Shirley Murray

Shirley Erena Murray (née Cockroft; 31 March 1931 – 25 January 2020) was a New Zealand hymnwriter. Her hymns have been translated into numerous languages and are represented in more than 140 hymn collections.

Biography Born in Invercargill and raised a Methodist, She earned a Master of Arts degree with honours in classics and French from the University of Otago,

She married John Stewart Murray in Cambridge, England, in 1954, In 2006, she became a fellow of the Royal School of Church Music. She received an honorary doctor of literature degree from the University of Otago in 2009. The same year, she was named a fellow of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada.

Murray lived with her husband at Raumati Beach near Wellington. The couple had three children and six grandchildren. She died on 25 January 2020, having been predeceased by her husband, John Murray, in 2017.

A biography Peace is Her Song: The life and legacy of hymn writer Shirley Erena Murray was written by Anne Manchester and published in 2024.