Christian Satellite Television Increases Catholic Programming in the Middle East
The leading Christian satellite network in the Middle East and North Africa has recently acquired 15 Catholic television programs.
The leading Christian satellite network in the Middle East and North Africa has recently acquired 15 Catholic television programs.
SAT-7 negotiated for the additional Catholic programs that it plans to air in 2006, according to a statement the group released on Nov. 17. The network noted that its service is particularly needed because the Christian church is shrinking in the regions its programs air.
The satellite network commented that in 1900, Christians represented about 20 percent of the Middle East population, but now the number has fallen to less than five percent. Moreover, the statistic for the Holy Land is even more striking and “illustrates that there is a very real possibility that Christianity could indeed vanish from the very land of Christ’s birth,” wrote SAT-7.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
“It’s gratifying that we can share programs that emphasize the similarities between the denominations helping to build bridges between the Middle Eastern churches,” said Debbie Brink, SAT-7 executive director in the United States in a statement released by the group.
SAT-7 was launched in 1996 with only one hour of programming a week and now the network airs programs 24 hours a day, seven days a week. SAT-7 airs children’s programming, teaching programs, talk shows, music, dramas, documentaries, and Arab serial dramas. The network offers its Middle Eastern audience with a unique opportunity to hear an accurate presentation of the Christian message in their own language, created by their own people. The shows are also full of the Good News of Christ.
