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Souvenirs of Salvationism - Part 8
by Commissioner Wesley Harris
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Founders gave a number of ‘one liners’ or brief statements
which have become part of the litany of Salvationism. So we
recall and repeat William Booth’s command to ‘go for souls and
go for the worst’ or his affirmation that ‘the promises of God
are sure if you only believe’.
Among my souvenirs is an embroidered bookmark bearing
meaningful sayings by both William and Catherine Booth. They
bring their own challenge.
The quotation from the Army Mother is, ‘Any profession of
Jesus Christ which brings no Cross is all nonsense’.
Life was no bed of roses for Catherine Booth. From childhood
she had to cope with sickness yet she managed to bring up a
large family, be an unfailing support and counsellor for her
husband, and maintain an exhausting preaching ministry of her
own. She proved that God could use her disabilities as well as
her abilities. She could say with the Apostle Paul that God’s
strength was made perfect in weakness.
Her dying with cancer was long and lingering but she turned
her death bed into a pulpit. Her pain was not wasted. In
sickness as in health she glorified God and bravely took up
her cross like the Lord to whom she was so utterly dedicated.
Catherine’s message was not only powerful because of the words
she used but because of the example she gave of faith and
fortitude under pressure.
Then what of William Booth? His words quoted on the bookmark
were, “I don’t care how near to the bottomless pit I go in
order to save mankind”. Few men have been more single-minded
than he was. The sins and sorrows of people got to him and
drove him to make almost super-human efforts to save and serve
them. His was a magnificent obsession and he managed to imbue
his followers with a similar intensity.
He believed that Salvationists should be people with a passion
and their passion should be people. He would have held that
every corps existed for people who didn’t belong to it as well
as those who did.
True, he preached that his people should be holy and separate
from the world and its values. But in another sense he sought
to lead his people into the world in order to save the lost.
Salvationists were to be insulated but not isolated, in the
world but not of it.
It has been said that every movement is the lengthening shadow
of its founder and no doubt something of the spirit of William
Booth lives on in the Army he started. We started as the
Christian Mission and although God led us to adopt quasi
military terms and structures in essence we are still a
Christian mission, called to live dangerously and take risks
for righteousness’ sake. That is our calling and our destiny.
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