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Saturday, Oct. 04, 2008

Mabel White marking 50 years on TV

Mabel White Memorial Baptist Church lists almost 4,000 members on its rolls, but thousands more who have never set foot in the sanctuary have called it home over the last half-century.

That's because when Mabel White celebrates homecoming this weekend, it also will mark 50 years of televising its Sunday morning services into homes all across Middle Georgia.

"The homebound, people in nursing homes and those folks who just get up late, we've become their church," said the Rev. Joe McDaniel, a longtime associate pastor at Mabel White.

The late Rev. Jimmy Waters and Macon's WMAZ-TV launched the broadcasts on the first Sunday in October 1958. And despite changes in technology, personnel, locations and more, the show has not just survived, its thrived.

"In the early days of television, it took some courage and guts and vision to try that kind of thing," said Dodie Cantrell, WMAZ's president and general manager. "That it began in the first place and that it's still here is quite an amazing feat."

Waters, who died in 2004, was a pioneer in broadcasting. He joined the Mabel White staff in 1946 while he was a student at Mercer University and served as song leader. After becoming senior pastor, he launched the "Victory Hour" radio show in 1948 that was broadcast worldwide.

"He was really on the front end of the radio/TV wave," McDaniel said.

Ten years later, the church launched the live television broadcasts.

"We had a microwave dish on top of the sanctuary," McDaniel said. "Back in 1958, that was cutting edge."

Waters was the perfect choice to tackle the job, Cantrell said.

"He had this affinity for the human condition," she said. "And he had this amazing gift of oratory."

It didn't hurt that Waters also had a great singing voice and was unflappable when the cameras were rolling, whether during church or while helping host the Children's Miracle Network telethons on WMAZ.

"He was comfortable with moving forward," Cantrell said.

McDaniel attributes much of the church's growth to the television broadcasts. Membership has grown from 800 when Waters came aboard in 1946 to about 3,800 today. The value of the church's property has jumped from $55,000 to about $1.5 million.

"It played a huge role in the growth and the notoriety of Mabel White," said McDaniel. "It's been a great association for us with WMAZ, and I think having us on the air has been good for them."

Cantrell said the Mabel White broadcast is the midstate's most popular show during the 11 o'clock hour, according to figures from Arbitron, a media and marketing research firm that measures television and radio audiences across the country.

Waters retired in 1977, and the church began airing tape-delayed services eight years ago, but the show is still connecting with people in the 31 counties where it airs, McDaniel said.

"There's not a week that goes by that when I'm visiting in the hospitals or I'm at a funeral that someone doesn't say 'I watched you on TV Sunday.' "

The television ministry has helped the church reach newcomers to the Macon area who see the program and decide to check it out in person.

"That has been a great first touch for us over the years," McDaniel said.

A few weeks ago, McDaniel said, he baptized a man who had been the primary caregiver for his homebound wife, who had recently died.

"They had become 'TV members.' He came to us and said, 'I want to be a member of this church.' "

Sunday, Mabel White will celebrate its 102-year anniversary. The service starts at 10:30 a.m. and will be broadcast, live, at 11 a.m. Members of Waters' family are scheduled to sing.

As part of the service, the church will unveil a DVD that features old and new photographs, video footage and interviews with former pastors and long-time members.

Waters and the Mabel White television show will no doubt have starring roles.

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To contact writer Rodney Manley, call 744-4623.