The Salvation Army is a Christian church and registered charity providing services in the community, particularly to those who are vulnerable and marginalised. Motivated by our Christian faith, we offer practical support and services in more than 700 centres throughout the UK to all who need them, regardless of ethnicity, religion, gender or sexual orientation. To find your nearest centre visit salvationarmy.org.uk/find-a-church
What is the War Cry? The Salvation Army first published a newspaper called the War Cry in London in December 1879, and we have continued to appear every week since then. Our name refers to our battle for people’s hearts and souls as we promote the positive impact of the Christian faith and The Salvation Army’s fight for greater social justice.
WAR CRY Issue No 7518
Editor: Andrew Stone, Major Deputy Editor: Philip Halcrow Production Editor: Ivan Radford Assistant Editor: Sarah Olowofoyeku Staff Writer: Emily Bright Staff Writer: Claire Brine Editorial Assistant: Linda McTurk Graphic Designer: Rodney Kingston Graphic Designer: Mark Knight Email: warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk The Salvation Army UK Territory with the Republic of Ireland 101 Newington Causeway London SE1 6BN Tel: 0845 634 0101 Helpline: 020 7367 4888 Subscriptions: 01933 445445 (option 1, option 1) or email: subscriptions@satcol.org Founder: William Booth General: Brian Peddle Territorial Commander: Commissioner Anthony Cotterill Editor-in-Chief: Major Mal Davies Published weekly by The Salvation Army ©The Salvation Army United Kingdom Territory with the Republic of Ireland ISSN 0043-0226 The Salvation Army Trust is a registered charity. The charity number in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is 214779, in Scotland SC009359 and in the Republic of Ireland CHY6399. Printed by Walstead Roche Ltd, St Austell, on sustainably sourced paper
Your local Salvation Army centre
INFO 2 • WAR CRY • 27 March 2021
EDITOR From the editor’s desk
IT is almost impossible to conceive of anyone in this country whose life has not been impacted in some way by the Covid-19 pandemic – and none more so than those who have lost loved ones to the virus. In addition, there are the millions of people who have found themselves furloughed, shielding, disconnected from their extended family and friends or having to support their children with home learning. Some of those people have also had to cope with contracting coronavirus themselves. According to government figures, more than four million people have tested positive for it, with more than one in ten of them needing hospital care. Among those treated in hospital was Major Karl Gray. On 3 April last year, Karl, who leads the Salvation Army church in Clapton with his wife Major Ruth Gray, was struggling to breathe and had a sky-high temperature. He was rushed to hospital in an ambulance, and for the next three and a half weeks was in a medically induced coma. It was eight weeks before he was to return home. In this week’s War Cry we speak with Karl and Ruth about the two months in which Karl’s life hung in the balance. Not surprisingly, Karl doesn’t remember very much about the early weeks of his time in hospital, but the memories have remained vivid for Ruth. She tells us it was difficult. But she and her family had a very special source of support. ‘God never once left us on our own to cope with it,’ she says. ‘He never let me feel hopeless. I could always sense God’s presence.’ Through the centuries, millions of people have had the same experience as Ruth. One Bible passage declares: ‘God is our shelter and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble’ (Psalm 46:1 Good News Bible). Anyone can experience God’s help, whatever they are facing. It is almost impossible to conceive of anyone whose life would not be changed if they decided to follow him.
CONTENTS
What is The Salvation Army?
FEATURES 3
What’s the verdict?
TV lawyer has a decision to make
5
Thinking differently
Life as an autistic person
8
‘I didn’t know if my husband would live’
A family’s experience of coronavirus
REGULARS 4
War Cry World
12
Team Talk
13
Faces of Faith
14 Puzzles 15
5
War Cry Kitchen
8
Front-page picture: BBC/SCOTT WALLER
15