Though Colonel Wendy Swan is a Canadian officer, she is a true citizen of the world, having spent most of her officership in appointments around the globe. She’s currently the director of The Salvation Army’s International Social Justice Commission (ISJC), a member of the Army’s International Theological Council (ITC), and chair of the International Moral and Social Issues Council (IMASIC). In this interview with Kristin Ostensen, managing editor, Colonel Swan talks about the Army’s relationship with the United Nations, why it’s important to be an informed advocate, and how God is moving in her life today.
You recently received a King’s Coronation medal, which recognizes people who’ve made significant contributions to Canada and their home province. Congratulations! What does this award mean to you?
Colonel Wendy Swan: First of all, I was amazed that I would be nominated, and I’m grateful to the Canada and Bermuda Territory for putting my name forward. It’s a recognition that, in God’s timing and God’s place for each one of us—whether we’re acknowledged formally or otherwise—we have the opportunity to impact people’s lives.
What have been some key priorities for you since you took up your appointment at the ISJC in June 2022?
WS: One priority I’ve long held is that of gender equality, in both my own life and my work in The Salvation Army. It’s also one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. So, how are we developing both genders in terms of leadership, succession planning, economic and social opportunities? I’m always encouraged when I see it being done effectively, and my heart breaks when I see that is not the case.
Are there any other social justice issues that you’re particularly passionate about?
WS: An important justice issue for The Salvation Army in all our territories is poverty, which has different levels and expressions in different parts of the world. The issues of poverty are always impacted by and have a correlation to other justice issues—education, access to good health care, gender-based violence, modern slavery and human trafficking (MSHT), to name a few. None of these stand alone. They are all interrelated. In Zambia and Malawi, for example, where we served for 10 years, because of climate change, when the rains don’t come, the crops don’t emerge; when the crops don’t emerge, people don’t eat.
Poverty in North America may look different, but children still go hungry. People are out of work. People experience a loss of dignity and self-worth. So, poverty—economically, socially, spiritually—may have many different expressions around the world, but it all works against people flourishing, and people flourishing is what God has always wanted.
How has seeing poverty up close in different places around the world impacted you?
WS: I think first-hand experience of not only seeing, but also identifying with those who have significantly less than other nations—it’s not just numbers or statistics to me. They are people that I’ve had the privilege to live alongside, learn from, hopefully be a good neighbour to.
Those experiences have also given me the opportunity to see the resilience in what we sometimes assume is an awful situation. We might use one measurement to decide someone is in poverty, but in many ways, they’re rich in spiritual things because their dependence is not on material things. They have a deep relationship with and reliance on God.
The Salvation Army has been an affiliated non-governmental organization with the United Nations since its formation in 1945. What does that relationship look like?
WS: We have no voting rights—only member states do—so it is about identifying and contributing to where faith-based organizations might have the greatest influence. How do you influence the influencers? There’s a lot of committee work. For example, Colonel Ian Swan [co-director of the ISJC] and I recently had a number of key meetings with ambassadors and the UN’s Economic and Social Council. You might think of it as “grunt work,” but that’s really where the hard work gets done.
As the ISJC, one of our purposes is to advise the office of the General on global events, and that includes what’s happening at the UN. What’s the world saying to The Salvation Army? And equally, what might The Salvation Army say to the world through a body such as the UN?
In addition to your appointment at the ISJC,you’re a member of the ITC and IMASIC(see box). What does that entail?
WS: The ITC serves the Salvation Army world by addressing issues from a theological perspective. You have to know what you believe in order to be an informed advocate, because everything we do is based on theology. How informed is that theology? And is it in line with what we understand a Salvationist to be?
The IMASIC, as the name indicates, looks at international moral and social issues that affect The Salvation Army, and creates global statements that can be used internationally to represent the Army’s position on a particular issue at a point in time. We recently released a new international positional statement on domestic abuse, which has been a long time coming—many parts of our world are struggling with this issue. Not all resources will take the form of an international positional statement. They could be papers; they could be online discussion. It’s a forum where Salvationists can talk.
We’re a very action-oriented movement. Why is this theological work so important as well?
WS: Sometimes we’re so busy doing—and the doing is key, please don’t get me wrong—that we might think that deeper reflection could somehow take away from the doing. But, in fact, I would suggest that without it, we may be going through the mechanics and lose the motivation for the doing when it gets tough. So, the deeper thinking is not about isolating yourself in a corner and not engaging; it reinforces why we do what we do.
I find that, particularly with young adults, it’s not so much about what we are doing. That’s the information piece. The question they’re asking is, why are we doing this? There are so many different things that could attract or demand my attention. Why am I choosing to do this? And young adults are very committed to making the world a better place. They recognize the challenges we’re facing on this planet we call home, and they know that something must be done, and it must be done quickly. But what motivates them is the why. And so, I think informed action is absolutely key in the 21st century. That’s why bodies such as the ITC, IMASIC and ISJC exist: to provide a succinct rationale for why something should be part of the Salvationist DNA. If you align yourself with The Salvation Army, you should know why we choose to engage (or disengage) on particular issues.
How is God moving in your own life today?
WS: I have a renewed conviction that it is not enough simply to be part of a “do good” movement. Any work that I may contribute to justice for the world is essentially linked to my understanding of holiness. It’s not about being a disciple and a life of justice is an addendum, an extra. Justice is a natural outworking of the life of discipleship, of holiness. And as I engage in a life of justice—not an event, not a program, a life of justice—God will provide opportunities for me to be faithful to that. My responsibility is to respond to those opportunities as they present themselves. Can we do it all? No, we can’t. But we each have to say, “Ican do this part today,” and that’s being faithful. That is the life of holiness: Jesus in me, in the world. So, let’s get out there as Salvationists—talk to people, listen to people, be with people—and God’s Spirit will provide direction for the next steps.
Buy a copy of Colonel Swan’s recent book, Living Right While Righting Wrong, at store.salvationarmy.ca.
WHAT IS THE ... ?
International Social Justice Commission
The Salvation Army’s strategic voice to advocate for human dignity and social justice with the world’s poor and oppressed.
International Theological Council
Serves the General and the global Salvation Army by being faithful custodians of Army doctrinal positions, whether those positions are to be found in the 11 Articles of Faith, in official Army publications or in formal statements approved by the General.
International Moral and Social Issues Council
Advises the General and recommends statements of official position on contemporary moral and social issues.
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