Justice and the Army

This is an excerpt from Campbell's (Roberts- Director of the Social Policy Unit) Coutts memorial lecture he just did over in Ozzy. Its pretty awesome.




The voice of The Salvation Army must be heard and we must act to live out justice. This is our Biblical mandate, that we be conveyers of hope in a dark and injustice-ridden world. Injustice can be defeated in Christ. But this requires a response both as The Salvation Army and as individual Salvationists.

The voice and action of The Salvation Army globally where people suffer injustice must be clear and forthright. We must show courage whatever the source of human suffering, whether it be government policies, the actions of global or national corporations, the inaccuracy of the media, a racist public, self-interested political lobbyists, secular ideologies and philosophies, or just plain apathy. This requires engagement with international organisations who work for justice and truth. Regretfully, for a movement with such a global spread it would seem we often fail to commit sufficient time and resource to work in international forums and organisations.

Where are the contemporary voices of The Salvation Army speaking our clearly at this time of global oppression and injustice? Yes, we are involved in significant acts of human care, and we have voiced comments on the scourge of human trafficking, particularly now under the able leadership of Commissioner Helen Clifton. But is this enough? Where is the connection between the huge injustices and the everyday practice of Salvationists around the western world?

Is it time for a global forum of international biblical and theological expertise that can reflect on matters of global injustice in the light of our Biblical and missional mandate? Such a body could give a theological framework and direction to our mission in the world’s international forums. It would also provide an encouragement and unity to national leadership that is engaging with these issues. The international Salvation Army needs to be expressing a gospel of hope in contexts of depressive suffering, ethnic and regional conflicts, environmental destruction, hardening poverty, and unjust trade regimes.