CAPÍTULO I: MARCO TEÓRICO
1.2 Bases teóricas
1.2.1 Conceptualización de Estrategias Didácticas
According to Trevor Yaxley, “Booth grew up in poverty and understood the struggle and suffering of being poor. He knew what poverty could do to someone. The poor were his kind of people, and he knew them and loved them deeply.”2 It was therefore not
surprising that his life work would be to minister to those suffering in poverty.
In the establishment of the Christian Mission (which was ultimately to be known as The Salvation Army) William Booth’s theology was profoundly influenced by John Wesley and the Methodist movement.
Booth shared Wesley’s convictions about salvation and holiness. Like the founder of Methodism, Booth subscribed to an unlimited atonement,
preached assurance of one’s salvation, and advocated holy living reflected in
love of God and one’s neighbor.3
Like John Wesley before him, William Booth’s theology could never be described as systematic, nor static. There is evidence of growth and development in Booth’s
theological position throughout his life and ministry. What was particularly influential for both Wesley and Booth was the emphasis they placed on the primacy of scripture and religious experiences.
In War on Two Fronts: The Redemptive Theology of William Booth, Roger Green
identifies three stages evident in the transition of Booth’s theology and the development of The Salvation Army’s theological position as a denomination.
[T]he early stage in the theology of Booth [was] formulated during the time of his revivalistic work and his leadership of The Christian Mission up to 1878….[T]he change evident in the second stage in much of the theology of
2 Trevor Yaxley, Through Blood and Fire: The Life of General William Booth (Auckland: Castle
Publishing, 1999),13.
32
William Booth [was] after the emergence of The Salvation Army in 1878….[T]he third stage in Booth’s theology and his most significant change…began to formulate in 1889 as his understanding of redemption moved beyond personal salvation alone to embrace more fully both personal
and social salvation.4
In the era described as the early stage of his developing theology, Booth’s original plan for the East End of London was to preach salvation: to get the people saved and move these recently saved converts into existing denominations. The doctrines Booth
established during this early period were intentionally minimal in expression; which also provided an opportunity for Christians from across existing denominations to work with Booth in this mission.
The statement of doctrine provided common ground on which members of different sections of the Church could unite. The seven articles were designed as a statement of evangelical truths to be held by those wishing to
preach the gospel of salvation, and nothing more.5
Booth’s desire to see recently saved converts move into existing denominations did not eventuate. “First, they would not go [to church] when sent. Second, they were not wanted. And third, we wanted some of them at least to help us in the business of saving others. We were drawn to providing for the converts ourselves.”6 Accommodating the growing number of converts meant additional doctrinal statements were required as Booth’s denomination was formed. Consequently, “the original statement was revised and extended to ten statements.”7
4 Roger J. Green, War on Two Fronts: The Redemptive Theology of William Booth (Atlanta: The
Salvation Army Supplies, 1989), 15.
5
Earl Robinson, "The History of Salvation Army Doctrine", Word & Deed: A Journal of Salvation Army Theology and Ministry, Spring (2000): 33.
6 Robinson, "History," 33. 7 Robinson, "History," 33.
33 The intention of moving recent converts into areas of ministry as quickly as possible became a regular pattern that continued long after the name change to The Salvation Army and the creation of the denomination in its own right. No one was to be idle in Booth’s Army.
Two issues are highlighted in this process: first there was the practical emphasis on “go and do”. It was not uncommon for soldiers to be “field commissioned” to commence the work in another area, having little if any training. Second, this lack of theological
training was perpetuated over subsequent decades, giving rise to the notion of a theological knapsack. Edward McKinley articulates some of the problems which occurred as a result:
[i]t is small wonder, then, that people already disposed to be critical of the Army would regard its theological resources as thin. Pioneer officers sometimes added credibility to the charges. Most early officers were recent converts who knew little of theological matters. Men and women were pressed into duty as officers with no preparation, commissioned on the spot
by enthusiastic divisional officers, and sent off to command a station.8
The enthusiasm which engendered passion and a sense of urgency among officers and soldiers only heightened the need to go out and do, while perhaps minimising the need to reflect theologically. This growing divide was perhaps inevitable as the cry for more active soldiers to engage in the mission was seen as the greater focus.
Green identifies the shift to the second phase of the development of Booth’s theology, which occurred in 1878, as the emphasis changed in order to create an emerging denomination with its own doctrinal statements. The denomination was no longer only
8Edward H. McKinley, Marching to Glory: The History of the Salvation Army in the United States,
34 occupied with soul-saving endeavours, but also required evangelical doctrinal
statements to guide them. Here was a chance for Booth to emphasise the connection between The Salvation Army and a Wesleyan-focussed doctrine, especially with the inclusion of the tenth doctrine relating to sanctification.9 The emphasis on Wesleyan thought was not a later addition in Booth’s thinking. Earl Robinson notes:
[They] were not new in the sense that they were being brought into the movement’s teaching for the first time. They had been held and taught by William Booth from the beginning. In fact, the eleven statements of belief bear a striking similarity in words and content to the doctrines of the Methodist New Connexion of which William Booth was an ordained minister…It was the changed status and purposes of the mission that
required their inclusion into the statements of faith of 1878.10
Booth’s pragmatic approach to ministry called all Salvationists to engage in the Army’s fight to relieve human suffering from the evils that existed in the world. “William Booth called his Army to suffer for the expansion of Christ’s kingdom. This theme of suffering is uniquely tied to the Salvation Army’s Wesleyan understanding of holiness.”11 Andrew Miller III outlines the theology of Booth’s eschatological ecclesiology where he stresses that Salvationists must suffer for the sake of the Gospel.
“Suffering to Christ” is a theme that encapsulates William Booth’s
ecclesiology in a unique and powerful way. Suffering was an intrinsic aspect of the identity of Salvationists. William Booth saw this as a call of Christ, and his incarnational Army saw the need of seeing Christ in those whom they served. If one was merely called to suffer “for” Christ, then obligation might overcast a call that is vital to the Salvationist’s identity. Instead Salvationists suffered because they were Christians; they suffered because
they served others as if they were Christ himself.12
Suffering became prominent in the minds of Salvationists as it reminded them of their identity in Christ, their desire to live a holy life, and their ongoing involvement in
9 See Appendix 2. 10
Robinson, "History," 36f.
11 Andrew Miller III, "Suffering for and to Christ in William Booth's Eschatological Ecclesiology",
Wesleyan Theological Journal, 43/1 Spring (2008), 107.
35 mission. The belief that suffering was a natural expectation in this spiritual war was inevitable among these pioneer officers and soldiers. This suffering was perhaps even enthusiastically embraced by them. Ultimately, Salvationists were called into mission to engage in suffering for the relief of others’ suffering. Stories of officers and soldiers dying for the sake of the gospel became the hallmark of those who had given their lives ultimately for the cause of Christ.13
Not only was the idea of suffering for the sake of Christ prominent among Salvationists but suffering was a real and tangible experience of the people to whom they ministered. Many people living in Victorian England could attest to the absolute poverty and suffering they experienced daily. Their most basic physical needs only emphasised to a greater extent their need to emerge out of their spiritual poverty and be exposed to the message of salvation. This began the third stage in the development of Booth’s theology.
Prior to 1898 the Army continued the expansion of its mission into several other
countries, especially Europe; however, in 1890 three significant events marked a change on The Salvation Army landscape. Among the most significant was William Booth’s - In
Darkest England and the Way Out,14 It was the culmination of the Darkest England
project that would solidify for Booth the importance of his social and redemptive theology. Thus, the Darkest England project was the last piece of the theological puzzle in establishing the theological framework of The Salvation Army’s evangelistic work
13 See Alan Bateman, They Gave Their Lives (London: Salvation Books, 2008). This book provides a
snapshot of officers who have given their lives ultimately in the course of their service.
14
William Booth, In Darkest England and the Way Out (London: McCorquodale & Co, 1890). While there have been many who have argued that Darkest England was not entirely Booth’s own work, this
discussion will not be considered here. See Roger J. Green, "Theological Roots of in Darkest England and the Way Out", Wesleyan Theological Journal, 25/1 (1990), 83-106.
36 and its mission to the marginalised.
Ultimately, it was more than an evangelistic necessity that drew Booth’s attention to the East End of London (and beyond) but as part of that process there was a desire also to see social reform. These dimensions together contributed to Booth’s strong belief that The Salvation Army would be the denomination that would usher in the reign of Christ. However, Booth has been criticised for his focus on social-redemptive theology.
Norman Murdoch has been a strong advocate for the view that Booth only commenced his social ministry out of a response to the failure of his evangelistic ministry.15 But Murdoch’s analysis ignores the significant (and growing) social ministries that were operating in the decade before 1890.16 Moreover, it appears to view Booth as primarily a social reformer after 1890 - whereas Booth never lost his eschatological focus on
personal salvation; and fails to recognise that Booth had always been committed to social reform as an essential part of Wesleyan theology - as, for example, his contacts in the 1850s with the “stockingers” of Nottingham.17 Nor does Murdoch appear to
recognise the significant growth in the Army during the period that Murdoch claims the evangelistic ministry was failing; although Murdoch’s critique appears to focus on London. Instead Murdoch (perhaps somewhat fancifully) imagines how Booth might
15 See Murdoch, Origins, 47 “Darkest England was a new departure for Booth and for the Army. As its
evangelistic program stagnates in the 1880s, social salvation replaced evangelism as the Army’s mission.” See also Norman H Murdoch, "William Booth's in Darkest and the Way Out: A Reappraisal",
Wesleyan Theological Journal, 25 Spring (1990).
16 See Jenty Fairbank, Booth’s Boots: Social Service Beginnings in the Salvation Army (London: The
Salvation Army, 1983), 131.
17
Booth himself commented " the degradation and helpless misery of the poor stockingers of my native town, wandering gaunt and hunger-stricken through the streets, droning out their melancholy ditties, crowding the union or toiling like galley slaves on relief works for a bare subsistence, kindled in my heart yearnings to help the poor which have continued to this day, and which have had a powerful influence on my whole life."(Booth, Darkest England, , preface). See also Harold Begbie, The Life of General William Booth (New York: MacMillan, 1920), 4; Ann M. Woodall, What Price the Poor?: William Booth, Karl Marx and the London Residuum (Burlington: Ashgate Publishing, 2005).
37 have felt without offering any empirical proof of such feelings.18
While most historians have placed much of their emphasis on analysing William Booth’s theology and the influences that shaped his ministry, there is a significant person who has remained relatively unnoticed among scholars, until more recently. Not only was Catherine Booth a significant influence on William but her powerful contribution to the formation of The Salvation Army’s theological framework cannot be understated.
Catherine was a wise counselor who guided William Booth and his inner circle of leaders in their decision making; she was an apologist for the movement to society’s opinion formers and decision makers; but most of all she was the visionary thinker, the principal architect of the Army’s theology, the one through whom Salvationism was first formed, and the one who gave
it coherent and eloquent expression.19
Fortunately in more recent decades, Catherine’s influence and her work has been acknowledged to a greater degree and has provided inspiration to Salvationists. While Catherine Booth had died before InDarkest England,was published,her influence – and those who influenced her (especially John Wesley, Charles Finney, and Phoebe Palmer) – contributed enormously to this publication.
Catherine Booths’ impact on history was not a consequence of theological innovation, but of her faithfulness to the tradition she received, accompanied by a determination to carry through the emerging implications of that theology fearlessly, and above all practically. Catherine was influenced by Charles Finney, not in her core theology, but in its practical expression, towards a Salvationism worked out in evangelism, revivalism, and social reform. Catherine was influenced by John Wesley…towards a Salvationism that proclaimed the grace-created potential in human beings, of being restored in the image and likeness of their Creator, to live a holy life in the
power of the Holy Spirit.20
18
See, for example, Murdoch, Origins, 113.
19 John Read, Catherine Booth: Laying the Theological Foundations of a Radical Movement (Eugene:
Pickwick Publications, 2013), 2.
38 Her passion and theological astuteness, along with the influences that shaped both
Catherine and William Booth, provided the opportunity for them to create a denomination and a mission to the poor and suffering.
While these influences indicate some of the development of the Booths’ theological framework, it was the passion behind the structure that proved the motivation for the Army’s mission. It was the extreme plight and suffering among the urban poor, their chronic social and economic poverty and their spiritual impoverishment, that fuelled the motivation and the passion in the Booths to respond. Booth’s social and spiritual
conscience could not allow people living in the East End of London to perish, either physically or spiritually; therefore an holistic approach to mission was imperative.
The Christian Mission was created in the midst of the working-class
communities it aimed to transform. It fashioned an evangelical practice from the geography and culture of the working-class communities it strived to
convert. It was a neighborhood religion.21
This highlights a very important aspect which remains deeply embedded within Salvation Army sub-culture and its mission: to be transforming communities. The mission of The Salvation Army has not changed over one hundred and fifty years of ministry, as the Army’s focus remains on those within communities who are at risk or are vulnerable to social injustices.
Having reflected upon the influences that shaped the founders of The Salvation Army in its early days, it is important now to consider the development of the official doctrines that were established as the Army became a denomination. These doctrinal statements
21 Pamela J. Walker, Pulling the Devil's Kingdom Down (Oakland: University of California Press, 2001),
39 hinted at the influences that shaped the Booths’ theological framework but they also helped to set the boundaries of belief for this new denomination. What originally started as a very simple approach to describing the doctrines moved towards a more systematic approach in defining these beliefs. Particularly pertinent for this research will be the historical development of the doctrine of God within The Salvation Army.