Who is John Thornburg and what can A Ministry of Congregational Singing do for you?
- John is an entrepreneur of hope. He cares about the role singing plays in producing hope in a congregation or an event.
- John cares about the church’s song across the centuries, across the various styles and across the globe. The events he does attempt to open up all of these vistas.
- John cares about everybody who plans and leads worship. He has been a pastor for 30 years, has been a free-lance song enlivener for the last ten, and visits dozens of churches every year. He listens well to pastors, musicians and laity and spends his life in the slipstream between and among them.
The specifics of what John can do for you
John as song enlivener/worship leader
- A Sunday morning sermon in song
- An afternoon or evening of world song, featuring lively praise from Central and South America, Africa and Asia
- Introducing your congregation to a deeper understanding of its own hymnal, or to one of the recent hymnal supplements
- Using a Sunday morning or some other occasion to trace a Christian doctrine or biblical theme in song, “across the centuries, across the styles, across the globe”
- Helping a choir, band or other ensemble be more effective in their leadership of the congregation’s singing
- Planning and leading worship for a church-wide retreat or leadership retreat
John as consultant
- helping assess the current musical ‘diet’ of your congregation to see if it is balanced and nutritious
- helping mediate disputes among groups in a congregation that don’t appreciate each others’ passions
- helping you find the most poignant and appropriate hymns, songs and choruses for Sunday morning worship
- helping you expand your awareness of the vast supply of interesting church music and congregational song that is available
John as poet
- commissions for situation-specific hymns to honor people, occasions, anniversaries, or just because a new song may bring new life and meaning
- liturgical material for special occasions; poetry or prose to connect pieces in a concert
Contact:
John Thornburg
9553 Atherton Drive, Dallas, TX 75243
214-341-6800
thornburg.john@gmail.com
Website: www.congregationalsinging.com
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Rev. John Thornburg
John Thornburg is a preacher/singer who believes in the transforming power of the gospel. He loves to laugh with others and at himself. In his 22 years of parish ministry, he was known as an innovative worship leader and teacher as well as an inspiring preacher. His mentors for this ministry include people like composers Jane Marshall, John Ferguson and Alice Parker, song enliveners John Bell and Alison Adam, ethnomusicologist Michael Hawn, singer/songwriter Billy Crockett, worship leaders Mark Miller and Jorge Lockward and poets Mary Louise Bringle and Thomas Troeger. He has led singing in local churches from Boston to Berkeley, at youth gatherings and retirement centers, and at both regional and national conventions. He has also led singing in several west African congregations during his work with the Cameroon Mission of the United Methodist Church.