The State - News from Nov. 15, 1985

Two “bottle evangelists” plan to launch 34,400 beer bottles in the Pacific this week to carry the word of God to remote shores. “It’s a crazy idea, I guess,” said Bob Jackson, head of the Maranatha Gospel Ministry in Tuolomne. But he said he and partner Craig Rice have used the method several times since 1962 and it works. “People write and say ‘Thank you.’. . . It’s less than 1%, sometimes 1%,” Jackson said. “But it makes you feel good to get the letters.” The letters--from the Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea, Malaysia and other far-off places--convince the pair that they are doing well at doing good. The evangelists respond by sending a free Bible to anyone who asks.