The following are paid press releases. To add your release, please call Wendy Gustofson at (573)884-4044 or email wendy@religionnews.com
June 14, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hotline To God Answers Tecmark’s Prayers
Product Manager’s Revelation Helps Business- to- Business Manufacturing Company Develop New Product, Sales Channels To Help Build New Consumer-Based Product Opportunities
MENTOR OH – June 14, 2013 – Feeling beset by a weak global economy and off-shore competition that was eroding profit margins for Tecmark Corporation, product manager Chuck Stein asked God for a little divine intervention. He was seeking guidance for a new product line that would enable Tecmark to build additional markets – and help the company continue to provide opportunities for its employees and a good standard of living for their families.
Tecmark’s standard business-to-business product lines include controls for appliance manufacturers in various industries worldwide. Many of these components go into products that are marketed to and consumed by the housing industry, which has felt the brunt of the economic instability that the U.S. has endured during the past five years. A struggling economy and worldwide competition was proving to be a double whammy that plagued Tecmark and other American manufacturers.
Nearly three years ago, as he walked to his vehicle in the Tecmark parking lot, Stein stopped and prayed to God to send him an answer to the company’s predicament. Upon leaving the parking lot and driving about two blocks toward home, Stein’s – and Tecmark’s – prayers were answered. Stein said he envisioned a rotary style telephone embossed with the words Hotline To God. With tears streaming down his face, Stein, who admittedly is not an inventor or good at defining new technology, headed back to Tecmark and quickly sketched what he had just seen.
"I wasn’t really sure what this vision meant,” Stein said. "I didn’t know if Hotline To God was a product for Tecmark or a message directed to me. My intuition told me that God had answered my prayers. Hotline To God was to become a product for our company. I sure didn’t know all the pieces to the puzzle at the time. All I knew was it was consuming me.”
After further thought and prayer, Stein realized the Hotline To God telephone would contain inspirational Bible verses. After his own development, Stein was ready to share his vision for the product with his business partner. Several meetings and strategy sessions soon followed. Armed with a consultant and a national marketing survey, Tecmark decided to pursue Stein’s idea.
The result was the creation of The Hotline To God™ Store, a division of Tecmark Corporation, which manufactures inspirational audio products such as The Hotline To God, a replica telephone that plays 25 inspirational Bible verses; Story Stix, a unique series of hand-held, six-button children’s Biblical educational toys; and Talking Key Chains, six audio key chains, imprinted with a religious image, that each convey an inspirational passage.
The key chains can be customized for an individual church or business. Key chains are also being customized for recording artists to play their current hit songs. "As amazing as the story started out, the Lord kept clearing the path for us,” Stein said. "We checked to see if ‘Hotline To God’ was available as a trademark and it was. We secured it and now own the copyright to the name. Then again we should have known the Lord was totally backing this project. After all these are products to spread His word.”
The Hotline To God Store and its products came along at the perfect time for Tecmark. These new products demonstrate that any company, regardless of how long it has been in business, can successfully create and develop a new product and sales channels with no relation to its current core business.
About Tecmark Corporation and The Hotline To God Store
Hotline To God Store is a division of Tecmark Corporation in Mentor, Ohio. Tecmark Corporation has been in business since 1977 and its standard product lines include various control products sold to appliance manufacturers worldwide. The company employs about 70 workers.
For additional information contact Hotline To God at 877-483-3627, www.HotlineToGodStore.com
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June 13, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lifetree Cafe Extends Reach Into Correctional Facilities
(Loveland, Colorado)—The Delta Corrections Center in Delta, CO, hosts Lifetree Café as a way to encourage civil conversation among its inmate population.
The Lifetree program in Delta is sponsored by Good News Jail and Prison Ministry’s Chaplain, Richard Jackman.
Lifetree Café is a national network of venues where people gather for conversation about life and faith in a casual coffeehouse-type setting. Lifetree Café addresses a broad range of diverse topics such as gun control, the rise of atheism, mental illness, science and religion, and meth addiction.
According to Chaplain Jackman, "There are two main benefits to offering the Lifetree program here. The first is that we’re able to minister residents’ spiritual needs in ways that we couldn’t during our typical worship services. The second benefit is that inmates are finding a unique opportunity to learn valuable life skills that will help them acclimate on the outside.”
Lifetree Café’s National Director, Craig Cable, recently participated in one of the sessions offered at the facility. According to Cable, "Several of the men shared with me that they’re hoping to find a Lifetree Café location when they get out so they can plug into the safe, encouraging, and nonjudgmental environment that Lifetree provides.”
Lifetree Café locations and times may be found at lifetreecafe.com.
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June 13, 2013
For IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Angels and Saints at Ephesus tops Billboard’s Classical Traditional Music Chart for fifth consecutive week
The CD’s heavenly sounds continue to mesmerize listeners
Atlanta, GA, June 13, 2013 – ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS from the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles is No. 1 on Billboard magazine’s Classical Traditional Music Chart for the fifth straight week. The sacred CD from the Missouri-based nuns also earned the No. 11 spot on Billboard’s Overall Classical Music Chart.
ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS once again topped a group of classical albums that includes Fifty Shades of Grey: The Classical Album and Downton Abbey: The Essential Collection.
In addition to the CD, the album is available as a digital download for all devices at a variety of online retailers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the iTunes Store.
"To have the music of the Benedictines of Mary topping Billboard's Classical Traditional Chart is nothing short of miraculous,” said Monica Fitzgibbons, cofounder of De Montfort Music. "Their music is making its way into the hearts and homes of many who have repeatedly related experiences of peace and beauty resulting from time spent listening. What a gift the Sisters are to the world.”
De Montfort enlisted nine-time International Grammy® winning producer Christopher Alder, who hails from Germany, and two-time Grammy® winning engineer Mark Donahue to record and capture the Sisters in their contemplative environment singing all of ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS.
The Sisters’ debut album, ADVENT AT EPHESUS, with De Montfort Music/Decca, remained on Billboard magazine’s Classical Traditional Music Chart this week, coming in at No. 10.
Please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276, or KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com) of Carmel Communications for more information or to schedule interviews.
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June 13, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Learning to Pray in the Digital Age - Shalem Institute Launches Online School of Contemplative Prayer Series - New E-Courses Nourish Spiritual Seekers with Christian Contemplative Practices - Registration Deadline Wednesday June 19th
Washington, D.C., June 13, 2013 -- The Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation announces the launch of new e-courses to bring Christian contemplative living into the digital age. The Online School of Contemplative Prayer is an interactive, online curriculum offering instruction in contemplative prayer practices in the Christian tradition and is enriched with contemplative content from other sacred traditions.
The Online School of Contemplative Prayer Series offers many ways to nurture an awareness of the sacred in daily life and is designed for those who want to begin or deepen a daily spiritual practice with the support of others. Courses in this series are experiential and offer brief, weekly video lessons by senior Shalem staff, mid-week emails and the support of a virtual prayer group that uses a members-only, secure web page. Participants are encouraged to commit to a daily prayer practice of 20 minutes a day and access the e-course at their convenience, any time of day or night. Registration for the course, Scripture, Movement, Gratitude and Prayer for Others, is open now. Registration deadline is Wednesday, June 19th. Space is limited. www.shalem.org/index.php/shalem-programs/school-of-prayer
"In our 40th anniversary year, we are excited to bring Christian contemplative practices into the digital age and disseminate them to individuals who yearn for spiritual enrichment and support across borders and time zones, anywhere there is an internet connection," said Leah Rampy, executive director of the Shalem Institute. These programs are part of Shalem’s ongoing initiative to develop courses in the contemplative tradition online. This course as well as another e-course in the series, Presence Through Body, Breath and Mind, will be offered again this fall.
Shalem Institute is the leading center for ecumenical spiritual formation in North America and around the world, with participants in Asia, Africa, Australia and Europe. The Shalem community continues the lineage of the Christian contemplative tradition and is part of what Rampy calls "the Spirit’s unceasing transformation of the world.” Its programs center on contemplative teaching and practices that open the mind and awaken the heart to the living Spirit. Many of the world’s foremost spiritual speakers and writers have been featured in Shalem programs including Cynthia Bourgeault, Thich Nhat Hanh, Richard Rohr, and Eckhart Tolle. www.shalem.org/index.php/shalem-programs
In October, Shalem will hold a global 40-Hour Contemplative Prayer Vigil, both live and online, to celebrate the past 40 years of its ministry, practice gratitude for the present moment and attend to the unfolding future. The vigil will offer people the opportunity to pray together worldwide and feel the collective strength and ripple effects of contemplative prayer for the sake of the world.
The Online School of Contemplative Prayer Series
Title: Scripture, Movement, Gratitude and Prayer for Others http://store.shalem.org/product_info.php?cPath=43&products_id=187
Dates: 6-week series: June 23 - July 28, 2013
Registration Deadline: Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Time: Flexible; you will receive Sunday and Thursday e-mails, and estimated 20 minutes a day for daily practice.
Leader: Patience Robbins (with offerings by Shalem Staff)
_ _ _
Title: Presence Through Body, Breath and Mind www.shalem.org/index.php/shalem-programs/school-of-prayer#socp1
Dates: 6-week series: November 2013 (registration opens in October)
Leader: Carole Crumley (with offerings by Shalem Staff)
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June 7, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
From the creators of "Fireproof” and "The Love Dare” comes "The Love Dare for Parents”
BHPublishingGroup.com
NASHVILLE – June 6, 2013 – From Stephen and Alex Kendrick—the writers/producer/director of FIREPROOF and the author’s of the No. 1 New York Times best-selling book it inspired, The Love Dare—comes a life-changing tool for building strong, godly families—The Love Dare for Parents.
"The Love Dare for Parents offers a 40-day journey of daily ‘dares’ that challenge parents to know what Christ-like love looks like and to share it with their children,” Stephen Kendrick said.
Available for preorder now with deliveries beginning July 1, The Love Dare for Parents also includes free access to an online parenting evaluation tool to make the book even more impactful.
"We know that family life is busy,” Alex Kendrick said. "We purposefully made The Love Dare for Parents easy and enjoyable to read with biblical principles you can apply to your parenting from Day One.”
Each of the 40 days of The Love Dare for Parents begins with an encouraging promise from scripture then draws a biblical principle from it. Parents receive daily challenges to put the principles to work in the lives of their children. And, there is room for readers to make the book their own, with space to journal reflections about the material and about personal experiences, putting it into action. The Love Dare for Parents is helpful and encouraging to parents and children of all ages—whether a new parent looking to win the heart of their young child or an older parent hoping to win a heart back.
Alex and Stephen Kendrick, founders of Kendrick Brothers Productions, are the creative team behind some of the most popular faith-based films of recent times including FACING THE GIANTS, FIREPROOF and COURAGEOUS. And they are international best-selling authors of books inspired by their films. In FIREPROOF, a major character whose marriage is crumbling is challenged to take The Love Dare, 40 days of showing sacrificial love to his wife. The book The Love Dare was inspired by FIREPROOF and has spent 131 weeks on the New York Times Advice best-seller list and has sold nearly 6 million copies. On June 2, five years after its release, it is still earning accolades, as it received the Impact Book Award in the K-LOVE radio network’s first-ever fan-voted awards program. Alex Kendrick accepted the award at the famed Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
In the wake of The Love Dare’s positive impact on marriages, the No. 1 request the Kendricks received was for The Love Dare for Parents. With this book, they break new ground for building biblically-based families. The Love Dare for Parents helps moms and dads more fully enjoy and delight in their children and offers the perfect tool to, "Win the heart of your child.”
About B&H Publishing Group
As a division of LifeWay Christian Resources, B&H Publishing Group offers sought-after books, Bibles, church supplies and multimedia products. B&H is a major publisher of Christian living, fiction, youth, history, academic, reference and electronic products. The company's stable of best-selling authors includes Beth Moore, Gary Chapman, Henry Blackaby, Candace Cameron Bure and Oliver North.
For interviews, contact: Michael Conrad Michael@Lovell-Fairchild.com 214-616-0320
To learn more, visit: BHPublishingGroup.com
And visit Lovell-Fairchild.com for:
The Love Dare for Parents—Fact Sheet
The Love Dare for Parents—Backgrounder
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June 5, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Angels and Saints at Ephesus sits atop Billboard’s Classical Traditional Music Chart for fourth consecutive week
CD remains at No. 8 on the Overall Classical Music Chart
Atlanta, GA, June 5, 2013 – ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS from the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles is No. 1 on Billboard magazine’s Classical Traditional Music Chart for the fourth straight week. The sacred CD from the Missouri-based nuns also earned the No. 8 spot on Billboard’s Overall Classical Music Chart.
ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS continues to top a group of classical albums that includes Fifty Shades of Grey: The Classical Album and Downton Abbey: The Essential Collection.
In addition to the CD, the album is available as a digital download for all devices at a variety of online retailers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the iTunes Store.
"We are incredibly grateful for the outpouring that continues for Angels and Saints at Ephesus,” said Kevin Fitzgibbons, cofounder of De Montfort Music. "We are thrilled that so many have embraced this beautiful masterpiece that The Benedictines of Mary have so generously shared with the world. Our hope is that many hearts will continue to be brought to peace by time spent listening to this most treasured music.”
De Montfort enlisted nine-time International Grammy® winning producer Christopher Alder, who hails from Germany, and two-time Grammy® winning engineer Mark Donahue to record and capture the Sisters in their contemplative environment singing all of ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS.
The Sisters’ debut album, ADVENT AT EPHESUS, with De Montfort Music/Decca, rejoined Billboard magazine’s Classical Traditional Music Chart this week, coming in at No. 6.
Please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276, or KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com) of Carmel Communications for more information or to schedule interviews.
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June 3, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
First Hindu Monk to Deliver Opening Prayer on House Floor on June 4, 2013
Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami, head of Kauai’s Hindu Monastery and publisher of Hinduism Today, will be guest chaplain for the U.S. House of Representatives and will offer the opening prayer as the House begins its session on June 4, 2013, just after noon.
The invitation has come through Representative Ed Royce of California’s 39th District, inspired by the work of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) and timed to be part of HAF’s 10th Annual Advocacy Day.
While Satguru Bodhinatha will be the third Hindu guest chaplain to offer a prayer before Congress, he is the first Hindu monk and major religious leader partaking in this honor. The first Hindu prayer was offered by Venkatachalapathi Samuldrala of the Siva-Vishnu Temple of Parma, Ohio on September 14, 2000, the day Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, addressed a joint session of Congress. The second guest chaplain was Rajan Zed of Reno, Nevada, who opened the Senate on July 12, 2007.
Contact
Jay Kansara
jay@hafsite.org
512 909 7250
Suhag Shukla
suhag@hafsite.org
651 248 3883
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May 31, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Angels and Saints at Ephesus No. 1 on Billboard’s Classical Traditional Music Chart for third consecutive week
CD is No. 8 on the Overall Classical Music Chart
Atlanta, GA, May 30, 2013 – ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS from the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, earned, for the THIRD straight week, the No. 1 spot on Billboard magazine’s Classical Traditional Music Chart. The sacred CD from the contemplative religious order tucked away on Missouri’s rural countryside also earned the No. 8 spot on Billboard’s Overall Classical Music Chart.
ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS has repeatedly topped a group of classical albums that includes Fifty Shades of Grey: The Classical Album and Downton Abbey: The Essential Collection.
In addition to the CD, the album is available as a digital download for all devices at a variety of online retailers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the iTunes Store.
"We continue to be amazed by the success of the music from The Benedictines of Mary,” said Monica Fitzgibbons, cofounder of De Montfort Music. "It is a testimony to the desire for art to reflect both the true and the beautiful.”
De Montfort enlisted nine-time International Grammy® winning producer Christopher Alder, who hails from Germany, and two-time Grammy® winning engineer Mark Donahue to record and capture the Sisters in their contemplative environment singing all of ANGELS AND SAINTS AT EPHESUS.
Watch Kevin and Monica Fitzgibbons’ recent interview with Fr. Mitch Pacwa on "EWTN Live”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9NiiibO1Fg.
Please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276, or KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com) of Carmel Communications for more information or to schedule interviews.
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May 29, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Pope Francis’ Statement on Atheists – What’s the Big Deal?
Cambridge, MA – As the controversy and questions continue to arise around what Pope Francis really said last week regarding Heaven, Hell, atheism and salvation, writers for both secular and Catholic media outlets are still trying to determine whether atheists are destined for Heaven or doomed to Hades. The nation’s fastest-growing apologetics organization notes Pope Francis has not only said nothing new, but his remarks are far less extreme than those of his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.
"Pope Benedict XVI taught that some atheists are actually closer to God than many Christians,” said Rachel McHugh, Chair of New Apologetics, a non-profit focused on fostering dialogue between Catholics and atheists. "If the average Catholic truly understood what the Church teaches on the idea of salvation, they’d realize it’s better to be an honest atheist than a Christian with empty piety.”
As evidence, Ms. McHugh referred to the September 25, 2011 open-air Mass in the German City of Freiburg, where Pope Benedict XVI updated the warning of Christ that "tax collectors and harlots” were closer to God than the religious leaders of the day.
"Agnostics, who are constantly exercised by the question of God, those who long for a pure heart but suffer on account of their sin, are closer to the Kingdom of God than believers whose life of faith is ‘routine’ and who regard the Church merely as an institution,” said Pope Benedict XVI.
According to a review by New Apologetics contributors, Pope Francis was simply stating what the Church officially teaches in very direct language: We are all blind and sinful; God is the one who redeems us. Atheists, homosexuals, prostitutes, IRS agents and religious people, etc. are all in the same need of rescue…and God has definitively provided that rescue. The gift is there for us all whether or not we believe it.
Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, New Apologetics is the fastest growing Catholic apologetics organization worldwide. Part of the Caritas in Veritate International confederation of Catholic institutions, New Apologetics is a non-profit organization dedicated to the New Evangelization through the renewal of theology and philosophy of religion.
-end-
Contact
Victor Pap
victor.pap@littleflowerstrategies.com
617-212-1302
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