Independence Day is a unique opportunity to revisit the “story” of america’s founding. Perhaps my favorite television show ever is HBO’s John Adams.  I had the privilege of corresponding (briefly) with David McCullough and encouraged him to make the upcoming 1776 series a “teaching moment” for the nation.  Hanging on my wall is the picture of George Washington praying at Valley Forge.  Our country was forged from the steel of faith and will be sustained through future trials and tribulations by it.

John Adams wrote in 1798 that “We have …

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This month saw the last of three Congressional roundtables organized by the Poverty Forum. The three roundtables were organized around the themes of:

- Strengthening civil society

- Developing asset building

- Promoting marriage and fatherhood

Each involved short presentations by subject matter experts and then a period of questions and discussion by the bi-partisan and bi-cameral Congressional staff who were present. The goal was to draw together those interested in these issues from both parties to see if consensus could be reached on common ground approaches to …

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The Clapham Group has gathered Songs to Stir Your Soul from friends across the globe. We hope you enjoy! If you have songs to add, please email us.

The Clapham Group would like to extend an invitation to experience an artist who moves both souls and feet – Anna Gilbert. Anna will be playing at Ebenezers Coffeehouse (201 F Street NE, Washington, DC) free of charge from 7:30-10:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 24. The event is being hosted by Ebenezers and the ONE Campaign.

An emerging indie artist from the Northwest, Anna’s musical exploration started as a child when her father introduced her to singing and playing the piano. Throughout …

Dear Friends,

I am not musical. But I love music and I recognize its impact on my adolescence.  Boston and The Doobie Brothers in junior high. Genesis and Talking Heads in senior high.  And, of course, U2 in college. Although I worked on Capitol Hill for 16 years, I came to appreciate that culture-not floor speeches and white papers-is this generation’s conduit of conversation. Movies, music, television and graphic novels are the “currency of consequence.”  In a postmodern, post-literate cultural context, narrative forms of communication teach and instruct more than our schools, parents …

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