Millions of non-Christians watching Christian satellite television

Violence in Iraq is as effective as a night curfew in keeping people at home, reports MNN.

David Harder with SAT-7 says there's a natural audience for television. A recent study of viewing habits conducted by Intermedia revealed some interesting results for the ministry. "This survey found that 97-percent of people in that country have satellite television, and that 5.3 million people out of 28 million Iraqis are watching the broadcasts and receiving the good news of Jesus."

This is a confirmation that encourages the SAT-7 team. From the responses they receive, they know their broadcasts have impact; but the study provided empirical data as well as scope.

The Christian community in Iraq numbers less than 600,000, so the assumption is that the majority of SAT-7's viewers are Muslims. The breakdown of the population, according to the CIA World Factbook, is Shia, numbering 60-65 percent; Sunni make up 32-37 percent.

According to Harder, on a weekly basis, between nine and ten million people tune into the network, whose programs are broadcast in three languages: Arabic, Farsi and Turkish. There is also a group of programs that are produced by Iraqis for Iraqis.

Harder notes that SAT-7 is providing desperately-needed support to the struggling Christian community in Iraq. "I spoke with an Iraqi pastor who told me that years ago, they had no material that they could give out to people, so having television was such an important tool for them."

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TAGS: Iraq non-Christians Christian satellite television SAT-7 Christian community

[03/25/2009]

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