What is The Salvation Army?
2 COMMENT AND CONTENTS • WAR cry • 31 August 2019
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
From the editor’s desk LAST year 1,575 people in the UK became organ donors after they died. That is 162 more than in the previous 12 months. But, with more than 6,000 people needing a transplant, it was not enough, and 408 people died because of a lack of suitable donors. That grim statistic is why more action needs to be taken to encourage people to be organ donors. In this week’s War Cry we speak with the Rev Charles Kwaku-Odoi, who is the chief officer of the Caribbean and African Health Network. Charles’s role is to encourage people in black communities to agree to donate their organs after they die. One way he reaches them is through a network of churches – which is appropriate, as the issue is a matter of faith for Charles. ‘The Bible encourages us to give,’ he explains. ‘If I’m in the privileged position where after my life is ended I could benefit between seven and nine people, what better way is there to express grace than that?’ Supporting organ donations is one way we can affirm the value we place on the gift of life. But that gift is not guaranteed. This week we also speak with Cole Moreton, who explains how his personal experiences of fertility treatment helped to inspire his new novel. Cole says that, even decades on, he is still affected by what he and his wife went through. But he also emphasises how his faith helped him, describing God’s constant presence as a ‘beautiful song playing in the background’. He adds: ‘Being alive and being in the presence of God feels like the greatest gift.’ It is a person’s own choice whether they want to experience God’s presence with them like a beautiful song. But it could be our decision on organ donation that determines if someone has the life within them to make that choice.
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.
SINCE 1879
140 YEARS
OF THE WAR CRY Issue No 7438
Editor: Andrew Stone, Major Deputy Editor: Philip Halcrow Production Editor: Ivan Radford Assistant Editor: Claire Brine Assistant Editor: Sarah Olowofoyeku Staff Writer: Emily Bright Editorial Assistant: Linda McTurk Graphic Designer: Rodney Kingston Graphic Designer: Mark Knight War Cry office: 020 7367 4900 Email: warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk The Salvation Army UK Territory with the Republic of Ireland 101 Newington Causeway London SE1 6BN
Contents
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 Secretary for Communications: Lieut-Colonel Dean Pallant
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 and Wales 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
FEATURES 3
You’ve been framed? Police have questions about what they see as TV drama begins
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A trend worth following Being positive on Twitter
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Be a lifesaver Encouraging more people to be organ donors
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Jumbo-sized care Heathrow chaplains explain their roles
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‘For five years the process was all-consuming’ Author talks about his experience of fertility treatment
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REGULARS 4
News and media
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Browsing the Bible
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Now, There’s a Thought! and Quick Quiz
14 Puzzles 15
What’s cooking? Front-page picture: BBC/Heyday Films/NICK WALL
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