manna?

“Rolling Stone” Reverses, Will Accept Bible Ad by Cathy Lynn Grossman (USA Today)

Posted by Ed and Lois

The bible of rock ‘n’ roll, Rolling Stone magazine, will run an ad for the Holy Bible next month — the same ad it rejected two weeks ago for its “spiritual message.”

“We have addressed the internal miscommunications that led to the previous misstatement of company policy and apologize for any confusion it may have caused,” Lisa Dallos, spokeswoman for Wenner Media, Rolling Stone’s parent company, said Monday. She declined to elaborate.

The nation’s largest Bible publisher, Zondervan, had inquired about rates for the ad in March and booked the space in July for the ad to run in February.

The ad, which will run unchanged in mid-February, doesn’t mention God. But it describes the Bible as “real truth” and carries the new translation’s slogan: “Timeless truth: Today’s language.”

We’re frankly thrilled that Rolling Stone has decided to accept our ad,” said Paul Caminiti, Zondervan’s president of Bible publishing.

“We believe that the Bible is relevant for Rolling Stone readers,” Caminiti said. “We’ve always believed they were a cornerstone in our campaign to squarely market to spiritually intrigued 18- to 34-year-old young people, many of whom live outside the embrace of the church.”

The trouble with Rolling Stone came when the magazine’s executives saw the actual advertisement two weeks ago.

It was ruled unacceptable because of a “spiritual message in the text,” said Kent Brownridge, general manager for Wenner Media. He told USA TODAY that the magazine “was not in the business of advertising for religious messages.”

Zondervan officials were shocked. They said offers to change the advertisement were rebuffed. Christian and conservative media commentators savaged the magazine, which once carried classified advertising for mail-order divinity degrees.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2005-01-24-rolling-stone-bible_x.htm

2005 Most Anticipated Movies by C Bottomly (VH1)

Posted by Ed and Lois

So 2004 is gone and what have we learned? Ray Charles is greater than Alexander the Great. We’d rather see a movie with Mariah Carey than the Phantom of the Opera. And the world’s biggest star is a green Scottish ogre. As for what we’ll be talking about in a year’s time, there’s a mix of epics, musicals ... and the second coming of Batman and Darth Vader. Fasten your utility belt for 2005’s most
 

Sin City
Frank Miller’s graphic novels define neo-noir, all hardboiled head-cases and inky shadows. Spy Kids auteur Robert Rodriguez used both digital backdrops and a dream cast—Bruce Willis, Clive Owen and Mickey Rourke (!) among them—to bring this most pulpiest of fictions to two-fisted life.
Release date: April 1

Kingdom of Heaven
The Middle East, religious tolerance, and studly Orlando Bloom are all at the center of Gladiator, director Ridley Scott’s latest blood ‘n’ guts pageant. Bloom plays a blacksmith who finds himself defending Jerusalem against evil Frenchmen and Muslim insurgents. Watch out: it’s set during the 12th Century.
Release date: May 6

The War of the Worlds
H.G. Wells’ novel is not just about mankind’s battle against invading Martians for survival, it’s also a modernist fable on imperialism, human complacency and the death of God. We have a feeling Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise will be focusing on the man vs. Martians part.
Release date: June 29

Fever Pitch
Nick Hornby’s sporting memoir is indispensable reading for anyone who wants to know what makes men paint their faces in the Miami Dolphins’ colors. Transplanting Nick’s passion from soccer to baseball, this comedy finds Drew Barrymore coping with Jimmy Fallon’s love for the Boston Red Sox.
Release date: October 7

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
For those suffering from Rings-withdrawal, J.R.R. Tolkein’s old drinking buddy C.S. Lewis provides the fantastical fodder for the first in what might be a NINE-movie series. A quartet of London brats discover another world on the other side of the titular cabinet, where good and evil slug it out.
Release date: December 9

The Producers
For those who can’t afford the $300 seats on Broadway, the inevitable big screen transfer of the musical made from Mel Brooks’ 1968 movie reunites Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick as producer Max Bialystock and bean-counting mensch Leo Bloom.
Release date: December 21

Cinderella Man
Russell Crowe decides to throw his fists in the service of movies for change.  Director Ron Howard re-teams with his A Beautiful Mind star for the inspiring story of boxer Jim Braddock, who battled his way from palookaville to a 1935 showdown with heavyweight champ Max Baer.
Release date: July 3

U2 On The Road

Posted by Ed and Lois

Spring dates for the Irish band.

Vertigo 2005 world tour  
San Diego, March 28
Anaheim, Calif., April 1
Los Angeles, April 5
San Jose, April 9
Phoenix, April 14
Denver, April 20
Seattle, April 24
Vancouver, April 28
Chicago, May 7, 9
Philadelphia, May 14
East Rutherford, N.J., May 17-18
New York, May 21
Boston, May 24, 26

Dates in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia and San Diego will go on sale Saturday. Further details are at U2.com.

Is Rolling Stone Afraid Of The Bible? By Mark Moring (Christianity Today)

Posted by Ed and Lois

The latest issue of Rolling Stone just arrived in my office. It’s loaded with ads that promise us the world: better cars, better music, better TV, better sex, a better environment—but nary a word about a new Bible.

I know: Rolling Stone, the king of rock ‘n’ roll magazines, isn’t the first place we’d think to look for an ad for God’s Word. But Zondervan, the nation’s largest Bible publisher, tried to buy an ad in RS for Today’s New International Version (TNIV), but got turned away. According to a story in USA Today, the rock mag told Zondervan it has an unwritten policy against accepting ads containing religious messages.
The rejected ad shows a contemplative 20-something guy and includes the title, “Today it makes sense more than ever.” The text at the bottom of the ad says, “. . . [Y]ou wonder where you can find real truth. Well, now there’s a source . . . It’s the TNIV . . . It’s written in today’s language, for today’s times—and it makes more sense than ever.” The Bible’s cover is shown in the lower left corner.

There’s no use of the word “God” or “Christ.” But apparently Rolling Stone objected to the word “truth” in the ad’s text. “It doesn’t quite feel right in the magazine,” Kent Brownridge, general manager of Wenner Media, parent company of RS, told USA Today. “We are not in the business of publishing advertising for religious messages.”

Really?

On its website, Rolling Stone lists its regular advertising clientele, including car companies, movie studios, alcohol products and much more. One of its advertisers is Novartis, a pharmaceutical and consumer health company that, among other things, seeks “to ease suffering, and to enhance the quality of life,” and “to be recognized for having a positive impact on people’s lives.”

I bet Zondervan feels the same way.

The RS ad was part of Zondervan’s $1 million campaign to reach “spiritually intrigued 18- to 34-year-olds.” Surveys show that 53 percent of that age group read the Bible less than once a year or never, so it’s a noble campaign—and outlets like Rolling Stone are an idea way to reach that audience. The Onion will carry the ad, and MTV and VH1’s websites are also scheduled to carry similar Zondervan ads. So why not Rolling Stone? For a magazine that has long trumpeted freedom of speech and artistic expression, the decision to ban the Bible ad seems a bit hypocritical.

So what’s Rolling Stone really afraid of?

Full Post:http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/103/53.0.html

Sunday January 23, 2005

Posted by Ed and Lois

Manna meets @ 10:42 in the Park Theatre

248 South River Avenue
Holland, Mi 49423-3201

Back to Acts.  Dress warm.