Salvation Army

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Published on Thursday, 30 June 2011 16:35

We were recently asked about the current relationship between our communities and the Salvation Army. As you know, the Army organised the infamous petition against homosexual law reform in the 1980s, an act which damaged relations for many years, so that many gay people still feel unable to contribute to the SA’s fundraising efforts. So the board wrote to them.

A rather partial apology, or rather statement of regret in 2006 did little to clear the air. Although there has been no official statement since then, the extensive reply we have received from their National Director of Social Services and Social Policy, Campbell Roberts, goes considerably further in an attempt to heal any remaining rift. Interesting points in the letter include:

“The SA currently accepts the law and works happily with it. The SA has no current official position on decriminalisation, Our present international leader General Shaw Clifton ... has written “we stand neutral to legislation that seeks to address issues of human sexuality or of sexual behaviour, knowing that deeper issues are at stake that legislation does not even begin to recognise. We neither encourage nor discourage the decriminalisation of sexual behaviour between consenting adults.”

Mr Roberts noted that the SA supported the removal of legal impediments that discriminated against homosexual relationships at the time of the Civil Union legislation, and confirmed a number of further points:

“The international SA did not support the actions of NZSA leaders in 1986 and correspondence exists in which they recommend no opposition to the Bill and counselled the NZ [branch] against becoming involved in opposition”.

‘The SA senior leadership in 1986 were very divided on the actions of the Territorial Commander that involved the SA in opposition to decriminalisation”.

“The SA in NZ would wish to be as reconciled to the gay community as the gay community felt appropriate”.

“We would see the right of homosexual people to be protected by law without discrimination as a very important tenet of New Zealand law”.

“The SA has gay people in its congregations and employment. It works with a significant number of gay people in its social programmes. I am not aware of any complaints from gay people who have felt discriminated, devalued or not accepted by the organisation while participating within SA programmes or activities. The SA acknowledges that its action in 1986 were unjustified and deeply hurt gay people and the gay community.”

“I would be keen to learn further from the gay community on ways in which you feel we can further build bridges of understanding and respect to gay people”.

The RW Board certainly intends to follow up on this detailed, frank and positive response from the Salvation Army, and a further meeting has already taken place.

September 2010