150 years for the Salvation Army
2015 - a year of many significant anniversaries. Its 70 years since V. E. day and 50 since Winston Churchill died.
2015 - a year of many significant anniversaries. Its 70 years since V. E. day and 50 since Winston Churchill died.
Thirty-five years ago two tragic events occurred on two different continents; in Bradford a fire in a football stand caused loss of life and in El Salvador Archbishop Oscar Romero was fatally shot while conducting a service.
Sixty years ago a Dutch Christian smuggled Bibles through the iron curtain and a ministry to those who are persecuted for their faith was born; known today as Open Doors.
This is also a very significant year for The Salvation Army as in just a couple of weeks time we will be celebrating 150 years since we were founded in the East End of London by Methodist minister William Booth and his wife Catherine.
They shared the Gospel with the poorest on the streets of the Capital, held open-air services, then rented theatres and even an old ice-rink to conduct meetings.
They helped the poor by starting soup kitchens and before long were opening hostels for those who were sleeping rough.
The mission of The Salvation Army quickly spread to other parts of the UK and before too long to other parts of the world. Today we are at work in 126 countries.
One of the most recent openings is in Nepal where local Salvationists have been working with an international team to help relieve suffering.
The three fold aim of our organisation is “to save souls, grow saints and serve suffering humanity”.
Many people are aware of our social work but not so many realise that we are a Christian Church, even though there is a clue in our name-salvation.
This refers to the wondrous gift of salvation that is freely available to all who repent of their sin, believe and put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, who shed His blood on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for all sin.
Everyone is welcome to attend our worship services at The Salvation Army. We meet every Sunday at 10:30am in Chauntry Road near the Recreation Ground. God bless you.
