I Go to the Salvation Army

The Salvation Army began in 1865 in the East End of London and was known as The East London Christian Mission. When the Mission spread beyond London it became known simply as The Christian Mission, until 1878 when the name 'The Salvation Army' was first used.

The idea of an army caught people's imagination and uniforms began to be worn, the halls where meetings were held were called barracks, members were called soldiers and Ministers were given ranks like Captain, Major and so on. This Army never fights against people but against wrong in the world. Many soldiers (another name for members) choose to wear uniform as a sign that they belong to God's Army.

'No one gets a blessing if they have cold feet and nobody ever got saved while they had toothache!' declared William Booth. Since its beginnings The Salvation Army has tried to follow Christ's teaching to feed the hungry, give shelter to the homeless and visit those sick or in prison. Often on hearing of people's suffering Booth's response was 'Go and do something.'

If you want to know more about the history of The Salvation Army or William Booth go to the end of this section.