The late former President Jimmy Carter reportedly named John Lennon's 1971 hit “Imagine” as his favorite song. However, after the song was used at a state funeral, there was a lot of criticism on social media that it was inappropriate to be used at a memorial service held by a Christian church.
On Thursday, the song was performed by fellow Georgians Trisha Yearwood and her husband Garth Brooks at Carter's funeral at the Washington National Cathedral. A year ago, Brooks and Yearwood performed the song at former first lady Rosalynn Carter's wake. The country star couple previously worked with Carter on several Habitat for Humanity housing projects, according to reports.
Social media was ablaze late Thursday, questioning the song's performance because its lyrics reject religion.
“Imagine there’s no heaven / It’s easy if you try / There’s no hell below us / There’s only sky above us,” the first line goes.
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Former President Jimmy Carter. (Emma Woodhead/Fox Digital)
Several observers, including top conservative figures, questioned the use of the song on X, while others disagreed.
Commentator Eric said, “Before the audience continues listening to “Imagine,'' which has lyrics like “Imagine there's no heaven/It's easy if you try,'' I wonder what Jimmy Carter, a Christian who is strong against Joe Biden, would say. “When you ask someone to lecture you about who they were, you start to question the credibility of their claims.” Mr. Erickson also served on the Macon City Council in Mr. Carter's home state.
One X user added, “Imagine there is no heaven. This is for someone who is a devout Southern Baptist.”
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“I don't think Jimmy understands the 'no religion' part,” said another.
Self-proclaimed “President Trump” Steve Carlson, a perennial Minnesota Democratic candidate running for Minnesota governor in 2026, wrote that it was an “insult” for “Imagine” to be played at Carter's funeral.
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“Why would a Christian have to sing that at his funeral? It's really dark to imagine that there's no heaven or Christianity at a Christian funeral,” said Fox's editor-in-chief, The Federalist. said Molly Z. Hemingway, who frequently appears on the All-Star Panel. News' “Special Report on Bret Beyer.''
Prominent members of the Catholic clergy also echoed X, saying they were “appalled” by the performance.
“Underneath the towering vaults of what we still think of as the Christian Church, they reverently said: “Imagine there is no heaven. It's easy if you try,'' and “Imagine there is no country.'' Please, it's not difficult. There's nothing to kill.” You can't die for religion. “Vested pastors sat patiently while the hymns to atheistic humanism were sung,'' said Bishop Robert Barron, prelate of the Archdiocese of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota.
“This is not only an insult to the memory of devout Christians, but also a demonstration of the powerlessness of too many established religions in our country,” the bishop said.
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Jim Geraghty of National Review wrote that the fact that “Imagine” asks the listener to imagine the absence of heaven is a “de facto concession” that heaven exists, and that the performance is clearly He said he was defending it.
“Otherwise, there's no need for us to imagine otherwise,” Geraghty said.
John Lennon himself had mixed views about Christianity and organized religion, but he particularly aligned with Christian preachers like Oral Roberts.
“I was raised a Christian, but only now do I understand some of what Christ was saying in the parables,” Lennon was quoted as saying. “God is the concept by which we measure our own pain.”
