Popular Bible Teaching Comes to U.S. Radio
[Estimated reading time: 2 minutes]
A fresh, relevant approach to understanding the Bible will be heard soon on U.S. radio stations and nationwide on the internet.
Mission 66 will make its English-language debut on Monday, Oct. 28, hosted by John Mathews and Esther Sisulu. It is the first standard-length English-language program to be broadcast in the United States through TWR, also known as Trans World Radio, in its 70-year history.
Initially, the English-language version of the program will be heard on stations in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon and Utah, as well as in South Africa. Check listings at mission66.org, where you also can find the latest audio episodes and a free downloadable study guide.
It also will be available on major podcast apps.
A one-hour launch special on YouTube at noon Eastern time Monday will offer a behind-the-scenes look at the program featuring the hosts.
Mathews, who is from Wales, and Sisulu, from South Africa, lend a congenial style to Sayão’s already relatable teaching, said Jon Fugler, chief content officer for TWR.
“Of course, the Bible is powerful, so digging into the Word makes it a powerful program,” Fugler said. “But I think the way it's delivered, too, is different than most other Bible-teaching programs. It's not a pulpit-delivered program, but it is conversational. It’s engaging.”
Mission 66 also will be released in the Indonesian language on Monday.
Luiz Sayão, a Brazilian scholar and Bible translator, first developed the program in collaboration with RTM Brazil in his native Portuguese as Rota 66. It has been aired for more than a decade on various RTM* outlets.
A Spanish-language version – available on mision66.org – has been on the air for one year, to great acclaim. “It’s beyond expectation,” said Annabel Torrealba, TWR international director for Latin American and Caribbean-Hispanic ministries. “This is the first time I’ve seen a project have so much feedback in just one year.”
Mission 66 also is already heard in Mandarin and Japanese, with the goal of making it available in the world’s 10 most-spoken languages.
* RTM is the Spanish- and Portuguese-language version of TWR.
