The Christian faith shapes the life of the 100-year-old former US President Jimmy Carter

Washington, DC Newsroom, October 1, 2024 / 11:00 am

Former US President Jimmy Carter, a lifelong Baptist who turned 100 on October 1, held views that diverged from Catholic teaching on a number of controversial social and doctrinal issues, including abortion, same-sex marriage and the ordination of female pastors .

Nonetheless, throughout his life, perhaps more than any other president in American history, Carter marked a clear and consistent commitment to the Christian faith, both in words and deeds.

In a chapter entitled “My Traditional Christian Beliefs” in his 2005 book “Our Endangered Values: America’s Moral Crisis,” Carter pointed out that “most of the foundations of my belief in Christ as Savior and Son of God are still shared without seriousness “Question from Protestants, Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Copts, Seventh-day Adventists and many other religious people.”

Regarding his Baptist beliefs, Carter stated in the same book: “As evangelicals, we have been committed to a strong global mission to share our Christian faith with all other people without prejudice or discrimination.”

Throughout his adult life, Carter demonstrated his personal commitment to evangelization by publicly bearing witness to his faith, participating in missions, and, most famously, most Sundays, year after year, for nearly four decades His hometown Baptist church taught Sunday school in Plains, Georgia.

Faith and works

Additionally, Carter’s humanitarian work, building homes for the poor every year as a Habitat for Humanity volunteer for nearly 40 years, is an integral part of his lived faith.

Carter’s sister, Ruth Carter Stapleton, who died in 1983, was an evangelist herself, and the 39th president credited her with having a major influence in strengthening his faith and practice after his first defeat for governor of Georgia in 1966 have had.

That same year, Carter helped lead a Billy Graham evangelism campaign in his home country. Later, as governor of Georgia, he also served as honorary chairman of Graham’s crusade to Atlanta.

For Catholics, Carter is also celebrated as the first American president to welcome a pope to the White House. This milestone came in 1979 during newly elected Pope John Paul II’s first papal trip to the United States.

According to a summary of their conversation in the National Archives, the pope and president were united by their shared faith in Christ. The National Archives said that “these two deeply religious men – each at the pinnacle of power in their respective fields – agreed to speak not as diplomats but as Christian brothers.”

attitude towards abortion

Although Carter expressed a personal antipathy to abortion, as governor of Georgia and then as president, he supported legal abortion in keeping with the then-recent Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Calf. He also believed that abortion should be available to victims of rape and incest.

In an interview with NBC News in 1976, then-candidate Carter said, “After the Supreme Court decision (Roe v. Wade), I will do everything I can as president to minimize the need for abortion.” I think , Abortion is wrong, and I think we should make a comprehensive effort by the President and Congress, perhaps with a nationwide law that is adequately funded to provide sex education and access to contraceptives and better adoption procedures to those who believe in their use make possible. ”

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As president, Carter signed the Hyde Amendment in 1977, a law banning the use of federal tax dollars for abortions except to save the mother’s life or if the pregnancy was the result of incest or rape. According to Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, the Hyde Amendment has saved over 2.5 million unborn lives since its enactment.

In recent years, Carter has expressed support for gay marriage. In a 2018 interview with the Huffington Post, the then 93-year-old former president said he believed “Jesus would approve of gay marriage” and that “Jesus would encourage any romantic relationship if it was honest and sincere and no one else’s.” “and I don’t see gay marriage hurting anyone.”

Constant stream of faith-based books

Carter has authored 30 books, many of which are directly related to his Christian faith, including his 1996 volume Living Faith, Sources of Strength: Meditations on Scripture for a Living Faith (1997) and Our Endangered Values: America’s Morals Crisis.” (2005) and “Faith: A Journey for All” (2018).

In this final book, Carter wrote: “I consider myself an evangelical Christian…the basic elements of Christianity apply to me personally, shaping my attitudes and actions and giving me a joyful and positive life of meaning.”

He also reiterated his belief that “Christians are called to plunge into the life of the world and to bring the moral and ethical values ​​of our faith into the processes of government.”

Carter’s open articulation of his Christian faith and inspiration was seen as a breath of fresh air and a blessing to his presidential candidacy after the disgrace and corruption of the Watergate scandal that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon in 1974.

“I will never lie to you,” Carter memorably promised during his successful 1976 campaign.

China’s breakthrough

Among Carter’s most notable achievements in promoting religious freedom and reopening space for evangelization were his negotiations with then Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping that led to the restoration of full U.S.-China diplomatic relations in December 1978.

As Carter later recounted, as part of the agreement, he pushed for the Chinese government to “let people pray freely, have Bibles, and have our missionaries return.” Deng abandoned the first two motions, but not the third. Carter recalls that when he and his wife Rosalynn visited China in 1981, “there was a new law guaranteeing religious freedom, Bibles were plentiful, and overcrowded Christian churches were thriving.”

After their defeat in the 1980 presidential election to pro-life candidate Ronald Reagan, Carter and Rosalynn, who died on November 19, 2023, founded the Carter Center, a nonprofit foundation dedicated to fighting disease and promoting health, peace and democracy worldwide.

For his efforts to promote peace and human rights, including the historic 1978 Camp David Peace Accords between Israel and Egypt, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

core of the Christian faith

In his 2018 book “Faith: A Journey for All,” Carter reported that “people in my Bible class often ask what it means to be a Christian.” My best explanation is that a Christian is a person who loves Jesus Christ professes himself as a personal Savior and seeks to see Jesus express human qualities.”

Carter went on to praise the Lord of his life as “both God and man, all-powerful but gentle and loving, all-knowing, compassionate, suffering, despised, burdened with the sin of others, abandoned by his followers, publicly executed, but resurrected and will be.” revered today by billions of believers around the world. Personal faith in Christ and a special reverence for him help us understand God’s transcendent love.”

“Since we are convinced that the miracle of Christ’s resurrection actually occurred about 2,000 years ago, we must consider this the most important event in the history of the universe,” Carter wrote in his 1997 book “Sources of Strength.” “For us it means that Christ is still alive, that His Spirit is still with us, and that we can build our lives around Him as our Savior.”