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'All Children of God': Carter encourages Christians set aside differences, in speech at close of regional New Baptist Covenant
Journal Photo by Lauren Carroll
Former President Carter, a co-chairman of the New Baptist Covenant, delivers a sermon during a worship service at Wait Chapel.
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Published: April 26, 2009
Standing before about 800 people at Wait Chapel yesterday, former president Jimmy Carter told them that he wanted to ask some questions. Through those questions, he proceeded to take a short tour through the issues that divide many Christians.
Did they believe that a wife should subjugate herself to her husband? Did they believe that the world was created in 4004 B.C. or that the universe goes back 13 billion years?
Did they think that the Roe v. Wade decision allowing abortion was right? Did they believe that homosexuals should be treated with respect or that homosexuality is such a serious sin that it warrants exclusion from a church?
He told them that he didn't want to hear their answers to those questions, but he did want to know the answer to another question: Do they believe that we are saved by the grace of God?
In this and other ways, Carter delivered a message about the importance of Christians in general and Baptists in particular setting aside their differences to focus on the part of Christianity that matters.
"In Jesus Christ, you are all children of God," Carter said.
Carter, 84, gave the sermon at the worship service closing the Southeast regional gathering of the New Baptist Covenant at Wake Forest, a two-day meeting with the goal of working toward healing racial and other divisions in the Baptist Church. Those divisions date to 1840 when Baptists in the South broke with Baptists in the North and formed the Southern Baptist Convention.
Carter lamented the reputation for divisiveness that plagues Baptists. Since leaving the presidency, he said, he has been to 125 countries and he has found that, in many parts of the world, Baptists don't have the reputation for working together in harmony that Christians should have.
"They look on us as at each other's throats," Carter said. "It's like a cancer metastasizing in the body of Christ."
He urged everyone to put aside their differences and to work together toward spreading the word of God.
"Each one of us has a personal responsibility to strive for greatness," Carter said, "in the service of Jesus Christ."
The worship service was open to the public and attracted people who admire Carter not only as a president but also for what he has done since leaving office. Carter, who served as the 39th president from 1977 to 1981, has traveled extensively to promote peace in the Middle East and elsewhere and, here at home, he has been a strong supporter of Habitat for Humanity.
"I think that was a calling from God for him," said Norman Adams. "I have always admired Jimmy Carter. He is still a very important influence in my life."
"He is the epitome of what an ex-president can do," said Lafayette Jones, there with his wife, Sandy Miller Jones.
"He is my absolute favorite president next to Obama," she said. "He seems like such a kind person."
Before getting to his message, Carter joked around a bit with the people at the service. Shortly after leaving office, he said, he was traveling in Asia. In Japan, he stopped off at small religious college near Osaka to give the graduation speech.
When English is translated into Japanese, he said, the translation is often noticeably longer than the original. He chose his opening joke with that in mind.
"I didn't choose my funniest joke," he said. "I told my shortest joke."
The joke got the best response it has ever gotten. Wondering whether it had something to do with the way that the translator delivered it, he asked the translator about it after the speech. After some hemming and hawing, the translator said, "I told the audience, ‘President Carter told a funny story. Everyone must laugh.'"
■ Kim Underwood can be reached at 727-7389 or at kunderwood@wsjournal.com.
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