GENERAL André Cox has launched a new initiative to give younger members of The Salvation Army an opportunity to share their thoughts, ideas and dreams. ‘Tell the General’ invites children and young people between the ages of 7 and 25 to submit short videos of themselves talking about the joys and challenges of being part of the international Church.
Openness and honesty are the buzzwords of the project. ‘I would like contributors to speak freely – to give their candid views, not just what they think I might want them to say,’ explains the General.
While there are no topics that are barred, the General has devised five questions to help focus contributions:
1) Which activities do you most enjoy taking part in at The Salvation Army?
2) What else could your corps or division do for you and your friends?
3) What's it like to be a young person in your corps? (e.g. Do you feel accepted and included? Are your views valued?)
4) How would The Salvation Army have to change to become the church of your dreams?
5) If you could say just one thing to the General, what would you want him to understand?
Participants are asked to upload their videos – of no more than 90 seconds' duration – to YouTube and then to submit the link to the special web page at http://sar.my/tellthegeneral. The closing date is 1 November 2013, and full terms and conditions are available on the General’s website. Contributions may be in any language.
A selection of entries will be used to guide discussions at the General’s Consultative Council in January 2014.