Monday, February 27, 2012

From The Valley Of Achor To The Door Of Hope!


By Johnny Lee Clary

Has God ever helped you win a battle you may have been going through and you got so caught up in your victory that you forgot to seek Him in prayer in your next battle of life? My pastor, Jimmy Swaggart gives a good example about this. The Children of Israel had won a great victory regarding Jericho but the victory belonged to the Lord. Sometimes people win a victory and get caught up in the win, becoming overconfident and forgetting to pray about the next battle. Had Joshua remembered to pray, he would have discovered sin in the camp that ended up costing them defeat. God ordered them not to keep any of the treasures of Jericho as it was to be dedicated to the Lord. Achan, who was of the Tribe Of Judah, ignored God’s orders and kept some of the treasure for himself. (Joshua 7:21)

The only strength we have as believers is God, and there is no other source of strength. God cannot give us the strength we need when we are participating in sin, because it is against His nature which is holiness. God acts in harmony with His own nature so He must judge sin in Israel with the same anger that He judged the sin in the city of Jericho. He never changes. (Malachi 3:6) He does not show favoritism. (Acts 10:34) The result was death in both cases.

The Expositors Study Bible explains the following: Babylon and money have a hateful attraction for the Christian. He finds these things among the unconverted around him, as Achon found them in Jericho, and his heart covets them. This explains the weakness of the modern church. These sins are indulged instead of being confessed and forsaken. God has therefore withdrawn His power, and there is universal weakness and defeat. Fellowship with God can only be enjoyed if resolute separation from all evil be observed. I say it is a serious misinterpretation of scripture when there are those that say God blesses those who indulge in a sinful lifestyle by misquoting the scripture that God ‘rains on the just and unjust.’ ( Matthew 5:45) That scripture is talking about how we as Christians should treat those who are mean to us, by returning kindness for hate. The ‘blessings’ the evil are getting is when God’s grace is protecting them from death and destruction because of the prayers of others in an effort to save their soul. It is an abomination for people to teach that God walks alongside of sinners when they go into casino’s to gamble, bars to indulge in drunkenness, hippie communes to smoke dope, and whorehouse to indulge in sex. Psalm 34:16 “the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.”

Pastor Swaggart goes on to say that judgment and the discovery of sin is painful, but if you are faithful in dealing with it then God’s Grace gives both blessing and victory and your valley of Achor becomes a “Door of Hope!” (Hosea 2:15) The valley of Achor was where Achan was executed for his sin because he refused to repent until forced by Joshua. He died a horrible death, as he was stoned to death. God turned from his anger once he seen that the children of Israel dealt with sin instead of ignoring it. Yes you should fear sin but the punishment that goes along with it need not be feared if it is dealt with correctly by confessing it to the Lord. (Notice I said the Lord and not some man! Too many priests and pastors try to play God when they demand that you sit before them and confess your sins. Only God has the power to forgive you of sin; they don’t) Then and only then does the valley of Achor become your door of hope! ( 1John 1:9)

Pastor Swaggart points out that the Christian fails when he takes his eyes off Christ and the cross and puts them on himself. When this happens it denies one the help of the Holy Spirit. “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) See, in order for this person to be restored, he needs to know why he failed and how to get back on the road to victory, that is Christ and the cross! Galatians 6:1 says when your brother is caught up in sin, you who are spiritual, go restore him! You don’t gossip and talk about them over lunch, ring up other Christians and slam that person. Remember the prodigal son’s brother? He was all ticked off because his brother left home after demanding his share of the farm. He had spent his inheritance foolishly on wild women and drunkenness. He lost all of his money and dignity and ended up in the pig pen with a bunch of pigs. He then came to his senses and came home and his daddy welcomed him back but the brother didn’t. His brother would not even acknowledge him as his own brother and said to his daddy, “This son of yours has spent all his money on whores while I stayed loyal to you working on the farm and you never even gave me a goat to barbeque with my pals! But this vagabond comes home and you kill the fattest prize calf and throw a party! Thanks a lot Daddy!” ( Ok this is my Southern Bible Translation)

The father said to that son “Boy all I have is yours and it always has been! Y’all didn’t need permission to barbeque a goat. You could have done that anytime you wanted.” The father then reminded his son that this was his was his own brother he was talking about that this brother was dead but is now alive again. The story stops there and does not say what happened to the son that would not welcome his brother home. One thing is for sure though. That prodigal son who had returned home, was restored and no longer in the pig pen feeling dead and useless.

Have you ever felt dead and useless? Come on home. God is waiting to turn your valley of Achor into a door of hope!

© 2012 Johnny Lee Clary, Jimmy Swaggart Expositor’s Study Bible, The Expositor’s Word For Every Day by Jimmy Swaggart

Monday, December 12, 2011

The Lies of The Ottawa County Republican Leadership

False and slanderous allegations made by members of the Ottawa County Republicans were printed Sunday Nov. 6th, 2011, in the Miami News Record editorial section. Mike Tuttle serves as the Secretary of the Ottawa County Republicans but also works for Jay Calan at his place of business. Tuttle’s letter went back over 22 years to dig up my past association with the Ku Klux Klan and Professional Wrestling. It's no secret that I was once in the Klan and that I quit the KKK and became a Christian. My story is told all over the world in churches, books, magazines, and TV shows. However, Tuttle did not bother to check his facts and simply copied from the Internet stories written by the KKK and other Aryan supremacists in a juvenile attempt to discredit me. Therefore, I feel I must take the time to set the record straight, especially since I am the President of the Ottawa County Conservatives, a voting member of the Ottawa County Ministerial Alliance, a licensed ordained minister, an International Evangelist, an Official Diversity Change Agent with the United States Armed Forces, and a consultant lecturer for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

I did not quit the KKK to become a professional wrestler. I was in the Klan when I became a professional wrestler. I lost my wrestling career because of my appearances as a Klan member on Oprah Winfrey and other talk shows. Tuttle went on to cite my “interference” in wrestling matches and stated that I cost another wrestler his belt by interfering in his match. I think it is sad that Mike Tuttle, a mature adult, does not know what most ten-year-olds know: Professional Wrestling is fake. When men who weigh over 250lbs hit one another in the face 30 times and no one bleeds, that can't be real! It is all acting and scripted. To use my involvement in Pro Wrestling in an attempt to assassinate my character is equivalent to attacking an actor in a play at the Coleman Theater for portraying a villain. After reading Tuttle's letter, one Miami pastor stated that he wonders if Tuttle sits up on Christmas Eve waiting for Santa Claus to bring him presents! Can the Republicans of Ottawa County be comfortable knowing that one of their elected officials believes professional wrestling is real? This is only one reason I believe that the people in leadership of the Ottawa County Republicans are an embarrassment.

Tuttle lied and said I left the Klan 1990, but it's a documented fact that I left the White Knights of the Klan in 1989.

The most serious of Mike Tuttle’s accusations against me was his statement that I admitted to committing several felonies. This is a slanderous lie. There is a TV interview and other media in which I was asked about something illegal that happened when I was in the Klan. In those interviews, I used the word “we” in describing the incident; but it is clear that it was an editorial “we” because I was a leader in the Klan at the time of the incident being discussed. I was taking responsibility as a Klan member for the action, but at no time did I say I was the one who personally performed the illegal action. Tuttle used the term "felonies" which misleads the reader into thinking I admitted to several felonies. Tuttle says that, to his knowledge, I have never been held accountable for my actions. He then says he wonders how this could be possible. It's possible because they never happened.

Tuttle also made the blatant false accusations that I have made a career out of self-promotion by manipulating the facts of my past and that I use the pulpit for personal and monetary gain. I am extremely surprised that a retired career law enforcement officer as he claims to be would not know the legalities in publishing a letter of libelous and slanderous falsehoods. I have NEVER manipulated any facts of my past; and, as any pastor or evangelist, I have received voluntary donations and have been paid for my ministry just as Mr. Tuttle is paid for his work. There is no proof to the contrary. Tuttle has crossed the line with his outright lies to the people of Ottawa County, and he must be held accountable for that.

There are plenty of facts to back up everything I have ever told about myself, including all media forms. I speak in mainline churches all over the world. I am a regular speaker at the FBI Training Academy where I help train law enforcement officers on how to combat and understand the mindset of hate groups and gang members. One cannot set foot on the FBI Training Academy grounds, located on a secure military base, without undergoing an extensive background check. If I were a liar and manipulator of the facts of my past as Mr. Tuttle stated, I would not be granted access to those grounds or be used by the FBI as an authority on hate groups. I am a diversity speaker for the United States Armed Forces and have been given an award from the U.S. Army as an “Official Change Agent.” In addition, just last year, I addressed Pentagon officers, including generals, at Ft. Belvoir, for the celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; and I conducted chapel services for the officers and their families. I work with educational systems across the world implementing an Anti-Bullying program for children in addition to teaching them to take a stand against racism. There is more than enough proof that will hold in a court of law to back up everything I say. However, there is no proof to what Mr. Tuttle says; and he should be concerned.

Both Jaycee Calan and Betty Goodrich lied in their letters that I was defeated by Greg Heibert for an officer’s position in the Ottawa County Republicans by 45-4 votes. There were 40 people in attendance that night and not 48 as they led the people to believe. I was not campaigning but was nominated for an office, and so was Greg Heibert. The vote count was 33-7 and not 45-4. Until that night, the largest attendance at a regular 2011 meeting of the Ottawa County Republicans was about 15. The elections were held due to the resignation of the former OCR Chairman Scott Morton who had been hounded by Jay Calan to resign. This left my wife, the Vice-Chairman, as acting Chairman. The night Mr. Morton resigned, Mr. Calan came into the meeting throwing his fists back, challenging me to fight him. Dr. Heibert also childishly asked me if I wanted to “throw down” with him. Some people who had never been to a meeting before got up and left due to the behavior of Jay Calan. The night of the elections, about a month later, approximately 25 people showed up who had never been to a meeting. Many of them said they received a phone call telling them to come vote for Jay Calan. It was obvious that Mr. Calan had stacked the deck in his favor. Since the overwhelming majority of people there were under orders to vote for Jay Calan or Greg Heibert, no one else stood a chance of election. I didn’t need the position anyway since my wife was already Vice-Chairman at the time of the ‘election,’ outranking both Heibert and Tuttle. We could have stayed in their group with my wife as 2nd in command, but we did not wish to be associated with these embarrassing people after witnessing what they have done in Ottawa County.

Jaycee Calan claims in his letter that the majority of Republicans in Ottawa County stand behind Jay Calan and Greg Heibert. There are over 4500 registered Republicans in Ottawa County. Fewer than 1% attended the meeting to vote them in, yet Mr. Calan claims to have the backing of the majority of Republicans? In 1992, KKK Leader David Duke ran for the Republican nomination for President against then President George H.W. Bush and received less than 1% of the vote! It would be absurd to say David Duke represented the majority of Republicans with such a low count any more than saying that Jay Calan and Greg Heibert represent the majority of Republicans in Ottawa County with the same percentage.

Greg Heibert’s editorial telling me how to minister on how Apostle Paul preached door to door just shows his ignorance of the Bible. Paul wrote several letters to churches, and he established churches and preached in them. Jesus Himself preached in the Synagogues. I do not have the credentials to go into Dr. Heibert’s place of business and tell him how to fill a cavity in a tooth. Likewise, he has no credentials to tell me how to work in the ministry.

As for the rest of his and Betty Goodrich’s rants, all I can say is: Just consider the source!

I am thankful my wife resigned from a position of leadership in the OCR, and I am sorry that we ever had anything to do with the people who now lead it. Jesus is the answer, not the Ottawa County Republican party!

Johnny Lee Clary

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

You Can't Always Get What You Want


By Rev. Johnny Lee Clary


Phil. 4:13 says God will supply all of your needs according to His riches and glory in Heaven. Notice it says "needs" and not "wants" As a follower of Christ, you can't always get what you want but you get what you need. It is a false teaching to teach that God wants everyone to have everything they want. The Bible does not say that.

I remember when I was a young Christian, I prayed for things and claimed things in Christ's name that I had no business praying for or claiming but I was caught up in that type of teaching because I was listening to the wrong people. For example I was told as long as you give a certain amount you can name what you want and claim it. The problem is when you name it and claim it, it could be violating someone else's will or God's will. Also if I would have gotten certain things I claimed from God back in those days, I would have screwed it up because I would not have known how to handle it.

It is sort of like someone with an addiction to gambling who becomes a new Christian. They then listen to a teaching that as long as you give a certain amount of money, God is going to give you what you want and a hundred-fold return on your money. The new Christian then puts a huge amount of money in the offering and gets back a hundred-fold return which is taught by some misguided teachers. The gambling addict would now be tempted to use that money to feed their addiction which they have not been delivered long enough from; meaning they still struggle with the desire to gamble. That would cause more harm to the person than good. Why would God do that? Well, I can answer that. He wouldn't. So the teaching that you will receive a hundred-fold return every time you give is false.

Yes the Bible does talk about a hundred fold return, but no where does it say you are going to get that each time you give money to a church or a preacher. Mark 10: 28-30: "Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's,But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life."

Jesus taught that people who forsook home, family, and land meaning everything that they had, would receive a hundred-fold return. First rule is one must forsake ALL to follow Him. In order to receive a hundred-fold return. A hundred-fold means a hundred times as much. This is not to be understood literally, but that he will give what will be worth 100 times as much in the peace, and joy, and rewards of being His follower. It is also literally true that no man's temporal interest is injured by the love of God.Mark adds, "with persecutions." These are not promised as a part of the reward; but amid their trials and persecutions they should find reward and peace.

To teach that God favors those who give more money is wrong. As I grew over the years and got more mature in God, I discovered that God does not work that way. God never shows favoritism among His people. Acts 10:34 says exactly that. You may think that you will be a better Christian and it will increase your faith if God gave you everything you want. The truth is that often the things we want can distract us from from focusing on God. God is our Father. He knows what we need and according to His word He will supply those needs, but His word never says He will also supply your wants. God is your Father and your manufacturer. He knows what is best because He made you. He knows what you can handle and what you can not handle. He is looking out for you. It is time for Christians to start giving out of their love for Christ and not their desire for riches or to get what they want.

To those who teach that God is all about making you rich, I leave you with these scriptures:
1 Timothy 6:9-11

"But people who want to get rich keep falling into temptation. They are trapped by many stupid and harmful desires which drown them in destruction and ruin. Certainly, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some people who have set their hearts on getting rich have wandered away from the Christian faith and have caused themselves a lot of grief. But you, man of God, must avoid these things."

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Johnny Has His Say On Japan




What a horrifying nightmare Japan had to go through. An earthquake at the magnitude of 8.9! That is one of the largest ever recorded in history! Then to top it all off, the world watched in horror as the Tsunami came ashore and wiped out everything in it's path! The death tolls are in the thousands and climbing higher each day with many more missing and still not recovered.

Japan was the only nation in history to suffer two atomic bombs being dropped on it in World War II and leaving 340,000 people dead. Yet through all of this, Japan managed to build itself up again and become one of the most productive nations the world has ever seen. I have always admired how they discipline their children at a very young age and train them up to be the most intelligent business people in the world. They test them early on and then determine where their skills would best fit and give them the best education and training the world can offer. This is why they grow up to be experts in whatever field they enter. The same cannot be said about other nations including the United States.

Japan has contributed so much to the world and now they have to once again suffer devastation that has not only killed thousands but threatens to destroy their nation with a possible nuclear meltdown.

However, unlike other nations who beg the United States and it's allied forces to come help them rebuild, Japan is getting up and will get back up on their feet whether others help or not! Don’t get me wrong. I am positive Japan appreciates the Americans, the Aussies, and others who are rushing in to help rescue people, help the injured and help rebuild Japan in whatever way they can, but they will not sit on their rear ends like some other nations have waiting for a handout. They are already back to work doing what needs to be done to accomplish their goals. That is one reason why they are the most productive intelligent people in the world.

You see the Japanese are a proud people. I admire them. They have honor. It’s like “Hey we appreciate your help, but we are getting the job done whether you are on board or not.” They have wise sayings which they not only say but practice what they say. A Japanese proverb says, “Fall down seven times, get up eight.” You see they have been knocked down many times but they always get back up again. The world can learn from that.

God Bless Japan!
Rev. Johnny Lee Clary
©www.johnnyleeclary.com

Rev. Johnny Lee Clary is one of the leading advocates for racial unity in the United States and has appeared on countless television and radio shows such as The Billy Graham Radio show, Fox News, Morris Cerullo, Oprah, Morton Downey Jr., Rolanda Watts, Geraldo, Sally Jesse Raphael, Jerry Springer, Ricki Lake, Queen Latifah, Montel Williams, Phil Donahue, A&E Investigative Reports, ABC World News Tonight, Bertrice Berry, Sunrise Today,
The Today Show, A Current Affair, The 700 Club, and Kenneth Copeland's TV show. He has also been a regular guest on TBN's Praise The Lord show and has been featured in America's top newspapers and magazines, including a seven page feature story in Charisma magazine in April 1999, Moody Magazine, Guidepost Magazine (Sept. 1998), Kenneth Copeland's Believer's Voice of Victory magazine, as well as appearances on TV programs in Australia, England, Holland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Sweden, and Wales.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Al Capone Says: “Happy Valentine’s Day!”




By Rev. Johnny Lee Clary

On Thursday Morning, Feb. 14th, 1929, gangster George “Bugs” Moran was walking to the Clark Street garage in Chicago for a meeting that had been set up, when he saw a police car pull up in front of the building. Rather than risk a shakedown, Moran decided to go to a café to have a cup of coffee and wait for the heat to die down. As it turns out that was the best choice he ever made in his life.



“Bugs” Moran

Ever since Al Capone had moved to Chicago around 1920, the city had been rocked by gangland wars. Prohibition was the law of the land which outlawed alcoholic beverages and the gangsters cashed in on it, selling illegal (bootleg) booze. Mobsters divided Chicago up into 4 sections, North, East, West and South. The most powerful was Johnny Torrio who controlled the Southside, which he inherited after the murder of his boss, “Big Jim” Colosimo who was gunned down. Colosimo's secretary Frank Camilla described the fleeing assailant as a heavyset man with scars on the left side of his face; an accurate description of Al Capone, although he was never arrested.


Big Jim Colosimo

The North side of Chicago was controlled by Irish mobster Dion O’Banion and he came into conflict with Torrio and Capone. O'Banion cheated Torrio out of $500,000 in a brewery acquisition deal and caused Torrio's arrest. Torrio was furious and ordered a hit on O’Banion. On November 10th, 1924, O’Banion was to pay the ultimate price for what he did to Torrio. O’Banion who owned a flower shop which he used as a front to cover his mob involvement, was working that day when Chicago mobsters John Scalise and Albert Anselmi walked into the shop. “Oh hello boys! Are you here for the floral arrangement? “ O’Banion said as he reached out to shake their hands. One of the mobsters clasped O’Banion’s hand and then drew his gun along with his partner and pumped O’Banion full of bullets.


Dion O’Banion



North Side mobsters who were friends and partners with O’Banion, Earl "Hymie" Weiss and George "Bugs" Moran vowed revenge for O’Banion’s murder. On January 24, 1925, Torrio was returning to his apartment at 7106 South Clyde Avenue from a shopping trip with his wife Anna. Moran, Weiss and another mobster who was driving the car lay in wait to ambush Torrio. A hail of gunfire from Weiss and Moran greeted Torrio's car, shattering its glass. Torrio was struck in the jaw, lungs, groin, legs, and abdomen. Moran attempted to deliver the final bullet into Torrio's skull, but ran out of ammunition. The driver of Moran and Weiss’s car signaled that it was time to go, and the three Northsiders left the scene. Although Torrio was severely wounded, he survived but recovered slowly from the assassination attempt. Capone had men guarding Torrio around the clock to make sure his beloved boss and mentor was safe. Torrio observing the rules of the mob to keep silent, refused to tell the police the names of his assailants. Right after his release from jail, Torrio served a year in jail for Prohibition violations. After his release, Torrio said to Al Capone, “It’s all yours Al. I’m quitting,” and moved to Italy with his wife and mother.


Johnny Torrio

Al Capone became the big boss now and the war between the mobsters grew even more violent. The rat-a-tat-tat of machine gun fire could be heard throughout the streets of Chicago as Capone and the Moran-Weiss gang hit back and forth at each other for control of the bootleg empire. The Moran-Weiss mob murdered Capone’s trusted chauffeur and tortured him for hours before ending his life. His body was found on Aug. 3rd, 1926. A week later on August 10th, the Capone mob struck back with an attempted hit on Weiss, but they were unsuccessful. On September 20, 1926, a motorcade of ten cars from the North side mob roared up in front of the Hawthorne Hotel restaurant where Capone and his entourage were having lunch and in broad daylight opened fire riddling the restaurant with bullets from Thompson sub-machine guns and shotguns. Capone's bodyguard Frankie Rio, threw his boss to the ground at the first sound of gunfire and lay on top of “Big Al” as the headquarters was riddled with bullet holes. Several bystanders were hurt from flying glass and bullet fragmentation in the attempted assassination, including a young boy and his mother who would have lost her eyesight had not Capone paid for top-dollar medical care for her. After this, Capone called for a truce but the North side mob wanted no part of a truce; they just wanted Capone dead.


Hymie Weiss

Capone’s men gunned down Hymie Weiss on October 11th, 1926. Moran was furious and all hellish activity broke loose. The next couple of years were hit-for-hit between the North and South side in what became known as the Capone-Moran war. Several attempts were made upon Capone’s life until finally, Capone had had enough. Capone hired Chicago hitman 'Machine Gun' Jack McGurn to put an end to Moran once and for all by sending them the reddest Valentine ever. McGurn planned everything out carefully and Capone headed to his vacation home in Miami, Florida while the hit went down.


Weiss dead

On Feb. 13th, 1929 McGurn had a local booze hijacker contact Moran and offer to sell him a shipment of Old Log Cabin whiskey (i.e. very good liquor) which he was willing to sell at the very reasonable price of $57 per case. Moran quickly agreed and told the hijacker to meet him at the garage at 10:30am the following morning. McGurn got his hands on a police car and two police uniforms. He then brought in two torpedoes (hitmen) from out of town, just in case there were any survivors no one would be able to finger them as part of Capone’s mob.



Machine Gun Jack McGurn

On the morning of Feb. 14th, 1929, McGurn had posted two men as lookouts to watch the S.M.C. Cartage Company garage at 2122 North Clark Street. At 10:30am the lookouts phoned McGurn and told him they had spotted Bugs Moran heading into the garage. McGurn’s hitmen went into action. The stolen police car pulled up in front of the Clark Street garage and 4 men got out; two wearing police uniforms and two wearing suits, overcoats and fedora hats, and entered the garage.

The man the lookouts spotted as Bugs Moran was not Moran at all, but a man that closely resembled him, named Albert Weinshank. Moran was just about to the garage when he saw the police car and rather than risk what he believed would be a shakedown, he headed off to a café to drink coffee until the “shakedown” was over.


Reenactment photo of the shooters

Once inside the garage, 7 men saw what they thought was cops and just figured it was a routine police raid. The 7 men were told to put their hands in the air and line up against the brick wall. The gunmen then opened fire, using two Tommy guns, a sawed-off shotgun, and a .45 caliber pistol. The killing was fast and bloody. Each of the seven victims received at least 15 bullets, mostly in the head and torso. One of the gangsters fell with one side of the top of his head completely blown off.


Actual photo of the aftermath of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre

Neighbors heard the gunfire and were watching the garage. They reported seeing two men in suits wearing hats and overcoats with their hands in the air coming out of the garage followed by two uniformed policemen with their guns trained on them. They said the two men in suits were put in the backseat of the police car and the two policemen climbed in front and drove off. The neighbors assumed that the police had staged a raid and was arresting two mugs. As a matter of fact, after it was discovered to be a massacre many of the neighbors for several weeks believed the police did it. Six of the victims died in the garage; Frank Gusenberg was taken to a hospital but died three hours later, refusing to name who was responsible. The dead were identified as Frank Gusenberg, Pete Gusenberg, John May, Albert Weinshank, James Clark, Adam Heyer, and Dr. Reinhart Schwimmer. Each of these men had 15-20 or more bullets in him. The only one who would survive the massacre that day was a German Shepherd dog the police found cowering and shaking underneath a car.


Another actual photo view of the massacre




The massacre on that Valentine’s Day made headlines all across the United States. People from everywhere was shocked by the violent brutal killings of the 7 men. Capone’s alibi was bullet-proof. At the time of the massacre he was in the Dade County Florida’s District Attorney’s office. Jack McGurn had an iron clad alibi also. He had been at a hotel with his blond girlfriend from 9:00am Feb. 13th, until 3:00pm Feb. 14th.


Jack McGurn and his girlfriend who was his alibi

Moran was sitting in the café drinking coffee when someone rushed in the door and said that Bugs Moran and his gang were just gunned down at the Clark street garage. Moran immediately left the cafe and went into hiding. A few days later he gave an interview to the media and made the statement, “Only Al Capone kills like that!” When reporters in Miami, Florida told Capone what Moran said, he replied, “Well they don’t call that guy “Bugs” for nothing!” Bugs means loony or crazy.


George “Bugs” Moran

To this day no one has ever been tried for the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre.

Legend has it that the two hitmen in civilian clothes were discovered later to have taken part in a plot to betray Capone. Capone lured them to a banquet dinner he was hosting in a banquet room at a Chicago hotel, and while the men sat at the table in front of several witnesses Capone beat the two men with a baseball bat within an inch of their lives, before Capone’s henchmen took them out and finished the job with bullets.



Jack McGurn was murdered on Feb. 15th, 1936 while bowling in a bowling alley in Chicago. The killers placed a Valentine’s card in his dead hand.


The body of Jack McGurn gunned down in a Chicago bowling ally

George “Bugs” Moran managed to hold on to his territory for a short time after the massacre but lost control after the repeal of Prohibition when liquor was made legal again. Moran was suspected of the murder of Jack McGurn because he was known to be a prankster and to write funny limericks. A limerick was found on the Valentine’s card that had been placed in the dead hand of McGurn. However, Frank Nitti, who was Capone’s enforcer was also a suspect because McGurn had become a liability risk to the Chicago mob, getting drunk and shooting off his mouth. Whatever the case, Moran turned to bank robbery and was caught and sentenced to ten years in prison, and then once released he was sentenced again to another ten years for a prior bank robbery. Moran died in prison of lung cancer on Feb. 25th, 1957, with only $100.00 net worth. He was given a pauper’s funeral.


Johnny Torrio

Johnny Torrio returned to the USA and was given much respect by the Mafia as an elder statesmen. He lived to the ripe old age of 75 when he died April 16th, 1957 while sitting in a barber chair getting a haircut.


Al Capone The Man Who Ruled Chicago

And whatever became of Big Al Capone? Well, the police never did get him for the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, however the government came after him for income tax evasion. The judge in the case heard a rumor that Capone’s mob was trying to bribe and intimidate some of the jurors so in the last minute before the trial began the judge railroaded Capone by ordering the jury to be switched with another jury on another trial. This very act should have called for a mistrial because the defense did not have a chance to question the new jurors as required by law. They found Capone guilty and he was sentenced to 11 years in the Federal Penitentiary. Capone appealed but it was denied. Capone was sent to Atlanta U.S. Penitentiary which was a very tough prison, but the judge then found out that Capone was able to obtain special privileges there and he ordered Capone transferred to Alcatraz Island Federal Prison on August 11th, 1934 under the tightest security possible and ordered that while in Alcatraz, Capone could not have any contact with the outside world. Capone has clearly drawn the wrath of the federal government who were determined to punish him as hard as anyone could be punished.


Capone on his way to prison

While in Alcatraz Capone got into a fight with an inmate who stabbed him but Capone only received a minor wound. He was more seriously injured by an old case of syphilis from many years before that went untreated. He spent his last year in Alcatraz in the prison hospital confused and disoriented a lot of the time. He was released from Alcatraz Jan. 6th, 1939 and was transferred to Terminal Island Penitentiary to serve a one year misdemeanor sentence, before being paroled Nov. 16th, 1939 after which Capone moved to his estate home in Miami, Florida.


Ariel view of Capone’s estate

Capone had not lost his mind completely, but he was unable to return to running the mob. He was known to have gone into fits of rage while playing tennis when someone would beat him, he would yell to his guards, “I want this guy taken care of! “ At times he would seem OK, and then for no apparent reason he would fly off the handle and start having imaginary conversations yelling at people who were not there such as Bugs Moran and Hymie Weiss threatening to have them rubbed out. Sometimes he would sit by his swimming pool in his bathrobe with a fishing pole, thinking he was fishing. He constantly yelled and carried on about Communists, foreigners and Bugs Moran, who he was convinced was plotting to kill him from his prison cell in Ohio.


Capone used to fish in his swimming pool wearing his bathrobe

Al Capone suffered a stroke on Jan. 21st, 1947, but then he started to improve when he contacted pneumonia on Jan. 24th, and suffered a fatal heart attack the very next day on Jan. 25th. He died in his home surrounded by his family including his wife who collapsed at the scene.


Al Capone a changed man

One thing the history writers most always neglect to mention, is that Al Capone repented of his sins while he still had some of his right mind left. He asked Jesus into his heart and became a Christian. Capone was released from Alcatraz on January 6, 1939 and sent to the Federal Correctional Institute at Terminal Island near Los Angeles. There, one Sunday Reverend Silas A. Thweatt, pastor of the First Baptist Church of San Pedro, California, held a church service. When he asked if any needed prayer, Capone raised his hand. They prayed. When Thweatt gave the invitation, according to his account in Time Magazine, "'At the close of the talk, Capone's face seemed to radiate, and when I asked those prisoners to stand who felt the need and will to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, he was the first to rise.' That this "conversion" had taken place, no one doubted."2 Al Capone was the first of 16 men to stand up.3,4,5

Judging from newspaper accounts, Capone's conversion took place on or before March 19, 1939. By September 1939. His mind began to go a few months later.

Even when Capone was head of Chicago’s mob, he gave money to the poor, and also opened up soup kitchens to feed the homeless and hungry, which the government was not doing. He was known to have a generous heart and to have had his driver pull over and hand kids money that looked poor and hungry. He also provided coal for widows and orphaned children so they could keep warm in the winter.

Al Capone’s grave marker reads:

Alphonse Capone
1899-1947
My Jesus Mercy



John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life."

Happy Valentine’s Day!

2. "Religion: Bitter Thweatt," Time, April 10, 1939. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,761014,00.html
3. John Kobler. Capone, The Life and World of Al Capone, (Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press), 2003, p. 372.
4. "Al Capone Turns to Religion," St. Petersburg Times, March 25, 1939, p. 5.
5. "Capone, Leaning Toward Religion, Attending Services Regularly," Los Angeles Times, March 24, 1939, p. 1.



Rev. Johnny Lee Clary is one of the leading advocates for racial unity in the United States and has appeared on countless television and radio shows such as The Billy Graham Radio show, Fox News, Morris Cerullo, Oprah, Morton Downey Jr., Rolanda Watts, Geraldo, Sally Jesse Raphael, Jerry Springer, Ricki Lake, Queen Latifah, Montel Williams, Phil Donahue, A&E Investigative Reports, ABC World News Tonight, Bertrice Berry, Sunrise Today,
The Today Show, A Current Affair, The 700 Club, and Kenneth Copeland's TV show. He has also been a regular guest on TBN's Praise The Lord show and has been featured in America's top newspapers and magazines, including a seven page feature story in Charisma magazine in April 1999, Moody Magazine, Guidepost Magazine (Sept. 1998), Kenneth Copeland's Believer's Voice of Victory magazine, as well as appearances on TV programs in Australia, England, Holland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Sweden, and Wales.