As the first anniversary of the death of George Floyd approaches, the United Reformed Church (宅男福利社) has published a new collection of praise songs and protest, Sunflowers & Thistles.
Written by the Revd John Campbell, Minister of High Cross 宅男福利社, Tottenham, the book of 36 songs was inspired by the global Black Lives Matters (BLM) protests and devastating impact of Covid 19.
Available to download for free from , John explains how it became important for him to express the emotions of his congregation:
鈥淢y congregation is 95% black. I sit alongside the black experience all the time. During the height of BLM, there was a protest outside Tottenham Police Station, which I walk past every day. Someone had left a bouquet of sunflowers and thistles. It was unusual. It was hand-made, but I found myself thinking how the sunflowers could stand for the creative spirit of black people, how underappreciated that spirit is, and how the thistles represented the struggle to ensure that Black Lives Matter.
鈥淲hen George Floyd was murdered I, like many, was angered. Public demonstrations across the world showed clearly how this death struck a chord, even though many people have been killed at the hands of police in the States over the years.
鈥淎t church singing is a way of expressing our lament and joy and the pandemic stopped us from being able to do that. You鈥檇 have one person singing on Zoom. For me, this cause of our silencing and separation demanded new songs.鈥�
John has been writing songs for his local church for the past 25 years. In 2016, he wrote Songs to shake us up, a collection of 200 songs, he described his songs as 鈥渋ntentionally specific, contextual, immediate and ephemeral鈥�. That description still applies. For example, at points he borrows the language of BLM. In the song 鈥楾he engines of ambition鈥� John writes 鈥渁ll heaven will take the knee鈥�. In 鈥榃e鈥檙e facing a danger鈥�, about the Covid-19 crisis, John writes:
鈥淲e鈥檙e facing a danger we don鈥檛 understand,
we鈥檙e baffled by changes its risks now demand;
our gestures of kindness, of intimate care,
risk spreading contagion, so how can we share?鈥�
鈥淚 wrote Sunflowers and thistles hymn by hymn throughout 2020,鈥� he continues. 鈥淚t was emotionally difficult to write, especially the first one about George Floyd. That was very difficult because emotions were very strong at the time. I struggled to do the emotions justice. Each hymn took about two to three hours to write. I do have a favourite, but it varies because of what you鈥檙e facing at the time. It鈥檚 a bit like choosing between your children.鈥�
The minister of 40 years was due to retire at the start of the pandemic in April 2020, but says it felt wrong with so much going on. He now plans to retire in September.
鈥�I hope to keep writing songs in my retirement,鈥� he continues. 鈥淚 write hymns for a particular time and it seems that I am able to put into words for singing what some people want to say. It always surprises me that people appreciate them. I see these songs as my attempts to say what we as a congregation might want to say and sing in response to our world – not the words that I think, but what we 迟丑颈苍办.鈥�
Visit to download the PDF of the song booklet, to download the music versions of the songs, and for PowerPoint of selected songs for use in worship. Further resources and videos will be added in the coming weeks.