wfn.org | NCC offers four holiday network specials

[Philip Jenks <pjenks@ncccusa.org>]

Set your dial: NCC holiday television specials
to run on networks in December and January

New York, November 24, 2008 -- The National Council of Churches will presen t three one-hour specials in December on affiliates of the ABC, CBS and NBC  television networks, and another special on ABC affiliates in early Januar y. These specials, along with 12 others during the year, are presented on m ore than 300 local ABC, CBS and NBC stations through the auspices of the In terfaith Broadcasting Commission, made up of the U. S. Conference of Cathol ic Bishops, the National Council of Churches, the Islamic Society of North  America, the New York Board of Rabbis, and the Union for Reform Judaism. NC C's Wesley "Pat" Pattillo serves as current president of  the IBC board.

Everybody Prays at Holy Etchmiadzen will premiere nationally on December 7  on local affiliates of the ABC TV network.  This documentary, produced for  the NCC by the Armenian Church in North America, focuses on the historic ro le of the Armenian Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin which, since its founding  in 303 A.D., has served as a beacon of tolerance and understanding between  Armenians and their Jewish, Muslim and Christian neighbors. While navigati ng multicultural regimes including the Ottoman and Safavid empires, the chu rch has hosted diverse leaders from the Chief Rabbi of Israel to the Chief  Mufti of Syria, and from Popes to the Archbishop of Canterbury. Check your  local ABC affiliate for the exact time of broadcast in your area.

The Voices of Christmas will air at 11:35 p.m. (the David Letterman time sl ot) on Christmas Eve on the CBS television network. This colorful holiday s pecial features music and testimonies from a wide variety of faith groups r elated to the National Council of Churches - from Baptist, Lutheran, and Pr esbyterian to Brethren, Methodist and Orthodox -- in celebration of 100 yea rs of Christian ecumenism in the United States. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, new g eneral secretary of the Council, will be the host.

Christmas at Cadillac Jack's, a one-hour dramatic presentation, will air Ch ristmas Day on affiliates of the NBC television network, a presentation of  the National Council of Churches in cooperation with the Seventh-Day Advent ist Church. Rose and Joe take an unexpected road trip in his '56 Chevy look ing for Rose's long-lost daughter. Join them for a heartwarming holiday sto ry of reconciliation and forgiveness. Joseph Campanella, Ruta Lee and Patty  Cabrera star in this engaging Christmas drama. Check your local NBC affili ate for the exact time of broadcast in your area.

Finding Hope in Recovery: Families Living with Addiction is set to premiere  January 4 on ABC television affiliates. This special, produced for the Nat ional Council of Churches by Mennonite Media, examines the role that chemic al dependency plays in family dynamics. While the tragic results are appare nt, the program emphasizes that with emerging forms of treatment, recovery  is possible, and through hard work, affected families can be restored to he alth and wholeness. Check your local ABC affiliate for the exact time of br oadcast in your area.

>For more information see www.ncccusa.org/

NCC News contact:  Philip E. Jenks, 212-870-2228, NCCnews@ncccusa.org