In Religion for Every Day he writes:--

"I am always talking to you about what we call religious duties, such as praying and singing, making efforts to save your own soul and the souls of the people about you. In these letters I propose speaking of the things that men call secular, and which many people reckon have nothing to do with Religion. But I want to show you, if I can, that the Salvationist's conduct ought, in every particular, to be religious; every meal he partakes of should be a sacrament; and every thought and deed a service done to God. In doing this you will see that I shall have to deal with many quite commonplace subjects; and, in talking about them, I shall try to be as simple and as practical as I possibly can.

"The first topic to which I shall call your attention is your daily employment, and by that I mean the method by which you earn your livelihood. Or, supposing that, having some independent means of support, you are not compelled to labour for your daily bread, then I shall point out that special form of work, the doing of which Providence has plainly made to be your duty. Because it is difficult to conceive of any Salvationist who has not some regular employment, for which he holds himself responsible to God

"Work is a good thing, my comrades. To be unemployed is generally counted an evil--any way, it is so in the case of a poor man; but it seems to me that the obligation to be engaged in some honourable and useful kind of labour is as truly devolved upon the rich as upon the poor, perhaps more so. Work is necessary to the well-being of men and women of every class, everywhere. To be voluntarily idle, in any rank or condition of life, is to be a curse to others and to be accursed yourself.

"You would utterly condemn me if you thought that I engaged in my work in The Army merely to make a good show, or for some personal profit, and did not care about what God thought of the matter. My comrades, there are not two different standards of work--one for you and one for me. You must, therefore, be under the same obligation to do your work in the house or in the mine or in the warehouse, or wherever the Providence of God has placed you" to please your Heavenly Master, as I am on the platform, in the council chamber, or wherever my duty may call me.

"But here another question arises. Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Master in the affairs of your daily life? If not, of course, this part of my argument will be thrown away; but if you do, then it will be the most powerful of all.

"At the commencement of His ministry, Jesus Christ announced that He was about to establish the Kingdom of Heaven on the earth. By the Kingdom of Heaven He meant a Kingdom consisting of heavenly government, heavenly laws, heavenly obedience, heavenly power, heavenly love, heavenly joy. These, taken together, constitute the chief characteristics of this Kingdom, and instead of being confined, as it had been hitherto, to a handful of people in Jerusalem and Judea, it was to cover the whole earth.

"Now the subjects of that Kingdom must accept Jesus Christ as their Master and Lord. No one can either come into that Kingdom or remain in it without compliance with this law. You cannot be a son without being a servant.

"But you have written yourselves down as His servants, and said you will 'no longer live unto yourselves,' nor to please the world, but to do the will of Him who has redeemed you; that is, to please Him. Now the Master's province, everybody knows, is, not only to choose the work of His servants, but to get it done, if possible, to His satisfaction.

"He has appointed me my work. He has arranged that I should direct the movements of this great Army, preach Salvation, write Letters for you to read, save as many sinners as I can, and strive to get my Soldiers safely landed on the Celestial Shore. Before all else, I must do this Work, as nearly as I can, to satisfy my Lord--and nothing short of the best work I can produce will accomplish that.

"And as with me so with you. He has chosen your work, if you have put your life into His hands, just as truly as He has chosen mine, although it may be of a different kind. I am writing this letter in the train. I am a poor writer at best. When I was a child my schoolmaster neglected to teach me to hold my pen properly. In this respect he did not do good work, and I have had to suffer for it ever since. Still, I am doing my work as well as I can, in order that it may profit you and please my Lord.

"In settling how much work he will do, a man must have due regard to the claims of his own health. If he rushes at his work without due discretion, and does more than his strength will reasonably allow, he will probably break down, and so prevent his working altogether, or for a season, at least. Whereas, if he exhausts no more energy than he can recover by sleep and food and rest, at the time he can go steadily forward, and by doing so, accomplish a great deal more, in the long run, than he would by temporary extravagant exertion. When speaking on this subject, I sometimes say that I use my body as I should use a horse, if I had one--that is, I should not seek to get the most labour out of him for a week, regardless of the future, but I should feed and manage him with a view to getting the most I could get out of him all the year round. That is, doubtless, the way a man should use his body, and to do this he should take as much time for his food and daily rest as is necessary to replace the energies he has used up by his work.

"In the leisure taken for this purpose, it will be necessary to have specified hours, as otherwise, those who are without principle will take advantage of the weak, and anything like system will be impossible.

"Then, again, when the proper performance of a particular task depends upon the united labour of a number of individuals, who have agreed to work in co-operation, it will be necessary, in the interests of the whole, that each should conform to the regulations laid down, always supposing that such rules are in harmony with truth and righteousness.

"The wishes and interests of employers have also to be taken into consideration. But, in every case, the principle is equally obligatory upon all.

"These duties will demand, and must have devoted to them, a measure of the time at our control. What that amount of time shall be, must be determined by the relative importance of those duties. For instance:--

"There is the work a man can do for his earthly employers, over and above the amount that is considered to be a strict and just return for his wages. Here, again, he must be guided by Jesus Christ's rule, and to do unto his master as he would that his master should do unto him.

"There is the work that he ought to do for his family, apart and beyond the bare earnings of their daily bread. This is work which no one else can do so well, and which, if it be neglected by him, will probably not be done at all.

"There is the effort that every workman should put forth for his own personal improvement. For instance, a youth of seventeen works, we will say, ten hours a day for his employer, who would very much like him to put in another hour at the same task, and would be willing to pay him extra for doing so. This, we will suppose, the youth could do without any injurious effect to his health. But then, by reading his Bible, or cultivating his mind, he might qualify himself to become an Officer, or to fill some other important position, in either case fitting himself for a field of greater usefulness, in the future, than the one he already occupies. Under such circumstances, it must be the duty of that youth to take that hour for his own improvement, rather than to use it to enrich his master or increase his earnings.

"Then, every Soldier of Jesus Christ must duly consider and obey the claims of the Salvation War. That is, he must strive to take his fair share in that conflict. Whether he is his own master, having the direct control of his time, or whether he works for an employer, who only allows him many hours for leisure, he must conscientiously devote much of that time as he can to saving his fellow-men, settling this question, he must use his common sense, and claim the promised direction of the Holy Spirit. God will guide him.

"What I protest against here is the notion, born of indolence and selfishness, which affirms that we should do little, rather than as much, work as is consistent with the maintenance of health, and with the claims arising out of the relations in which we stand to those about us.

[An Autograph Message from The General]

Soldiers. God and a sinning suffering world cal you to rise up and meet your great opportunity. Do it and do it with your might.

For the present I must say farewell; but always think of ****

Your affectionate General
Williams S. Booth

Cape Town,
October 12, 1908

"However, circumstances will transpire, during the earthly career of every one of us, calling for self-sacrificing work that must be performed, regardless of consequences to health or any other interest.

"Supposing, by way of illustration, a ship has sprung a leak, through which the water is rushing rapidly in, endangering the lives of both the passengers and crew. Under such conditions, would not every man on board be justified in working night and day to prevent the threatened calamity? Nay, further, would not the laws of humanity call upon every one concerned to do so at the risk of crippling themselves, or even sacrificing life itself, in order to gain the greater good of saving the vessel from destruction, and rescuing a number of their fellows from a watery grave?

"My contention then, is, that whether in the shop or on the ship, in the parlour or in the kitchen, in the factory or in the field, on the Salvation platform or in the coal mine, whether Officers or Soldiers, we are all alike, as servants of God, under the obligation to do all we possibly can in the service of men; and to do it with the holy motive of pleasing our Heavenly Master.

"Here let me review my warrant for requiring from you the kind of loving labour that I advocate.

"The Bible enjoins it. We have already quoted Paul's words to the Ephesians, in which he says that our work is to be done, 'Not with eye-service as men-pleasers, but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men.' That is all I ask for.

"It is enjoined by the doctrine of brotherly love. I cannot understand how any one can suppose, for a moment, that he is living a life acceptable to God unless he is striving, with all his might, to fulfil the Divine command, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.' Your master, or whoever has a claim upon your service, must be included in the term 'neighbour'; and to comply with the command of the Saviour, you must work for that master, or mistress, as the case may be, from the voluntary principle of love rather than the earthly and selfish principle of gain.

"Is not the disinterested method I am urging upon you in keeping with the loftiest ideals the world possesses with respect to work? About whom does it write its poetry? Whom does it laud to the heavens in the pulpit, on the platform, and in the Press? Whose names does it describe the highest in its Temples of Fame, or hand down to posterity as examples for rich and poor, old and young alike, to follow? Is it the man who makes his own ease and enrichment his only aim in life, and who toils and spins for nothing higher than his own gratification? Nothing of the kind. It is the generous, self-sacrificing, disinterested being who uses himself up for the benefit of his fellows.

"Nay, at whom does that same world ceaselessly sneer, and whom does it most pitilessly despise? Is it not the mean and narrow spirit whose conduct is governed by selfish greed and sensual indulgences? Whatever may be its practice, in this respect, the sentiment of the world is in the right direction. It asks for benevolence evidenced by unselfish labour, and admires it when it finds it.

"A paragraph went the round of the newspaper world, a little time back, describing how an American millionaire had decided to spend the rest of his days on a Leper Island in the Pacific Ocean, in order to labour for the amelioration of the miseries of its unfortunate inhabitants. Wonder and admiration everywhere greeted the announcement.

"Shall we go back on all this spirit of self-sacrifice? Shall this kind of thing die out, or only have an existence in poetry books, platform quotations, or anecdote collections? Shall we change over to the 'pound-of-flesh' principle, and hire out the work of our hands, the thoughts of our minds, and the burning passions of our souls, for the largest amount of filthy lucre, and the greatest measure of earthly comfort, that we can obtain for them; so justifying the lying libel on humanity, long since spoken, and still often sneeringly quoted, that every man has his price? Or shall we say that love--the love of God and man--is the highest and divinest motive of labour--a motive possible not only to the sons and daughters of genius, but accessible to the plainest, humblest man or woman who suffers and toils on the lowest round of the ladder of life.

"I argue in favour of this doctrine on the ground of its profitableness to the worker. My readers will probably have asked long before this, How far do these propositions harmonise with the interests of the servant? Ought he not to take his own well-being into account? Certainly. He must have just as true a regard for his own welfare and the welfare of those dependent upon him, as he has for that of others. The command, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,' can only be rightly interpreted by another, like unto it, which reads: 'Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you do ye even so to them.' Therefore, he must ask, that others should do unto him as he would do unto them, supposing they occupied changed positions. This must mean that, while righteously concerned for the interests of others, he must be reasonably concerned for his own.

"But here a little difficulty comes into our argument, arising out of the play of the higher motives of affection. What does love care for gain in its calculations of service? The husband who loves his wife as Christ loved the Church, does not stop to consider the claims of duty, or the advantages following its discharge in toiling for her welfare. He will be willing to die for her, as Christ died for the Church.

"He does not say, 'I will toil for my delicate wife, and deny myself pleasant things, in order to obtain for her the necessaries and comforts she requires, because she would do the same for me, if I were in her place and she in mine.' Nothing of the kind! The wife I spoke of, who told me the other day that she had not had her clothes off for seventeen days and nights in nursing her husband did not make it appear that she thought she was doing anything extraordinary, or that she rendered this service to her companion in life because she felt sure that had he been the wife and she the husband, he would have gladly done the same for her.

"Had the newspapers thought that the American millionaire was going to the Leper Island, with his gold, to make something out of it for himself and family, or to make a name in the world, instead of his being greeted with a chorus of admiration, there would have been a universal chorus of execration at his selfishness. It was because they believed that he was going to make the sacrifice of his own gain, if not of his own self, for the benefit of the poor sufferers, that they praised him.

"Supposing, however, that we come down to the low level of self-interest, we insist then, that those who work from the motive of love, rather than the motive of gain, will not necessarily be sufferers in consequence, so far as this world goes. But it may be asked, 'Will not unprincipled masters or mistresses be likely to take advantage of this docile and unselfish spirit?' Perhaps, nay, doubtless, in many cases, they will. The Salvation Army has been taken advantage of all through its past history, and so have all the true saints of God, because they have submitted to wrong, and have not fought the injustice and false representations and persecutions inflicted upon them from the beginning. It will possibly be so to the end, but that does not affect the principle for which I argue, which is, that we must do good work, and as much of it as we can, regardless of what the world may give us in return.

"But, I think, I have sufficiently shown, as I have gone along, that this class of service is not without its earthly rewards, and that every interest of human nature--selfish and otherwise alike--testify to the probability of its proving profitable to those who practise it.

"If, however, the reward does not come in the form of money, or houses, or lands, there will be gain in that which is far more valuable than money and houses and lands, and which money and houses and lands cannot buy. There will be the gain in peace, in satisfaction, and in joy in the Holy Ghost in this life, to say nothing of the gain in the world to come. But, on this point, I shall have more to say another time.

"I remember hearing a gentleman relate the following incident in a large meeting: 'Some time back,' he said, 'I was passing through the streets of Liverpool. It was a cold, raw, wintry day. The streets were ankle-deep in an unpleasant mixture of mud and ice, and battling through it all, the came along a little procession of ragged, haggard, hungry looking boys. Splash, splash, on they went, through freezing slush, at every step making the onlookers shudddered as they stood by in their warm, comfortable coats and furs." In the front rank was a little fellow, who was scarcely more than a bag of bones, half-naked, barefooted, his whole frame shivering every time he put his foot down on the melting snow.

"'All at once, a big boy came forward, and, stooping down, bade the lad put his arms round his neck, and, lifting him up on his back, took his perished feet one in each hand and jogged along with his burden.

"'I was moved,' said the speaker, 'at the sight; and going up to the boy, commended him for his kindness. In his Lancashire brogue the lad replied, "Aye, aye, sir; two feet in the cold slush are not so bad as four." After a while,' said the speaker, 'I offered to carry the little chap myself" but the honest fellow shook his head, and said, "Nay, nay,' Mister; I winna part with him. I can carry him; and he's a-warming o' my back."'

"And so, if seeking the good of others may not bring as much worldly gain as a selfish course of action, it does ensure that joyful warmth of heart which all loving service brings, and which is among the most valuable of all the treasures of earth or Heaven. Every man who acts on this principle is adding to the general sum of human happiness. What is the sum of celestial happiness, the happiness of God, the happiness of the angels, the happiness of the Blood-washed spirits who are safely landed there? In what does this happiness chiefly consist?

"I reply, Not in the golden streets, the unfading flowers, the marvellous music, nor all the other wonders of the Celestial Land put together, but in Love. Love is the essence of the bliss of Heaven, for 'Love is Heaven, and Heaven is Love.' This happiness we can have below. It is not the love others bear to us that makes our felicity, but the love we bear to them; and, thank God, we can as truly love on earth as we can in Heaven.

"And then, as I have been saying all along, acting on this principle constitutes true religion. As labour done from selfish, fleshly motives is of the earth, and as the results which follow it will perish with the earth, even so labour done to bless mankind and to please God is Divine, and the results flowing out of it must be everlasting honour and joy. Where this principle is carried into effect, every part of human conduct becomes religious--nay, a positive act of Divine worship, and an acceptable song of praise."

Important Events Connected With The General's Life and Work

1827. Jan. 17th Catherine Mumford--afterwards Mrs Booth--born at Ashbourne, Derbyshire
Apr. 10th William Booth born at Nottingham.
1844. Conversion of Catherine Mumford and William Booth.
1852. Apr. 10th William Booth entered the Methodist Ministry.
1855. June 16th Marriage of William Booth and Catherine Mumford.
1856. March 8th Birth of William Bramwell (now General) Booth.
1859. Mrs. Booth's first pamphlet "Female Ministry" published.
1861. Commenced to travel as Revivalist.
1865. July 5th Commenced Mission Work in East of London.
First Headquarters opened in Whitechapel Road.
1868. Christian Mission commenced work in Scotland.
1870. Publication of "How to reach the Masses" by the Rev. W. Booth.
1875. Publication of the first volume of music.
1878. First Deed Poll, signed legally, constituting The Christian Mission.
" Xmas. The name of the Christian Mission altered to The Salvation Army, and the Rev. William Booth assume the title of General.
First Corps flag presented by Mrs. Booth.
"Practical Christianity" by Mrs. Booth published.
1879. Dec. 29th Publication of the first number of the "War Cry."
Formation of the first Salvation Army Band at Consett.
1880. Headquarters removed to Queen Victoria Street.
Opening of the work in the United States and Australia.
Opening of first Training College.
Publication of first "Orders and Regulations."
"Godliness," by Mrs. Booth, published.
1881. Work extended to France.
First number of the "Little Soldier" issued.
1882. Opening of the Congress Hall and International Training College at Clapton.
Marriage of W. Bramwell Booth and Captain Florence Soper.
Work extended to Switzerland, Canada, Sweden and India.
Publication of "Life and Death" by Mrs. Booth.
First Prison-Gate Home opened in London.
1883. Work extended to South Africa and New Zealand.
1884. "The Training of Children," by the General, published.
First Band Journal issued.
First Rescue Home opened.
1885. "All the World" first published.
Criminal Law Amendment Act passed.
Trial and acquittal of W. Bramwell Booth.
1886. Death of The Army's first French Martyr.
The General paid his first visit to France, the United States and Canada.
First International Congress held in London.
Work extended to Germany.
"Musical Salvationist" published.
Self-Denial Week established.
First "Orders and Regulations for Field Officers" published, and first "Orders and Regulations for Staff Officers" published.
1887. Thousand British Corps established.
First Slum Settlement established.
Work extended to Holland, Denmark and Zululand.
First Crystal Palace Anniversary Demonstration.
Auxiliary League founded.
General paid his first visit to Denmark, Sweden and Norway.
"Popular Christianity," by Mrs. Booth, published.
1888. First Food Depot opened at Limehouse.
Work extended to Norway, Argentine, Finland and Belgium.
" June 21st. Mrs. Booth gave her last public address.
1889. The Petition for the Sunday Closing of Public-houses, with 436,500 signatures, presented to the House of Commons by the General.
Publication of "The Deliverer."
General visited Belgium, Denmark, Sweden and France.
1890. 25th Anniversary of The Army celebrated at the Crystal Palace.
Oct. 4th. Mrs. Booth's Death.
" " 13th. Funeral Service at Olympia--36,000 present.
" " 14th. Funeral at Abney Park.
Publication of "In Darkest England" by the General.
1891. Work extended to Italy and Uruguay.
General first visited South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and India.
£1,000. 0. 0. subscribed for "Darkest England" Scheme.
General signed "Darkest England" Trust Deed.
Opening of Industrial and Land Colony at Hadleigh, Essex.
Publication of "Social Gazette."
1892. General visited Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.
Publication of "Life of Catherine Booth."
1892. Work extended to West Indies.
1893. General visited Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Holland and Norway.
1894. International Congress, in connection with the General's Jubilee, held in London.
General visited America and South European Countries.
Work extended to Java.
1895. General visited South Africa, Australia and various European Countries.
Work extended to Japan and British Guiana.
Naval and Military League established.
1896. General visited Germany, Sweden, Switzerland and Denmark. Preached to 12,000 in Kings Gardens, Copenhagen.
First Salvation Army Exhibition--Agricultural Hall, London.
Work extended to Malta.
1897. General inspected work in European countries.
1898. General visited United States, Canada and European countries.
"Orders and Regulations for Social Officers" published.
1899. Second Salvation Army Exhibition--Agricultural Hall.
Visited Australia, New Zealand, Ceylon and European countries.
Officers sent to the front to work amongst both sides in the South African War.
1900. General visited European countries.
1901. General visited European countries.
Opening of first Inebriates' Home at Hadleigh.
1902. General visited United States, Canada and European countries.
Publication of "Religion for Everyday" by the General.
1903. General visited America, Canada and European countries.
Received by President Roosevelt.
1904. June 24th. The General received by His Majesty, King Edward the Seventh, at Buckingham Palace.
" June 25th. International Congress opened by the General in London.
" July 23rd. General received by Her Majesty, Queen Alexandra, at Buckingham Palace.
August. Commenced his Motor Campaign.
Work extended to Panama.
General visited various European countries.
1905. General visited Palestine, Australia and various European countries.
First Emigration Ship sails from Liverpool for Canada with 1,000 emigrants.
The General created Honorary D.C.L., Oxford.
General received Freedom Cities of London and Nottingham.
1906. Establishment of Anti-Suicide Bureau.
General conducted lengthy Campaigns Continental countries.
1907. General visited Japan, America, Canada etc.
General received by Kings of Denmark and Norway, and Queen of Sweden, and Emperor of Japan.
1908. Work extended to Korea.
General visited South Africa.
1909. General visited Russia, Finland and other European countries.
General received by Kings of Norway and Sweden.
General received by Prince and Princess of Wales, now King and Queen of England.
General received by Queen Alexandra and the Dowager Empress of Russia.
80th Birthday Celebration at Albert Hall, London.
Met with accident involving loss of sight of one eye.
1910. General visited various European countries.
1911. General visited Italy and other European countries.
General conducted International Social Council in London attended by Officers from all over the world.
1912. General visited North European Staff Council in Norway.
" May 23rd. Operation on remaining eye, followed by complete loss of sight.
" Aug. 20th. The General laid down his Sword.