The stranger walked down the center aisle in the middle of the service, Pastor Fred Winters — welcoming as always — stepped forward to greet him, police said.
But after the two exchanged a few words the visitor pulled out a pistol and started shooting, according to Illinois State Police Director Larry Trent. The first bullet hit Winters' Bible, exploding it into a cloud of confetti that made some congregants think they were watching a skit. Another bullet pierced the pastor's heart, killing him.
So ended the 8:15 service Sunday morning at First Baptist Church of Maryville, Ill., a congregation the gregarious Winters had expanded over 21 years from a few dozen to about 1,500.
Regardless of the gunman's identity or motive, the murder was the work of the devil, said Jeff Ross, a lay minister at the church: "Who else would do it? Someone who wanted to stop his message."
After the man fired four shots at Winters, witnesses told police, his 45-caliber semiautomatic pistol jammed. He then stabbed himself with a 4-inch knife and slashed two parishioners as he was wrestled down.
Please be in prayer for the loss of this family!
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