Blood and Fire, Tsar and Commissar examines the Salvation Army's first attempt to establish itself in Russia during the early decades of the twentieth century. It is a stirring story of faith, determination and endurance of a would-be-law-abiding organization struggling (despite police raids, death by epidemic and other catastrophes) to work in a place where, prior to the revolutions of 1917, it did not officially exist. ""Tom Aitken tells a little-known story of Christian sacrifice and spiritual endeavor."" --John Coutts, Salvationist, Translator, and Russian Interpreter; formerly Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies, University of Greenwich ""Tom Aitken combines a perceptive analysis of the Salvationist ethic with an authentic sense of place in this trenchantly argued and lively study of religious rivalries in Revolutionary Russia."" --Simon Dixon, Professor of Modern History, University of Leeds ""Tom Aitken has written a vivid account, . . . at the same time illuminating the contrast between the evangelistic aims of The Salvation Army and the traditionalist temper of Russian Orthodoxy."" --David Bebbington, Professor of History, University of Sterling ""Aitken's account contributes helpfully to current debates about the buoyancy of religion and revival in a period so often associated with persistent secularization."" --Ruth Clayton Windscheffel, St. Hilda's College, University of Oxford Tom Aitken is a freelance writer and lecturer on history, film, music, and literature, currently writing for The Times Literary Supplement and The Church Times, and lectures at St. Deiniol's Library and the Graham Greene Festival.
