___ Diaz to lead publishing house. Jorge Enrique Diaz has been named general director of the Baptist Spanish Publishing House in El Paso. The agency publishes and distributes Christian resources in Spanish and French for individuals and churches around the world. Diaz has served at the publishing house 22 years in various capacities.
___ Children's ministers plan retreat. The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Children's Ministry Network plans its second retreat in Chattanooga, Tenn., Feb. 28-March 2. John Hendrix, pastor of Northside Baptist Church in Clinton, Miss., will lead the retreat sessions with the theme "Building Bridges." Registration cost is $60, which covers materials, local transportation and some meals. For information or to register, contact Cathy Anderson at (828) 252-4781 or canderson@fbca.net.
___ Mainstream convocation planned. The first annual national convocation of the Mainstream Baptist Network is planned for Feb. 15-16 at the Sheraton Airport Hotel in Charlotte, N.C. The Mainstream Network is an outgrowth of Texas Baptists Committed but has a distinct identity. Speakers include the two Mainstream Network national co-chairs, Phil Lineberger, pastor of Williams Trace Baptist Church in Sugar Land, and Bill Wilson, pastor of First Baptist Church of Waynesboro, Va. Other Texans on the program include David Currie, national Mainstream consultant and executive director of Texas Baptists Committed, and Michael Bell, pastor of Greater St. Stephen Baptist Church in Fort Worth. For more information, call (915) 659-4102 or visit www.mainstreambaptists.org
___ LifeWay opens store in Temple. LifeWay Christian Stores will open a new store in Temple Jan. 9, with a grand opening celebration Jan. 19. The new location is 2318 H.K. Dodgen Loop in the new Temple Towne Center.
___ Illinois gives latitude on BF&M. A motion to affirm several Baptist statements of faith was approved overwhelming during the Illinois Baptist State Association's annual meeting in Peoria. The adopted motion affirms the Baptist Faith & Message of 1925 and its three revisions in 1963, 1998 and 2000 as well as two earlier confessions of faith. Two pastors, a moderate and a conservative, brought the motion in a show of unity. "It's time to put the fighting behind us. It's time to win Illinois" for Christ, said Lanny Faulkner, director of missions for Central Baptist Association.
___ Texas criticized. Messengers to the Illinois Baptist Convention adopted a resolution criticizing the actions of "other Southern Baptist entities" that have directed funding away from the six Southern Baptist Convention seminaries. The resolution did not name the Baptist General Convention of Texas explicitly, but during debate several messengers made the link and said it was inappropriate for Illinois Baptists to criticize the actions of another autonomous group of Baptists.
___ NAMB cites success in cities. A total of 169 churches have been formed and 23,000 professions of faith recorded in four major U.S. cities during the first two years of the North American Mission Board's Strategic Focus Cities emphasis, according to officials with the Southern Baptist Convention mission board. The results have come through intensive efforts in Phoenix, Chicago, Las Vegas and Boston.
___ Islamic studies degree granted. The first degree in Islamic studies was awarded by Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Dec. 15. Seminary President Ken Hemphill awarded a master of arts in Islamic studies to Gregory Self, who has attended Southwestern since 1999.
___ Correction: A news brief in the Dec. 17 issue reporting on an award given to Terri Stovall for her research on Texas Baptist churches failed to mention that Stovall is a doctoral student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and that the research related to her studies there.
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