A Pennsylvania pastor says he's grateful to God for his life after a man attempted to shoot him during his Sunday sermon, but the gun jammed.
Pastor Glen Germany was preaching at Jesus' Dwelling Place Church in North Braddock on Sunday when a man calmly walked up, pointed a gun at him, and tried to pull the trigger.
Be informed, not misled.
A stunning video of the incident was captured on the church's livestream. It shows the moment the pastor found himself staring down the barrel of the gun.
Stunning video from church service today.
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) May 6, 2024
This happened in Braddock, Pennsylvania.
Pastor survives after handgun jams and doesn't fire.pic.twitter.com/AAHQiDtFfU
"I was like, this is not happening," Pastor Germany told the CBS News affiliate.
The man pulled the trigger, but the gun jammed and a quick-acting church deacon tackled the shooter from behind.
CBS reported this:
A church service in North Braddock, Pennsylvania, was upended Sunday when a man pulled a gun on the pastor in the middle of his sermon.
Pennsylvania State Police have charged 26-year-old Bernard Polite of Braddock, saying he entered and attempted to shoot Pastor Glenn Germany while the pastor was delivering a sermon at Jesus' Dwelling Place Church on Sunday just after 1 p.m.
Video taken by the church's deacon and posted online by Pastor Glenn Germany shows the moment the pastor suddenly found himself staring down the barrel of a gun.
"I was like, this is not happening," Pastor Germany said.
Yet somehow, it was, but no shot was fired.
"I thank God because only God stopped and jammed this gun," Germany said.
The CBS story said, "As the pastor ducked out of the way, church Deacon Clarence McCallister leaps in front of the camera, tackling the man with the gun to the ground."
McCallister told us it was just how his mind reacted. "There's something that needs to be done and I jumped up and handled my business," McCallister said.
The local ABC affiliate reported, "The suspected gunman, who police identified as 26-year-old Bernard Junior Polite, entered the church and allegedly attempted to shoot the pastor, Glenn Germany, as he was delivering his sermon on a live stream, according to police."
The suspect's firearm failed to discharge, and a congregation member and the pastor were able to subdue and disarm him before anyone was harmed, police said.
"I'm thankful to God that I'm still here because he definitely pulled the trigger," Germany told ABC News affiliate WTAE.
Describing the alarming encounter, Germany told the outlet Polite smiled at him before the attempted attack.
"I started to begin to preach, and all of a sudden, from my left-hand side, I saw him move from the back to the front of the church, and he set up in the front corner of the church and smiled at me," Germany said.
"All of a sudden, I just saw a gun pointing right at me. And at that point, all I could try to do is run for cover," he said.
The pastor went on to praise the congregation member who sprang into action to subdue Polite, saying, "He could have lost his life in that struggle, but he sacrificed himself for everyone, and he's the hero."
After arresting Polite, police say they discovered a man shot to death inside his home Sunday night. That person has not yet been identified.
As for the church shooting, the pastor says he had never seen Polite before. Court papers claim Polite confessed that "God told him to do it."
Polite was arraigned Monday morning for attempted homicide. No one has been charged yet for the deadly shooting.
Takeaway
Germany says he has forgiven Polite but is still processing what has happened.
"This guy was just dealing with spirits, he said, and he came in and wanted to shoot somebody," Germany said, adding, "Polite said there were voices in his mind."
The pastor says he never saw the gunman before yesterday.
This is becoming a trend.
Hostility and violence against churches in America is at an all-time high, according to a recent Family Research Council/ First Liberty report. They documented more than 430 incidents in 2023—more than double the number in 2022. That’s an 800% increase in incidents since 2018 and an average of 39 attacks every month.
Close to 400 were acts of vandalism and arson, which often left church properties defaced and caused thousands of dollars of damage in many cases. Gun-related crimes, assaults, interruption of church services, and bomb threats comprised a smaller share of the attacks.
Those numbers are bad. But the problem is likely much worse. FRC notes that, “many acts of hostility against churches are likely not reported to authorities and/or are not featured in the news or other online sources…Thus, the number of acts of hostility is undoubtedly much higher than the number reflected in this report.”
These findings also correlate with a similar report titled “The Intensifying Intolerance Toward Christians in the West,” documenting a sharp rise in religious freedom violations. The 2024 data shows that persecution of Christians by Western governments rose by 60% last year. And over the past four years, most violations in the Western world occurred in the United States.
These trends are alarming—and they betray everything that religious freedom in America is about. Attacks, threats, and terror against houses of worship have no place in our country. We’re founded on the principle that people of all faiths should be able to worship peacefully. No American should ever have to worry about their safety at their house of worship. Sadly, it seems that we’re getting further away from that founding principle.
It’s almost impossible to separate these trends from the broader cultural and legal fight that’s being waged on religious freedom. We shouldn’t be surprised to hear about rising violence on churches, especially when so many institutions in our society don’t appear to value the free exercise of religion.
Isaiah 41:10 says, "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27).
Be Informed. Be Discerning. Be Vigilant. Be Prayerful.