Born in England in 1829, William Booth was raised Anglican, but had a conversion experience when he was still young and became a street preacher for the Methodist Church in England. He moved from his childhood home to London, where he married Catherine Mumford, worked for three years as a pawnbroker, then became an ordained Methodist minister in 1858.Booth's theology was simple and was inspired by the teachings of John Wesley: In order to be saved, a sinful man must personally accept Jesus Christ as his Saviour. Armed with this belief, Booth and his wife left Methodism in 1861 and set up a revival tent in a graveyard in East London with the hope of spreading the Gospel to the residents of the London slums. He enlisted the people he reached as workers to help with his mission, referring to them with military terms and titles. Over time, his ministry grew to include housing and food kitchens for the poor, always run with the help of "God's Army" of converts. Booth became a figure of international renown, and by the time of his death in 1912, his ministry had spread into 58 countries. It is known today as the Salvation Army, one of the best-known evangelical and humanitarian organizations in the world.
For more information about William Booth and the Salvation Army, please see Salvation Army USA or Blood and Fire: William and Catherine Booth and their Salvation Army by Roy Hattersley, copyright 2000 by Doubleday.
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