The Incredible Journey

History depicts the holocaust as one of the worst incidents of genocide the world has ever seen. When we think of Jews during World War II our minds more often than not conjure up images of pale emaciated figures peering listlessly through chain link fences or the leering smokestacks of countless gas chambers belching plumes of smoke into the sky. Rarely do we see Jews during World War II as heroes of a daring resistance movement, defying Nazi rule and surviving the horrors of the war. And yet this week, we take a look at just such a group of Jews, united in their resistance against the Nazis and determined to survive at all costs. 

Cape Otway Lightstation is the oldest surviving and most important lighthouse in mainland Australia.  Built-in 1848, the lighthouse perches on towering sea cliffs 90 metres above the ‘Shipwreck Coast’, where Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean collide.

This is one of the most treacherous stretches of coastline anywhere in the world, littered with the wrecks of hundreds of ships.  Many lives were lost in these shipwrecks off Cape Otway – a sad but fascinating history that led to the building of the Lightstation.

But there’s more than just a lighthouse here at Cape Otway.  Hidden away behind the lighthouse, is a World War 11 secret bunker – so secret that there are only three photographs of it from the war.  When it was built in 1942 it played a significant role in Australian and American war history. There’s an amazing story to be told here.

This is the age of the Brain. State-of-the-art imaging equipment is opening up our understanding of the brain in much the same way as ocean-going ships explored and opened up our understanding of the world. Because of this, the world seems to be getting smaller in a sense because we now know more about it. So it is with the brain. Learning more about it can help us to see it as a friendly and helpful colleague rather than a deep dark mystery.

In AD 67, members of a mysterious religious sect hid a collection of over 900 sacred scrolls in caves in the Judean desert bordering the Dead Sea. The chance discovery of the ancient scrolls 2000 years later was considered one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of all time and sent shock waves through the world of Bible scholarship. Who wrote them? Why were they hidden? And why are they so important to us today? Find out in our new program, “The Dead Sea Scrolls: Treasure of the Caves.”

Join Gary Kent as he pays a visit to another world, another age, a nineteenth-century New England village, that has been rebuilt. And talks about why a town like this embodied freedom as a key destination for the Underground Railroad. Follow in the footsteps as we discover how many people took a voyage to freedom and how even today we can find freedom when we follow in the footsteps of Jesus.

The natural world is full of marvels.  From tall mountains to huge forests, to waterfalls, to winter wonderlands, our earth is full of breathtaking natural wonders.  These beautiful natural scenes bring balance to our lives and nourishment to our souls.   We are the only creatures on earth, that can be moved to tears by a sunset, that marvel at the stars at night, that feel awe, and humility at the spectacular beauty, power, and magnificence of the natural world.  Wonder defines us as human beings.   But wonder is more than just a good feeling.  It’s a seed from which our greatest treasure and understanding grows.  This week we join filmmaker, Henry Stober, on a journey through the wonders of the natural world.  Together, we’ll explore, dream and feed our souls, and maybe, just maybe, as we search the wonders of nature, we may find answers to some of our biggest questions.
 
(please note this program is more visual and is best to be watched).

This program is part of a series on the Beatitudes of Jesus. In this episode, we will look at what Jesus meant when he taught, “Blessed are those who mourn.” This teaching will be illustrated with the experience of Horatio Spafford, who lost his three young daughters in a disaster at sea, and who also wrote the hymn “It Is Well with My Soul”. There is a real sense in which the beginning of eternal life starts with a total dissatisfaction with our present condition. This programme will therefore explore how many of the greatest discoveries of life are found through the depths of sorrow. Those who mourn today and trust in God will rejoice tomorrow.

Heartache.  Anxiety.  Brokenness.  These are well-known symptoms that people suffer after experiencing terrible loss.  A Mum and a Dad lost their blonde-haired, brown-eyed baby boy – Maverick – in a tragic accident right on a family farm in the northern tablelands of NSW.  This is their story of heart-wrenching pain and loss.  But it is also a story of amazing hope and remarkable strength that this family has found in God and the promises in His Word.

This program is the fourth and final episode in a series of programs that compares and contrasts the lives and the legacies of Constantine the Great and Jesus Christ, and how both have impacted the way we think and the way we live today. Constantine embraced Christianity for his political ends and brought about the union of church and state which resulted in the compromise of Christianity and a loss of Bible truth and practice. This program focuses on the restoration of Bible truth and the fact that there are now two Empires vying for our allegiance.

This program is the third and final episode in a series of programs that compares and contrasts the lives and the legacies of Constantine the Great and Jesus Christ, and how both have impacted the way we think and the way we live today. This episode will focus on how Constantine embraced Christianity for his political ends and brought about the union of church and state. It explores the consequences of this for subsequent church history and for our modern world. The episode concludes with a challenge to recognise threats to religious freedom and to be able to respond in the right way.