What do you really need to know to be an American?

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George Washington George Washington|Wikimedia Commons

What do you really need to know to be an American?

What if every American reflected on the legacy of George Washington the way Eric Metaxas has? The bestselling author profiled Washington in his latest book, 7 Men, which explores how great men from history can inspire greatness today. In a speech at the U.S. Capitol in 2013, Metaxas said Washington’s best quality was not his ambition but his self-restraint, a quality sorely lacking in today’s political scene.

The World and Everything In It highlights Metaxas’s speech in commemoration of Presidents Day.

Metaxas gave an unapologetic, Jesus-touting speech at the 2012 National Prayer Breakfast. In a 2012 interview, Metaxas talked to WORLD about the relationship between church and culture, saying, “Merely trying to be hip and relevant is the antithesis of being courageous, faithful, and obedient.” Metaxas is known for his bestselling biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, but he has also written children's stories and humor books.

Joseph Slife Joseph is a former senior producer of WORLD Radio and former co-host of The World and Everything in It podcast.

Lynde Langdon

Lynde is WORLD’s executive editor for news. She is a graduate of World Journalism Institute, the Missouri School of Journalism, and the University of Missouri–St. Louis. Lynde resides with her family in Wichita, Kan.

@lmlangdon