Throughout his successive ministries, his defining beliefs were a radical egalitarianism, including a scheme of "Africa for the Africans"’ and, from 1898, Seventh-Day Sabbath (Sabbatarian) observance.
Despite the death of his first wife, Mary Jane, in Melbourne in October 1891, he left Australia with his two young children and started his missionary career, choosing to work in Africa.
[1][2] He aimed to set up the type of self-supporting Baptist mission that William Carey had pioneered in India, combining teaching and commercial activities.
Before 1896, Booth made no dramatic calls for political or social change: he was more concerned with establishing and running the missions and raising financial support in Britain.
By 1898, Booth had become a convinced Sabbatarian, which became one of the guiding principles for the rest of his life, and he turned to the Seventh Day Baptists to support his missionary activities.
[9] Booth returned to Central Africa in 1899 and established the Plainfield Industrial Mission in Thyolo District for the Seventh Day Baptists.
[12] Booth's stay with the Seventh-day Adventists at Malamulo mission ended after six months, as his colleagues did not accept his radical views, and criticised him for their political implications.
[13][14] Booth remained in Britain until late 1906, as the Adventists were unwilling to send him back to Africa and the Church of Christ turned him down as a missionary because his political views were too radical.
While in Scotland in 1906, Booth became familiar with the writings of Charles Taze Russell, a prominent Christian restorationist columnist and founder of the Bible Student movement, later known as the Watch Tower Society.
Upon their return to Nyasaland, Booth's own role was limited to sending them monthly payments and bibles and other literature provided by the Watch Tower Society .
[21][22] Before his break with the Watch Tower Society, Booth had directed Kamwana to return to Nkhata Bay in Nyasaland where he baptised and converted about ten thousand people to the Watchtower movement, which combined Watch Tower Society teaching, sabbatarian practices and addressing his audiences' concerns about witchcraft,[23] in a few months in late 1908 and early 1909.
[24] The other evangelists generally returned in 1909 and 1910, initially to set up Watchtower congregations but, after an inspection visit by an American Watch Tower Society official in 1910 considered their sabbatarian practices unacceptable, they formed an independent Seventh-day Baptist church, which Booth supported financially and with Adventist books.
[29] Referring to Booth and his African associate Elliot Kamwana, a 1976 Watch Tower publication noted, "they never became Bible Students or Jehovah's Christian witnesses.
[31] Particularly in the case of Booth, who had a three-year association with, was appointed as a missionary by and financed by, Watch Tower, these comments appears disingenuous and misleading.
He was allowed to return to South Africa in 1919, to live in the house his younger daughter, Mary Winifred Booth Sales, had built some considerable distance from Cape Town, which discouraged him from any active involvement in African affairs.
Booth remained in England, suffering periodic illness, until he died on 4 November 1932 at the age of 82 at his home in Weston super Mare.