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THE PASSION FILM GAINS MOMENTUM

There is a growing excitement that THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST will be a unique outreach opportunity for the worldwide church, writes web evangelism specialist Tony Whittaker. Websites about it fall into three categories:

1 People who have seen a preview and who although not permitted to write full reviews, can share their impressions.
2 Resource sites encouraging Christians to use different strategies for meshing into this opportunity with local church-based activities.
3. Evangelistic sites for non-Christians, which tie in with the film to answer questions about the Gospel story and life of Jesus.

I will not attempt to list all these growing range of sites, but give you links to sites which are themselves collections of useful PASSION links.

The film opens in the UK on 26 March, and prior to that there are preview screenings for church leaders being organised in a number of cities - see www.premier.org.uk for details.

Also, agencies such as Christian Enquiry Agency and CPO are working with distributors Icon to produce helpful response cards, invitation cards and posters for UK Christians to use, and for UK cinemas. More details soon.

After its UK run, churches wishing to use it will have to hire it for their own showings, and will have lost the great advantage of people seeing it in a secular, neutral, familiar surroundings.

URGENT TASK

Christian groups and churches must start planning now - as a matter of urgency - the production of literature, press campaigns, seeker's groups.
Please alert pastors, church leadership teams, Christian magazines, newsletters, and organizations to mobilize quickly. What else can we do? How about:

- encourage your local cinema to show the film. If they do not, pay for a special showing at the cinema.
- get together all the active churches in your town to plan a co-ordinated approach.
- consider adverts in your local newspaper.
- encourage local press and radio to run feature stories about the film, and any activities you plan.
- set up a public inquiry desk, even in a neutral secular location, where people can ask more, receive literature and counsel.
- brainstorm other approaches, and check on the sites below what other Christians are planning.

You're free to redistribute this article as widely as you can.

WEBSITES

1 REACTIONS. There are now a number of online reviews of the PASSION by people who have actually seen the film. There reaction is uniform - a gut-wrenching narrative of enormous power. J R Whitby (Director of Gospelcom.net) is typical:
"It was the most gut-wrenching, emotional and life-changing two hours of my life...
www.gospelcom.net

"Certainly, The Passion of the Christ is our greatest opportunity this year to share our faith, if we can get past the hype," says Eric Reed, Leadership Journal managing editor (a part of CT):
www.christianitytoday.com

Please accept verdicts from men of this calibre (and many others) that this is a truly powerful tool. You do not need to wait to see the film yourself before planning how to use it or the opportunity will be lost.

2 CHRISTIAN RESOURCES for the film:

THE NEED HIM organization write, "Our normal evangelism phone line is 888-NEED HIM, however, we have designated the 800-NEED HIM phoneline for the Passion film. We are sponsoring a ten-day market advertising campaign on Westwood One and Fox Radio to begin on February 25th. It will reach 28 million with the Gospel message and offer the 800-NEED HIM as a response."
Free materials to publicize the movie, such as posters and flyers: www.passionmaterials.com

Mission America Coalition will mobilize Christians "for prayer and invitational evangelism efforts" connected with the release of the film:www.missionamerica.org

One-stop resource site for Passion-related materials: www.thepassiontoolbox.org

3 EVANGELISTIC SITES relating to the film:

www.thelife.com
www.the-passion.org (multi-language)
Leadership University have brought together a range of scholarly articles appropriate to their target readership:
www.leaderu.com
watkins.gospelcom.net - humorous piece by Jim Watkins syndicated into secular newspapers

MORE LINKS on the Passion:
Youth Specialties: www.youthspecialties.com
Hollywood Jesus - growing collection of PASSION links, including interviews, review by Jewish writer Jeff Niems, and just about anything relating to the film:www.hollywoodjesus.com

The Passion of the Christ dramatically and graphically captures the last 12 hours of Christ's life on Earth, based on the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The film - a project in which Gibson invested 12 years of his life and $25 million of his own funds - became the Oscar-winning actor's unique passion as he researched the details of the story that, in his words, "heals me".
www.thepassionoutreach.com

© Christian Family Network
is run by CPO, supported by
Care for the Family, Marriage Resource, Positive Parenting,
Care, Women Alive, Christian Herald and many others.


		THE PASSION FILM GAINS MOMENTUM There is a growing excitement that THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST will be a unique outreach opportunity for the worldwide church, writes web evangelism specialist Tony Whittaker. Websites about it fall into three categories: 1 People who have seen a preview and who although not permitted to write full reviews, can share their impressions. 2 Resource sites encouraging Christians to use different strategies for meshing into this opportunity with local church-based activities. 3. Evangelistic sites for non-Christians, which tie in with the film to answer questions about the Gospel story and life of Jesus. I will not attempt to list all these growing range of sites, but give you links to sites which are themselves collections of useful PASSION links. The film opens in the UK on 26 March, and prior to that there are preview screenings for church leaders being organised in a number of cities - see www.premier.org.uk for details. Also, agencies such as Christian Enquiry Agency and CPO are working with distributors Icon to produce helpful response cards, invitation cards and posters for UK Christians to use, and for UK cinemas. More details soon. After its UK run, churches wishing to use it will have to hire it for their own showings, and will have lost the great advantage of people seeing it in a secular, neutral, familiar surroundings. URGENT TASK Christian groups and churches must start planning now - as a matter of urgency - the production of literature, press campaigns, seeker's groups. Please alert pastors, church leadership teams, Christian magazines, newsletters, and organizations to mobilize quickly. What else can we do? How about: - encourage your local cinema to show the film. If they do not, pay for a special showing at the cinema. - get together all the active churches in your town to plan a co-ordinated approach. - consider adverts in your local newspaper. - encourage local press and radio to run feature stories about the film, and any activities you plan. - set up a public inquiry desk, even in a neutral secular location, where people can ask more, receive literature and counsel. - brainstorm other approaches, and check on the sites below what other Christians are planning. You're free to redistribute this article as widely as you can. WEBSITES 1 REACTIONS. There are now a number of online reviews of the PASSION by people who have actually seen the film. There reaction is uniform - a gut-wrenching narrative of enormous power. J R Whitby (Director of Gospelcom.net) is typical: "It was the most gut-wrenching, emotional and life-changing two hours of my life... www.gospelcom.net "Certainly, The Passion of the Christ is our greatest opportunity this year to share our faith, if we can get past the hype," says Eric Reed, Leadership Journal managing editor (a part of CT): www.christianitytoday.com Please accept verdicts from men of this calibre (and many others) that this is a truly powerful tool. You do not need to wait to see the film yourself before planning how to use it or the opportunity will be lost. 2 CHRISTIAN RESOURCES for the film: THE NEED HIM organization write, "Our normal evangelism phone line is 888-NEED HIM, however, we have designated the 800-NEED HIM phoneline for the Passion film. We are sponsoring a ten-day market advertising campaign on Westwood One and Fox Radio to begin on February 25th. It will reach 28 million with the Gospel message and offer the 800-NEED HIM as a response." Free materials to publicize the movie, such as posters and flyers: www.passionmaterials.com Mission America Coalition will mobilize Christians "for prayer and invitational evangelism efforts" connected with the release of the film:www.missionamerica.org One-stop resource site for Passion-related materials: www.thepassiontoolbox.org 3 EVANGELISTIC SITES relating to the film: www.thelife.com www.the-passion.org (multi-language) Leadership University have brought together a range of scholarly articles appropriate to their target readership: www.leaderu.com watkins.gospelcom.net - humorous piece by Jim Watkins syndicated into secular newspapers MORE LINKS on the Passion: Youth Specialties: www.youthspecialties.com Hollywood Jesus - growing collection of PASSION links, including interviews, review by Jewish writer Jeff Niems, and just about anything relating to the film:www.hollywoodjesus.com The Passion of the Christ dramatically and graphically captures the last 12 hours of Christ's life on Earth, based on the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The film - a project in which Gibson invested 12 years of his life and $25 million of his own funds - became the Oscar-winning actor's unique passion as he researched the details of the story that, in his words, "heals me". www.thepassionoutreach.com © Christian Family Network is run by CPO, supported by Care for the Family, Marriage Resource, Positive Parenting, Care, Women Alive, Christian Herald and many others.