War Cry - September, 2013 Page 6

The War Cry | SEPTEMBER 2013

ith these words newly elected General
Andr� Cox, a Swiss-British Salvation Army
officer, addressed members of the 18th Sal-

vation Army High Council, as more than 10,000 people
from around the world watched a live webcast of his
election as the Army's 20th General. The 117 senior
leaders from around the world gathered July 29th at
the Renaissance London Heathrow Hotel just outside
London for the sacred task of choosing the next inter-
national leader.

The Mercy Seat from the Army's facility at Sun-

bury Court, London, was placed in the center of the
configuration for the High Council delegates as a vis-
ible sign of the spiritual exercise in which the mem-
bers were involved. Sunbury Court, the regular venue
for the High Council, is undergoing renovations.

General Cox shares his ministry with his wife,

Commissioner Silvia Cox, who is the World President
of Women's Ministries. Together General and Com-
missioner Cox now lead the 1.5 million-strong Army
in 126 countries around the world.

Born in Harare, Zimbabwe, to an English father

and Swiss mother, Andr� Cox spent his childhood years
in Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom before moving
to Switzerland, where he met his wife. From there the
couple entered training to become Salvation Army of-
ficers, taking up their first appointments in 1979.

The 59-year-old General has vast experience with

the international ministry of The Salvation Army. In
the early years of his officership, General Cox held
appointments in Switzerland and Zimbabwe. More

recently he has served as the territorial commander in
the Southern Africa Territory, the Finland and Esto-
nia Territory and the United Kingdom Territory with
the Republic of Ireland. In February 2013 he was ap-
pointed as Chief of the Staff--second in command of
the international Salvation Army.

As the High Council convened,

one of the

first official acts was to elect Commissioner William
Roberts, USA National Commander, to serve as the
president. Commissioner Roberts immediately took
control of business, pledging to do his best to keep the
proceedings flowing smoothly. He moved straight to
the election of other officials: Commissioner Birgitte
Brekke, International Secretary for Europe, was
elected as vice-president and Commissioner James
Condon, territorial commander, Australia Eastern,
was elected as chaplain. The president guided mem-
bers through a review of the orders of procedure for
the council, and the chaplain concluded the day by
reading from Psalm 139 before the singing of "The
Day Thou Gavest, Lord, is Ended."

On the second day,

the High Council elected mem-

bers for the Tellers and Questions Committee, which
prepared a questionnaire for each nominee to answer.

The chaplain's prayer on the third morning cen-

tered on God's people being united in the Holy Spirit.
Using the song "Savior and Lord, We Pray to Thee,"
Commissioner Condon emphasized the prayer: "Pour
out Thy Spirit... and let Thy love, Thy will dictate."
That prayerful attitude pervaded the chamber as
High Council members submitted the nominees for

Prayers for the guidance
of the Holy Spirit and for
unity were uppermost.

The candidates
for General:
Commissioner Dick
Krommenhoek,
Commissioner
Barry Swanson,
Commissioner Andr�
Cox, Commissioner
James Knaggs,
Commissioner
Kenneth Hodder.

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