Posted on 11/26/2005 12:24:24 PM PST by Lorianne
The founder of the nation's first Arabic Christian TV channel says the programming is attracting phone inquiries from curious Muslims.
The Southern California-based channel Alkarma, whose name means "the vineyard" in Arabic, premiered Oct. 17. It is the brainchild of Samuel Estefanos, an Egyptian-born businessman.
The channel gets 10 to 15 calls a day from Arabic speakers with Muslim surnames who are intrigued that Alkarma would give away a movie known as the "Jesus Film" and other materials.
"Some of them call and say they are Muslims and need to know more about Christ," Mr. Estefanos said. "Other people are Christians but say they don't know anything about Christ. In the Middle East, even though if your religion says 'Christian' on your identity card, that does not mean that you know Christ."
Mr. Estefanos invested about $200,000, much of it his own money, to purchase airtime and equipment for the 24-hour channel. The station still needs about $40,000 a month to operate. Total contributions so far total about $10,000 a month.
"I know this is a great station," he said, "and we are doing more productions. We are seeking to build a good foundation so we can grow more. I believe God will provide and we'll keep on going."
He estimates there are 35 Arabic-language TV channels airing nationally, but none of them were Christian until Alkarma began. The channel, which reaches about a million Arabic speakers in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, is slowly attracting advertisers.
"It's great," he said. "Some people call us and cry on the phone. They say, 'We knew Christ through this channel.' People send us e-mails and leave phone messages."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
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The most important work we can do.
EWTN needs to be beamed into the mideast with subtitles.
bump
I've sent money to SAT-7, which broadcasts Christian TV programming in arabic and Farsi to the Middle East and North Africa via satellite, as well as to the Jesus Film Project, which has shown a movie about Jesus in thousands of small villages throughout the world (it has been translated into like 100 languages). Both of those projects have resulted in thousands of new converts to Christianity; this new channel also sounds like a worthwhile enterprise.
I get the feeling this channel has an evangelical slant. Better than a poke in the eye, but Catholics should be backing something that presents the fullness of the faith. There are still plenty of Christian Arabs in Israel and the Palestinian Territories. This would be a great project for Israel to sponsor (or at least not impede), with background support from the US.
C'mon, man! This is FR! You're supposed to fill your post with cracks about camel jockeys and references to Muhammed diddling little kids! And the word 'cult' has to appear at least twice in every paragraph!
Get with the program! < /sarcasm>
الله بهم�
Excellent!
Agreed.
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