During the four years of his presidency, Jimmy Carter was an active member of the First Baptist Church of the City of Washington, D.C., worshipping at least 75 times in the sanctuary a mile north of the White House and, on at least 17 Sundays, leading Bible study with the church’s Couples Class.
President Carter joined First Baptist D.C. three days after his inauguration in January 1977, which meant — in the presidential election of 1980 — members of the congregation were casting a ballot on one of their own.
Carter lost in a landslide to Ronald Reagan on Nov. 4, 1980. The defeat triggered the Christian concern of Carter’s church family, which responded not with casseroles but with another vote. The church’s top lay leader delivered the results on Nov. 16, 1980, just before Carter stepped to the lectern to lead the Sunday school class.
“Last Wednesday evening at our quarterly business meeting, the membership of our church passed unanimously a resolution,” moderator Frank Ed McAnear said. “That message is titled, ‘A Message of Love and Support for President and Mrs. Carter.’ And I’d like to read it for you at this time.”
McAnear went on to read a five-paragraph message with two unmistakable points: 100% of the members of First Baptist D.C. supported Carter as a brother in Christ and far less than 100% supported him as president. But the message was very nicely worded.
100% of the members of First Baptist D.C. supported Carter as a brother in Christ and far less than 100% supported him as president
To be clear, Carter hadn’t campaigned at church. Indeed, in the 14 known recordings of his lessons with the Couples Class, he rarely mentioned events of his presidency, let alone politics. The single reference to a campaign came at the end of a lesson on Sept. 24, 1978, and it was delivered with the wry humor he regularly deployed. In it, he summarized Philippians 4:19.
“God will supply all your needs from his unlimited riches in glory through Christ Jesus,” Carter said. “That’s a good promise. That’s a good campaign slogan, isn’t it? It’s so good that a lot of people don’t believe it, but we know it’s true.”
A little more than two years later, the defeated president accepted First Baptist’s resolution of support with aplomb and more humor: “I’m not going to get emotional because we’ll be here two more months, and I can’t sustain it that long,” he said, then paused.
“It is always remarkable when Baptists pass something unanimously,” he said to laughter. “That makes a beautiful message and the proclamation even more dear to us because it’s so rare.”
Carter then went on to teach his penultimate Sunday School class, drawn primarily from Luke 5 and titled “Grace for Sinners.”
As for the congregation’s message, Carter wrote a formal thank you note to the members of First Baptist on Nov. 25, 1980 — two days before Thanksgiving. A facsimile, complete with the president’s distinctive signature, filled the first page of the church newsletter on Christmas Eve 1980:
Rosalynn joins me in thanking you for your thoughtful message. We treasure the fellowship and friendship we have enjoyed with you over the past four years.
Your prayerful support and ‘the ties that bind our hearts in Christian love’ will be remembered, along with your many kindnesses, long after we have returned to our home in Georgia.
With our warm regards to each of you, Sincerely, Jimmy Carter.
A message of love and support for President and Mrs. Jimmy Carter
Almost four years ago, you became with us, fellow members of the body of Christ in this place. Although none of us could begin to realize the awesome burden of your public office, we all joined in a continuing fellowship of prayer for you and for our nation’s first family, for you and for members of our congregation. This love and care continues even until now.
We have wanted to share with you the resources of faith and devotion to a cause which transcends all political parties — the kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ. Being good Baptists, we have been aware that our freedom to differ politically has not destroyed the more fundamental Christian commitment that we all share. To our diverse congregation you have brought an appreciation for the presence of fellow Christians who give themselves to political leadership in the nation.
Now, none of us can imagine the feelings in your hearts after the election, but still all of us — devoted citizens of many political persuasions — understand the meaning of the commandment of the apostle to “bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
Therefore, we wish to say simply and directly that our love and prayerful support are with you. Even those who may have differed from you in matters political shall treasure the association with you in these years together and pledge continually to work with you in the spread of the gospel of our Lord.
We pray for you — and for ourselves — that we may attain the peace which passes understanding and the joy which can lighten every day in Christ our Lord.
Your friends and partners in the gospel,
The First Baptist Church of the City of Washington, D.C.
Christi Harlan is the author of Mr. President, The Class Is Yours, containing the first-ever transcripts of 14 Sunday school lessons taught by Jimmy Carter at First Baptist D.C. Her next book, Normal Lives: President Jimmy Carter’s Church, draws on interviews, contemporaneous news accounts and a church usher’s diary to tell stories of First Baptist, a president and the people who shared the pews with him. Available soon from your favorite booksellers.