It recently received the award “Digital TV of the Year” in The Netherlands: Family7 TV network was founded 10 years ago by a couple of spouses, Dolf and Ans van de Vegte, devoted Evangelical Christians. “It all began in 1992, when my wife and I quit our jobs because we felt a calling to the “mission”, said Dolf van de Vegte. The couple left for Barcelona to animate a set of missionary initiatives with the organization “Youth with a Mission” on the occasion of the 1992 Olympic Games. Television as a profession entered their life shortly after their return, when the husband was asked to be a consultant in the production of a program for children broadcast by Dutch public television. In 1996 Dolf van de Vegte requested a licence to set up a national Christian TV network, also for commercial purposes. “In my heart I felt the voice of God inspiring me”, so Family 7 came into being. Among future projects the couple hopes to export Family7 on digital platforms across European countries.
What is the “mission” of your television?
“To bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the homes of Dutch people through wonderful TV formats”.
What kinds of programs do you produce?
“We produce children’s programs, documentaries, reality-shows and TV-series, talk-shows, music programs; we also broadcast films”.
You recently were awarded as “Digital Television of the Year”. What does it mean for you?
“Jesus has invited the faithful to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
I think that Christian media should be salt and light, as well as a tool to show people the reason for their being here.
I used to play the trombone, and when I played spirituals I wanted everyone to know that God has a plan for their lives, that His love for humanity is such that He sent his Son for those with a sick heart, those who live in darkness or those who are sad. That’s what we want people to know. The prize helps us in the promotion of our programs, it also spreads awareness on the existence of Family7 among the general audience”.
Religion appears to have gone out of fashion in The Netherlands. However, according to estimates, 2.5 million families watch your programs. Are these figures correct?
“Just like many other European Countries The Netherlands is a secularized nation, and people believe many different truths, but not the Truth.
Faith is no longer in demand, but if we do whatever we can at its best, God will make the impossible possible. We have experienced it several times during the past 10 years, since we founded our TV network.
The TV network worked miracles, otherwise we wouldn’t have gone so far. Approximately 4.5 million people receive our TV programs, but we have started to collect precise data only recently. We currently rank halfway among the existing 50 digital channels. In October we launched a completely new palimpsest and we hope to be listed among the ‘top ten’. In our formats we seek to insert themes and topics that relate to people’s needs. With all the tragedies ongoing across the world we realised it was necessary to create a news program that covers current events from a Christian perspective. We want people to know that the Bible shows us that we must not be afraid, because God is with us also when a tempest enters our lives, and we must learn to have faith in Him”.
What does it mean to you to “proclaim the Good News?”
“Given the many different cultures and people in the world, there is not one “way” to evangelize for all. The Lord reaches people’s hearts in many ways. I think that Christian media is one of these tools, and I consider it exceptional. Once, when I was travelling across France, I asked myself how we could reach out to others with the Gospel, and as I noted the antennas on rooftops I realized that that was the way to reach out. That’s where people feel at home. When they zap from one channel to the next (I call it ‘seeking’), a word or a song, or a picture on the screen is enough for God to decide to use it to touch someone’s heart.
For the Dutch government religion should be limited to the doors our homes, far from the public sphere. I don’t agree.
Outside the doors of our homes is where we manage to reach out and show people they should welcome Jesus Christ as their Saviour, to receive the peace they might have been seeking for years”.
