July 19, 2013 in News, Politics
SOME churches in Zimbabwe have postponed their
annual gatherings, which usually take place between July and August, fearing
the events would be hijacked by politicians as the country marches towards
crucial polls set for July 31.
Sources in the Salvation Army said the church’s
annual meeting that had been pencilled for July in Gweru was called off to
avoid politicians turning the events into political rallies.
“We were to have our annual meeting in Gweru
but judging by the political temperatures which are rising, the leadership
decided to postpone them until after the elections,” said a Salvation Army
member.
“In the past we have seen politicians taking
over our meetings and turning them into rallies.”The sources also said Vice-President Joice Mujuru, who is a senior captain in the Salvation Army, would most likely have attended the meeting with her party supporters.
_________________________________
There are 126,000 Senior Soldiers and 504 active
officers In Zimbabwe, and by comparison there are 28,000 Senior Soldiers
in the UKTI. The acting President, Salvationist Joice Mujuru,
is a strong
contended for the Presidency with the voting taking place on July 31.
A report from First All Africa Congress draws
thousands of Salvationists from across the continent
"THE 7,000 delegates
to the Salvation Army's first-ever All Africa Congress rejoiced together as the
congress opened at the National Sports Stadium in Harare, Zimbabwe. ( The Royal
Albert Hall in use since it was opened in March 1871 and for special
UKTI and international SA events seats just over 5,000).
To the jubilant strains of the Zimbabwe
Territorial Band, General John Larsson, Commissioner Freda Larsson, Chief of
the Staff Commissioner Israel L. Gaither, Commissioner Eva D. Gaither and
Africa Zone leaders Commissioners Amos and Rosemary Makina marched in together
with a vast host of Salvationists from all of the African territories, commands
and regions.
The international leaders had earlier been
welcomed at the airport by the Zimbabwe territorial leaders Commissioners
Stanslous and Jannet Mutewera along with the Vice President of Zimbabwe, Her
Excellency Joyce T. Mujuru, the acting mayor of Harare and the town clerk, all
of whom are Salvationists.
The visit of the Chief of the Staff
Commissioners Barry and Sue Swanson
The Salvation Army works in 126 countries and in
every country Salvationists respond to the health concerns in their communities
through more than 15,000 churches (corps). In addition to church-based
programmes, The Salvation Army currently has 183 health programmes in 39
countries, focusing on healthcare and the prevention of disease. These include
23 general hospitals and more than 150 clinics and health posts. Almost all of
these include response to HIV/AIDS.
7 comments:
Interesting comparison - but, I would like to think that Salvationists in general don't issue death threats, seize land from those who've farmed them for generations and vote blindly because she's a Sr. Captain, whatever that is?!
One of the shrinking, thinking lot in the UK
I, too, am one of the above shrinker/thinkers - there aren't many of us about! I think I may be the only one in my division who is aware of this matter, and I have only found out by accessing this blog. I am merely a lowly soldier, and I can see the rot setting in - where are the Officers, DCs etc? Not a peep of this sorry affair has made its way down the ranks. You have to say, the upper echelons are doing a fantastic job in making the facts watertight, but our God is not sleeping - He is looking down on all this, and I believe He is weeping. Satan isn't sleeping either, and is probably dancing with delight at the way this issue is developing. The deeper it's buried, the greater will be the downfall of TSA in the end. It is a classic case of the blind leading the blind. Deliberate blindness by the people at the top - turning the proverbial blind eye to the ensuing mess and refusing to acknowledge it - and blindness by the soldiery through ignorance of the facts. Despite not knowing about it, we are still been carried along on the actions of those at the top, so they are also deceiving us as members.
I know maybe standards are different in countries like Zimbabwe, and life is undoubtedly harder, but I agree with the above 'anonymous' - the way the VP acquired her position and wealth is not in accordance to Biblical principles. I too am bewildered by the title 'senior captain' - I thought it was 'officer' status - any enlighteners out there?
UK Soldier
The enlightenment provided by your blog on this tragic series of events has been extraordinary.
One can hope that the lower echelon of officers are tuning in and learning from it because official SA sites aren't allowed to comment on it.
Is this the SA you and I signed on to serve in? How long will this facade be allowed to stifle truth and transparency?
Shame on you, acting General Cox! You, with experience in Africa, should know better than most.
Disheartened officer USA
To 'Disheartened Officer'
Please don't be too despondent - these events have a habit of stifling our personal service and preventing us from focusing on the Lord and what He is still doing in people's lives in spite of this debacle. There are a lot of former officers on this site - far too many - and having seen first hand how the Army does not care for their officers' welfare, I can understand why many of them resigned or left by other avenues. TSA certainly does not teach by example.
TSA today is not TSA I signed on to serve in - I think - although it may well be. I don't know, really, because I signed up to it when I was young and unconcerned/unaware of issues such as this. TSA has been involved in various shenanigans over the years, but I have not known about them - I guess because TSA has stifled them, too.
But in this age of the internet, scandals like this will not go away, and TSA will have to tell the truth at some time about this, but we who have not been involved in the decision-making cannot be held to blame for any of it. We can, though, be doggedly determined to see this through to the end by blogging and encouraging those who can to do something about it. It needs to be spoken about to raise its profile, especially as TSA refuses to comment on it to a wider audience.
But the end of the day, tragic though this situation is, there are still souls to be won for Christ, still people who are presently lost to the kingdom who would remain lost if we gave up, and we are, after all, the priesthood of all believers, and if we fail at our end then Satan will have won completely.
A previous blogger stated that TSA would have to go through the burn on this issue, and with God's help and our application, emerge as a renewed, God-honouring SA. I say, 'send the fire!' It can't come quickly enough to save the people who remain without help because TSA's intransigence.
UK
Senior captain was, for a while, a rank between captain and major. I remember a few from my youth! (There also used to be second lieutenants and first lieutenants). I'm not sure if any still survive. But yes it was a commissioned officer rank. So either its a self-appointed designation or things work differently in Zim.
Former UK
I think you are undoubtedly right in saying things work differently in Zim.
I think we need to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. But this series is showing there is soome bathwater that need throwing.
"senior captain" could just be a mistake that is commonly made by the general public (in the UK anyway) which has been repeated by the press. A lot of the general public think everyone in TSA is a captain.
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