Sunday means Sunday School.
And for Jimmy Carter, that means teaching.
Less than two weeks after falling and fracturing his pelvis, the former president is scheduled to teach Sunday School this Sunday at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains.
Tony Lowden, the pastor of Maranatha, confirmed the former president’s attendance Tuesday morning.
The top of the Maranatha webpage marks his return as "Breaking News."
“President Carter WILL BE teaching Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019...We look forward to seeing you here.”
Lowden said Carter, who was released from the hospital last Thursday, told him directly and emphatically, that he would be teaching on Sunday.
“President Carter said that it was important to him and I will do whatever I can to support him,” Lowden said. “His goal is to tell everybody about Christ. That is what he is passionate about.”
Carter, 95, fell in his home Oct. 21 and had to be hospitalized at Phoebe Sumter Medical Center. He was held and treated for a minor pelvic fracture.
It was his second fall in less than a month and third major accident of the year, starting in May when he fell while getting ready to go turkey hunting in Plains and broke a hip.
He made a quick return to Maranatha, where he has been teaching Sunday school regularly for close to 40 years.
On Oct. 6, a fall at his home resulted in a black eye and 14 stitches in his head, but he made it to an evening concert in Tennessee to rally volunteers ahead of his 36th home building project for Habitat for Humanity there.
Here are the things you need to know about Carter's Sunday school class.
The address, phone number and Facebook page:
148 Ga. 45, Plains, Ga. 31780. 229-824-7896.
Web: mbcplains.org
Facebook: facebook.com/MBCPlains/.
The president's teaching schedule is generally posted several weeks in advance on both sites.
Getting a seat requires being in line early.
Attendees are given a number based on the order of arrival at the church parking lot. You can't sign up ahead of time.
Seating is limited.
Maximum capacity is 550 to 600 people. When seats in the sanctuary are filled, attendees will be assigned to an overflow room. When all seats are assigned, the line is cut off.
Sunday school begins at 10 a.m.
But you need to arrive earlier and plan to stay later. To get a spot in line, the church suggests arriving by 5:30 a.m. "Based on recent attendance trends, visitors who arrived before 5:30 a.m. had no problem obtaining a sanctuary seat," according to the church website.
Staff Writer Brian O'Shea contributed to this article.
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