Centennial Celebration: A Time for Covenant Renewal
By Kristin Mudge /
Commissioning weekend each year is a special time to come together as a territory to honor and celebrate the brand-new lieutenants of The Salvation Army as they publicly commit to their officers’ covenant and step into a life of ministry. Next year’s Centennial Celebration provides an additional opportunity for the entire territory to participate — officers, soldiers, and junior soldiers alike.
Not only will we be celebrating the past 100 years of official service in the South and rejoicing with the new officers of the Proclaimers of Transformation session for the future, but the entire territory will be invited to examine our present, remember our calling as Salvationists, and recommit to our covenants and mission.
On Saturday morning at the Centennial, General Lyndon Buckingham, the international leader of The Salvation Army, will challenge the Southern Territory to remain faithful to the Word of God in spite of a culture calling for watered-down Christianity and diluted faith.
“The values of the world today call for a more liberal Army,” Lt. Colonel Allan Hofer, territorial program secretary, explains. “This is a good moment for us to come together and say, ‘We are not going to move away from our beliefs in Scripture.’ It’s a time of renewal to say we will stand firm on the Word of God as the Southern Territory, come what may.”
In a world more and more willing to set aside theological basics in an effort to accept and normalize false “truths,” Salvation Army leadership are calling for Salvationists to stand firm on the Bible and the promises we have made with our great God.
“It really is about us being faithful to the Lord and faithful to His Word, faithful to our God-given covenants. Being faithful to our mission, a God-given mission to The Salvation Army, as we look to Him for help, to guide us, to lead us,” Lt. Colonel Hofer continues. “It’s a time of reconsecrating ourselves corporately but also individually.”
The Southern Territory will be invited to recommit to upholding the Word of God as truth, to the foundational beliefs of Salvationism, and to the mission of our movement in this broken world.
“I’d like to call it a convocation, rather than just a celebration,” Lt. Colonel Hofer says. “We’re making a convocation, asking the people to be emissaries going across the land, across the territory, calling the people together to Atlanta so that we may celebrate the Lord, renew our vows, and rededicate ourselves for the mission.”
The Centennial Celebration, “All For Jesus,” will be held June 4-6, 2027, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, with Territorial Active Officers Councils and exciting pre-events in the days before. Visit usscentennial.org for more information.
