GOING TO CHURCH WITH JIMMY CARTER

by

John DeDakis

John DeDakis is the author of the Lark Chadwick mystery-suspense-thriller series. You can find out more about him on his website, www.johndedakis.com and read thumbnails of his books here: https://blackbirdwriters.com/books/?wbg_title_s=&wbg_category_s=&wbg_author_s=John+DeDakis

Jimmy Carter, the man who promised never to lie to the American people, the man who confessed to Playboy magazine that he’d had lust in his heart, the man who brought the term “born again Christian” into the political lexicon, lived an exemplary 100 years.

I had the privilege of interviewing the thirty-ninth president when I was with CNN and covered him briefly during his presidency when I was a television reporter in Madison, Wisconsin. Perhaps my most memorable Jimmy Carter experience, however, was attending the Sunday school class he taught at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains, Georgia, population 785.

In 1981, Carter and his wife Rosalynn transferred their membership to Maranatha after he lost his re-election bid to Ronald Reagan. They had been attending Plains Baptist but left when the all-white church refused to integrate. In 2000, the former president renounced his membership in the Southern Baptist Convention when the denomination voted not to let women become pastors.

On the Sunday after Easter in April 1994, while on a weekend jaunt in southwest Georgia with my family, we found ourselves near Carter’s church. I convinced the family that we should attend.

The sanctuary was packed to capacity with 300 people. Carter, dressed in a dark sport coat and a buttoned-down maroon shirt, open at the neck with no tie, stood in the front at a podium. He asked out-of-towners to stand and introduce themselves. People from all over the world were there, including China, Russia, the Philippines, and Spain.  

The former president then taught an hour-long lesson about the resurrection of Jesus. At times, he paced in front of the podium. I took copious notes.

The lesson was from Luke 24—The Road to Emmaus—in which two of Jesus’ disciples, Cleopas and another man, are walking the seven-mile stretch between Jerusalem and Emmaus two days after Jesus was crucified.

While walking and talking about the recent event, they’re joined by a third person who asks why they’re so sad.

By the time they arrive at their destination at the end of the day, the stranger walking with them explains from the scriptures that the Messiah would suffer death before being resurrected. They invite the stranger to join them for supper. It’s when he gives thanks for the meal that they recognize him as Jesus.

In his lesson, Carter said the rest of us are a lot like Cleopas.

“We often don’t recognize the presence of God Almighty. We don’t open our minds to the reality of the risen Lord. If this is the most important thing that happened in the history of the universe, why do we only deal with it spasmodically when we’re in trouble? Jesus Christ, our savior, lives. Isn’t that wonderful?”

Carter and Rosalynn then stayed for the service, sitting two rows ahead of us near the back of the church. A lone Secret Service agent sat in front of me, keeping an eye on things.

After the service, Carter and I walked out of church together, and I told him I’d covered part of his riverboat cruise down the Mississippi River aboard the Delta Queen when it stopped in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, on August 18, 1979.

Carter said he remembered the stop because it was Rosalynn’s fifty-second birthday, and she was presented with a portrait of herself.

Jimmy and Rosalynn then stood on the church's front steps to pose for pictures with parishioners. Maranatha Baptist had it down to a system. People formed a line. As we got close to the former first couple, I handed my camera to a church member who snapped the shot. In our picture, Cindy holds Stephen in her arms and stands beside Rosalynn. I’m standing next to Jimmy Carter, who’s standing immediately behind Emily and James, with a hand on each of their shoulders.

Carter was elected president in 1976 after the Watergate scandal toppled Richard Nixon's presidency. We’ve come a long way as a country. Back then, truth, integrity, and character mattered. Now? Not so much.

I came away inspired by Carter’s message. Usually, the extent of a president’s religious utterances are vague references to prayer or a doctrineless “God bless America” benediction. Jimmy Carter’s Sunday School class made me think to myself, “This guy really knows what it’s like to walk with God.” 

I’ll miss Jimmy Carter, but his inspiring legacy lives on.

Award-winning novelist, writing coach, and manuscript editor John DeDakis is a former editor on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer." DeDakis is the author of six mystery-suspense-thriller novels. His most recent novel, ENEMIES DOMESTIC, a political thriller, was released July 4, 2024. His current writing project is a work of nonfiction (working title: PLOT TWISTS: A MEMOIR ON WRITING AND LIVING). DeDakis, a former White House correspondent, regularly leads writing workshops at literary centers and writers’ conferences. He also hosts the video podcast "One-to-One." Originally from La Crosse, Wisconsin, DeDakis now lives with his wife Cindy in Baltimore, Maryland.

Website: www.johndedakis.com