TV Shows Faith In Middle East

‘WE are not in the business of television just for the sake of it,’ says Rachel Fadipe, ‘but through our programmes we want to give people the opportunity to hear the gospel.’

Rachel is the UK’s executive director of SAT-7, a global organisation that produces Christian satellite TV programmes in the Middle East and North Africa. ‘Out of 500 million people living in the region, 15 million say that they regularly watch SAT-7,’ she says. ‘Our five channels broadcast programmes in Arabic, Farsi and Turkish across 22 countries.’

The company’s head office is in Cyprus, but there are also television studios in Cairo, Beirut and Istanbul. Rachel explains why SAT-7 - which last month celebrated its 18th birthday - exists.

‘The problem we are trying to solve is: How can we take the Christian message into regions where there are so many challenges? When we look at the Middle East, there is a huge problem with illiteracy. About 50 per cent of the people can’t read. Even if they can read, it might be illegal to own a Bible in their particular country or there might be no church. So, if people want to inquire about the Christian faith and gather information about it, there’s nothing easily accessible for them. But in the Middle East, there are satellite dishes on every rooftop and every street corner. So, if you want to reach people with any kind of message, television is the way to do it.’

While satellite TV in the West tends to entail expensive packages, in the Middle East the channels are mainly free. ‘I’ve heard stories of people who have moved into their first apartment, not having a bed, but having a telly,’ says Rachel. ‘It is seen as a necessity. Some Bedouins have televisions in their tents, using their car batteries for power.’

While it promotes the Christian faith, SAT-7 also aims to make its television shows culturally relevant. Rachel explains that ‘80 per cent of programmes are made in the Middle East by Middle Easterners’.

‘SAT-7 is different from the kind of “Christian TV” that we might see in the West,’ she says. ‘For example, there are no American televangelists. Most of the people on the SAT-7 channels are Arab Christians.

‘After we did our first broadcast in 1996 - a two-hour show which we repeated the following week - viewers phoned up and said: “I didn’t know there were any other Arab Christians in my community. I thought I was the only one.” So our programmes are a good way of making people feel a part of the Church.’

There are five SAT-7 channels: SAT-7 ARABIC, SAT-7 PARS, SAT-7 PLUS, SAT-7 KIDS and SAT-7 TURK. The organisation broadcasts programmes 24 hours a day, seven days a week. ‘Every style of programme that you can imagine is shown on SAT-7,’ says Rachel. ‘We have a Bible quiz programme that’s a bit like "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" (but without the jackpot), which is a clever way of presenting the gospel without being too preachy. We have programmes exploring the Church’s history, because many Middle Easterners don’t realise that they live in the region where Jesus was born. And we have dramas.’

Occasionally, SAT-7 broadcasts films and cartoons brought in from the West, which are dubbed or subtitled. ‘But before we broadcast programmes from the West, we carry out a theological and cultural assessment, considering if the programme would work in a Middle Eastern context,’ says Rachel. ‘It is important that SAT-7 always has complete control over its programming and that our shows are relevant to people.

‘For the children, we show a lot of cartoons on SAT-7 KIDS. We dub them into different languages, then find local presenters to film the live introduction segments. One in four Saudis says they watch SAT-7 KIDS, which is amazing.’

As well as entertaining children and teaching them about Jesus, SAT-7 KIDS seems to be meeting with parents’ approval. Rachel says that the whole family often tunes in to watch the programmes. ‘Christian parents who feel unable to share their faith with their friends and family have told us that when they have guests over, they often leave the SAT-7 KIDS channel on in the background. They may not be able to speak out about their faith, but they can show it through what their kids are watching.

‘SAT-7 KIDS also enables us to tackle some taboo issues with our viewers, such as disability. In some parts of the Middle East, disabled children are kept hidden away and not allowed outside the family home, so we aired a children’s game show that featured able-bodied children and disabled children having fun together. It was a simple way of putting across a message.’

As much as SAT-7 informs viewers who know nothing about Christianity, it also seeks to dispel any misconceptions about the faith. ‘Many people in the Middle East and North Africa think that everyone from the West is a Christian,’ says Rachel. ‘So if they watch an American drama, such as "Desperate Housewives", they assume that the characters in the show are portraying Christian moral standards. I remember an Iranian friend telling me that when she came to faith, her brother shouted at her that she had become a whore, because his perception of Christians was that they slept around and got drunk. SAT-7 aims to knock down the myths surrounding Christianity.’

Although SAT-7 is in the business of producing solely Christian television programmes, it does not promote its message at the expense of other faiths. Rachel says: ‘We broadcast Christianity, but we never preach against any other faiths. So a Muslim could watch SAT-7 and not be offended. What SAT-7 tries to do is give a voice to the Church. We supply people with information about the Christian faith, and then pray that the Holy Spirit will work within them. If they want to contact us to learn more, they can.’

Rachel reveals that the organisation’s ethos to love and care for its viewers was one of the main qualities that attracted her to working for it in the first place. ‘We are not just broadcasting a Christian message to people and then letting them get on with it,’ she says. ‘We have phone lines associated with our programmes so viewers can call up and receive help. We are there for people who want to grow in their faith.’

Rachel has heard that people have been using SAT-7 in a variety of ways. Some people watch programmes in a small group in their home, as part of their church worship. In other areas, Sunday schools have installed satellite dishes so they can access SAT-7 KIDS.

‘Viewers have told us stories of how SAT-7 has helped them,’ she says. ‘One person wrote: “I’m not able to tell anyone that I’m a believer, but my faith is developing through your programmes.” Another said: “My husband and I watched your programme about relationships and it saved our marriage.” One man wrote us a letter, saying: “I can’t get hold of a Bible where I live, so every time you quote a Bible verse on SAT-7, I write it down. Gradually, I’m building up my own Bible.” It’s for those people that SAT-7 exists and why we keep going.’

As Rachel considers the future of SAT-7, she hopes that it will continue to empower the Church and support Christians as they grow in faith. ‘We want to make SAT-7 more accessible to even more people,’ she says. ‘Our aim is to keep making vibrant programmes, offering a strong message of peace and reconciliation.’

SAT-7 STORIES

WHEN Mark was facing problems at work, he happened to come across a Facebook page for the Kasr El Dobara Evangelical Church services, which were shown on SAT-7. He posted a message on the board, saying: ‘I am a sinner and I am trying to return to God but I don’t know how.’

Soon afterwards, a SAT-7 counsellor sent a reply, telling Mark that Jesus loved him. After a follow-up phone conversation, Mark became a Christian.

‘When I got the Facebook reply, it was very encouraging,’ says Mark. ‘I asked God to come into my heart and life.’

Mark told the SAT-7 counsellor that he was concerned about returning to his work in a bazaar store where ‘all kinds of sin and temptation are available’. With Mark’s permission, SAT-7 contacted a local pastor who was able to offer support and help him find a new job.

•••

WHEN living conditions became unbearable in northern Syria, Babel fled to Lebanon with her parents, sisters and brother. The siblings - ranging from six to twenty-four years old - had endured harassment by soldiers, and the older girls had struggled to find work.

Fans of SAT-7 KIDS, the siblings sent Facebook messages to Marianne, the presenter of Yalla Nghanny Sawa (Let’s Sing Together). She invited them to appear on the show and tell their story. During the programme, Babel spoke about God’s peace and the way he helped her family in difficult times. The siblings also sent greetings back to their friends in Syria.

UK & -Ireland War Cry 7 June 2014