The Salvation Army – Part II Beliefs and doctrines

THE SALVATION Army started out in London in 1865 by William Booth as The Christian Mission. It was renamed in 1788, and is the evangelical arm of the universal Christian Church. It was establish to tend to the spiritual and physical needs of the poor, marginalised, and destitute but is, nonetheless, a religious institution with a structured body of governance and driven by beliefs and doctrines.

“These 11 doctrines set out the formal beliefs of The Salvation Army as detailed in Schedule 1 of The Salvation Army Act 1980. These doctrines define our understanding of God, humanity and the developing relationship of the Christian life. They are an expression of personal faith and a common vision,” The Salvation Army says.

Salvationists (as Salvation Army believers are called) believe in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, which to them, were given by the inspiration of God and that they only constitute the divine rule of the Christian faith and practice.

“We believe that the Bible is inspired by God. It is the foundation and authority of our faith and life … The Bible is not just an old book. Every word of Scripture is living and active, breathed out by God, recorded and preserved by human writers, inspired by the Holy Spirit … The Bible is the Word of God. God’s heart written down for us to see. When we read the Bible, we learn about who our God is, we learn to recognise His voice, and we learn more about ourselves as his children,” The Salvation Army says.

There is only one God, an “infinitely perfect” one, who is the “preserver”, “Creator”, “governor of all things”, and “the only proper object of religious worship”. Yet there are three people in the Godhead – the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost (The Holy Trinity) – who are “undivided in essence and co-equal in power and glory”. Jesus Christ, part of the Holy Trinity, is divine and is united with “human natures”. “He is truly and properly God and truly and properly man.”

This properly man is the salvation for all men, and the work of The Salvation Army is to secure and fight for that salvation, thus the name The Salvation Army. But how did they get to this, to be campaigning, if you will, for salvation? They believe in the Adam and Eve story and its consequences.

“We believe that our first parents were created in a state of innocence, but by their disobedience they lost their purity and happiness, and that in consequence of their fall, all men have become sinners, totally depraved, and as such are justly exposed to the wrath of God,” The Salvation Army says.

Yet there is salvation for all sinners since “the Lord Jesus Christ has, by His suffering and death, made an atonement for the whole world so that whosoever will may be saved”. This salvation can only be attained through “repentance towards God, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit”. And while salvation might be forever, the mortality of the soul is not.

“We believe in the immortality of the soul, in the resurrection of the body, in the general judgement at the end of the world, in the eternal happiness of the righteous, and in the endless punishment of the wicked.”

A belief in the crucifixion and resurrection story, too, is integral to the attainment of salvation as “the Lord Jesus Christ has, by His suffering and death, made an atonement for the whole world so that whosoever will may be saved”.

The Salvation Army also says: “We believe that we are justified by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and that he that believeth hath the witness in himself … We believe that it is the privilege of all believers to be wholly sanctified and that their whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Though Salvation Army places of worship are called by different names, they are Christian churches in which worship is the way in which Salvationists show how much they love God. Worship can also take place in homes, in the open, in workplaces, etc, and can be expressed in many ways. Gathered worship could include Bible reading, teaching, prayer, singing songs and hymns, band or choir, multimedia, monetary offering or tithing, dancing, testimony, and mercy seat (a sacred place of prayer often found at the front of a Salvation Army hall). Anyone is welcome to pray.

“Prayer is simply talking with God. It is spending time with someone who loves you. In time, we can learn to move through this life in one long, extended conversation with God. In constant connection. talking to God. And your God talking to you.

“There is no right or wrong way to pray. We can pray at any time, in any place, about anything that is on our mind. We don’t have to be in church, use special words, or close our eyes if we don’t want to. All that really matters is that we come before God with our whole hearts as honestly and consistently as we can.”