The International Bible Society (IBS) and Send the Light (STL) announced today (Tuesday) their intentions to merge the two organizations. IBS is one of the world’s largest translators and distributors of Scripture while STL is one of the world’s largest distributors of Christian literature. “The blending of these organizations is a powerful combination,” said STL Chief Executive Officer Keith Danby. “It’s not often that two ministries can come together with the potential to have such far-reaching global impact for the cause of Christ and the Bible.” Following the completion of the merger, Danby will assume the position of global chief executive officer for the blended organization. The merged ministry will be called IBS-STL and have operations in the U.S., U.K., India, Asia, Africa, Latin America and other parts of the world. “We haven’t yet worked out all of the details,” said David Passman, U.S. chief executive officer for STL. “But we do know that STL and IBS can do more together than apart. This is truly a case of one plus one equals three.” (International Bible Society)

‘JESUS’ FILM RECORDS 55 LANGUAGES IN 2006, MORE TO COME IN 2007

The JESUS Film Project’s impact continues to grow each year with view numbers now in the billions, says Chief of Staff Greg Gregoire. “We’ve gone over 970 languages of the ‘JESUS’ film during 2006. We were able to record an additional 55 languages.” In addition, the team did 11 translations of “The Story of Jesus for Children.” Each new language costs about $35,000 to complete. This year the JESUS Film Project hopes to multiply the number of teams showing the film in India and Africa. “Right now we’ve got 2,300 film teams,” Gregoire said. “But we’d like those film teams to become the equippers of lay film teams. In order to do that we need provide more equipment.” Although the “JESUS” film is now the most widely watched, translated and distributed film in the world, there is still much to be done. “We still have another 500 languages to go. Most of those do not have Scripture in their language,” Gregoire added. “So we’re incumbent upon our translator partners to get into those areas and establish relationships and at minimum get Luke translated so we can do the ‘JESUS’ film.” (Mission Network News)

8 CHINESE LEADERS JAILED FOR PROTESTING CHURCH’S DEMOLITION

Eight leaders of a large Chinese Protestant Church received long prison sentences for demonstrating against the demolition of their large church building last July in Xiaoshan, a prospering suburb of Hangzhou. The Chinese court sentenced the Christians on Dec. 22 after a 12-hour marathon trial. Xiaoshan is reportedly home to tens of thousands of Christians, many of whom are traders or farmers wary of state control.

Pastor Shen Zhuke was sentenced to 3.6 years in prison for “the crime of inciting to resist the carrying out of the law by violence.” The others received jail sentences ranging from one to three years.

At least 20 people were injured in the clash between 500 officers and 3,000 protesting church members in what was one of the largest recent confrontations between police and the underground church. The state-controlled media reported that at least 10 government employees were also injured.

In other news from China, at least nine church members from Henan province remain in custody following a police raid on a Christian gathering at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6. The police broke in and proclaimed the gathering a cultic and illegal activity. Eleven Christians were interrogated at the Huifeng police station. Two were released the following day, the others are still being held. (BosNewsLife/China Aid Association)

ISLAMIC CLERGY IN SAUDI ARABIA CONDEMN THE LETTER ‘X’

A group of Islamic clergy in Saudi Arabia has condemned the letter “X” because it is similar to the cross, a hated symbol which is banned in that country. The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has issued a fatwa (religious edict) against the “X.” The issue arose in response to inquiries about granting Saudi businessman Amru Mohammad Faisal trademark protection for a new service with the English name Explorer. “Experts who examined the English word ‘explorer’ were struck by how suspicious that ‘X’ appeared,” wrote Youssef Ibrahim in an article published by The New York Sun. “In a kingdom where Friday preachers routinely refer to Christians as pigs and infidel crusaders, even a twisted cross ranks as an abomination.” In response to the turndown, Faisal wrote an article that appeared on several Arabian websites, sarcastically suggesting that the authorities might consider banning the “+” sign in mathematics because of its similarity to the cross. (WorldWide Religious News)

* ENGINEERING CENTER BECOMES HCJB GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY CENTER

Reflecting the mission’s recent name change to HCJB Global from HCJB World Radio and an expanding vision, the engineering center in Elkhart, Indiana, was renamed the HCJB Global Technology Center effective Jan. 1, 2007. Director David Russell said the new name better encompasses all areas of ministry that staff members have become involved in since 1986 when the center was established.

“We felt that ‘engineering’ was too specific. ‘Technology’ is more encompassing. It can include technical support, training, maintenance and installation as well as design and development,” he explained. “For us it may eventually include support of medical and community development outreaches, in addition to broadcasting.”

Staff members at the center have been involved in research, development, manufacturing, training and technical support for AM, FM and shortwave radio stations as well as satellite distribution and satellite-based Internet services.

In recent years the staff has developed a fixed-tuned, solar-powered SonSet radio that can be pre-tuned to pick up specific Christian radio stations. Engineers at the center have also been pioneers in the development of equipment to implement digital radio broadcasting using the Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) standards.

The HCJB Global Technology Center has worked with local partners worldwide to help start more than 300 radio ministries in more than 100 countries since the early 1990s. The center also has an active apprenticeship program designed to provide an avenue for recent college graduates with technical degrees to gain first-hand experience in using their skills for work in Christian missions. The center’s staff consists of about 50 missionaries, employees and volunteers from many different disciplines.

The technology center also changed its Internet address to hcjbtech.org. (HCJB Global)

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