Buttigieg, her husband attends Jimmy Carter's Sunday School class

PLAINS, Georgia – The Democratic presidential candidate, Pete Buttigieg, and her husband, Chasten, joined the large crowd in Sunday School class of former President Jimmy Carter in a rural area of South Georgia.

At Carter's invitation, Buttigieg got up and read the Bible as part of the lesson at the Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains.

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"You know him?" Carter had said earlier about Buttigieg, making the crowd laugh.

Carter said at the hearing that two other Democratic presidential candidates, the Sense. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota had already attended his classes.

The Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, then tweeted, "I had the pleasure of meeting with President Carter in Plains, Georgia today. He is a true civil servant and the United States is blessed for his continued leadership. The Buttigieg campaign said in a statement that he had lunch with Carter and his wife, Rosalyn, and "enjoyed a conversation on topics ranging from faith to the rigors of the campaign trail."

Dozens of people arrived before dawn to have the opportunity to hear Carter, age 94, speak.

Arrived when most people were already seated, Buttigieg's unannounced visit elicited a murmur from the crowd.

"Who is it?" Asked a man sitting in the back of the room.

"Mayor Pete, the presidential candidate," replied a woman.

Carter said that he knew Buttigieg after working on a Habitat for Humanity project in Indiana, where the mayor had volunteered.

Many in the class welcomed Buttigieg and took pictures with him before Carter arrived in the shrine and took up front positions to teach.