c. 1997 Religion News Service
Expansion of TV rating system approved
(RNS) To rate or not to rate is no longer the question.
But how to rate TV fare has been the question for the past six months.
It was answered Wednesday (July 9) in an agreement between Congress, the TV industry and parental and children’s advocacy groups, beating the July 14 deadline when the Federal Communications Commission is to hold its first hearing on the effectiveness of the industry’s six-month-old rating system.
The TV industry, under pressure from a wide range of critics, agreed in principle in a Washington meeting to revamp its fledgling ratings system to give parents more information to shield children from sex, violence and potentially offensive language.
But one major player _ NBC, the top-rated network in prime time _ refused to participate.”There is no place for government involvement in what people watch on television,”NBC said in a statement.
And among the advocacy groups, one _ the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America _ said it would oppose the new system because it was still”too vague and too broad”to effectively inform parents about what programs contain.
The American Psychiatric Association, involved in the negotiations, and some small, unidentified cable companies, also balked, the Associated Press reported.
NBC aside, the rest of the industry will make changes effective Oct. 1 that include:
_ In addition to the current age-based ratings of G, PG, TV-14 and MA, networks will label shows with V (violence), S (sexual content), L (strong language) and D (suggestive dialogue).
_ Warning icons in the top left of the screen will be larger and last longer.
_ For children’s shows, Y will continue to denote shows for all youth, Y-7 for ages 7 and up. An FV label will flag cartoons and other shows containing fantasy violence.
_ Parents will join a ratings review committee now composed only of industry members.
The agreement was signed Thursday (July 10) and formally introduced at a White House news conference presided over by Vice President Al Gore.
In return for its cooperation, the broadcast industry received assurances in a letter signed by Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., Trent Lott, R-Miss., and several other senators promising to oppose any legislation that would impose ratings.
McCain also promised to block any legislation that would make TV stations and cable networks air more family-friendly shows. McCain added, however, that the assurances would not extend to NBC and other networks not participating in the agreement.
Meanwhile, the Screen Actors Guild, the Directors Guild of America and the Writers Guild of America have threatened to file a lawsuit against the revamped ratings, citing free speech concerns. Also, they argued that the current system has not been given enough time to work.
Eventually, viewers will be able to program their sets to block out shows by using the recently mandated V-chip.
ELCA reports stable membership, jump in giving
(RNS) With a total of 5,180,910 baptized members in 10,936 congregations, membership in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America remained largely stable in 1996, the church has announced.
In 1995, the denomination reported a baptized membership of 5,190,427 and the new figures represent a drop of less than two-tenths of 1 percent.
The report also said the average number of baptized members per congregation was 477 and the averaged confirmed _ adult _ membership was 354.
In a separate report, church officials said income for the 10,936 congregations in the denomination totaled $1,871,488,600 _ an increase of $68.7 million, or 3.8 percent more than 1995.
Despite the increase, however, the amount of money passed on by local congregations to regional and national offices for support of national and international programs increased by less than one-half percent and was $120.8 million in 1996.”This increase … was disappointing when compared to the more than $2 million increase in 1995,”said the Rev. Lowell G. Almen, ELCA secretary.”The vast and strategic domestic and international mission endeavors of our church need strong support.” According to the report, the average regular giving per confirmed member increased from $387.71 in 1995 to $401.33 _ up 3.51 percent.
Chinese church officials claim religious freedom exists _ with limits
(RNS) There is religious freedom in China _ within limits. And the limits do not include a welcome to foreign missionaries, said the leaders who run two state-controlled groups overseeing China’s Protestant churches at a briefing of foreign reporters in Beijing Monday (July 7).
Han Wenzao, president of the Chinese Christian Council, and Luo Guanzong, chairman of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement Committee, insisted the Chinese have religious freedom and denied accusations China’s communist leaders are systematically attacking independent religious activity.
At a time when complaints about religious persecution have prompted conservatives in the U.S. Congress to demand trade sanctions against Beijing, Han said,”There is no general persecution in China. But China, being so vast, you cannot expect the policy of religious freedom to be applied equally everywhere. However, the situation is not as bad as some of the Western media say.” The leaders said they welcome visits by foreign theologians and preachers but support the official ban on foreign missionaries and Bibles printed in other countries, the Associated Press reported.”Christianity should be administered by Chinese themselves,”Luo said.
Since 1979, when the opening of three churches helped mark the end of the Cultural Revolution, 12,000 churches have been established, Luo said. He added that there are now 10 million church members in China with 500,000 new believers joining each year.
A popular part of this growth is in the”home church,”private, unauthorized chapels used by thousands of worshipers. Luo denied the charge of religious activists that there is a campaign against independent churches.
Despite pressure, Beijing still controls all church activity. Independent religious leaders have been jailed and harassed, and Roman Catholics are barred from contact with the Vatican.
Responding to other questions, Han termed abortion”the lesser of two evils”needed for family planning to avoid the greater evil of a population explosion. He would not respond to questions about relations with the Vatican and how many Christians were believed to have been killed for their faith since the communist revolution in 1949.
Global consultation reflects change in evangelists’ origins
(RNS) The vast majority of delegates to a recent global conference on evangelism were from countries traditionally viewed as places for missionaries to go.
The Global Consultation on World Evangelization was held in Pretoria, South Africa, from June 30 to July 5.
Organizers of the meeting say evangelists from continents that long have been seen as mission fields are now leading the efforts to send Christian missionaries to places where they believe people have not heard the Christian gospel.
Almost two-thirds of the 4,000 conference delegates were from Africa, reported Associated Baptist Press, an independent Baptist news service. Nearly 80 percent of delegates were from countries that traditionally received, rather than sent, missionaries.
The meeting was sponsored by AD 2000 & Beyond Movement, a coalition that is coordinating numerous plans for global evangelism.
Luis Bush, founder of the organization, told delegates people came to the conference to be educated by Africans.
He said South Africa may be the fastest-growing missionary-sending country. The number of missionaries leaving South Africa to evangelize elsewhere doubled between 1991 and 1995 and doubled again in 1996, he said.
The conference featured specialized consultations on topics such as worship and children’s ministry.
At one consultation, business leaders promised to start a global network of businesses aimed at sharing the gospel with people in countries that are traditionally closed to missionaries. At another session, white South African businessmen went forward and tearfully sought the forgiveness of black South Africans for injustices under the country’s former system of apartheid.
At a consultation of officials from theological schools in 53 countries, educators urged that global evangelism be a foundation of training for ministers.”This is especially imperative in the light of the increasing pluralistic environment which has been brought about by the resurgence of non-Christian religions hostile to the advance of the gospel, by the erosion of historic Christianity in the West and by the increasing prevalence of secularism almost everywhere,”reads a resolution by the educators.
Second Australian state moving toward voluntary euthanasia law
(RNS) The world’s first voluntary euthanasia law lasted nine months in Australia’s Northern Territory before being overturned by the federal parliament in March.
Now the South Australian parliament is attempting to pass a similar measure and, according to observers, it has a better chance of remaining law.
The South Australian parliament’s upper house voted l3-8 in favor of euthanasia legislation Wednesday (July 9). It faces another vote in the upper house and must then pass the lower house, Reuters reported.
The bill was introduced by parliamentarian Anne Levy, who dedicated it to the memory of her husband who died from cancer 20 years ago.”I am confident (it will be passed) as South Australia has a long tradition of leading Australia in social legislation,”Levy told Reuters.
Opinion polls show 75 percent of Australians support euthanasia.
Under the Levy bill, adults of sound mind can request a lethal injection, either immediately if terminally ill or in the future should they become terminally ill.
Anti-euthanasia activists said the South Australian legislation goes further than the Northern Territory law, which only allowed terminally ill patients to request assisted suicide.”I just want to get it passed so that people can have a choice,”Levy said.
Four people died using the Northern Territory law before it was overturned.
Quote of the day: FBI agent Joseph Lewis
(RNS) On Wednesday (July 9), the FBI announced it was re-opening its investigation into the 1963 bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., that killed four young black girls attending Sunday School. FBI Special Agent Joseph Lewis of the agency’s Birmingham office explained why the case was being re-opened:”It’s a crime that has gone unsolved except for one local conviction and it remains a sore part of American history that we would like to heal. We feel we have an opportunity to do so this time and we want to take one last shot at it.”
MJP END RNS
