In the town of Plains, Georgia, on the first and last Sunday of each month, former US President Jimmy Carter teaches Sunday school at the Maranatha Baptist Church.

Carter has taught Sunday school since he was a midshipman in the navy and continued  while he was in the White House, even if during his presidency (1976-1980) his Sunday school gatherings were kept secret because of his strong belief that faith and government should be separate.

Driving through the red-soiled earth of Georgia you can’t help but be aware of the deep-rooted inequality which hangs over ghost towns, worn-down housing and outhouses. Incredibly secluded, the town of Plains provides an insight to the young life of Jimmy Carter, and his passion for serving.

One becomes captivated by a beautiful town preserved to its near-original state, and dominated by two main industries: farming and the Carters. You can see the train station from where he ran his presidential campaign, his brother Billy’s gas station and even what once was his old school, which is now a designated National Park where you can see his classroom untouched: the place where his teacher planted a seed by telling her students that anyone sitting in that classroom could become president.

People come from far and wide to attend this Sunday school. Presidential hopeful Senators Cory Booker and Amy Klobuchar, as well as civil rights icon Congressman John Lewis have made a trip to Plains to see the Carters within the last three months. While waiting to be seated some of the church congregation mentioned that they get regularly invited to lunch by the Carters when political figures come to town. As they share their stories their love shows for the former President and First Lady Rosalynn  and what they have done for their home town. They take great pride in pointing out the cross and collection plates that Carter himself made for the church.

Carter once joked at the dedication ceremony of Ronald Reagan’s presidential library “you have all had the honour of meeting a democrat President, I have never had that honour yet. . . I hope to have that privilege in the future.” With the election of Bill Clinton, and then Barack Obama, Carter got his wish. It’s clear that the political pilgrimage to Plains has become an important stop for democrats coming into the 2020 contest. When the next election comes around will he have met his third?

Parallels have often been drawn between Richard Nixon’s Watergate scandal and the position of the current incumbent of the Oval Office. In a post-Watergate America few could have predicted the rise and election of Jimmy Carter. After Trump, will we see an unknown rise within the Democratic Party, or see that level of faith again placed in a President’s honesty? Being in Plains and seeing how much the Carters are dedicated to its people, it’s no wonder why presidential candidates are coming for advice. Visiting Plains makes it very clear that the presidency is all about the people you serve.

The volunteers at Maranatha are kind and gracious with their time and guidance on attending the Sunday school. You have to be in the car park early in the morning – at 2:30am – to get your ticket to be in the queue. Orientation starts at 7:30am sharp and there is a security check by the secret service. Then you are seated and Sunday school starts promptly at 10:00am. Some people are regular attenders. One congregation member said to me this wasn’t their “first rodeo.”

While everyone was being seated Jana Carter – Billy Carter’s daughter and Jimmy’s niece – was telling stories about her family; about when John Wayne came to town and how her grandmother Lillian Carter would phone up her ‘boyfriend’ Burt Reynolds. She also included stories of what it was like working in the family’s peanut warehouse and how she remembers her uncle landing in Marine One in her back garden growing up.

When President Carter himself comes out to deliver the lesson he gets right to it! He welcomes everyone and asks where everyone comes from. When one person says Washington, DC, Carter flashes his famous grin and says casually, “I used to live there.”

This, I have to say, was like no Sunday school lesson I have ever been to. It was a balance between the teachings of Paul and the importance of kindness within leadership and in our politics. He spoke of his and Rosalynn’s work with North Korea and how necessary it was to normalise relations.

He shared how they both made the trip to North Korea in 1994, becoming the first US President to meet Kim II Sung, the founder of the state. Carter talked of the plans they worked on together to develop an extensive peace plan and a road map for de-nuclearization. He discussed how President Clinton was meant to be the first sitting President to visit North Korea to further the process in 2000, but fate would have a different path with Clinton unable to attend the summit because of that year’s controversial election outcome.

Carter made clear that the Trump administration’s work towards achieving denuclearization was necessary and admirable, hoping this could be achieved by peaceful means. Carter has been open about praying for the current President and this occasion was no different, hoping he has the strength to serve all Americans to the best of his ability. When the lesson finished, the message was clear: regardless of our political ideologies or backgrounds we should always have an abiding faith in right over might.

All too quickly the service is over. Everyone who stays after Sunday school gets a photo with the Carters. As sharp as ever, Jimmy cracks a joke: “If you are by yourself I’ll wonder why you have no friends with you.” After church people go into town to eat, look at the different sites and then make tracks back to wherever they’re from.

From visiting Plains and going to church with the Carters you get to experience living history; and with the Carters’ long lives and sharp minds they have become clear political markers as to how the political climate has changed – not just in America but within many western democracies – in not dealing with our history and chosen selective amnesia.

Certainly, Carter’s presidency was not perfect. He endured bad relationships with Congress, gas shortages and the Iran hostage crisis which overshadowed his final year in office. Though it all, and in the years since, however, what he has shown is that religion does not belong to Republicans, strong leadership does not mean violence and that world needs to do its homework on human rights.

If you’re feeling down because of the state of modern politics – and you want the best pecan pie you will ever have – make a trip to Plains, not just to see its favorite son, but to get a reminder of the power of community. Jimmy Carter is a living embodiment of care, strength, resilience and above all, faith.

Author’s note: My interest and admiration for President Carter began when I watched the documentary The Man From Plains (2007). The film follows him on a tour for his book Palestine Peace Not Apartheid. From this, my fascination grew about his administration and their goals reading his White House Diary and The Blood of Abraham. During my research, I had read a Washington Post article entitled The Un-Celebrity President by Kevin Sullivan and Mary Jordan, Describing how Carter still takes Sunday school in his 90s and from that moment I knew I had to go.

I am very fortunate that I have the best partner in the world who only lives four hours from Plains and took the time out to go with me on this adventure into history and true Political Americana.

If you wish to make the trip to Plains, GA to take part in President Carter’s Sunday school please consult the Maranatha Baptist Church website.