Most Known Religious Presidents: How Religion Impacted Jimmy Carter

711 Words3 Pages

How religion impacted Jimmy Carter
One of the most known religious presidents was Jimmy Carter. President Carter had a very religious upbringing and because he is from what is known as the Bible Belt, his religious views were popular in his native state of Georgia. The Bible Belt can be best described as the southeastern part of the United States where evangelical Christian beliefs are commonly practiced. As a result of his upbringing, within Jimmy Carter's term as president there were various examples of how he incorporated his religious beliefs into his political decisions.
To begin with, Jimmy Carter was born and raised in rural Georgia, which primarily consists of Christians, more specifically Baptist Christians. Religion was very important …show more content…

However, he made his best effort to resolve social issues in a matter that benefited Americans that may not share the same religious views that he does. For many years, social issues such as abortion have created controversy because some people believe that religion and politics should be kept separate. However, the problem occurs when the social issue goes against one’s personal beliefs. Roe v Wade finally allowed abortions to be legal in the United States just a few years prior to Jimmy Carter being elected. The numbers of abortions being performed rose and caused many conservatives to try and get the law repealed. Ultimately, the passing of Roe v Wade caused Jimmy Carter to try and limit the amount of abortions by helping prevent unwanted pregnancies as well as making it not as easily accessible to women living in poverty, "he put a pro-life Catholic, Joseph Califano, in charge of the important Department of Health, Education, and Welfare that would oversee this matter"(Murdock). This resulted in the Hyde Amendment, which made sure that abortions would not be federally funded unless …show more content…

One of Jimmy Carter's famous pastimes is teaching Sunday school, or being involved in the Christian church in general, “I participated in Sunday school and church while I was in office. When I was governor, I was a deacon in the Baptist Church"(Bailey). Even after his presidency Jimmy Carter holds true to his Christian upbringing by continuing to teach Sunday school. Many of Jimmy Carter's accomplishments were positive. On the contrary, during the Iran hostage crisis Carter did not retaliate with violence and tried to negotiate peacefully. This was not a good idea and failed. While he had good intentions, if he had been less religiously oriented in that situation the outcome would have been