THREE new members were welcomed onto the International Doctrine Council (IDC) when it met at William Booth College, London, UK, from 24-27 March 2014. Major Gabriel Adepoju (Nigeria), Major Geoff Webb (Australia Southern) and Territorial Songster Leader K. Zohmonthanga (India Eastern) brought their own distinct contributions to deliberations that centred on the varied ways in which theology is and can be interpreted throughout the world. Specific consideration was given as to how doctrine can best be expressed to meet contemporary needs.
The planning of forthcoming events included preparation for the upcoming International Theology and Ethics Symposium, due to be held in October at the redesigned and refurbished Sunbury Court premises. Papers will be presented at the symposium on 'Jesus Christ: Universal Lord and Saviour' and Salvationists are being invited, through the newly-launched IDC website, to share their thoughts on what the statement means and how it is best expressed in the 21st century. The council is also planning an event for Boundless 2015, the International Congress to be held in London in July 2015. Details will be released shortly.
Members of the council are currently presenting a series of articles on 'Doctrine for Today' for publication in The Officer magazine. It is planned that these articles – designed to give clear, concise teaching on each of the Army’s 11 Articles of Faith – will be published as a book when the series concludes. A similar series ‘Holiness and ...’ has concluded and is it hoped this too will appear as a short book.
The council's chair (Commissioner Robert Street) gave an update on the launch of the new international teaching resource One Army. Council members made their own contributions to the video component of the resource, speaking about a range of subjects on camera.
Issues common to the council and the International Moral and Social Issues Council were addressed and requested papers from outside the council made significant impact on subjects currently being considered.
Further details about the work of the International Doctrine Council are available at www.salvationarmy.org/doctrine
