SAT-7 viewers will enjoy a hope-filled slate of Christmas programs in Arabic, Turkish, and Persian this week. From programs sharing gifts and Bibles with isolated villagers, children in an orphanage, and impoverished families, to live church services and special episodes, the joyful message of Christ’s birth will fill screens across the region.
One special program is Christmas Bus on SAT-7 ARABIC, with speakers and musicians sharing gifts, including bibles, with the communities they visit. Another is a SAT-7 ACADEMY special filmed at an orphanage in Lebanon, where the team spread Christmas joy through gifts including digital copies of the primary education program My School, which helps children continue their education while out of school.
Meanwhile, the SAT-7 KIDS program This Christmas, You Can filmed in Lebanon invites teens to visit families living in poverty in Lebanon, bringing them essentials they need and helping them fix their homes. The program aims to help teenagers appreciate the joy of giving to those in need. A special episode of the current affairs program You are Not Alone has also been produced in which refugee families share their hopes for other families with similar challenges. The episode aims to highlight that despite the pain and injustice many go through, there can still be ways to celebrate and see God’s goodness.
Bringing church home
Living in predominantly non-Christian societies, it can be challenging for believers to gather to celebrate Christmas. This is especially difficult in countries such as Algeria, where local authorities have closed many churches, and in Iran and other places where believers live in isolation without access to churches or fellowship. To support isolated believers to feel connected, a festive Christmas house-gathering was filmed in Algeria, while a new Christmas special called The Sorrows and Joys of Christmas will be broadcast from Tunisia.
SAT-7’s Persian-language channel SAT-7 PARS will broadcast a live Christmas worship episode on its program Our Neighborhood. In addition, a one-hour special in which three Persian pastors share how they celebrate Christmas will help inspire viewers across Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan to commemorate Christ’s birth joyfully and safely. SAT-7 PARS’ women’s programs New Identity and Insiders have also prepared special episodes about hope at Christmastime.
SAT-7 TÜRK is celebrating Christmas with viewers through special episodes of the programs We Asked the Catholic Fathers, The Bible with Deacon Father Burhan, and Worldview.
Other SAT-7 ARABIC specials include a live episode of Spiritual Evening, and live services broadcast from churches including Kasr El Dobara Evangelical Church in Egypt and other churches, helping viewers attend services or masses from home.
Besides its full-length programs, SAT-7 screens will feature songs, and colourful Christmas concerts throughout Christmas week and New Year. Although many Christians in the Middle East and North Africa may not be able to attend a physical church, SAT-7 hopes to bring church home to millions across the region by sharing the hope and joy of Christmas.
