The interdenominational Arabic channel called SAT-7 celebrated its 10th year of operations on Wednesday, May 31. A decade ago many believed that Christian satellite television would be too expensive or too difficult, fearing that anyone who tried would end up in jail. However, SAT-7’s unique ethos with Arab nationals presenting biblical truth in a culturally sensitive, interdenominational, nonpolitical, nonconfrontive way has allowed the channel to openly operate in Muslim nations with the recognition of national governments and the support of local churches, said Terence Ascott, SAT-7's founder and chief executive officer. The channel has seen the realization of much of Ascott’s original vision. "A decade ago SAT-7 provided just two hours per week of programming," said a SAT-7 media statement. "It now broadcasts 24 hours a day, carrying seven to nine hours of new programming each day. Nearly 80 percent of its programs are made in the region, many in SAT-7’s own studios in Lebanon and Egypt." Expanding Turkish programs and the launch of a children’s channel are included in future plans. (Assist News Service/ Mission Network News)

* HCJB World Radio reaches across North Africa, the Middle East and Europe with Christian Arabic programming aired via shortwave, satellite and local stations. The mission’s Arabic satellite network airs programs direct-to-home 24 hours a day. This region has the world’s highest concentration of personal satellite dishes.

UPDATE: STATE IN INDIA LEVELS NEW CHARGES AGAINST EMI LEADERS

M.A. Thomas, founder of Emmanuel Mission International (EMI), and his son, EMI President Rev. Samuel Thomas, have been newly charged by officials in the Kota district of northwestern India’s Rajasthan state. The new charges of "exciting . . . disaffection towards the government of India" could lead to the re-arrest of Samuel Thomas and other EMI workers and the reissue of an arrest warrant against the senior Thomas. He has been granted anticipatory bail on previous charges. The law, usually used when spoken or published words criticize any government establishment intending to create public disorder or disturbance, was in this case invoked due to two Indian states being omitted on the website of U.S.-based Hopegivers International which funds EMI. Previous charges against the two men have included the distribution of literature that denigrates Hinduism and "illegally confining" children in the EMI orphanage. (Compass Direct)

HINDU FUNDAMENTALISTS ATTACK 5 CHRISTIANS IN INDIA

Hindu fanatics attacked five Christians -- two women and three men -- at 10 p.m. Sunday, May 28, in central India’s Madhya Pradesh state. The Hindus raped the women and wounded the men with gunshots. The morning after the attack, officials with the fundamentalist Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) filed charges claiming Christian missionaries carried out "mass conversions" in a neighboring state. The allegations failed to mention any leaders or clergy, but instead named the five Christians attacked the previous day. When the five fled their Hindu captors and arrived at the police station to report the crimes, they were arrested instead. Even though the two women, Baishi Pokharia and Rekha Gyarsiya, identified their perpetrators, the police inspector initially refused to open an investigation. John Dayal, head of the All India Catholic Union, India’s largest lay Catholic organization, denounced the attacks and the police actions saying, "As I repeatedly told the central government, there seems to be a parallel law and justice system in states ruled by the BJP, which has no respect for religious freedom." (WorldWide Religious News/AsiaNews)

* Radio programs in 12 languages (English, Urdu, Hindi, Nepali, Chattisgarhi, Bangla, Bhojpuri, Tamil, Telegu, Marwari, Marathi and Santhali) air to India from HCJB World Radio-Australia’s shortwave station in Kununurra. The programs are produced at the ministry’s studios in New Delhi, India.

MISSIONARY AVIATORS ACT AS TRANSLATORS IN INDONESIAN QUAKE AREA

Missionary aviators in Indonesia are helping earthquake victims in a nontraditional way. Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) missionary David Bochman says, "As we looked at the situation [in Java] it became clear that they did not need our aircraft, and the communications needs that were so needed in Sumatra weren’t needed there either. So we ended up deploying some of our students who were in language study to go serve as translators to help foreign medical personnel." Bochman said that while staff members are trained as pilots and mechanics, they are "uniquely qualified to share their faith while interpreting for the relief workers and those in need." (Mission Network News)

SURVEY: RELIGIOUS RIGHT MORE ‘SECTARIAN’ THAN LIBERAL GROUPS

A recent survey, authored by University of California-San Diego sociology Professor John Evans, finds that the "religious right" groups in the U.S. have negative attitudes toward similar groups on the right. This negativity makes coalition forming more difficult. More "liberal" religious groups are more inclined to build cooperative political partnerships with ideologically similar groups. Evans states, "What may be holding back the religious right from achieving its full potential is that, compared to the groups that comprise the religious left, participants in conservative religious groups do not want the other religious right groups to influence public opinion." The study was based on 5,603 opinions from various religious groups across the U.S. with varying ideologies and is found in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. (WorldWide Religious News/UPI)

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