Christian broadcaster Rhema expanding, bucking the media trend

When Luke Weston arrived at Rhema Media two decades ago, New Zealand was home to the largest religious music festival in the southern hemisphere.

The radio station where he worked as a DJ, Life FM, broadcast live from Mystery Creek each year when about 25,000 people flocked to Parachute to see acts like Jars of Clay or The Newsboys.

It was the heyday of contemporary Christian music and Rhema Media was at the heart of the local scene.

But Parachute shut down in 2014 due to dwindling crowds.

Christianity in general has declined too, with a record low 32 percent of citizens identifying as adherents in the 2023 Census, and 52 percent declared they had no religion.

But Life FM, and other Rhema Media brands Radio Rhema and Shine TV, are still broadcasting - and are set to expand.

The non-profit broadcaster recently launched new FM station Sanctuary and Rhema has also launched new mobile apps.

Weston is now Rhema's chief executive.

He attributes its endurance partly to being an early adopter of the subscription model that's now become popular in the media.

He said it was almost entirely funded by donations from 30,000 supporters, alongside an increasing number of bequests and a small amount of cash from advertising.

"It's always amazing for us that when we do go and ask for money, and it's small amounts spread over thousands of people that make it happen," he told Mediawatch.

"We're not talking about the huge media budgets that Radio New Zealand has. We're talking about running it on a shoestring."

Rhema's head of content Elmo Johnstone said the decline in church numbers and self-identified Christians hadn't corresponded with a drop in the number of people giving.

"I think what you're finding as the numbers of Christians around the world may be falling, those that remain in the faith tend to be more committed and strong, more passionate about it. And they tend to be the ones who were giving anyway."

Dealing with culture conflicts - and the rise of MAGA

Rhema doesn't only have to worry about how much money is coming in.

Christianity is going through profound cultural upheaval around the world.

Swathes of American evangelicals have aligned themselves strongly with US President Donald Trump's MAGA movement.

Here, churches such as Brian Tamaki's Destiny echo elements of MAGA's culture war rhetoric.

On the other hand, some churches have adopted progressive policies. Recently 440 New Zealand ministers joined to oppose Act's Treaty Principles Bill.

As a non-denominational radio station with a financial support from a broad base, Rhema must please - or at least try not to alienate - either side of the political divide.

"Christianity is a very diverse religious belief. It's everything that exists from Mother Teresa to Brian Tamaki on the other side," Weston said.

"Christians have very different theological, philosophical beliefs, so to try to skate somewhere in the middle where you're offering something to everybody is a challenge."

Queer rights have long been a hot-button issue for the church, with some Christian organisations campaigning against civil unions and gay marriage in New Zealand.

But the animus around the issue is more intense than ever now.

In the US, Trump issued executive orders targeting trans people.

Here, associate Health Minister Casey Costello recently ordered hospitals to stop using gender inclusive language. Her party - NZ First - also has a 'No men in women's spaces or sports' policy.

Asked if Rhema is a welcoming place for queer people, Weston said he hoped so.

"We would hope that anybody listening to our brands wouldn't ever feel judged or ostracised, and that's what we believe the gospel is too.

"It's a shame it's been caught up in all of those things but I would suggest it's human nature that we find ways to divide ourselves. But we believe it's a very inclusive message."

Weston said Rhema came under pressure to take more of a strong stance on social issues.

But Johnstone said that pressure wasn't as powerful or as financially threatening as it might be in the US.

"The Evangelical Christian mesh with Republicanism is quite a big thing in the US, but here I know people who are supporters of Greens who are Christians, who are supporters of National, and Act and New Zealand First.

"I think New Zealand is more diverse, not just as a society, but also within the church.

"I don't think it's quite as black and white as the US would see it."

Plans for the future

Though those demands may be manageable for now, there's no guarantee they'll stay that way.

Neither is the financial position of the non-profit assured.

Bequests bulking up donations may not be sustainable as the number of Christians declines.

The decision to replace its former station Star, which had a diminishing and ageing listenership, with Sanctuary is a play for future growth.

Star was a mix of music, bible teaching and sermons. Sanctuary has ditched the 'teaching' content in favour of a format devoted to worship music.

Though the contemporary Christian music that sustained festivals like Parachute is on the decline, Johnstone believed church worship was growing more popular.

"We're moving from a demographic of people that were 55-plus to more of a psychographic - people who love worship music."

Weston said the non-profit was currently reaching 10 percent of the population through its radio and TV brands.

In that context, he saw a third of the population identifying as Christian as encouraging.

"There's room to grow."

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