Short Stuff

Kingdom Ventures International's new e-mail address is KingdomVentures@msn.com. The old address, 76373.421@compuserve.com, is now used only to reach the Russian base camp in Anapa, Russia.--
KVI

A Texas postal worker was arrested for running an internet pornography service that brought in $500,000 US a month from subscribers eager to access its 150,000-photo library. He faces a felony charge of possession of child pornography and a misdemeanor charge of promoting obscene material.--
EPNS

Singer Pat Boone's weekly TV show was dropped by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) after his appearance at the American Music Awards as a heavy metal rock singer. Boone, whose latest album is titled Pat Boone in a Metal Mood--No More Mr. Nice Guy", presented the award for best heavy-metal album. Boone's album gives a jazz and big-band treatment to heavy metal classics. He wore a black leather vest and pants, fake tattoos, and a studded collar and bracelets to poke fun at the clean-cut "boy-next-door" look that made him a national icon in the 1950s. Boone called his appearance at the American Music Awards a "parody", and reportedly responded, "The little old ladies and folks who contribute to TBN ministries . . . didn't get the joke."--
EPNS

When it comes to technology, Christians are pretty much keeping up with the rest of society. For example, 90% of Christians (compared to 84% of others) have VCRs; 31% (vs. 34%) have personal computers; and 29% (vs. 25%) have cellular phones. Among computer owners, Christians are even more likely than others to have access to the internet (23% compared to 17%). There are an estimated 5.6 million Christians on the net.--
Barna Report (quoted in Current Thoughts & Trends)

According to Rolling Stone magazine, Christian music is having an increasing impact on the secular rock world. In the past, critics have mocked Christian rock for its "innocuous ditties", believing that its only claim to fame was its call to faith. In 1995, however, due to clever marketing and production and increased artistic quality, Christian music did over $700 million US in record/concert-ticket sales, gaining respectability in both religious and secular music realms. Although some are still suspicious that Christian rock bands are merely unoriginal copies of their secular counterparts, bands like dc Talk, Jars of Clay and Newsboys are becoming increasingly noticed in the secular world. dc Talk grossed over $4.8 million in sales in 1996, and Jars of Clay, playing some openings for secular Sting concerts, sold 700,000 copies of its debut album.--
Rolling Stone (quoted in CT&T)

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association launched its first on-line follow-up service for those reporting a first-time commitment to Christ or requesting materials. The computer website was launched Dec. 19 after the syndicated North American Christmas Special, "A Joyful Christmas in a Fragile World". The web-site remained on-line for three weeks following the special, and contained hyperlinks to the permanent homepage of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (http://www.graham-assn.org).--
BGEA

Dazzling productions of classic Hindu epics are a staple of Indian television, but India's state-run Doordarshan television network is becoming more ecumenical. In 1997 it will broadcast a 100-part series on the life of Jesus Christ. "At a time when the nation's social fabric is being torn apart by communal and separatist forces, the message of Jesus has become all the more relevant," says T.S. Vijay Chander, who plays the title role in the production.--
EPNS

According to a recent poll by the American Society, 90% of Americans own at least one Bible, but 22% never read the Bible. Zondervan Publishing House hopes its new Bible format, called The Journey will attract new readers. With a graphic format more reminscent of a computer screen than sacred text, it has 450 icon-tagged information windows that direct readers to the Bible's words on different facets of life. Notes set with New International Version text are directed at spiritual seekers who are looking for truth and practical answers to life's questions.--
EPNS

Though pop and country remain popular music styles in Ireland, an album of 20 Roman Catholic hymns is outselling them both. The album, "Faith of Our Fathers: Classic Religious Anthems of Ireland" spent five weeks at number one after its Oct. 21 release, and sold more than 150,000 copies in its first few months. It appeals to those who remember 1950s Irish Catholicism with nostalgia.--
EPNS