Salvatiobn Army - Not What They Appear To Be

[george caitlin]

A couple of years ago, my Unitarian Universalist group decided to go on a outdoor retreat / family fun weekend to some local camp (there are a number of camps run by religious denominations and non-profit organizations within 40 miles of where we meet). We looked at a few camps which didn’t seem too inviting; lastly, we went to tour the local Salvation Army camp, which is on a beautiful local lake.

 

We were warmly welcomed by the young lady who is the Assistant Camp Director. She gave us a comprehensive tour of the facilities – dining hall, indoor meeting rooms, bunk rooms, sports facilities, and campfire area. She was very outgoing and encouraging. After our tour, we checked her calendar to find which weekends were available, and reported back to our group.

 

Since the Salvation Army had the best facilities and location, the group chose their camp for our weekend retreat. Accordingly, we gathered deposits from about forty of our members and delivered our deposit to the Camp a month before our weekend, as they had instructed. The next day, our group leader got a phone call from the Camp Director, who said that his assistant had not been aware of the nature of Unitarian Universalism when she had spoken to us, and that the Salvation Army would not be renting their camp to a group such as ours. When he was pressed, all he would say is, “Right is right”, which we interpreted to mean that he was acting according to some Salvation Army religious philosophy. By this time, it was too late to book any other camp, and we cancelled our plans for a retreat entirely that year. We contacted the Salvation Army’s regional headquarters about this; they wrote back a very weasly letter, saying that the Salvation Army Camps were a TOTALLY separate organization from their operations, and that they would still gratefully accept donations of money and household goods from us, along with the hours of volunteerism that our group had given as bell-ringers for them in the past. (Yeah, I bet they would.)

 

This experience totally floored me. In my ignorance I had thought that the Salvation Army was a benign, kindly organization run by eccentric old ladies and men who ran around in pseudo-army uniforms but who were primarily interested in helping the poor and down-and-out (my wife and I even included a small legacy for the Army in our wills – not any more, may I add). Boy, was I wrong. The “benign, kindly” part is only a façade that hides a really strident, aggressive and sadly, intolerant, fundamentalist religion. I am willing to bet that not one person in twenty in the general public is aware of this religious extremism hiding behind the smiling face. Now, whenever someone receives food from the Army, I fully expect it to be prefaced by the words,” Do you love Jesus? You do? Well then, here’s a sandwich.”

 

A question I have for everyone is whether they know of any group that isn’t religious-based that helps the poor and needy with food and shelter? (I have checked out several in my area that are not religious-based, but unfortunately they contract out for delivery of services to the Salvation Army because the Army has a large infrastructure already in place for doing so.) My wife and I still want to leave some money in our will to an organization that feeds people, but not if their food is served with a heaping helping of intolerance.

[buffettphan]

Dale McGowen, who wrote Parenting Beyond Belief, is the director of Foundation Beyond Belief which is a secular charity whose members are humanists and atheists. Maybe this will be of interest to you.

 

BTW, the Salvation Army is exactly as you describe!

 

What is Foundation Beyond Belief?A unique secular charity whose humanist and atheist members support ten outstanding organizations per quarter, choose your donation level, and distribute among the featured causes as you wish.

[Crazy Donna]

The salvation army just uses the desperation of the vulnerable as an 'in' to ramming religion down their throats.

 

I refuse to give money to the Salvos, because I know that it'll be spent on bibles, not food and shelter. Same goes for any religious organisation now. I won't have my charity money supporting their depraved dogma.

 

In my experience, members of that church are just as bigoted as other christians.

[JadedAtheist]

It was started by fundies (the Booths, I believe) so there is still a residue of them left in the organization even thought it has secularized and liberalized quite a lot. We received a lot of help from them when I was a kid and my mum was struggling as a single parent so I don't really mind them. I probably won't donate to them because I think they won't use all of the money I give towards a useful cause but I think overall they are a helpful bunch even if there are bigots in there.

[Puddinhead]

Years ago, I was selling the first home I ever owned. The Salvation Army was interested in purchasing it for their local...General? Whatever silly military name he had. Anyway, the guy and his wife were quite nice and they loved my home. It was a 4 bedroom home, on a small lot, but they liked that it had a very large basement, for which they had envisioned feeding lots of people.

 

So..they had the local brass come in to look at the home, to buy it for them and that is when I lost what little respect I had for the organization. Even though the couple liked our home the best, the brass decided they wanted to buy a home that cost $70K more than ours and bordered the local golf course. So, that sucked. Then...while the sweet little "generals" wife was sitting on my sofa, the brass informed her and her husband that they wouldn't be getting the home at all. It would be for the next director. THEY were being transferred to Buffalo NY.

 

It was a crappy way to treat their staff (for one). And for two, they spent and extra $70K in DONATED MONEY because the house bordered a golf course. Bastards.

[Ro-bear]

Sounds like you dealt with a Major Asshole, although I suppose it could have been General Bullshit.

[florduh]

Yep, the name says it all. Salvation. Army.

[OpheliaGinger]

A former foster child of my parents is a lifelong slave to the SA, and they really haven't done jack shit for her; she is still highly impoverished and extremely diabetic, has a non working daughter who has two kids, a husband on disability, a "son-in-law" (we don't know if he and her daughter ever really got married because they too are extremely poor) in jail because he is a fucking child molester (literally), and she is also taking care of two other kids that aren't even remotely related to her--that makes seven people living in a small house built for maybe three. The SA has yet to help her with what she really needs (medication and some minor funding for her family) but yet she and her daughter will stand out in the cold ringing bells for the SA's cauffers.

[♦ Fuego ♦]

I read the biography of William Booth, the man that started the Salvation Army years ago. He seemed to encourage a spartan way of life (denial of self) and constant dedication to preaching to the poor. He was a dyed-in-the-wool fundamentalist preacher, and the pseudo-military structure of the organization should give you some feeling for the strict approach they have and the obedience they expect. If Christianity were true, his approach would have been right. But since it isn't, the best that can be said is that some poor people got some food and clothing from a man driven by fanatical mythology.

[Dagan]

I know full well the Salvation Army has strict rules and religious propaganda and is very evangelical and fundamentalist.

 

However, at the grocery store yesterday I still dropped a couple bucks in the kettle because I know it goes to help fund the only emergency shelter in my town. I would rather people be subjected to stupid rules and bibles but be warm and dry and fed, than freezing to death out in the woods.

 

If there was a government-run shelter, or something non-religious, that would be different. But there isn't.

[Thackerie]

Dale McGowen, who wrote Parenting Beyond Belief, is the director of Foundation Beyond Belief which is a secular charity whose members are humanists and atheists. Maybe this will be of interest to you.

 

That sounds like a good one.

 

One of my favorite charities is Doctors Without Borders/

http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/

 

If you’re looking for something that works strictly within the U.S. to feed poor and elderly people, I recommend Meals on Wheels. I recently hooked up an elderly relative with this organization, and I’m quite impressed by what they do.

http://www.mowaa.org/

[Ouroboros]

Here is a list of non-religious donor organizations: http://givingaid.richarddawkins.net/