Retired General Shaw Clifton promoted to glory
General Shaw Clifton (Rtd), The Salvation Army’s 18th international leader, was promoted to glory yesterday, 29 May 2023.
“Retired General Shaw Clifton’s impact throughout the Army world has been immeasurable, and we thank God for every opportunity for ministry the Lord enabled him to share,” said General-elect Commissioner Lyndon Buckingham.
"We ask the global Salvation Army family to hold Commissioner Birgitte Brekke-Clifton and the Clifton family in their prayers at this time.”
General Clifton (Rtd) became General-elect of The Salvation Army on 28 January 2006 at the Army’s 16th High Council held at Sunbury Court, London, taking office in succession to General John Larsson on 2 April 2006. He served a five-year term, entering retirement in 2011.
Shaw Clifton was born on 21 September 1945 in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
He was commissioned as a Salvation Army officer on 5 July 1973. His first appointment was to Burnt Oak Corps (London) in the British Territory in July 1973. He went briefly to continue his theological studies at International Headquarters (IHQ) in October 1973, before being appointed in January 1975 with his wife, Helen, to Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia), initially to the Mazowe Secondary School and then to Bulawayo as corps officers.
He returned to the United Kingdom in 1979 to take charge of Enfield Corps, North London. In June 1982, he became the legal and parliamentary secretary at IHQ. This was followed by an appointment in 1989 to Bromley Corps in South London. In May 1992, he became Divisional Commander in the Durham and Tees Division of the United Kingdom Territory with the Republic of Ireland. He served in that post until 1995.
He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and appointed Divisional Commander in the Massachusetts Division of the USA Eastern Territory for two years.
He was appointed as Territorial Commander of the Pakistan Territory of The Salvation Army in 1997 with the rank of Colonel, later promoted to the rank of Commissioner while still in Pakistan where the work of the Army prospered during his service there. In 2002, he became Territorial Commander of the New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga Territory.
In 2004, he was returned to the United Kingdom territory this time as Territorial Commander until he became General on 2 April 2006.
As world leader, Clifton worked for greater opposition to human trafficking. His convictions on the Army’s calling to work for social justice gave rise to the establishment of the international social justice commission based in New York near the United Nations.
He married Commissioner Helen Clifton on 15 July 1967. They had three children. Clifton and his wife retired in April 2011. Helen died in June 2011.
In 2013, Clifton married Commissioner Birgitte Brekke.
Added information taken from IHQ website and Wikipedia
