The following excerpts originally appeared May 28, 1996 in "Timecast," the programming guide published online by Progressive Networks (Now RealNetworks), the creators of RealAudio. We reproduce it here as an educational public service for listeners of the Grace Hour.

Push "seek" on a radio dial and the spinning numbers might lead to the sermons of Pastor Carl Stevens. Push "search" in Yahoo, and the query might find the same gentle voice.

Pastor Stevens preaches quietly, as if meditating, and he speaks with the ease that comes from more than 30 years at the microphone. In his broad New England accent, Stevens invites listeners to The Grace Hour to partake spiritually of God's divine buffet. "God has something greater than a five-star restaurant."

The Internet is also something of a smorgasbord, and The Grace Hour is just one of its entrees. Stevens' organization, the Greater Grace World Outreach, posts audio versions of the Hour on its Web site, making it one of the first audio religious programs on the Net. The Web version boasts everything the radio version has, including 24-hour prayer teams, and requests for "generous love offerings." John Collins, GGWO's webmaster, says putting the Hour online attempts to fulfill Jesus Christ's biblical charge to his apostles to "go and make disciples of all nations."

"Most fishermen have a tackle box full of lures," Collins says, alluding to another of Christ's directives. "We have many fish hooks as 'fishers of men.'"

Having discovered the Net as a way to catch the interest of the spiritually hungry, Catholics, Protestants, Jews, [and] Muslims... are reaching out to the wired masses with virtual churches and online offertories. And audio has become a key tool in their efforts, making preaching and religious education on the Net a multimedia domain....

Religious audio on the Net is as varied as the world's spiritual beliefs....

Fear of the unknown holds back some religious broadcasters from using the Net as a communications tool, according to Quentin Schultze, a communications professor at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich. He says sensational stories in news magazines about "cyberporn" have frightened many broadcasters, who wonder if Web surfers share their conservative values. "Some (broadcasters) have bought the media neurosis about the Net," Schultze says.

But many religious broadcasters face a more important problem, the graying of their audience. A Soma Communications study completed for the Washington-based National Religious Broadcasters found that regular listeners to religious programming are mostly middle-aged and older. "Netcasting" may mean salvation for broadcasters trying to reach the younger, Net-savvy audience. NRB spokesman David Keith says young people uninterested in religious radio might come to an audio cyber-camp meeting. It's "a safe way to visit a church," Keith adds. "People want some anonymity before coming in for a visit. They know what they're looking for and they want time to feel it out...."

People around the world are hungry for answers to their religious questions, and many find them through the Greater Grace World Outreach. John Collins says five Finnish churches, which he describes as "spiritually related" to GGWO, can't get The Grace Hour over the air. But they can get it over the Net, which he says is just another medium for the Lord's work; "We try to be as creative as humanly possible."

Article by Joe Follansbee

The Greater Grace World Outreach built one of the first Web sites with streamed audio
Quentin Schultze has published several books and articles on religion and the media.
National Religious Broadcasters is an organization for Christian religious broadcasters.
The Children's Bible Hour features stories for kids based on Bible passages.