On Sunday, January 15, FBC will celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in worship. We will welcome guest liturgist and organist Dr. Eileen Guenther, retired Professor of Church Music at Wesley Theological Seminary. Her role at the seminary extended to churches and musical and denominational organizations, for which she continues to lead workshops on music and social justice, global music, Spirituals, and clergy-music relations.
Dr. Guenther served with distinction as Director of Music at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Potomac, Maryland, and as Minister of Music and Liturgy at Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington, DC. She also served six years as National President of the 16,000 member American Guild of Organists, and was the third woman to lead this organization since its founding in 1896.
She is internationally acclaimed as a scholar of spirituals, and her book In Their Own Words: Slave Life and Power of Spirituals, published by MorningStar Music Publishers has been enthusiastically received and is in its third printing. For years, she led an annual Concert for Life which raised more than $600,000 for organizations serving those living with HIV/AIDS in southern Africa and in the Washington area. She was recently honored for her leadership at the 20th annual Concert for Life which celebrated the cumulative total of the concerts exceeding $1 million.
Dr. Guenther will return to First Baptist on Sunday, February 12, as our guest for Winter Forum.