The soft-spoken older man in the gray suit had taught Bible classes before.
He had led a Scripture class as a midshipman at Annapolis and then on a submarine as an officer in the Navy. He taught the Bible as a farmer, and he even conducted 15 classes at Washington’s First Baptist Church when he lived in the White House.
When Jimmy Carter sauntered up to the microphone Sunday at his hometown Baptist church in Plains, Ga., it was the 689th time the former president taught the Bible there.
This session would be different, however. This was the first time that Carter, 90, would teach Scripture since disclosing last week that a deadly cancer melanoma had spread from his liver to his brain.
People camped out overnight to get a seat for this class. Some drove hundreds of miles. About 460 listeners packed the sanctuary, and the church set up an overflow room. Later, Carter taught a second class at the nearby high school for 250 more, and dozens were still turned away.
What his listeners heard — and what millions of Americans got a glimpse of last week — was inspiration. And grace. They saw a quiet courage as Carter dealt publicly with the kind of news that can be devastating for a person or family to process. They saw Carter draw on his faith in God to carry him through.
Carter told them: “Any time, we can just bow our heads and say: ‘God, I’m really troubled. I ask you to give me the strength to bear whatever is on my shoulders and to bear whatever comes to me.’”
It was an act of sharing the common human bond of powerlessness when faced with mortality. Carter has modeled a calm acceptance, perhaps conveying a sense of peace to people who desperately need it.
Carter’s post-presidency has been one of indefatigable public service, from building houses for the poor, to fighting disease in Africa and monitoring elections and human rights abroad. A lifelong Democrat, Carter is known for a sunny disposition that hasn’t kept him from occasionally scolding a Republican or others he’s disagreed with.
Some of his admirers are willing to leave politics aside. One TV reporter interviewed Tyler Knierim, 19, of Terre Haute, Ind., who drove 650 miles to hear the Bible taught by someone known for living out his Christian calling of love and care for others.
“I’m a conservative, but his values from the day he was born until now make him a wonderful person,” CNN quoted Knierim as saying.
Carter has had radiation treatment and began a drug regimen for his brain cancer. It’s a disease he may not beat but may well be able to live with for some time to come. We join those Americans who hope that Carter’s work is not yet done.
