Final distribution numbers are in for what's being called the best-selling WELS media project ever. In all, 85,800 copies of the DVD Road to Emmaus were ordered at a special bulk rate as an Easter-season evangelism tool by 470 congregations, making it the largest distribution of any media product by Northwestern Publishing House (NPH).

"It is wonderful and exciting that thousands and thousands of copies of the Road to Emmaus movie are drawing the attention of many, many people to Jesus and what he accomplished for them by his death and resurrection," says Rev. Mike Hintz, chairman of the Commission on Evangelism.

A survey of the congregations that ordered Road to Emmaus indicates they used the DVD in a variety of ways; most handed them out to members to give to friends and relatives, some sent them directly to prospects. And the DVD had impact. One pastor responded: "A sixth-grader in our church has a sixth-grade friend with cancer. Our member gave the video to the boy, and now the cancer-stricken boy has decided it is his favorite movie! He is no longer afraid to die."

Road to Emmaus has had impact beyond WELS as well. It aired four times during Holy Week on the Trinity Broadcasting Network and in local television markets including Rhinelander, Wis., and Wausau, Wis. It is offered for sale through Concordia Publishing House; Augsburg Fortress; and Family Christian Book Stores, the largest Christian bookstore chain in the United States.

Bill Curtis, critic for the independent Movieguide Review writes, "Road to Emmaus is a good, wholesome short movie to watch with the whole family and with unbelievers. Best of all, it is filled with the gospel and clearly explains how the Old and New Testaments are united in Jesus."

Road to Emmaus is available in a Spanish version. WELS Multi-Language Publications is currently translating it into Chinese, Nepalese, and Urdu. Plans are in the works to make the offer available to congregations again next year. Look for details later this fall. Individual copies are available through NPH.