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SAN DIEGO -- The local congregation of one of the nation's largest black churches made history over the holiday season by ordaining a white man who was once an avowed racist and a leader of the Ku Klux Klan.
In November, Johnny Lee Clary got down on his knees before the elders of the Church of God in Christ and became a minister.
Many of those present at the ceremony considered it a modern miracle.
"I had to make some changes, and thank God, I made the right changes," Clary told FOX 5 News from his home in Oklahoma.
Clary, 50, crossed paths with Bishop George McKinney of St. Stephan's Cathedral Church of God in Christ in San Diego's Valencia Park neighborhood years ago. That meeting led to a divine intervention, and church elders accepted Clary as an ordained minister in late November, McKinney said.
"The most powerful thing about all humans is that they have the capability to change. Brother Clary is a changed man," Bishop McKinney said with confidence.
Clary spent 16 years with the KKK, rising to the rank of Imperial Wizard.
"I was looking for protection," he told FOX5 News. "I met the KKK. They told me I needed a family and they would be my family."
Now he is sharing his story in the hope of inspiring racial reconciliation.
"I get to know my neighbor, and I realized good friends come in all colors," Clary said.
In November, Johnny Lee Clary got down on his knees before the elders of the Church of God in Christ and became a minister.
Many of those present at the ceremony considered it a modern miracle.
"I had to make some changes, and thank God, I made the right changes," Clary told FOX 5 News from his home in Oklahoma.
Clary, 50, crossed paths with Bishop George McKinney of St. Stephan's Cathedral Church of God in Christ in San Diego's Valencia Park neighborhood years ago. That meeting led to a divine intervention, and church elders accepted Clary as an ordained minister in late November, McKinney said.
"The most powerful thing about all humans is that they have the capability to change. Brother Clary is a changed man," Bishop McKinney said with confidence.
Clary spent 16 years with the KKK, rising to the rank of Imperial Wizard.
"I was looking for protection," he told FOX5 News. "I met the KKK. They told me I needed a family and they would be my family."
Now he is sharing his story in the hope of inspiring racial reconciliation.
"I get to know my neighbor, and I realized good friends come in all colors," Clary said.
