- Salvation Army
- William Booth, a former Methodist preacher, founded the Christian Mission to preach evangelical revivalism and offer material help to down-and-outs in the slums of Whitechapel in 1861. He changed its name to the Salvation Army, giving the movement its present form and character, with quasi-military ranks, uniforms and brass bands that march with banners flying. In hymn-singing, preaching and the War Cry, the Salvation Army newspaper, emphasis is laid on the Gospels and on Jesus as a personal redeemer. The Salvation Army, now an international force, always adds a practical dimension to religion by trying to relieve poverty and suffering, maintaining hostels, undertaking youth work and running a missing persons bureau. In the late 1990s the organization tried to update its image, shifting from a traditional profile to a look that might have more in common with the laid-back guitar-based appeal of street-buskers.See also: evangelismFurther readingThe Salvation Army Yearbook, London: International HQ of the Salvation Army, published annually.CHRISTOPHER SMITH
Encyclopedia of contemporary British culture . Peter Childs and Mike Storry). 2014.