Anglican Communion News Service

Saturday 31 January was an historic day for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK), Liverpool Anglican Cathedral and more than 3000 young people.

Delirious?, one of the world’s most successful Christian Rock bands, and their support group, Super Hero, were greeted by a thunderous roar from the young people packed into the nave of this magnificent building. The evocative lighting picked out the architectural features of the 100-year-old Cathedral, creating a truly intense, dramatic and spiritual atmosphere. This event marked the formal launch of SPCK Bookshops new strategy: helping people to engage with the Christian message through programmes of events.

Working in partnership with churches and Christian organisations, this new strategy will include rock concerts, author lectures and events where people can engage with important issues such as homelessness, the environment, peace, and crime and justice. “This is the start of something truly exciting for the Society and we hope it will help churches and Christian communities to reach people ‘where they are at’,” said Malcolm Munro-Faure, the bookshops director at SPCK. “We want to help open people’s eyes to the Christian message as it relates to life today.”

Sam Dawson, the manager at the SPCK shop in Liverpool Cathedral, was delighted to organise this prestigious event. “…this is a whole new mission for SPCK, helping us reach out to people,” she said. “A major Christian Rock Concert in a Cathedral…this does not happen very often! I was thrilled that SPCK and the Cathedral could come together to organise this landmark event. It is a wonderful way to celebrate the Cathedral’s 100th birthday! We hope to work with the Cathedral to organise this sort of event on a regular basis. It really brings the Cathedral to life.”

Delirious? has never played in a Cathedral before and were particularly excited about the event in the UK’s largest Anglican Cathedral. Many young people came to the event because it was in a Christian venue. One youth leader, who brought 36 young people, pointed out, “The concert in Birmingham would have been much closer for us - but the kids wanted to see their favourite band in this Cathedral and not just a concert hall.”

The whole band was moved by this unique experience as lead singer, Martin Smith, explained, “Tonight was one of those nights I’ll remember forever. There were more than 3000 people crammed into the Liverpool Cathedral and the presence of the living God visited us with grace. Just to be in a building that has witnessed the prayers of the saints for a century was spine tingling, and it was a delight to sing some of our songs in that context.”

He added, “It’s great to go out on stage and to believe that God can move through music and break into someone’s heart. It was a privilege to be in this band and see more of our dreams come true.”

The next big programme being organised by SPCK in Liverpool Cathedral will be a week of events focusing on the Environment during May.

During March, J John, the well-known evangelist, will commence a tour of 9 SPCK bookshops. Singer and songwriter Nicki Rogers will provide music at these events.

For further details about these events or about SPCK bookshops please contact:

Malcolm Munro-Faure
Bookshops Director
Tel: 0207 643 0346
Email: mmunrofaure@spck.org.uk

Julian Scott
Media Development Manager
Tel: 0116 212 7990
Email: jscott@spck.org.uk