Mission: LATVIA 2010 Part Four

PLEASE DADDY, DON'T DRINK !




The Latvian headline read; Latvian pedestrian with twice lethal alcohol level killed by car while he lay in a drunken stupor on the roadside. My mind immediately raced to Sakarny.

Sakarny is the site of former Soviet military barracks abandoned in 1991 when the Russians recalled all troops subsequent to Latvia’s independence. The Latvian government adapted the barracks for use, copying a Russian model where all possible social ills are hidden from view. During Soviet times in Russia the sight impaired, deaf, and physically challenged persons were all relegated to infirmaries and institutions hidden far from cities and towns. It was the government’s clumsy attempt at hiding a less than perfect Soviet citizen, often claiming to a doubting ‘west’ that there is no missing chapter dealing with their disability history.

Some visitors to our blog may recall that during the 1980 Olympic games in Moscow, a Western journalist inquired whether the Soviet Union would participate in the first Paralympic games, scheduled to take place in Great Britain later that year. The reply from a Soviet representative was swift, firm, and puzzling: "There are no invalids in the USSR!" (Fefelov 1986).1 This apparatchik's denial of the very existence of citizens with disabilities encapsulated the politics of exclusion and social distancing that characterized disability policy under state socialism. Historically throughout the former Soviet bloc, persons with physical and mental disabilities have been stigmatized, hidden from the public, and thus made seemingly invisible (Dunn and Dunn 1989).

In Sakarny Latvian alcoholic families are hidden away from public view and their dependence distanced from the reality of Latvian society. Some thirty families many with children are housed in unheated flats with only the basic necessary pieces of furniture. There is no running water or plumbing of any kind. A tractor brings logs from the nearby forest to be used to heat the very crude make-shift furnaces. Many of the adults can’t be bothered to make the effort to collect the logs and heat their flats so the children suffer while their parents remain in a drunken stupor.

There are no shops in the settlement of six barracks, and the only items for consumption sold is bootleg liquor sold by traffickers. The children, some as young as 6 and 7, become unwitting enablers in the attempts to protect their parents as best as possible. This includes carrying them in from sub zero temperatures, cooking, and feeding them and cleaning the messes their parents make. They shield their parents’ addictions from their friends by never inviting them to visit. Such behaviors are referred to as codependence.

Sakarny has been an area of particular interest to the FSAOF since we first learned of the children’s plight. This included the need for warm winter clothing and financial support to provide school lunches. Both challenges were met and we were anxious to visit first hand to see what had transpired.

We arrived in Sakarny in our Toyota van following the Corps leaders in their Ford station wagon on a sunny Sunday, with the temperature hovering at -10. From a distance we could see the children playing in the snow. Even in the sub zero temperature it was a more desirable place to be than in the flats watching their parents in various degrees of drunkenness. However, they were comfortably dressed and warm thanks to the kindness of a great many people not least, those in Exeter who responded to the articles in the Express and Echo.

When the children spied the familiar SA station wagon they all came running waving and shouting their hellos. The Captain and his wife are more than pastors to them, they are their surrogate parents. Some of the children have been moved to nearby Skangali, a SA children’s home where they reside Monday – Friday under a special judicial ruling allowing the SA to make legal arrangements directly with the parents as to the care of the children. The Sakarny children who live with the orphans during week are jokingly referred to as missionaries as they constantly talk about Jesus, with the 23 orphans housed there. The childrens home operates a pre school programme three times a week from 9-1 where the children are provided two meals and a warm shower. One of the young girls was presented with soap and shampoo as she emtered the shower- on exiting the shower some minutes later it was noticed that neither the soap or the shampoo had been used; she had no idea what they were to be used for!

The children, who knew nothing of Glad and me hugged us warmly as if we were their family, no doubt due our uniforms with which they would be familiar. The oldest girl had all the children line up in a row as if they were siblings and named each of them for us. We then asked if we could take their photo and they promptly took their places. Then, out came ‘Babushka’ (grandmother), the mother of one of the alcoholics and who assists in caring for all of the children when they join in the Army activities arranged for them in the two rooms allocated by the local government for our use. (The SA will soon be provided additional space and it is our intent to take a work team to Sakarny in the summer of 2010 to renovate some of the flats in which the families live along with designated SA facilities.

When it came time to leave one of the boys threw himself on the ground in front of our car and the others joined in and there was soon a pile of children letting us know they didn’t want us to leave. The joy on their faces was infectious and their spirits exuded love and affection, the result of constant contact with their Christian ‘parents’. One of the young girls asked if she could pray with us before we left and, of course, we said ‘yes’. Her prayer was not (from what I understood from my limited knowledge of the Russian language) one asking for a better life, heat and comfort, regular meals … She thanked God for these visitors who had come and for all those others who had assisted in providing warm clothing and who had guaranteed that there would be a lunch served every day in school … and then she closed with a lengthy petition that God would grant Glad and Sven travelling mercies; roads clear of snow, a warm bed and smooth seas!

The army's presence and Christ's imprint on their young lives were unmistakable !

Dr. Sven Ljungholm
Former
Exeter Temple Corps, UK

Mission: LATVIA 2010 Part Three

We did not dare to breathe a prayer,
Or give our anguish scope.
Something was dead within each of us,
And what was dead was Hope
Oscar Wilde

Those words seemed uniquely apt and could well be applied to each of the one hundred and seventy five 'homeless' persons who met to worship for three hours today at The Salvation Army Riga II Corps, Latvia. The service in the capital of Latvia was conducted entirely in the Russian language which is the mother tongue of more than 30% of the Latvian population. These are a people living in exile, a diaspora population abandoned by both their country of origin and the country where they were born, raised and reside.

Subsequent to the Russian invasion of the Baltic states 100's of thousands of Russians were transported to every corner of Latvia and the other conquered nations to indoctrinate the people in ways Russian. Now, some six decades later and following perestrokia, the people are second and third generation Latvians without any rights. They have no possibility to gain citizenship in Latvia, and their homeland Russia, don't want them either as they would only add to the unemployment and social problems already so prevalent in Russia.

They are a people without a country and without a home. The majority are unemployed and are on a constant search for a place to rest their head each and every night. The most recently enrolled soldier shared that he sleeps in the trolley station during the day but when the doors are locked at 8.00pm he wonders the streets in sub zero weather until dawn and then repeats the process. Today however, he moved into a flat with four other recently enrolled soldiers a stones throw away from the Corps were he and his colleagues spend all their time assisting the CO in providing social services. The costs are assumed by salvationist friends in the 'west'. Ought a 2nd flat become a FSAOF project?

The hopes of these worshippers are not for a middle class life or to auto ownership or vacations abroad. Their hope is simple just one more hot meal, a warm place, and a loving heart and listening ear; they have found them.

Were you to visit their worship service you would find that pungent smell so familiar to every SA Officer from days working with the homeless that visited your Corps or institution. These are the people Jesus said we ought to 'see as better than yourself". These are the people for whom Jesus died to give hope and erase anguish. Had only one of these downtrodden souls ever lived Jesus would have come for them. And He comes yet today thanks to the selfless loving embrace extended by these Salvationist heroes.

The singing was electric - the prayers moved us to Heaven - the testimonies gripping - the preaching powerful and compelling; resulting in queues waiting to kneel at the mercy seat. It was the Army at its most authentic and I was humbled to think that God has a place in it for you and me.

Tomorrow we set of to see the children for whom you and all in our fellowship provided winter clothing and funding for their school meals through the end of the school year. We will bring greetings on behalf of you all as I know you lft up our Salvationist comrades in Latvia in prayer.

'And what was dead was Hope"... however, here we saw a new flame of hope lit again, and again, and again, and ...

















Sven Ljungholm
Former
On Royal Service in Latvia

Sweden-Latvia

Sandwich maker, coffee porer and chief Navigator, Glad














CITY HALL, STOCKHOLM













Coffee with friends at THQ Stockholm, Sweden, Kai and Goran...











Safe in Riga, Latvia




















CLOTHES AND UNIFORMS BEING UNLOADED AT THE LATVIAN SA RHQ; Regional Commander Peter Baronowsky leads the way...

Mission: LATVIA 2010 Part Two

An obvious need, when learning of the many soldiers being enrolled in Latvia was the need for uniforms. An appeal went out to Glad’s (Major Ljungholm) Facebook friends and other parties, and again the response was immediate. Uniforms and other SA logo identified clothing was received until the day of our departure from every corner of the UK (in one of the columns on the right you will see a list of those Corps and individuals who donated uniforms).
Due the uncertainty of the weather the day of our ferry departure from England we journeyed to the Harwich area the day prior to our departure and were hosted by Majors Alan and Carolyn Read, CO’s at Ipswich Citadel,
We joined in their holiness meeting the next morning; appropriately it was their Commitment Sunday where we were challenged to re-consider our Covenant with God. The privilege to sit and worship and to be ministered to on such a day was a very special gift to me and perfect with the timing of our mission, our adventure…


Alan, unexpectedly invited me to share something of our reason for being there, our mission, our adventure. This was followed by the singing of the songsters and as their leader, Juliette Parker introduced their piece she was visibly moved by the hand of God in her choice of song: ‘We are the hands of Christ’, selected by her to replace another, just prior to the meeting;

We are the hands of Christ.
He uses us each day to show his love to everyone
In every kind of way.
We are the feet of Christ. his errands we must run
To fetch to carry and to help
In every way we can.

We are the eyes of Christ. All beauty we must share.
And hope one day to bring to him all those who do not care.
We are the lips of Christ. He speaks throught us to men
To cheer to comfort ant to tell
Of his great love for them.

We are the friends of Christ.
We love his work to do
His friendship is so wonderful.will you not share it too?
We are the hands of Christ. he uses us each day.
To show his love to everyone.
In every kind of way.

We are the body of Christ.

We were privileged to witness acts of commitment and covenant being made by people around the hall. And then, very movingly, we personally witnessed two more as the meeting concluded, when the Songster Leader and her husband Peter took off their uniform shoes and gave them to us to carry with, along with the uniforms to Latvia. The CO too made a commitment stating that they had many uniforms for Latvia if we could find room.

This highly emotional morning was followed by good food and fellowship shared with Alan and Carolyn Read at a local restaurant. We then re-commenced our journey and headed for Harwich and the boat.

On arrival in Riga we will unpack our van and I expect we will present the Command Headquarters’ leadership with at least 50 uniforms some still carrying the trim reading; Cwm, Folkestone, Peterborough, Exeter Temple and others. We made


As I typed these words, sitting in the very cold lobby of our hotel in Riga, it has come to me again what a responsibility and pleasure it is to be able to work for Christ and also to thank him for the inspiration and the strength that He gives to us to do this work.

I will share more tomorrow of what we in the FSAOF are doing together n this remote part of God’s vineyard.

End Part Two

Dr. Sven Ljungholm
Former
Exeter, UKT

Mission: LATVIA 2010 Part One

Dawn has yet to come this morning, however, that’s not uncommon at this time of year in these northern climes. The sun rises and sits just above the horizon at about 9:30 am, in about three hours, and sets again in the late afternoon. At 11.00 am the ‘M/S Romantika’ will dock in Riga and we will disembark in our Toyota people carrier fully laden, not with people, but with donations to keep people warm.

We were here six months ago and all the major changes we expect to observe and experience will be negative; more unemployment, a deeper recession, poverty worsening and temperatures hovering at -20 degrees with many homes without heat, electricity or plumbing.

Every ‘former’ Officer will recall specific moments when God, in the words of the Carmelite nun Teresa of Avila wrote this brief job description of a Christian to help us to understand our mission.

"Christ has no body now on earth but yours,
no hands but yours, no feet but yours,

Yours are the eyes through which to look out
Christ's compassion to the world

Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good;
Yours are the hands with which he is to bless men now."

Perhaps you were stationed in an inner city Corps, at a remote SA outpost, or ministering in a social service appointment, or an administrative position. We had been taught and knew from experience that God assigns SA Officers to very unique tasks, and we have carried that call with us as we entered new adventures in being the ‘hands and feet of Jesus’. Some have planted churches, some still work for the SA, others teach and smany left in order to enjoy the blessings of partnership. Yet, that call to service rings loud and clear particularly when we see people suffering. That was our experience when we visited Latvia last September. Peter and Rut Baronowsky the Regional Commanders had just taken up their appointment and shared with us many of the urgent needs of the Latvian people and the SA in Latvia. Having spent several years in a similar leadership role in Russia and subsequently Ukraine, I sensed God saying that my experience coupled with that of the FSAOF and Glad’s comrades in the Exeter Temple Corps might provide in part some of the immediate needs.

Peter shared the need for financial support in three villages where the children were not provided school lunches due the fact that the parents could not provide the necessary funds. The monies were used instead to support their alcoholism and drug dependency. An appeal was made to our ‘formers’ fellowship and the response was both generous and immediate. A special thanks goes out to comrades, the Cozens. Our fellowship paid for all school lunches in the three villages through the end of the school year in May this year. We’ll visit them tomorrow

A second plea focused on winter clothing, specifically children’s winter coats. Through a contact, Leif Pramhall, a Swedish Salvationist who through his team provided exceptional support while I served in Russia, we received word that if we travelled through Sweden enroute to Latvia, 60 children’s coats would be waiting for us for transport. We were delighted at this good news only to learn that the ferry schedules did not align with our commitment in Exeter through the Christmas and holiday period. I informed Leif and had no reply for about a week. Then came his e-mail of December 18 from Norway stating that 600 children’s coats would be delivered in Latvia on December 20 just in time for Christmas. The transportation was provided free of charge by the Dansas group, Estonia.

Assuming that we were not be receiving any aid in Sweden in the way of clothing Glad shared a brief mention of the need in an newspaper interview conducted relative to the Army’s feeding in Exeter on Christmas Day. The newspaper without our knowledge kept running the story of the need every few days and the people of Exeter responded magnificently. Calls were received throughout the day in our quarters for several weeks asking what we needed and where could it be dropped off? Surprisingly or maybe not, many went out and purchased new clothing during the Christmas sales and delivered them to the Corps. Many members of the Corps assisted and gave countless hours to sorting and packing the clothing for transport. Particularly moving was when one of our Sunday luncheon guests, a homeless lady presented me and Glad with inserts for our boots that she had purchased, no doubt using every penny her pen-handling brought in over the course of several days. As she presented them she said: ‘You will need these to keep your feet warm while in Latvia; we hugged her thankfully.

End Part -1-

Dr. Sven Ljungholm
Former

The FDFO ( FSAOF) in Sweden (not a part of the FSAOF on the internet)

Here in Sweden there is the FDFO (FSAOF) but our fellowship differs in that it is open to all interested partied. The quarterly FSAOF (Sweden) Journal, in contrast to The War Cry, includes some insider info and I became a member last fall.

I understand that there are 300 paying members in Sweden, many are older but still... We meet a few times a year (district meetings) and a summer meeting-congress is held for the entire country. Have not yet had the opportunity to be part of something on a large scale but have already been in telephone contact with someone on the board. Maybe I’ll go to the one in the northern circuit scheduled in March. Many of the members are very active in their corps; some corps are under the command (of former officers).

The goal of FDFO (Swedish FSAOF) was from the beginning that it would serve as a ‘retreat for the battle wounded and injured’; we would support, help and make them battle-ready again. How one manages that I do not know, but I know that the ‘fellowship’ has the blessing of leadership and that, for example, Commissioner Rolf Roos, when he was in active service, was the keynote speaker at the summer meeting of the Sollefteå '2002 FSAOF Congress.


When I was younger I also joked about FDFO; "Keep the fire burning" is their motto, but in the situation I find myself, I appreciate any contact with TSA.

Interestingly, the statutes (mission statement) state that it (we in the fellowship) do not discuss or attempt to resolve any disagreements and conflicts between individuals and the Salvation Army.



THE FELLOWSHIP’S GET TOGETHER AT THE BRITISH CONGRESS, BRISTOL 2009

It seems so incredibly short-sighted not to accept and publish your advert in The Salvationist announcing the fellowship's existence and get-to-gether ! Have "they" in the UK not yet adopted and understood the enormous resource former officers represent ?! Even if they worship and lead other denominations or belong to no community at all, they can have lots of positive influence and impact. (and some may even return to the army !)

Good luck, but ... While it is important to talk among yourselves/themselves and vent, you may be better off allowing a ground swell of good coming HQ’s way… (to circumvent their negativity or dismissal of the fellowship’s strength and intent)

FSAOF member, Sweden

THE ADVERT IN QUESTION...VER BATIM



FSAOF is a worldwide FELLOWSHIP of more than 300 former SA Officers. Most are active in ministry using their SA training and experience, many within The SA. To learn more about our mission visit us at WWW.FSAOF.BLOGSPOT.COM for weekly articles of inspiration, instruction and information. To share in our fellowship join us at FACEBOOK or write to:
FSAOF, 38 NEWHAYES CLOSE, EXETER EX2 9JN

FINDING THE CHURCH THAT'S BEST FOR YOU Part -2-

6. Is it characterized by unity?

Acts 2:44 says, “All the believers were together and had everything in common” (Acts 2:44, NIV). They “were together.” There weren’t divisions in the church. And keep in mind, this was THE church in Jerusalem. Not just the folks who got along w/each other or the folks who lifted their hands when they sang. This was everybody. All kinds. But they were all together and had everything in common.
So look at the church and ask, Are there factions or parties in the church? Is there an “us/them” attitude toward other churches? Or are they characterized by a spirit of unity?

7. Is it a giving church?

Acts 2:45 says,

Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need (Acts 2:45, NIV).

It is so easy as a church to get inwardly focused, and concentrate on budgets and expenses until we give people the impression that we’re only after their money. In fact, many people say their impression of the church is that “all they want is my money.”
But notice. . . The First Church of Jerusalem wasn’t raking in the dough, they were cranking out the dough! They were giving stuff away! They gave to “ANYone as he had need.”
Apparently, they actually believed Jesus’ words that “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35, NIV). That’s the kind of church you wanna be a part of, a giving church, a church that’s not hoarding, but meeting people’s needs in and outside of the church.

8. Is there a place for me to serve?

Acts 2:46 starts,

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God . . . (Acts 2:46-47a, NIV).

Now, there’s a lot going on in those sentences, but what I want to emphasize is the implication that everyone in the church played a part, an active role. It took teachers, cooks, hosts, worship leaders, all kinds of servants to make the church go.
The “they” of verses 46 and 47 is everybody, I think. It wasn’t just the men, it wasn’t just the “insiders,”it wasn’t just those with degrees, it was “they. . .” Everyone.
This is important, yet it’s probably the most overlooked thing to look for in finding the church that’s best for you. People ask, “Do you have a children’s program?” Or “do you have a singles ministry?” Or “a women’s group” or a “men’s group?”
I don’t think I’ve ever been asked by a person checking out a church, “Do you need Bible study leaders? Could I offer my baking skills to this church? Are there ways I can serve?” But THAT is a Biblical and Christlike attitude.
The Bible says, “There are different kinds of service and together you form the Body of Christ and each one of you is a necessary part of it” (1 Corinthians 12:5, 27, TLB, italics added).
If you're a Christ-follower and you don't fit into your place and do what God made you to do, serve as God made you to serve, a necessary part is missing from the body.
9. Is it making an impact in the community?
The latter part of verse 47 says the Jerusalem church was “enjoying the favor of all the people” (Acts 2:47, NIV). This church was enjoying the favor not only of those in the church, but of “all the people.” It was having an impact in the community. People were taking notice of these Christ-followers. They were winning the respect of outsiders.
Now, there will always be people who can find fault with the church, and we should always please God first, not men; but it’s a fair question to ask if the church is having any impact in the community; is it a credit to the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Is it making a difference, earning respect?
10. Will it help me accomplish my mission?

Notice Acts 2:47. It says, “And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47, NIV). This church was clearly reaching out to others, fulfilling the mission that had been given them by Jesus:

Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you (Matthew 28:19-20, NIV).

If you want to find the church that’s best for you, look for one that helps you fulfill your mission, that helps you reach out to others and introduce them to the joy of knowing God and following Jesus Christ. Of course, there’s no such thing as a perfect church. And all will be stronger in some areas than in others on the above list. But if you use the same criteria in finding the church that’s best for you that Luke used in describing the first-century church in Jerusalem, you’ll very likely make a much better choice…for you, and for the kingdom of God.

Bob Hostetler
Former
USA Eastern Territory-NHQ

Copyright © 2006, Bob Hostetler

FINDING THE CHURCH THAT’S BEST FOR YOU Part -1-

Maybe you’ve just moved into a new community. Maybe your church closed. Maybe you’re at a new stage in life. There may be many reasons why you’re looking for a church. But you are.
If you’re trying to find a new church—for whatever reason—you’re in a precarious position. There are many poor reasons to choose a church, but only a few good ones—particularly when measured against what Luke, the author of Acts, considered important enough to mention as characteristics of the First Church of Jerusalem.

1. Is it Biblical?
Acts 2:42 says,

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching . . . (Acts 2:42, NIV).

In other words, the First Church of Jerusalem was devoted to learning God’s Word from the apostles; they applied themselves to solid Bible teaching. So a fundamental thing to ascertain about any church is, What do they teach? Look closely at their statement of faith. Don’t join a church without investigating whether they truly believe--and effectively teach--the Bible.

2. Will it help me connect with others?

Acts 2:42 also says of the early church:

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship. . . (Acts 2:42, NIV).

In other words, they were devoted to each other, to relationships, to being part of the family of God. So look at the church and ask, is this a place where I can develop relationships with others? Can this church help me obey the Bible’s commands to . . .

Have fellowship with one another ... greet one another ... love one another ... accept one another ... be devoted ... be kind and compassionate to one another (1 John 1:7; Romans 16:16; John 13:35; Romans 15:7, 12:10; Ephesians 4:32).

Do people just file out after an hour of worship and get into their cars? Or do they stick around and pray or laugh or cry together? Is this a place where I can feel part of a family? Are there small groups I can be a part of? Lunches? Picnics?

3. Does it help me connect with God?

Acts 2:42 further says that the early church “devoted themselves. . . to the breaking of bread” (Acts 2:42, NIV).
Now, it’s not obvious to us as it would have been to first century readers, but that’s talking about the worship of the church. They met in homes to celebrate communion, a symbolic ceremony commemorating Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross; that was the centerpiece of their weekly worship. So it’s also important to ask, “Does this church’s worship style help me connect with God?”
Because we're all different, different ways of worshiping will speak to our hearts in different ways. The Bible doesn’t say, “Thou shalt use pipe organs; guitars are an abomination to the Lord.” Neither does it say, “Take heed that you stand when everybody else stands, lest God be angry with you.” No, the Bible says,

Those who worship [God] must worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24, NLT).

If you’re worshiping in spirit and truth, God doesn't care two bits about the style, whether it’s formal or casual, traditional or contemporary, loud or quiet, reflective or emotional. The question is, does it connect YOU with God?

4. Is it a praying church?

Acts 2:42 also says that the First Church of Jerusalem “devoted themselves to prayer (Acts 2:42, NIV).
People don’t often ask this question when they’re looking at a church, but Luke clearly thought it was important enough to mention. The early church was devoted to prayer.

If it is true as author E.M. Bounds has said, that “God does nothing but in answer to prayer,” then if you want to find a church where something is happening, where God is moving, where you’re going to be glad you stuck around, look for a praying church. Whatever else may be missing in that church, it won’t be missing for long if it’s a praying church.

5. Do I see people being changed?

The next verse in the second chapter of Acts says, “Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles” (Acts 2:43, NIV).
The people in this Jerusalem church of the first century were not the same people they’d always been. They were being healed. They were growing spiritually. They were becoming servants. Some were becoming leaders.
God wants the same for you. He wants you to grow, change, become mature. The purpose of a good church is to help you grow spiritually and to develop spiritual maturity. So look around. . . Are people being changed? Are they showing signs of growth? Are there “God at work” signs around the place?


Bob Hostetler
Former
USA Eastern Territory-NHQ

Copyright © 2006, Bob Hostetler

A MISSIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE UNIQUENESS OF TSA -2-

Beyond the exchange between existing territories, there is a growing commitment to pioneering mission within formerly assisted and receiving territories. The Korea Territory, for example, has for some time been exploring the possibilities for mission in Outer Mongolia. During the Centenary Congress in Seoul in September 2008, a Korean officer couple was appointed to formally establish the Army's work in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. Earlier, the Korea Territory launched, staffed and fully supported the Army's work in Vladivostok.

There are many strengths in the Army's internationalism: a bracing sense of international camaraderie, of participation in a global movement marching under the same banner of Blood and Fire. Internationalism affords a capacity for rapid mobilization, maintenance of standards, efficiencies in fiscal management, the sharing of resources and expertise, and capacity for strategic response to emerging opportunities for service, to name but a few. The Army's response to the open door for our return to Russia in the wake of the dramatic demise of the Soviet Union is an example. Mobilizing our global response to the devastating 2004 Tsunami in South Asia, is another.

At its best the Army's internationalism models the Body of Christ in both its unity and rich diversity. International Headquarters this year released a revision of the 2002 publication, Servants Together: Salvationist Perspectives on Ministry. Significantly, the cover art features a painting by Salvationist Mikhail Gavrilov, one of the first lay leaders to emerge after the Army's return to Russia in 1991. The image of Christ is made up of figures representing the diversity within the community of believers.

THE ARMY AS CHURCH: COMMUNITY IN MISSION

Facing the immense challenges in mission and the doors of opportunity opening to his expanding work, General William Booth called for a growing Army, "a stupendous force" all under one head, marching under the same flag. Growth was a priority and remains so in bringing the movement to what I have elsewhere called ''full battle strength." The challenge to attain a million marching into the new millennium -- adult 'soldiers,' a covenanted cadre of the committed, was achieved and announced amid great rejoicing at the 2000 International Congress in Atlanta GA. In exploring the Army's church growth potential it became evident that the will to grow would be determined by the Army's self-understanding as an authentic and vital expression of the Church of Jesus Christ. It was necessary therefore to establish the theological and biblical legitimacy of the Army model of churchly life and mission. Institutional advance is one thing. Authentic growth of the Body of Christ, quite another: growing up "into him who is the head, that is Christ, . . . . the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, [growing] and [building] itself up in love, as each part does its work" (Ephesians 4:15-16).

Only a biblically grounded understanding of the churchly being and function of the Army, as a movement, and in its local corps expressions, adequately supports and motivates a commitment to growth. Only when the Army is understood as 'Community in Mission', to borrow Commissioner Philip Needham's phrase, do we adequately:
Ÿ reinforce growth as a priority goal,
Ÿ avoid the primacy of structure and method over mission,
Ÿ access the correction, direction and motive power of the New Testament image of the Church militant over against a formal militariness, and
Ÿ claim the promise of the Spirit's life and the Savior's lordship over and within the Body, which is his Church.

In this way we begin to understand fully the dynamics and necessities of growth in the living organism, which is the Body of Christ, Jesus Christ himself the Head "from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews grows as God causes it to grow" (Colossians 2:19).

Traditionally, the Army has avoided using ecclesiastical terminology as being more hindrance than help. And, incidentally, one notes the emergence of worship centers, temples and tabernacles among seeker-sensitive new church plants, assiduously avoiding the term 'church' at least in their signage. One can appreciate the sensitivities of Booth's early militants who did not want to be identified either with the staid institutionalism of the Anglican Establishment or with the sectarian squabbles of the nonconforming churches and chapels in Victorian England. Their concern was for demonstrating the reality of the Church and fulfilling its mission. They considered themselves above denominationalism, or 'sectarianism' [which the Army Mother, Catherine Booth, was given to denigrating in the most scathing terms!]. They were intent on being the Church rather than talking about it.

Beginning with the publication of Commissioner Needham's Community in Mission: a Salvationist Ecclesiology in 1987, the first book length theological reflection on the Army's relationship to the New Testament ideal of the church, the Army has been ineluctably drawn toward an increased understanding and acceptance of its ecclesial identity and function and their implications for the life and ministry of the movement. This is clearly evident in the new Handbook of Doctrine, Salvation Story, to which reference has been made. Chapter ten, in this volume, for the first time in our history articulates a doctrine of the Church. Earlier editions made reference to the Church Universal but not to the Army as a church embodying the New Testament ideal of the church in community and mission.

All this has led to necessary reflection on the inner life of the movement, and the ways in which we nurture and sustain that life within the Army. This concern provided the occasion for convening an International Spiritual Life Commission which met in London, England during 1996 - 1997 for five meetings, each of five days duration. In my opening address I reviewed the rationale for summoning the Commission and outlined their mandate. In part, I said:

In recent years, and for a variety of reasons, we have begun to come more to terms with our churchly identity -- that is, the accepted and publicly-acknowledged fact that we are the church home for something upwards of two million people in the world. For most of them we are their primary, if not only, point of insertion into the body of Christ. We are the fellowship within which they experience their connectedness with the body of Christ.

It is the Army through its corps life that provides them with essential instruction in Christian doctrine and an understanding of the truth of Scripture. It is the Army that provides the primary setting for worship for most of our people. What they know of personal spiritual discipline, they learned from us. It is through the Army they experience their relationship to the broader Christian community and establish their identity within that community as bona fide Christian believers.

Simply put, it is time for us to take more seriously issues related to our inner life. We owe it to our people. It is essential to maintaining the engine of commitment and passion. Our mission is energized by our spirituality.

We have a responsibility to ensure that we are not denying our people necessary means of grace and that their participation in the life of the Army through their local corps affords them every available advantage in living the Christian life."

Out of the deliberations of the Commission came a series of recommendations for consideration
by the Army's international leadership and a 'Call to Salvationists' worldwide "to recognize that any outward movement of love for the world requires first of all an inward movement from each Christian towards God." The Call declares, "The vitality of our spiritual life as a Movement will be seen and tested in our turning to the world in evangelism and service, but the springs of our spiritual life are to be found in our turning to God in worship, in the disciplines of life in the Spirit, and in the study of God's word." Twelve specific calls were made, supported by complementary affirmations. They covered a broad range of issues relating to the inner life of the Army, including Worship, the Word, the Mercy Seat, the celebration of Christ's Presence, our life together in community, the meaning of soldiership, our life in the world, the call to Holiness and the call to spiritual warfare. In 1999, the chair of the commission, Commissioner Robert Street, produced a valuable guide to implementing the Calls in a volume entitled Called to be God's People: the International Spiritual Life Commission, its report, implications and challenges which is available for down load on-line at www.salvationarmy.org/resources

Paul Rader, General (R)

MISSIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES; THE UNIQUENESS OF TSA part -1-

'To grow saints' and 'To serve suffering humanity'.

A TRANSFORMATIVE GOSPEL
The message of the Army wherever it is preached is grounded firmly in Biblical truth and evangelical faith. It is spoken and sung in 175 languages by Salvationists. The modes and metaphors of expression and the idioms and instruments of Army music-making are delightfully diverse, but the message is the same. It is a positive Gospel of possibility, of purity, and power. It is a transformational Gospel grounded in the redemptive work of Christ on the Cross, the reality of the Resurrection and the promised presence and power of the Holy Spirit. We believe in a salvation from sin and from sinning. We believe in a Gospel that can open blinded eyes and turn the most desperate soul from 'darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in [Christ Jesus]' (Acts 26:17-18 TNIV).

Given the founders early immersion in Wesleyan theology, it is not surprising that Army doctrine is Wesleyan in orientation ['There is one God and John Wesley is his prophet!']. A brief statement of eleven salient points was formulated to under gird the evangelical mission of the Army. The 'doctrines' were not intended to be comprehensive. They have been explicated and expanded in subsequent versions of the Army's Handbook of Doctrine, the most recent of which was published in 1998 with the title, Salvation Story: Salvationist Handbook of Doctrine. The current Handbook includes the classical creeds: the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed and the Athanasian Creed. It is not a weighty theological tome, but offers a clear and concise guide for an Army on the march, capable of translation into languages around the world. Brief in compass it reflects extensive theological reflection and broad biblical understanding. Commissioner Gudrun Lydholm, M.Th., served with distinction on the International Doctrine Council which produced the fresh rewriting of the Handbook. In 2005 she published a review of the development of the new Handbook in Word & Deed, A Journal of Salvation Army Theology and Ministry. Particularly helpful is her comparison of the 11 doctrines with fresh summaries and rewordings which appeared at the end of each chapter in Salvation Story. These supplied additional emphases that had not been referenced in the traditional doctrines, probably being assumed by the early Army missioners. They included references to the birth and resurrection of Jesus and his return in glory and a separate reference to the person and work of the Holy Spirit. At the heart of the Army's mission is the firm confidence that the Gospel of Christ is still "the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16 TNIV).

CULTURAL ADAPTATION

Cultural adaptation has been a hallmark of the Army from the first. In a remarkable document addressed to his growing force of missioners in India dated 27 August 1886, William Booth urged Tucker's cadre to explore every reasonable means for relating to the culture and communicating the essentials of their message.

You are not bound by any stereotyped or antiquated notions. What is being done in Europe or America, or what has been done in India in the past, or what is being done in the present, need not be any rule to you, unless you can see it is calculated to gain the end you have in view. Go, my comrades, and pray and look about you, and thus acquaint yourselves with Indian modes of thought and feeling and action, and then adapt yourselves to them, so far as such adaptation shall be consistent with the doctrines of the Bible and the principles of the Army (Quoted in Booth-Tucker 1924:xix).

In fairness it must be said that there has always been a tension between the desire to adapt to the uniqueness of a given cultural context and the requirement of loyalty to what Edward Higgins, then Chief of the Staff, called the Army's 'distinctive features of service and method.' Acknowledging that some cultures proved less than receptive of the Army's style of ministry, he took comfort in reporting, "Our pioneer officers have fearlessly and confidently pressed upon the people the Army's aims, principles, and methods, and invariably -- sometimes in a less and sometimes a greater degree -- there has been a most striking response" (1929). That tension is still significant in seeking to relate to changing cultural realities within cultures, in the West as much as other parts of the world. Believing that the Army's identity and principles are transferable to other cultural settings Salvationists seek to maintain what might be regarded as the essentials of Salvationism that have sustained its mission across time and cultures. The task is to discern what those essentials are! To some degree virtually every denomination struggles with these issues. The tension is exacerbated by one of the Army's most highly valued distinctives: its commitment to internationalism.

INTERNATIONALISM

Every expression of the Army in all of the 117 countries where the Army has a legal presence is bound to the international movement and subject to the direction of International Headquarters under the authority of the General. The connection is organic, structural, administrative, cultural, legal, and most importantly, covenantal. Booth called for 'one Salvation Army' -- "one body with the same head, the same government, the same laws, and substantially the same usages and methods . . . . There will not only be the liberty, but the necessity, to adapt its methods, so far as is consistent with truth and righteousness, to the character and habits of the people, the Salvation of whom it is there to bring about (1887:51).

The structural unity of the Army internationally has made it an anomaly to ecumenical bodies. It doesn't fit the model. Membership is usually limited to national church bodies. In the end, the Army has assumed an observer status in the World Council of Churches along with the Roman Catholic observers. However, the Army in certain countries, has maintained membership in national Christian Councils, even though it is not appropriate to regard The Salvation Army functioning in any nation as an autonomous national body, as, for example, the Korean Presbyterian Church. This applies whether or not the Army in that nation is financially independent or has no western international reinforcement officers serving within the 'territory.' India, Korea, Japan and Indonesia, for example, currently have no western expatriate officers resident in these countries. The work is entirely indigenous. Indeed, these territories and others are contributing officer personnel to other parts of the Army world. The exchange of officer and professional personnel between countries East to West, South to North as well as West to East and North to South has greatly strengthened the unity and effective internationalism of the movement. More than ever before, the Army world is 'flat' (Tom Friedman).

Paul Rader, General (R)

Born in 1934, the 15th General was the first American General. Rader's studies at Asbury College, Asbury Theological Seminary and Southern Baptist Seminary resulted in BA, BD and MTh degrees. He later received a Doctor of Missiology degree from Fuller Theological Seminary School of World Mission. He served variously in pastoral, missionary, training and administrative positions in the United States and Korea.

Rader was the first General elected by a unanimous vote !