WICHITA, Kansas – He's faithfully visited notorious serial killer Dennis Rader every week at the county jail and still sees himself as his pastor. But the Dennis Rader he saw make a rambling final statement in court is not the same person he knows.
"The person I heard in the courtroom was not the real Dennis," says Michael Clark, pastor of Christ Lutheran Church in Wichita. "There was someone else speaking from Dennis that day," he believes. "I personally think we’re dealing with some kind of possession."
Rev. Michael Clark of Wichita's Christ Lutheran Church |
"From all that I’ve seen and the people I've talked with who have dealt with demonic possession, I feel there was something working there," he adds. "When I go back to the beginning when Dennis made his first statement to the public about his condition in the '70s he said, 'There’s a monster inside of me that I can’t control.'"
On Aug. 18 Judge Gregory Waller sentenced Rader to 10 consecutive life sentences – a minimum of 175 years in prison – with no possibility of parole. At the sentencing hearing Rader delivered a rambling 30-minute discourse in which he often compared himself with his victims. Rev. Clark observed the entire proceeding inside the courtroom.
"Sedgwick County has a monster," Rader told a rapt audience. "The old me started whatever it was – factor X – sexual predator," he said.
Rader described one murder victim, Marine Hedge, as "a neighbor, one I walked by and waved to, a gardener. I love to garden, flowers. She attended church, the same church I had been to with Boy Scouts."
One by one, Rader continued in a bizarre fashion to compare himself with the personal habits and hobbies, likes and dislikes of each victim. At one point in his discourse he described the afterlife as "smoke."
He even referred to his own compartmentalized personality. "When this happened, I was what I would say not total at one time. Part of me [was] only the thoughts that compartmentalize … and that has been my biggest wreck back and forth … I could switch back and forth fairly fast."
As Rev. Clark listened, he was struck by the inconsistency with the man he knew. "I honestly don't think it was the Dennis Rader I know who was a member of this congregation and who I worked with in leadership," he says. "It was a power, an evil force that was controlling."
On the Friday Rader was arrested, Rev. Clark had just finished his Sunday sermon when the doorbell rang at his church office. It was an officer and three detectives armed with a search warrant. When they identified Rader as a suspect in the BTK serial killings, Clark was stupefied.
"I had to ask at least three times to clarify what I thought I heard," Clark says. "It took me a half hour to understand what I heard," he says. "I was at the point where I couldn't say anything. I was speechless, and I haven't been that way too often."
Rader was president of their 11-member church council – a position elected by the congregation. "Dennis has been actively involved with this church for 20-30 years," Clark notes. "That's probably one of the pieces that has so many people reeling in disbelief," he says. "He's here all the time."
Growing up in the Lutheran tradition at another church in the Wichita area, Rader was confirmed as a teenager after completing his catechism, according to Clark. "He had to be confirmed in order to be a commissioned and active member of this church."
Rev. Clark still believes Rader is a Christian, but Rader’s shocking double life caused Clark to reexamine his theology of evil during the last few months. First Clark read C.S. Lewis' classic "Screwtape Letters" as well as M. Scott Peck's "A Glimpse of the Devil." Then he consulted with a retired Lutheran pastor who experienced demonic encounters in the mission field.
The readings and conversations altered Rev. Clark's views about Satan, causing a dramatic shift in his theology of evil. "You might say it has changed 180 degrees," he notes. "I've got a completely different perspective on evil than I had six months ago."
While Rader may need specialized treatment to address his condition, Rev. Clark is not sure he's the one to provide it. "I've learned more about the value and purpose of exorcism," he says. "I'm not sure I would get involved with that because it takes specialized training and skills."
"It's not something you play around with – it's very dangerous," he adds.
"We're so used to dealing with the psychological and scientific model," he continues. "We don't recognize the possibility of a spiritual explanation." He takes issue with those who would be quick to apply a label to Rader such as "psychopath" or "sociopath."
"We give people medications to deal with psychological conditions but we don't get to the core issue – the existence of the demonic," he adds.
Surprisingly, Rev. Clark's congregation has grown throughout this ordeal, but healing the wounds of the victims' families will take time. "We've got a long way to go," Clark says. "Because it gets so dark we can't see where God is at, it's like walking into a massive fog," he says. "But God is there and He's good – I'm certain of that."