wfn.org | ALC Noticias - Spain, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Brazil, Columbia

[George Conklin <gconklin@igc.org>]

ALC NEWS SERVICE
E-mail: director@alcnoticias.org

ALC HEADLINES:
SPAIN: Homo electronicus vs. homo tipographicus
NICARAGUA: Search for Evangelical candidates for municipal elections
GUATEMALA: Professor offers analysis of Television and Evangelism
BRAZIL: Campaign emphasizes gender equality
COLOMBIA: Evangelical TV channel about to begin broadcasting

SPAIN
Homo electronicus vs. homo tipographicus

By Manuel Lspez
MADRID, June 4, 2004 (alc). In the religious world, Marconi has defeated 
Gutenberg. Our institutions, groups, entities and Evangelical companies 
have entered the Marconi galaxy, uni-directional communication aimed at 
passive users - the homo electronicus - at the expense of the one of the 
banners of the Protestant reform, printed communication aimed at active 
users - the homo tipographicus.

In the religious arena, printed communication, which is at the service of 
the user who can approach it in an asynchronic manner, allowing for 
reflection,  as it is directed at the readers rational cerebral 
hemisphere, has been superseded by audio-visual communication, which is at 
the service of the transmitter, with an obligatory temporary synchronic 
reception that is aimed at the emotional cerebral hemisphere of the 
listeners or viewers.

We, the Protestants, in other times known as the People of the Book, the 
printed culture, the analysis of the text, the reflection, are becoming a 
people of worship services  spectacle. At least, those who make the most 
noise want to present us as such.

They have exchanged the itinerary of the active/reflective literary system 
of Protestantism for the passive/emotional sonorous and visual system of 
the Evangelicalism. The rigorous work of documentation and research is 
substituted by the improvised spontaneity of the direct

The interests of the respective Church or religious organization and the 
tribute to the leaders or leader are the central issue in the type-scheme 
of the Evangelical press, as religious journalism is understood in Church 
dispatches.

The flow of the dynamic of the information is submitted to one single 
direction: the centripetal. Everything divine and human, the celestial and 
the earthy, is inexorably attracted to the central aspiration of the 
corresponding organization. The universality of the global village 
is  reduced to the narrow stronghold of the four walls of the chapel.

It is enough to look at our publications in search of news related to pain 
and joy, the doubts and certainties of anonymous believers, the blessed 
ordinary people in our Churches, the prime example of life itself that we 
have at hand.

If, in the majority of printed publications, the panorama is transparent, 
or inexistent, in audiovisual material the Evangelical presence is, to put 
it kindly, distorted. There is no space for debate, criticism, interviews, 
human-interest reports, or space to present our plurality, or an open line 
for the critical participation radio or television audiences. Rather than 
forums or platforms for communication, lay temples of the printed word, our 
media are  electronic chapels. How sad.

--------------

Manuel Lopez is a journalist, editor and professor of Communication 
Sciences. He is a member of the First Baptist Church of Madrid

NICARAGUA
Search for Evangelical candidates for municipal elections

By Trinidad Vasquez
MANAGUA, June 8, 2004 (alc). As the date for next Novembers municipal 
elections in Nicaragua draws nearer, the search for candidates on the part 
of different political groups is stepping up and has spread to involve 
different Evangelical political groups.

The Evangelical vote has become increasing important in Nicaraguan politics 
as the number of Evangelicals grows in this Central American nation.

The issue reached a point where the Nicaraguan Resistance Party, lead by 
Salvador Talavera, published an add in daily papers saying that it was 
seeking an Evangelical pastor to run as candidate for the mayor of Nicaragua.

On the other hand, Pastor Cesar Augusto Marenco, leader of the Apostolic 
Christian Center Ministry, with more than 30,000 adherents, met last 
weekend with the Liberal Partys candidate for mayor of Managua, Pedro 
Joaquin Chamorro Barrios. Marenco said that the candidate made a good 
impression although he did not present a government platform.

Chamorro reportedly said he does not agree with municipal funds being used 
to promote the Santo Domingo de Guzman festival, which is celebrated each 
year in August. Moreover, he said that he is opposed to the sale of alcohol 
and to discotheques.

The candidate for the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), Dionisio 
Marenco, will also be invited to the Apostolic Ministry Church. The Center 
announced that next Friday it will publish an official document about the 
concerns of the Evangelicals regarding the upcoming elections.

The Christian Way Party suffered a harsh set back this week when Elizabeth 
Rojas of the Assemblies of God resigned as a candidate as mayor of Managua. 
Moreover, legislator Orlando Mayorga told the press that he was thinking of 
resigning from the party, but did not explain his reasons.

For his part, Orlando Tardencilla. President of the Alternative Christian 
Ministry confirmed that Pastor Mariano Suarez would run as mayor of 
Managua.  He said that Rsger Ramirez will run as mayor Granada, Alvaro Josi 
Gsnzalez, in Viejo, Filix Pedro Pirez in Chinandega, Roger Herrera in 
Tipitapa, Rosalio Alberto Lspez in Jinotepe.

  Tardencilla affirmed they do not seek any alliances with Nicaraguas main 
parties, the Sandinistas and the Liberals, lead by Daniel Ortega and 
Arnoldo Aleman, respectively.  Aleman, former president of Nicaragua, is 
currently in jail on corruption charges.

GUATEMALA
Professor offers analysis of Television and Evangelism

By Antonio Otzoy
CITY OF GUATEMALA, June 9, 2004 (alc).	The need to return to the 
scriptures, the word, the history of God, in the face of the preponderance 
of television in todays world, where religion is presented as any other 
market product, was emphasized by Jose Enrique Ramirez, Costa Rican 
professor of the Latin American Biblical University.

At a conference sponsored by this university and the Central American 
Center of Evangelical Pastor Studies, Ramirez spoke about Christian 
television: The depth and form of Evangelism in a market society: the 
contribution of Biblical exegesis to pastoral mission today.

Ramirez told leaders from different Churches and institutions in the 
Guatemala capital, We are witnessing rapid changes in society, in which 
everything is diluted. In the current use of television by Christians it 
can be appreciated that the contents break with Protestant tradition and 
lack quality in the majority of the discourse.

He also said that the religious discourse on television does not have the 
necessary minimum content for faith. Rather, this has been swapped for 
miracles that Christians can buy with a minimum investment of $20. The 
religious discourse, he said, has become another market product, like fast 
food and in many cases is self-serve.

In visits he has held to several countries, he has found that the Bible is 
being replaced by motivational books. As a result of this breakdown with 
Biblical tradition, Yahweh is losing His transcendence and His dignity. We 
are witnessing an era where people are searching for a God that can be 
programmed and controlled.

He noted that on the part of some preachers, there is a real emptiness 
regarding Gods mysteries. For this reason, God lacks mystery and 
transcendence, he said. According to Ramirez, there is a tendency to no 
longer use the bible, because if God wants to speak he will do so through 
the Holy Spirit.

Ramirez offered a historical summary of the concepts of Evangelism. The 
beginning of Protestantism took place in a Catholic religious environment, 
spearheaded by leaders who had no Biblical or scientific preparation. This 
was followed by a self-affirmation of the Evangelical identity, which was 
characterized by considering everything to be of the devil. The television 
itself was considered the devils box.

This reality lead many people to leave the Church filled with resentment, 
he said.

This was followed by profound changes in the Church and in the final decade 
of the past century, television became a means used by the Church. Ramirez 
asked, did God change His mind? Previously they wanted to destroy the 
televisions, now they want to have their own channels.

In conclusion, he summarized the impact of this new reality and said that 
people will grow tired of this religiosity because it sparks a confusion 
regarding the Biblical characters, the prophets and the relationship with 
material, modern and capitalist prosperity.

It is time to seek real and virtual understanding because current 
Christianity carries the mark of voracious capitalism, which, in some 
cases, has made the Evangelist a popular psychologist. We must recognize 
that this Christian is a person who is passing through and we must not bind 
ourselves to the desires of this world, as Peters epistle recommends, he 
said.

BRAZIL
Campaign emphasizes gender equality

RIO DE JANEIRO, June 10, 2004 (alc). The Promundo Institute has launched a 
campaign in Rio de Janeiro to promote the importance of gender equality in 
order to bring down the level of HIV/AIDS and youth violence.

The effort involves educational workshops and publicity that seeks to 
combat the machismo that marks Brazilian society. Prior to registering in 
the workshop, young participants are interviewed and their responses are 
compared with those they offer at the end of the course.

The coordinator of the Gender Initiative: Youth and Health, of the 
nongovernmental Promundo organizations, Marcos Nacimieno said he is 
convinced that these workshop will lead to a significant change in the use 
of condoms and the rate of violence against women.

Initially, the campaign was focused on young men the shantytowns of Mare, 
Morro de los Macacos and the Bangu neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro but was 
extended to include 28 couples. Women say their partners now have more 
understanding about the use of condoms and they have established a more 
open dialogue after the courses.

In Mare, 62 percent of young participants thought that men needed sex more 
than women. After six months of work on the part of the Promundo Institute 
that percentage declined to 44 percent and to 43 percent after a year.

In Bangu, 23 percent of young people felt it was a lack of respect for 
their partner to ask them to use a condom. After a year, only 11 percent 
maintained this position.

COLOMBIA
Evangelical TV channel about to begin broadcasting

By William Delgado
BOGOTA, June 10, 2004 (alc). Colombias national Television Commission 
granted the Central Bethesda Missionary Church a license to operate UHF 
channel 49. CBM Television will begin broadcasting shortly said station 
manager Marcela Gomez.

The Central Bethesda Missionary Church is one of the largest Evangelical 
congregations in Colombia with some 30,000 members in its principal site in 
Bogota and 200,000 nationwide in more than 100 cities and municipalities.

With CMB Television, the Bethesda Missionary Center responds to a need for 
a message to recover family and Christian values in our society. This 
proposal is not only aimed at the Christian people but at all those want to 
grow as individuals and homes and are thirsty for a message of love and 
peace, said Marcela Gomez.

Marcela Gomez is the daughter of the pastor and president of the mentioned 
Church and the Authentic Radio Channel in Colombia, an organization with 
eight AM radio stations that cover national territory.

She recalled that on December 30, 1984 thousands of people gathered in the 
Plaza Bolivar in Bogota to dedicate the Bogota FM stereo station. On March 
23, 1991, the Authentic Radio Channel was constituted, with stations in 
Bogota, Cali, Medellin, Cartagena, Villavicencio, Melgar and Pacho and 
Christian programs 24 hours a day, she said.

Two other UHF channels operate in Bogota. One is the Revival Broadcasting 
Network, channel 41. The network offers Evangelical programs and has been 
operating for the past three years. It is owned by the Revival for the 
Nations Church, led by Pastor President Ricardo Rodriguez. The other is 
Teleamiga, Channel 45, with Catholic Programming, owned by the Greater 
Colombian University.

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