Religion pages are the pits of American journalism. Nearly every editor knows it, only most aren't willing to be honest about it. The reason is that most newspaper readers seem to be a lot more interested in the things of God than do most newspaper editors, who by nature are a cynical lot. I know. I was one once.

But this can be the best news a pastor could ever hope to hear, because a pastor is in a lot better position to know what people want and need to hear about the faith than is an editor. And what that means is simply this: as far as religious news goes, an editor needs the pastor and other church leaders more than he realizes.

See, I told you this was good news. Now, how do you capitalize on it?

First of all, a church interested in expanding its horizons through local newspaper publicity needs to realize that this is as much a ministry as anything the church does. Think of what you're really after. You're trying to get people to learn about your church so you can present them the ...