For Love or Money

Is The Salvation Army the church of the poor?

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The Army was founded on the idea that all are welcome, including the wealthy. Salvation doesn't work differently for the rich. After 145 years, the Army's emphasis on “redemption and lift” has helped generations out of poverty. Instead of sending them to the church up the street, we need them to embrace our mission.


by Captain Mark Braye

Many people believe the mission of The Salvation Army is primarily, or even exclusively, to the poor. I disagree. Our mission is to the “whosoever,” including the rich and middle class.

Throughout our history many slogans have expressed our ministry. William Booth told his son, Bramwell, to “do something.” He spoke of “others,” “our people” and “going for souls and going for the worst.” His famous “I'll fight” speech is often thought of as a rallying cry to serve the poor. But don't his words address all social classes? Wealthy women weep. Wealthy men go to prison. There are dark souls without the light of God in gated communities and large suburban houses.

Catherine Booth, who held Bible studies for women among the elite of London, England, said, “Here is the principle—adapt your measures to the necessity of the people to whom you minister. You are to take the gospel to them in such modes and circumstances as will gain for it from them a hearing.”

The wealthy are “our people” as well. They are “others” for whom we must also “do something.” Our “modes and circumstances” will differ among them, but we have as much a mandate to minister to the rich and middle class as we do to the poor. They need Jesus, too.

Ignoring the wealthy puts us at a significant disadvantage. Across our territory, the middle class makes up the majority of our congregations. Our places of worship are safe spaces where all people can begin their spiritual journeys, grow in their faith and worship with their sisters and brothers in Christ. Where would we be if the majority of our denomination left tomorrow because their salaries were too high to fit in?

In terms of fundraising, the upper and middle classes are the greatest supporters of Salvation Army ministries. Our goal is not to exploit them for a piece of their income. Rather, it's a two-way benefit: they help us fulfil our mission and we give them an opportunity to give back to others.

When we invite people with abundant resources to partner with us, our mission grows and more people are given a chance to escape poverty. Think of the support given to The Salvation Army here in Canada by the W. Garfield Weston Foundation. Or in America, by people such as Jerry Jones, owner and president of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys.

The rich and middle class comprise a large portion of our volunteers and ministry groups. When these members of our church families get saved, they're saved to save and saved to serve. Whether it's standing by a Christmas kettle, handing out coffee at the Winter Olympics, playing in a brass band or leading a Bible study, they make the mission of The Salvation Army come alive.

The wealthy are also well connected and experienced for ministry. Educated professionals comprise our Salvation Army advisory boards and councils, serving as partners and mentors. Are we to take their advice at a professional level and ignore their spiritual needs when the meetings are over?

We do our mission a disservice when we ignore these realties and pine away for the glory days of the East London Christian Mission. There have been cultural and societal shifts in the past 145 years that the Booths could not have imagined. The Salvation Army, and the world in which we serve, is far more complex today. The wealthy are vital members of our denomination and integral ministers of our mission. They deserve our focus as much as anyone else.

Captain Mark Braye and his wife, Nancy, are the corps officers/pastors of The Salvation Army Tri-Town Community Church in Temiskaming Shores, Ont. They have two children, Hannah and Micah.




Our primary mission is to the poor. While we don't turn away the wealthy, the more we gear our programming to meet their needs, the more we sacrifice our original calling. We've staked our reputation on serving the most vulnerable in our society. We are not just “playing church,” we are called to make a difference in people's lives.


by Lieutenant Nyree Bond

Should the Army be a church primarily for the poor? Many think so. “Leave the middle-class congregations to churches on the other side of the tracks,” they say. Although I don't fully subscribe to this view, there are many reasons why we should have a greater focus on the poor.

The truth is always more complicated than it appears. If the Army were only about the poor, I wouldn't be where I am today since I grew up attending a middle-class, traditional Army corps in Toronto's suburbs. When I was younger, I had no concept of what it meant to be poor. I never met someone who was homeless or needy, so the words only conjured up stereotypical images of tattered, dirty men living in cardboard boxes.

Even though I grew up in the Army and was indoctrinated in the mission, I had never actually served the poor. “I don't do poor people!” I uttered arrogantly at our young couples' Bible study in our middle-class Army church in the suburbs. Sadly, I was serious. I dreaded the idea of mixing with poor people.

Later that year, however, I volunteered at our local Army food bank where my husband was the new community ministries director. My time there became days, and then weeks, until I realized that it was not about what I was giving the clients but rather what I was receiving from them: the joy of offering food to a mother of three who had no money to buy cereal; the delight in listening to the stories of a lonely senior who just wanted to be heard; and the thrill of exchanging smiles with a toothless man grateful for respect.

I not only helped them, I began to care deeply for them. I could see gratefulness in their tears and their words of thanks. What a powerful discovery it was to see dignity restored by shaking hands or offering a sincere embrace.

Our mission statement doesn't mention poverty, yet our Movement is steeped in it. It is part of who we are. Of course we don't turn away the wealthy. After all, poverty can be evaluated in more than just economic terms. However, I believe that if the Army is not serving the poor, we have lost our true sense of mission.

Our Movement was birthed by William Booth and his vision to transform the impoverished in East London by focusing on living out holiness in word and deed. This notion is woven throughout the doctrine and mission of The Salvation Army. Social action became our central ministry, dubbing us a “church for the poor.”

The Salvation Army has a two-fold mission of social service and spiritual care. It is integral to our mission that we balance both and, ideally, integrate them with each other. We most effectively share God's love through acts of service for others.

The early days of the Army focused on reaching the marginalized and offering hope to the hopeless. In our current context, there is still the need for hope and deliverance for people in poverty. In 2009, 2.9 million Canadians lived in poverty. More than half a million of them were children.

Our territorial position statement on poverty and economic justice states, “As Salvationists, we remain committed to The Salvation Army's historic mission to care for the poor and marginalized ... [and] will work to eliminate poverty.” It isn't enough just to say it. We must be diligent in our efforts to transform the lives of those around us.

If we lose our focus on the poor, what viability would we have? What about our credibility with the public who donate millions of dollars each year in the expectation that we are helping the poor? God has entrusted us with the privilege of giving hope to the poor. If we aren't serving the poor, we aren't fulfilling our mission.

Booth himself described the poor as “his people” and proclaimed ministering to them as “his destiny.” Through personal experience, I've realized that ministering to the poor is not only my mission, but a privilege. I now know my purpose, and I echo William Booth's words ... “these are my people.”

Lieutenant Nyree Bond is community ministries director at Foothills Church and Community Ministries in High River, Alta. She and her husband, David, corps officer at Foothills Church, have three sons, Nathan, Brandon and Dawson.

Comment

On Saturday, January 8, 2011, Kathie Chiu said:

Two good pieces of writing showing both sides of the coin
that we must continually balance. While I agree with some of what
Captain Mark is saying in his piece, I can't help thinking that
there are many Salvation Army congregations today whose style and
target outreach group would make many of the clients in our
ministry and corps members feel out of place and unaccepted. A
corps whose aim is to cater to the middle or upper income segments
of our society will always alienate the very people the Army was
raised up to serve. There must be a balance. When Captain Mark says
"Instead of sending them to the church up the street, we need them
to embrace our mission" I fully agree. However, you cannot get
people to embrace the mission unless we purposefully expose them to
the very poor we are called to serve. We also need to make sure our
corps are set up to welcome people of all ages and stages of life
and/or income levels. The way we dress, our messages and
illustrations we use, the types of fellowships we have and what
they cost - all must be considered in light of being inclusive and
realising that sometimes we can, without realizing it - exclude
those who have less and who feel left out of society. Our ministry
here in Maple Ridge has set our purposes on reaching both and
blending corps and social. We have a wonderful congregation made up
of all income levels and people from every walk of life - including
the self employed, retired, professional, blue collar worker, low
income, homeless and addicted. It took a long time to see it evolve
to what it is today and it wasn't without it's bumps and lumps
along the way. Lieut. Nyree's previous views were seen here in some
too and it's not always easy to work with people who don't embrace
our mission. Some families with children chose not to worship with
us because of the type of people that we serve, feeling over
protective with their young ones. Others felt we weren't catering
to their needs enough. This is when we felt we could release them
to the "church down the street" for their benefit and ours. Others
have embraced our mission and have no problem sitting next to
someone who hasn't bathed recently or who may be under the
influence of drugs. They love the weekly testimony/sharing time and
hearing "I've been clean six months now" and the "I found the Lord
when I was a girl and I can still trust Him today." We have a
retired lady who regularly has some of our Genesis (Transitional
Housing) residents over to her house and recently they treated her
to a movie on cheap Tuesday! My prayer is that all Salvation Army
corps/churches will embrace the mission of their organization and
be purpose driven to make all feel comfortable worshipping
together. Birds of a feather may flock together, but we're people
of God and we can be purposefully inclusive. Thanks again for
raising this issue. I appreciate you both taking the time to
outline these views for our consideration. I hope others weigh in
on this as well. grace... Kathie Chiu

On Friday, January 7, 2011, Lieutenant Paul Lorimer said:

Two good articles. The marginalised must always be a central concern for The Salvation Army, but I can't limit God by ignoring anyone he puts in my way.

I believe that crumbling families in our middle class suburbs will result in people of all ages dropping down into the poor and needy bucket. We can't wait until they are in our target area before we focus on them. Even if society thinks they are doing ok because of the level of their assets and disposable income, we know this isn't the case, and they need something more.

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