By Annette Spence*
August 6, 2008 | KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS)

One of the wounded, John T. Worth, is a United Methodist who was in the congregation that morning to see his granddaughter in a performance of "Annie Jr."

Worth, 68, and his wife, Joy, are members of Peck’s Memorial United Methodist Church in nearby Maryville. The shooting occurred in Knoxville at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, where Worth’s daughter is a member.

A pellet from the shooter’s gun lodged in Worth’s right eye. Physicians have told him that his optic nerve is damaged and he is unlikely to regain vision. Now Worth is struggling with a decision about whether to have the eye removed, because keeping it could lead to disease or disturb his young grandchildren by its appearance.

"He is clinging to hope for a miracle," said Joy Worth, 66. "But if he has the eye removed, there’s no possibility of that."

The Sunday morning shooting happened within the boundaries of Holston Conference, which sprawls across East Tennessee, southwest Virginia and north Georgia. First United Methodist Church of Knoxville is located within two blocks of the Unitarian church where Jim David Adkisson, 58, allegedly opened fire. Police say Adkisson was motivated by a hatred of liberals. He has been charged with first-degree murder, and more charges are expected.

One person who escaped the gunfire later sought refuge at First United Methodist Church, according to the Rev. Dan Moore, pastor. Moore declined to give details in order to protect the person’s privacy. But he said the victim came to the church about 11:15 a.m., during the congregation's 10:45 a.m. worship service. The shooting occurred at about 10:15 a.m.

"I am just glad she came here," Moore said. Some church members were late to the United Methodist worship service, Moore said, because police and rescue squads stalled traffic in front of his church.

Bishop James Swanson, who leads the denomination’s Holston Area, responded to the tragedy by writing on his blog.

"We must face the fact that there is within us the potential to commit awful atrocities when we are disconnected from God," Swanson said. "In the face of this tragedy, the one thing I am sure of is that we must continue—no, we must double our efforts—to reach people with the transforming message of Jesus. We must not allow evil to dominate us and place fear in our hearts to the point that we surrender in despair."

Flashbacks and 'what ifs'

Worth is a retired phone company employee who has been a member of Peck’s Memorial church since 1970. His pastor, the Rev. Tony Brown, is in the first weeks of his first-ever appointment. Brown has visited Worth, and the 250-member Peck’s Memorial congregation has provided dinner as well as telephone calls and cards.

"I’m sure the church will be supportive of (Worth) because Peck’s Memorial is known as a church that supports people in hard times," Brown said.

"Things build up, things close in on you," John Worth said. "It gets worse as the day goes on. I have trouble sleeping at night. I still have flashbacks and 'what ifs.' What if I could have come into the church five or 10 minutes later? I don’t know, maybe I could have done something to stop him."

As it happened, the Worths were sitting in the front row when a loud boom led many to believe the sound was part of the program.

"I turned toward the noise, and the lady directing the play said, 'He’s got a gun! Get down!'" Joy Worth said.

John Worth reacted by "stuffing" his wife under the pew. Then, with his "adrenaline running high," Worth headed to the back of the church to protect his 8-year-old granddaughter and 4-year-old grandson. He headed toward the assailant, who was preparing to take his second shot with a 12-gauge semi-automatic shotgun.

Three men quickly subdued the shooter, but not before the second round took off. Worth immediately thought he had been shot in the head, but his wife saw he had been hit in the eye.

Today, Worth is thankful that his grandchildren, Hannah and Zeke, are safe. Hannah so far has resisted counseling, saying, "It was the worst day of her life, and she didn’t want to talk about it and remember it," her grandmother said.

Hannah kissed her grandfather under his eye several times and said that it was to help him heal, but Zeke is frightened by his grandfather’s injury.

"I’m not so worried about my physical appearance. I’m getting too old for that. I’m more worried about holding a screwdriver without boring a hole in my hand," John Worth said.

Contending with hate

Worth frequently stops to hold his head as he talks. His wife, a retired nurse, says painkillers are only so effective. The phone rings constantly, and Joy Worth says in addition to concerned community members, they’ve heard from national news and talk shows that want to interview them. So far, the Worths have declined.

The Unitarian Universalist Church is a theologically liberal religion. Its members do not necessarily identify themselves as Christians, nor do they necessarily subscribe to Christian beliefs.

John and Joy Worth said they remain loyal to their own church, without commenting on others. What they don’t understand, they said, is hate.

"I don’t believe in religions or denominations. I believe in God," John Worth said. "But here we are in the U.S., (which is) supposed to be a great country, and you can’t even go to church without something like this happening."

"I think there is a lot of hate in this world," Joy Worth said. "I hate to see the world coming to this."

*Spence is editor of The Call, the newspaper of the Holston Annual Conference.

News media contact: Marta Aldrich, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

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