I'VE COME TO TAKE YOU HOME

Last Sunday Jimmy Carter, the thirty-ninth President of the United States closed his eyes for the final time and passed from this life to the next. It was a sad day for Deena and me. President Carter was a folk hero to us. A mentor. But now, Jesus has come to take him home.

I was a young Christian during the seventies when Richard Nixon was in office. I’d go to prayer meetings and Bible studies and people would plead with God that he would raise up a Christian president for America. When he did in James Earl Carter, to my bitter disappointment, many of my fellow Christians and their leaders turned their backs on him and voted for Ronald Reagan who never claimed to be a Christian. But that was a learning experience for a young, naive evangelical like me. For it was then that I understood that evangelicals in America do not, in fact, want a Christian to be president as much as they want a political conservative to be president, whether Christian, agnostic, atheist or felon (I really don’t think it matters to them.) They just want a seat in the halls of power. So, for the last few days I mulled over Carter’s life and Deena and I had some discussions about him.

Yesterday, while taking a break, I happened to play Peter Gabriel’s Secret World Live DVD. It’s one of my favorites, because I like the line up. Of course, Tony Levin was there and David Rhodes, but the drummer was Manu Katché and I think he’s one of the best drummers alive today. The only disappointment is that the song Biko isn’t on it. I went immediately to my favorite cut on the DVD (Solsbury Hill) to cheer me up. Now, those of you who followed Peter Gabriel’s career from Genesis on know the lyrics of this song. It can pass easily as a Christian song (“. . .turning water into wine . . .”) though Gabriel has stated it in the past was about him leaving Genesis. Hmm.

*Young woman takes photographs on Little Solsbury Hill, Batheaston, Bath, Somerset, England, UK. Photo credit: Piere Bonbon (Alamy.)*

So, I reviewed the lyrics for the umteenth time:

“Climbing up on Solsbury Hill
I could see the city light
Wind was blowing, time stood still
Eagle flew out of the night

He was something to observe
Came in close, I heard a voice
Standing, stretching every nerve
I had to listen, had no choice

I did not believe the information
Just had to trust imagination
My heart going “Boom-boom-boom”
“Son, ” he said
“Grab your things, I’ve come to take you home”
Hey, back home

To keep in silence I resigned
My friends would think I was a nut
Turning water into wine
Open doors would soon be shut

So I went from day to day
Though my life was in a rut
‘Til I thought of what I’d say
Which connection I should cut

I was feeling part of the scenery
I walked right out of the machinery
My heart going “Boom-boom-boom”
“Hey, ” he said
“Grab your things, I’ve come to take you home”
Hey, back home

When illusion spin her net
I’m never where I wanna be
And liberty, she pirouette
When I think that I am free

Watched by empty silhouettes
Who close their eyes but still can see
No one taught them etiquette
I will show another me

Today I don’t need a replacement
I’ll tell them what the smile on my face meant
My heart going “Boom-boom-boom”
“Hey, ” I said
“You can keep my things, they’ve come to take me home¹“

As I was pondering the lyrics to the song, thoughts of Jimmy Carter did not leave my mind, and as I read interviews with Gabriel and eulogies for Carter, I came across a quote in Rolling Stone from Gabriel. “As I got to know Jimmy Carter, he became a hero for me. I’ve rarely met someone as devoted to service as he is and as principled as he is” Gabriel said.

As it turned out, several decades ago Sir Richard Branson and Peter Gabriel founded an organization called The Global Elders, since shortened to The Elders. They invited retired world leaders such as one-time United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, Anglican Bishop Desmond Tutu, Former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela, Mary Robinson, one-time President of Ireland and, Jimmy Carter. The purpose was to put these collective, distinguished minds to work on the more intractable problems the world faces. It was on the occasions that these people of peace, almost all of the Nobel Peace prize winners met that Gabriel and Carter struck up a friendship.

Jimmy Carter is a hero to me. And I’ve always been drawn to musicians who had causes they sang about. For Jackson Browne, it was against nuclear war and U.S. intrigue in Central and South America. with Sting, it was about relationships and the human condition. Bruce Springstine sang about the poor and their plight. For Peter Gabriel it was apartheid.

Carter was president when a person’s good character mattered. Sadly, that is no longer relevant, yet alone a prerequisite in America if the November election is to believed. Carter was criticized (and still is) for being a weak president. He was asked about this when the Iran hostage mission came apart. Why did he not use overwhelming force against Tehran? He replied to the effect “Well, of course I could have dropped a nuclear bomb on the Iranian capital and the terrorists would be dead, but then so would the hostages.” That did not and does not compute for many people.

There’s no requirement for ex-presidents to behave a certain way. Most write books, play golf campaign, speak at commencement ceremonies and hopefully don’t get indicted. That’s perfectly fine. Jimmy Carter build hundreds of homes for the poor, taught Sunday School, observed elections in third world countries and more, and that’s fine too. Former presidents die. Jimmy Carter died. But being a member of the exclusive former president’s club is no guarantee that you’ll get into heaven. I believe that Jimmy Carter will. For last Sunday, the angels came to take Jimmy Carter home.