One of the most interesting things that we have done through the years has been a special road trip up to Americus, Georgia to tour the site of the infamous Civil War prison camp of Andersonville. What began each year as a fairly small group, has now blossomed into quite tradition that they look forward to all year.
As part of the weekend, we also attend a church service with President Jimmy Carter in his hometown of Plains, which is just a short distance from Americus. For years, President Carter has been one of the primary Sunday School teachers at Maranatha Baptist Church and the public is always welcome to attend.
The church itself is very small and unassuming. It reminds me of my grandmothers old church with the unmistakeable "church smell" of old lady perfume hymnals. Many times, our families and students who have attended, pass by the church thinking that there is no way a former president would be teaching there. Oftentimes, everyone is looking for some sort of mega church.
President Carter is still provided(or required) to have Secret Service protection and my students are usually a bit freaked out by them, but they are nothing compared to Miss Jan, who has been with the Carters for years. She is highly protective of the Carter family and proceeds to tell everyone all of the many rules she expects you to abide by when President Carter comes out. She tells you how to address him(President Carter is fine), she tells you not to stand up for him nor clap for him. She explains that he is no longer the president, so rising for him is not required and that he is there as a teacher so clapping at the end is just silly. She does all of this with a cantankerous zeal and you disobey her at your own risk.
In between the subtle threats, Miss Jan also humanizes President Carter. A gifted carpenter, Carter personally made the wooden collection plates and large wooden cross at the front of the church. She loves to point out that President Carter inscribed his initials on the bottom of the wooden bowls and that JC was just a happy coincidence. Since she has known the Carter's all of her life, she loves to dish about their marriage and how Rosalynn remarked that after their first date, she wasn't all that impressed with him. Apparently he really grew on her because they have been married a whopping 68 years!
After roughly 30 minutes of going through "training" Miss Jan asks everyone to bow their heads for a prayer. She blesses everyone in the church and the upcoming lesson. When the prayer is over, President Carter is in front of the congregation. This is one of my favorite parts of the entire service, because the look on my students faces are priceless. Although, we have not really covered President Carter's presidency in class quite yet, they are still filled with awe at being so up close to a former president.
President Carter typically begins each lesson with getting to know the audience a bit by asking some questions and then proceeds to relay what he and Rosalynn have been up to. Despite being 89, he is still incredibly active in his role as a former president. Last year he talked about he and Rosalynn had just gotten back from South America and had ridden to the top of a mountain on mules. I can only hope to be that active at his age.
The lesson itself often a blend of scripture combined with anecdotes from his world experience. During our most recent trip he talked about peaceful resolutions and how Jesus surrounded himself with the wretches of society and offered them forgiveness when all others shunned them. He made the point that the United States has much work to do if they are to live up to the ideals that Jesus espoused. President Carter expressed concern about how we treat our poor and how in our current political environment, the poor and even immigrants are being cast as enemies and a bunch of freeloaders. Yes, the system must be modified, but to deny access to many because of abuse by a few is unacceptable. The entire lesson was quite compelling and eye opening.
Although the subject matter is often quite heavy, President Carter injects humor into every lesson I have ever seen him teach, often at the expense of Rosalynn who is seated in one of the front pews. To see them riff on each other is great fun to watch. Seeing the various small town characters that attend is also what makes the whole experience special. One little old man strolled in late and President Carter poked a little fun at him for being tardy which led to a whole exchange between the two lifelong neighbors.
Despite what one might think of Carter's presidency, it is impossible not to be moved by hearing him and witnessing him teach. It is such a unique experience and one that I treasure each year with my students. Although historians will always point out his mistakes as president, it is my hope that he will also be remembered for his kind spirit and generosity that he has truly made his life's mission.
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