John Michael Talbot (born May 8, 1954) is an American

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

musician, author, television presenter and founder of a monastic community known as the Brothers and Sisters of Charity.

Life and career

Talbot was born into a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

family with a musical background in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

, and started learning to play the guitar at an early age. At age 15, he dropped out of school and was performing as a guitarist for

Mason Proffit Mason Proffit was an American country rock band from Indianapolis, Indiana, that released five albums between 1969 and 1973. They are known for their song "Two Hangmen", which garnered a significant amount of Album Oriented Rock airplay. History ...

, a country folk-rock band formed with his older brother Terry. Talbot embarked on a spiritual journey that led him through

Native American religion Native American religions are the spiritual practices of the Native Americans in the United States. Ceremonial ways can vary widely and are based on the differing histories and beliefs of individual nations, tribes and bands. Early European ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

and finally to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

. At this point, he and his brother, Terry, joined the

Jesus movement The Jesus movement was an Evangelicalism, evangelical Christian movement which began on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s and primarily spread throughout North America, Europe, and Central America, before it su ...

and recorded the album ''Reborn'', which was re-released by

Sparrow Records Sparrow Records is a Christian music record label and a division of Universal Music Group. History Sparrow Records was founded in 1976 by Billy Ray Hearn, then artists and repertoire (A&R) director at Myrrh Records. Purchased by Thorn EMI in ...

(originally released as ''The Talbot Brothers'' on the Warner Brothers label). Two solo albums followed for Talbot: ''John Michael Talbot'' (1976) and ''The New Earth'' (1977). Both of these were recorded at Golden Voice Recording Studio in

South Pekin, Illinois South Pekin is a village in Tazewell County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,146 at the 2010 census and is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. History South Pekin was incorporated on April 12, 1917, five mi ...

, and produced by

Billy Ray Hearn Billy Ray Hearn (April 26, 1929April 15, 2015) was the founder and chairman of the Capitol Christian Music Group (formerly EMI Christian Music Group) the world's largest Christian music label.McNeil, W. K. Encyclopedia of American gospel music.' ...

. Reading the life of Saint

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

, he was inspired to begin studying at a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

center in Indianapolis. He then became a

Catholic Christian The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and joined the

Secular Franciscan Order The Secular Franciscan Order ( la, Ordo Franciscanus Saecularis; abbreviated OFS) is the third branch of the Franciscan Family formed by Catholic Church, Catholic men and women who seek to observe the Gospel of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus by fo ...

in 1978. His new beliefs influenced his next solo albums, ''The Lord's Supper'' (1979) and its follow-up, ''Come to the Quiet'' (1980). In the years that followed, he continually released new albums and became the best-selling artist in the history of Sparrow Records. He started a house of prayer called "The Little Portion". Talbot moved The Little Portion to

Berryville, Arkansas Berryville ( ) is a city in Carroll County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 5,682 at the 2020 census. making it the largest city in Carroll County. Along with Eureka Springs, it is one of the two county seats of Carroll County. His ...

, on land he had purchased during his Mason Proffit days. He founded his own community, the Brothers and Sisters of Charity, at Little Portion Hermitage as an "integrated monastic community" with celibate brothers and sisters, singles, and families. By 1989, Talbot had married Viola Pratka (with the permission of the Catholic Church), a former Incarnate Word Sister who had come to the community in 1986. In accordance with the community's general constitutions, Talbot's title is "General Minister and Spiritual Father". For many years, he has promoted the work of

Mercy Corps Mercy Corps is a global non-governmental, humanitarian aid organization operating in transitional contexts that have undergone, or have been undergoing, various forms of economic, environmental, social and political instabilities. The organizatio ...

. The hermitage suffered a fire in April 2008 in which the chapel, library and many common areas were destroyed. On April 10, 2010, the Bishop of Little Rock, Anthony Taylor, dedicated the new buildings. On October 2, 2010, the Brothers and Sisters of Charity at Little Portion Hermitage celebrated the opening of the new monastery church and common center. Talbot is the host of an inspirational television program, ''All Things Are Possible'', on

The Church Channel TBN Inspire is an American Christian broadcast television network owned by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). It is carried on the digital subchannels of TBN's stations. The network originally launched as The Church Channel, which focu ...

which is owned and operated by the

Trinity Broadcasting Network The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) is an international Christian-based broadcast television network and the world's largest religious television network. TBN was headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, until March 3, 2017, when it sold its ...

Discography

With Mason Proffit

* double album reissue of ''Wanted'' and ''Movin' Toward Happiness''

Solo

Collections

*1980 Beginnings *1989 Master Collection V1 - The Quiet Side *1995 Collection *1995 The Talbot Brothers Collection *2003 Signatures *2003 History Makers *2008 The Troubadour Years

Bibliography

Books

*''St. Romuald's Hermitage of the Heart: 40 Days to Peace, Prayer, and the Presence of God'' — (Book Baby) (2021) *''The Music of Creation: Foundations of a Christian Life'' — (Tarcher/Putnam) (1999) *''Changes: A Spiritual Journal'' — (Troubadour For The Lord) *''Blessings: Reflections On The Beatitudes'' — (Crossroads Publishing) *''Come to the Quiet: The Principles Of Christian Meditation'' — (J.P. Tarcher) *''The Fire of God'' – (Troubadour for the Lord) *''Hermitage: A Place Of Prayer & Spiritual Renewal'' — (Troubadour For The Lord) *''Simplicity'' (with Dan O'Neill) *''The Joy of Music Ministry'' (Resurrection Press) *''Lessons of St. Francis: Bring Simplicity & Spirituality Into Your Daily Life'' — (Plume Books) *''The Lover and the Beloved: A Way Of Franciscan Prayer'' — (Troubadour For The Lord) *''Meditations From Solitude: A Mystical Theology From The Christian East'' — (Troubadour For The Lord) *''Reflections on the Gospels, Vol. 1: Daily Devotions For Radical Christian Living'' – (Troubadour for the Lord) *''Reflections on the Gospels, Vol. 2: Daily Devotions For Radical Christian Living'' – (Troubadour for the Lord) *''Reflections on the Gospels, VOL. 3: A Passion For God'' – (Servant Publications) *''Signatures'' (with Dan O'Neill) – (Troubadour for the Lord) *''The Way of the Mystics: Ancient Wisdom For Today'' (with Steve Rabey) — (Jossey-Bass) *''Reflections on Saint Francis'' (Liturgical Press) *''The World Is My Cloister: Living from the Hermit Within' (Orbis Books) *''The Universal Monk: The Way of the New Monastic'' (Liturgical Press) *''Blessings of Saint Benedict'' (Liturgical Press) *''The Jesus Prayer - A Cry For Mercy, A Path of Renewal'' (Inter-Varsity Press) *''Nothing Is Impossible With God'' (Dynamic Catholic)

Video releases

*''All Things Are Possible With God'' (2014, Troubadour for the Lord) *''Nothing Is Impossible'' (2012, Troubadour for the Lord) *''Live in Concert'' (2001, Troubadour for the Lord) *''Quiet Reflections'' (1991, Santa Fe Communications, Inc.)

Information sources

*''Troubadour for the Lord: The Story of John Michael Talbot'' by Dan O'Neill — (Crossroad Publishing) (1983) *''Signatures: The Story Of John Michael Talbot'' by Dan O'Neill — (Troubadour For The Lord) (2004) (revised version of his earlier biography "Troubadour for the Lord")

References

External links

*
Little Portion Community website

Review: ''Monk Rock''
at The-Trades.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Talbot, John Michael 1954 births Living people 20th-century American singers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century Roman Catholics 21st-century American singers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century Roman Catholics American Christian writers American male singer-songwriters American male non-fiction writers American performers of Christian music Contemporary Catholic liturgical music Converts to Roman Catholicism from Evangelicalism Founders of Catholic religious communities Musicians from Oklahoma City People from Berryville, Arkansas Secular Franciscans Catholics from Arkansas 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers Singer-songwriters from Oklahoma Singer-songwriters from Arkansas