Sunday School with
President Carter
When my
sister-friend Bryn asked if I wanted to go to Plains, Georgia for Sunday school
with President Jimmy Carter, I think all of my neighbors heard me scream “yes.”
Sunday school with the 39th President of the United States is
something that I’ve always wanted to do, but until I actually did it, I had no
idea how much I needed to.
Plains is
about 3 and a half hours of mostly country road from where I live. You have to
go there the day before, stay overnight in a hotel and then get up and stand in
line for a few hours with folks who have come from all over the world for this
experience and I was happy to do so.
Bryn’s
husband Tim drove so I had the chance to sit in the back seat making all kinds
of Ms. Daisy references, sing Christmas carols and country music and actually see
the beauty that surrounded us.
We had a blast. We laughed about the silliest
things, talked politics, policy and sociology. We developed ideas for work and
for making the lives of women better while we giggled like children in
anticipation of the big event.
As joyful as we were, we had no way
to know that our joy would be made even fuller.
I’m going to
get to it as best as I can (even my thoughts have a Southern drawl) but I’ll
tell you now, there’s no way I can do that day justice.
I’d love to
tell you all about the church and the members, especially Ms. Jan, the woman
who told us what to do, say, and how to act. I’d love to go into the detail of
how a church of 30 members provides food and shelter for tens of thousands of
needy folks. How they host hundreds of visitors every week, and how the secret
service have to make sure each of them stays in line. (I do believe that even they
follow the instructions of Ms. Jan, who also taught Amy Carter when she was in the
4th grade.)
I’d love to
tell you all about sitting right behind the President and Mrs. Carter as we
all sang Go Tell It On The Mountain, but I need to tell you this; once I got
beyond my excitement, awe, respect, admiration, and plain old geeked-out
spasms, I got a powerful Sunday school lesson that will affect me forever.
The
President outlined the four songs of Christmas. He spoke of Isaiah’s servant
song, and Mary’s Maificat; how it turned the world upside down.
“It transforms
the consciousness of human beings about our creation,” President Carter said. Through
her calling and reaction, he said, “The lowly become key players in God’s
kingdom.”
The
President went on to outline Zechariah’s Benedictus and pointed out a most
important lesson; "That we should not worry about what we will do, but the kind
of person we should be."
“If you want
to be a better person,” President Carter said, “Copy the life of Christ.”
He went on
to the Song of Simeon; Nunc Dimittis. Through the song of the devoted Simeon,
the old man who waits at the temple, we know that we are connected to a partner
who “knows everything and can do anything,” the President said.
Then he tied
it all together and I was moved to tears, commitment and service.
“We are to be a little
Christ. A light to all nations. We have been given the opportunity which some
would call a duty; to show love, compassion, grace, forgiveness to all the
world. Our life and freedom give us the choice to serve. The greatest prayer we
can have is the prayer of Simeon to know the promise of the Mesiah.
Jesus taught us the
proper relationship between ourselves and human beings. Through this we must
know that we are all equal, worthy and important.
It is because of this
that we know that success according to Christ, looks very different than it
does to the world. The greatest in the Kingdom is the servant of all. So we are
to demonstrate peace, justice, service, compassion and love.
When we do, we will be
able to see God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Be you, be at peace, be
joy.
Bertice Berry, PhD.
Thank you. I appreciated every word.
ReplyDeleteTruly,
Melody