Lyndon Vernon Wayne Buckingham (born 13 February 1962) is a New Zealand

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

minister who is currently serving as the

General of The Salvation Army General is the title of the international leader and chief executive officer of The Salvation Army, a Christian denomination with extensive Charitable organization, charitable social work, social services that gives quasi-military rank to its Min ...

since 3 August 2023. He is the first person from

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

to hold the office.

Family and early life

Buckingham was born in

Dannevirke Dannevirke ( "Earthworks (archaeology), work of the Danes", a reference to Danevirke; or ''Tāmaki-nui-a-Rua'', the area where the town is) is a rural service town in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New Zealand. It is the ...

to Salvation Army officers Hillmon and Lorraine ( Smith) Buckingham, who were stationed at Woodville Corps (church) at the time. Hillmon and Lorraine Buckingham were later appointed to the rank of Commissioner and held Territorial Leadership posts. According to interviews, Buckingham had his first personal experience of the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

and received his call to Officership aged 17 at a Salvation Army Youth Councils in August 1979. Buckingham married Bronwyn Robertson in

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...

, before they moved to Trentham, Upper Hutt to attend William Booth Memorial Training College (now Booth College of Mission), the Salvation Army's officer training college. They have two children, who are both officers in the Salvation Army, serving in the New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa Territory. Lyndon and Bronwyn Buckingham have resided in London since they took up appointments at the Salvation Army's International Headquarters (IHQ) in 2018.

Career

Lyndon Buckingham was commissioned as a Salvation Army officer along with his wife in 1990 in

. Along with his wife, Buckingham has been appointed to corps (local church centres), divisional (regional oversight), and other territorial headquarters postings in New Zealand and Canada, and held Territorial leadership roles in Singapore and the United Kingdom. Buckingham was appointed Chief of the Staff of the Salvation Army in 2018, serving under General

Brian Peddle General Brian Peddle (born 8 August 1957) was the 21st General of The Salvation Army from 3 August 2018 to 3 August 2023. He was formerly the 26th Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army from 1 November 2015 until 3 August 2018 under General A ...

. In 2023, Buckingham summoned the

High Council of The Salvation Army The High Council of The Salvation Army elects a new General of The Salvation Army, general in the event of a vacancy or prior to the retirement of the existing office holder. It can also remove a general who can no longer fulfil their duties. The ...

to meet at Sunbury Court in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

to elect a successor to General Peddle, who had announced his retirement, under the requirements of the Salvation Army Act 1980. After a week of formalities and deliberations, the members of the High Council elected Buckingham to the position of General-Elect.

Appointments

New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa Territory * Corps Officer (pastor), Queenstown Corps (1990) * Field Training Officer, William Booth Memorial Training College, Upper Hutt, Wellington (1992) * Corps Officer (pastor), Wellington City Corps (1998) * Territorial Youth and Candidates Secretary (2004) * Divisional Commander, Southern Division (2007) * Territorial Secretary for Programme (2010) Canada and Bermuda Territory * Corps Officer (pastor), South Windsor Citadel Corps (1994) Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar Territory * Chief Secretary (2013) * Territorial Commander (June 2013) United Kingdom and Ireland Territory * Territorial Commander (2018) International Headquarters *

Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army The Chief of the Staff of The Salvation Army is a Commissioner appointed by the General of The Salvation Army as the second in command internationally. The Chief of the Staff is stationed at International Headquarters in London. The office of C ...

(August 2018) *

(2023)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buckingham, Lyndon 1962 births Living people Salvation Army officers New Zealand Salvationists People from Dannevirke