World Magazine is twenty-years old, and has produced an excellent twentieth year edition that summarizes the work and achievements of this little dynamic Christian magazine since Spring of 1986. Joel Belz started World with not much money and a small staff but huge ambition and a clear vision of what he wanted to do.
World Magazine, World-Class
Belz’s goal was to bridge a enormous gap between secular weekly news magazines like Newsweek, Time and U. S. News and World Report, and the strictly religious publications, in order to bring the public the news based on a clear Christian perspective. It wasn’t going to be an easy job, and Belz knew it certainly wasn’t going to be accepted or appreciated. But that didn’t matter, it needed to be done.
And he did it. World has been a great boon to those of us who needed a Christian perspective to the news in a quick, readable, slick, comprehensive format. It started out good, and is has gotten progressively better. World picked up great writers along the way, and it has entered the raging battles in politics, science, the economy, the social issues, national conflicts, even religion with a special flare and attitude that rings true to the Christian mind.
World may not be perfect, but it gets very close, and it is getting better by the issue. Congratulations are in order.
World News with a Christian Perspective
In its special twenty-year celebration edition, dated March 18, besides presenting a wrap-up of the main events of the two decades, a piece you should take a look at, and besides picturing every single World issue cover—855 in all—since its beginning, there are articles by publisher Joel Belz, writer Mindy Belz and World editor, Marvin Olasky. These three summarize World‘s history of growth and intention and lay out a promise of more and better to come.
Mindy Belz seems to have gone everywhere and still managed to raise a happy brood of kids. She joined victims of war in Croatia and Bosnia, washed dishes with a woman who walked her children to school through basement tunnels, saw victims of war with faces blown apart, and did it because she feels compelled to face the human condition at its most depressing in order to bring this knowledge back to World readers so we could experience Christ’s suffering in our time.
Olasky makes it clear that for us to know better the power of Christ’s grace, we must be aware of sin and its consequences. Olasky says frankly that their work depends on God alone and that World does not depend on any political party, does not put a spin on the news to make it something that it isn’t, but that their aim is to report events as close as they can get to how God sees them. Olasky says they would not alter the truth even if it could help God’s cause.
At World, Olasky admits, they sometimes make people angry, and while they love all those nice things that St. Paul admonishes us to think about—those things that are noble and pure and lovely—we still have to face the reality of a fallen World and report it as is, in all its ugliness and sin. He sees that it is sometimes dangerous to report the truth in a corrupt society, to a corrupt society, and through an often corrupt discipline.
But whatever the cost, Olasky says, “Count me in.” Say a little prayer for World on its twentieth birthday, for it’s success with its next 855 issues.
Holy Week Truth Day Wednesday
Next Wednesday; April 12, you and I have an opportunity to do something special for Holy Week, and that is join in two Truth Tour stops, from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m. at Madison and Wacker Drive to catch the morning crowd rushing to work, and then from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. on Lake Shore Drive catch those simply rushing by.
Offer it up, do it for Lent, do it for the babies. And do it for yourself. You’ll feel great. See you there.
