Like a Mighty Army

Prior to the 1948 inauguration of the World Council of Churches WCC, Karl Barth challenged the churches to engage in 'real strict sober genuine theology' in order that the unity of the church might be visibly realised. At that time, The Salvation Army did not aspire to become formally known as a church, even though it became a founding member of the WCC. Today it is globally known as a social welfare organisation, concerned especially to serve the needs of those who find themselves at the margins of society. Less well known is that seventy years after Barth's challenge, The Salvation Army has made its peace with the view that it is a church denomination. Accepting Barth's challenge to the churches, and in dialogue with his own ecumenical ecclesiology, the concept of the church as an army is interrogated in service to The Salvation Army's developing understanding of its identity and to the visible unity of God's church. David W. Taylor is a Salvation Army officer and, after thirty years of leadership ministry in a local congregation, currently serves as the Co-ordinator of Higher Education at The Salvation Army's William Booth College in London. "This is a groundbreaking study in both method and content. It explores with real honesty and clarity the identity and ontology of the church as the body of Christ, including a commendation of baptism and the Lord's Supper as ways of Christ's 'self-attestation'. Required reading for theologians and ecumenists." Dr Timothy Bradshaw, Research Lecturer in Theology, University of Oxford. " 'Like A Mighty Army?' is a fine example of the interplay of historical research, theological interrogation, and the analysis of emerging ecclesiastical practice, well illustrating the impact of the mental exercise of historical and theological enquiry upon the practical issues presently confronting The Salvation Army in exploring the nature of its identity and mission in the modern world." John H.Y. Briggs, Senior Research Fellow in Church History and Director of the Centre for Baptist History and Heritage, Regent's Park College, University of Oxford.

Publisher -

Author(s) - David W. Taylor | David W. Taylor

Paperback

Published Date -

ISBN - 9780227175033

Dimensions - 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.6 cm

Page Count - 306