LETTERS
GOALS WITHOUT CONFLICT
League officers at work in camp – ‘War Cry’, 1900
MISSING ON PURPOSE READING ‘A Conflict of Opinion’ (Salvationist 2 July) reminded me of my dad, who was 19 when the Second World War broke out and who was in effect an only child after his sister had died of tuberculosis two years earlier. His parents had been officers until they resigned for health reasons and they must have agonised over Neil being called up to serve King and country. They accepted that he had to go and left him in God’s hands. Dad had poor eyesight all his life, but dutifully accepted a rifle and aimed at the targets in basic training. ‘Cochrane!’ barked the sergeant. ‘How many rounds have yer fired?’ ‘All of them, sir,’ replied the hapless Neil. ‘Give us yer rifle back, lad, you’ve missed every one.’ His rifle was exchanged for a radio and he joined the Royal Corps of Signals, gaining high marks in Morse code exams and spending the next six years passing messages from the front line back to headquarters. He was in God’s hands indeed, and more than once escaped death or serious injury by inches. He went on to serve God at Bradford West Bowling – later Bradford Citadel – until he was called Home at the age of 90. He used his musical talents in the band and songsters and as corps pianist and never lost his sense of gratitude to God, his sense of humour – or his ability to communicate in Morse code. It is only in the past couple of years that I have wondered if he missed the targets on purpose. Mary Tyler Knottingley
FAITH IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA CHOLERA is a pernicious public health issue, but the history of the fight against it offers some interesting insights into the relationship between faith, belief and science. Filippo Pacini originally embarked on theological studies before switching to medicine. By the mid-19th century, he and his London-based physician colleague, John Snow, were part of an international community fighting cholera, albeit working independently. Theologian John Haught proposed the so-called confirmatory approach towards the relationship between science and faith. Scientists derive theories – often quite intuitively – and test them against empirical evidence. This requires a logical way of thinking. Logical thinking ultimately relies on the human brain. In faith we believe that the human brain is the design of God. So, good science research is arguably an act of faith. Kevin Chubb Barry 20
Salvationist 13 August 2022
THE article in 2 July Salvationist, dealing with the Army’s attitude to war, referred to Shaw Clifton’s Crown of Glory, Crown of Thorns. I read that book soon after its publication and was gratified to learn of the attitude of our three Generals who were in office through the Boer War, the First World War and Second World War. I remember being told at school about the formation of the United Nations, with 51 countries pledging their support for its aims. Its number has now increased to 193 member states. It is gratifying seeing more countries having gained independence and freedom to manage their own affairs. Most of this was achieved without conflict. That indicates that conflicts are not necessary to achieve worthy goals. One has to wonder how things would have been handled if Evangeline Booth had not retired before the Second World War. Michael Bennett Thame
IS YOUR CORPS ONLINE? MY family have had the good fortune to be invited to partake in a few Bible studies over Zoom led by Willenhall Corps, which we had no previous connections with, mostly because of chatting to one of its members on social media. This prompts me to ask: where possible, could corps running Bible studies or prayer groups using Zoom or similar facilities please advertise it outside their Facebook pages? I am sure that there are plenty of corps who continue to use online means to share God’s word. Morvyn Finch Woodbridge
LETTERS Many years ago General Frederick Coutts said letters in the Army’s press should be ‘carefully thought out and charitably expressed’. Letters may be edited and should ideally be no more than 300 words.
