This is my story - 52

52 – Salvation Army publication – The War Cry

As Corps Officers (pastors) in The Salvation Army, my wife and I used to sell the War Cry in restaurants, service clubs, and many other places. Frequently I have been asked why The Salvation Army chose such a title. I don’t know the real reason, but it is not difficult to understand the reason for the choice of name.

The first issue of the War Cry came out on 27th December 1879. It was during the time when boys played Red Indians with war paints and war cries. The papers had stories of the Zulu wars.

The Christian Mission founded by William Booth became The Salvation Army in 1878. Military terminology was widely used. The Salvation Army was and still is at war with the world, the flesh and the devil, so one can understand for the choice of name of our paper – the War Cry.

Brigadier Herbert Lord the pioneer Officer Commanding and the General Secretary Major Charles Davidson and no doubt with the help of their wives started the War Cry in the then Malaya Command which included Singapore. The Salvation Army here does not have the first copies of the first War Cry in our Archives. A lot of our records were destroyed during the period of the Japanese occupation 1942-1945.

Among the pioneering officers was a Captain William A Price. He set up the Public Relations Department before the war. After the war in 1945 the Army recommenced work and Captain Price assumed the responsibilities of Public Relations Officer with additional responsibility of the War Cry. He was a gifted writer and proficient wordsmith. When he was appointed the General Secretary, Major Stanley Gordon took over the responsibility with the designation, Public Relations Secretary and Secretary for Literature.

When the then Brigadier and Mrs. Gordon were transferred to Africa, Brigadier Edward (Roy) Page was appointed to take over the Public Relations Department. Mrs. Page became the Editor of the War Cry (In those days the next rank to a Major was Brigadier)

When Brigadier and Mrs. Page returned to the United Kingdom to retire, Brigadier R Geus a Dutchman from Indonesia was appointed as the Public Relations Secretary. Both Brigadier and Mrs. Geus were fluent in Indonesian and Dutch of course, but somewhat limited in knowledge of English. So someone else had to take over the editorship. It all depended on who in Headquarters was able to do the job. So either the Officer Commanding his wife or the General Secretary had to edit the War Cry.

The War Cry came to the desk of the General Secretary when there was no one else to do it or when the editor was away on homeland furlough. In any case I was responsible for the column “From the General Secretary’s Desk” where I gave the news of what was happening in the Command.

Modern technology has made the production of the War Cry much easier. Our Territorial War Cry today is a magnificent production which we can be proud of. It is a far cry from the one The Army printed in the seventies. However, the message is the same – to proclaim Christ and bring glory to God.

Let us value our publication – the War Cry. Read it, enjoy it, ponder over the messages and share it with someone or better still buy a few to give to your friends. As a teen ager, I used to sell the War Cry to my classmates in school. Every one knew I belonged to The Salvation Army.

And by the way, the Army’s official letter head used to have a question printed on it at the bottom of the page “Have you read the War Cry?” I wonder how many of my colleagues remember this.