The former president and once-again-future president, who are historically something less than besties, chatted it up before the service began. (Michelle Obama was not in attendance.)

Three days after the Jan. 6 anniversary, with its indelible images of costumed rioters running amok in the Capitol, former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral service in the National Cathedral presented a historical picture of a different kind, one that spoke not of upended norms, but of preservation and strength.