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 7514
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 February 2021
EDITOR From the editor’s desk
IT might be expected that an armed man collecting drug debts would end up serving a prison sentence. However, while Mick Fleming’s life was once one of drugs, violence and addiction, today he is serving people who are sleeping on the streets or are otherwise disadvantaged. In an interview in this week’s War Cry, Mick explains how his life was transformed when he decided to commit himself to God by following Jesus. Having studied at theological college, Mick now works as a pastor with Church on the Street Ministries, which offers food parcels, clothing and church services to people experiencing homelessness and addiction. It may seem a remarkable change, but Mick is certain about how it could happen. ‘I don’t think anyone’s beyond God’s redemption,’ he says. ‘I knew deep down inside me that I wasn’t bad, even though I was doing very bad things.’ The idea that everyone is capable of doing bad things but no one is beyond redemption is one which the Right Rev Graham Tomlin would agree with. He tells us this week that society tends to ‘divide the world into the good people and the bad people, when really all of us are a mixture of good and bad’. Graham has written a book called Why Being Yourself is a Bad Idea and Other Countercultural Notions, in which he explores how every individual is a complex mixture of good and bad, leading him to suggest that the often-given advice to ‘be yourself’ is confusing. ‘We can be positive and genuinely reach out to others in compassion and love,’ Graham tells us. ‘But we’re also liable to be selfish and full of envy and pride.’ However, Graham also believes that the way to be the best version of ourselves is to turn to Jesus. He says: ‘If we discover who Jesus is, it can change our lives.’ Mick is the living proof of Graham’s words. The great news is that any of us can experience that same change by turning to Jesus.
CONTENTS
What is The Salvation Army?
FEATURES 3
Crime watch
Celebrities confess all in TV show
5
Join the club?
The attractive sound of social media app
6
Don’t be yourself!
Author on how to live better
8
‘I was rotting away inside’
The former life of a church pastor
REGULARS 12
Team Talk
13
Puppy Tales
14 Puzzles 15
War Cry Kitchen
5
6
Front-page picture: UKTV
15