Ullorissat has come up with the Finance Act

When Anthonia Petersen Brandt had to say goodbye to her mother, Erika Petersen, last week, it was done with Greenlandic hymn singing, as well as the laying on of the soil and the Lord's Prayer in Greenlandic, even though the funeral took place in Denmark, in the old church in Brønderslev.

This is due to the Ullorissat choir from Aalborg, who, together with catechist Ove Poulsen from Hirtshals, have made it a matter of the heart to contribute Greenlandic hymns to funerals, burials and church services.

Ullorissat has just been included in the Danish finance law, where the choir has received 500,000 kroner to support church services and church activities for Greenlanders in Denmark.

The funeral of Erika Petersen in Brønderslev was officiated by the local parish priest Thomas Søvndal and took place according to the rules and rituals that are to be used in the Danish Folk Church. However, space was given for both Ullorissat and the participants in the funeral to sing Greenlandic speeches – and at the end, the parish priest and catechist Ove Poulsen shared the burial in Danish and Greenlandic before the coffin was taken out of the church.

Slow motion

The organist of the day was Tobias Naumann, with whom Ullorissat has worked for several years. He comes from Germany, but has learned a lot about the Greenlandic hymns through the collaboration.

- It's really slow motion and a completely different rhythm than we know in the Western hymn tradition – and it was a bit of a challenge the first few times I played with Ullorissat. But it's beautiful, explains Tobias Neumann.

For Anthonia Petersen Brandt, the Greenlandic contribution to the funeral meant a lot.

- We grew up with the Greenlandic hymns, which are part of our culture. It's as if it comes directly from the heart when we sing in Greenlandic – and Ullorissat's participation helped to make the funeral a beautiful ceremony, which I am very happy about, says Anthonia Petersen Brandt, who also had to say goodbye to her father just over two years ago.

- It was in Danish, as it should be in the Danish national church. That's the rules anyway, but I'm very happy that this time we could have both the Greenlandic hymns and the Lord's Prayer and the offering of the soil in Greenlandic for my mother's funeral. It was so beautiful and a wonderful experience - in the midst of all the sadness. I really appreciate that.

Ullorissat has eight members and is based in the Church of Our Lady in Aalborg. The church is located in the center of Aalborg and has many Greenlanders in the congregation. This led a few years ago to Jennifer Angel Winther, who is also the choir director in Ullorissat, being hired for a few hours as a Greenlandic church singer – and the church also acquired Greenlandic hymnals.

The desire drives the work

Four years ago, Ullorissat began going out to North Jutland and singing at funerals and also at Greenlandic church services, which are conducted by catechist Ove Poulsen, who originally comes from Paamiut, but has now lived in Denmark for a number of years.

- It is the desire that drives the work, says Jennifer Angel Winther.

- It gives all of us in Ullorissat strength and energy to give something to others – and we live by that. Every time we attend a funeral, we can see that it creates joy – and it is simply a great gift to us.

In addition to a number of church services in North Jutland, Ullorissat participates in many funerals – not just in North Jutland, but throughout the country. This results in many kilometers in the car, where Jennifer takes the others with her.

- Not all of them, but we usually have three to four singers on the road. That's over 30,000 kilometers in the last year.

- That's why we are also happy that we have now received support through the Finance Act. Part of the money will be used to pay for our transport. We also plan to acquire a Greenlandic flag.

- When we Greenlanders are together, Erfalasorput is important. We also always tell people when we are out in churches that it would be a good idea if they acquired the Greenlandic flag, because it means a lot to us Greenlanders. Fortunately, the wish has also been granted in many places, but not all – and it is important that we can have a flag with us.

Continuing education

Two of Ullorissat's members, Jennifer Angel Winther and Marie Lynge Møller, are currently undergoing training at the Diaconal School in Aarhus. According to Jennifer Angel Winther, the training corresponds to the Greenlandic catechist training and will enable the two to carry out some of the tasks that Ove Poulsen currently carries out in collaboration with Ullorissat.

- It is an expensive education, so we have agreed that part of the money from the Finance Act will cover our costs in connection with the education - and we also dream of being able to buy a set of Greenlandic hymnals that we can take to funerals in churches where they are not available.

- But that will only happen later. Now we need to carefully try to see how far the 500,000 kroner will go before we dive into more investments, says Jennifer Angel Winther.

- We are very happy about the support through the Finance Act. It is a pat on the back that shows a political recognition that we are covering a great need among the many Greenlanders in Denmark.