The Salvation Army originated as an offshoot of Methodism and initially was active in East London. It has grown to be an international organisation. Its main focus is bringing individuals to seek forgiveness of sins and acceptance, through grace, of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. Its major activity is to bring sustenance to the most needy in society and show God's love for them. It is engaged in what the authors of Faith in the City describe as ambulance work.
The work of The Salvation Army is well recognised by the UK population to the extent that there are those who believe it is an organisation engaged in good works and not a religious organisation.
One of the reasons I became an Adherent was my admiration of the work in the UK being undertaken by The Salvation Army with individuals in communities often suffering from multiple deprivation. An issue the Army faces is that it is not in a position to provide services in all the places they are needed. Also in some areas corps do not have the capacity to engage and this has led to a new way of working called Fresh Expressions.
In the current economic climate of rampant inflation and cuts in public services the Army is sorely pressed to deal with the needs of individuals and the pressure placed on it as statutory support services are overwhelmed.
This is a consequence in part of years of failure by central and local government to tackle in depth the causes of deprivation. In my experience The Salvation Army has been slow to criticise, to demand change and propose remedies in concerted programmes of campaigning. However that is not to diminish the work it does undertake.
Next: JK Galbraith and the Underclass
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