runner, sprinted from behind his tripod, jumped over a wooden railing, and landed in the pulpit, where he immediately tackled the gunman to the ground.
Germany, realizing he wasn't shot, peeked out from behind the lectern and hurried to help McCallister subdue the shooter. The pastor managed to disarm the man without much struggle.
Tracing back the events, Germany shared why the gunman did it. "He told me the spirits got into his head," Germany said.
It was quite unexpected when both men conversed. The pastor told the shooter, "I'm not mad at you. I understand. I want you to know I love you." Shocked by the pastor's response, the gunman "said he was sorry," said Germany.
The pastor then gave the man who almost stole his life a chance at redemption. "I just told him if you need anything, this is my name, and get in touch with me. And as much as I can help you while you're incarcerated, I'll help," he said.
Authorities arrested the suspect, 26-year-old Bernard Junior Polite. They also looked into his gun, where they discovered a live bullet that got stuck in it.
Despite the trauma, Germany is coping fine. However, his daughter was deeply affected by the news of her father's brush with death. Germany took her to a restaurant with games to help take her mind off the near-tragedy. "The thing that hurt me the most was... watching her go through the pain," Germany said.
With a heavy heart, Germany is now thinking of the suspect's family. Just hours after the church incident on Sunday, police found the body of 56-year-old Derek Polite in Bernard Polite's home. Though authorities said Derek Polite had been killed, they didn't reveal how he was related to Bernard Polite.
As of Tuesday morning, Derek Polite's death was still under investigation, and no charges had been filed against Bernard Polite. He remains in custody for attempted criminal homicide, aggravated assault, and recklessly endangering others. No attorney was listed for Bernard Polite. The preliminary hearing is slated for Monday.
For the pastor, he attributes his survival to "the ways of God." "Most people say this is a miracle," he said. "But I see it as the ways of God. If you walk in the way God wants you to walk, you get the protection of God," Germany concluded.
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Source: edition.cnn.com
