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Roy Fish announced as nominee for SBC 2nd VP

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Evangelism professor Roy Fish will be nominated for Southern Baptist Convention second vice president during the SBC’s annual meeting June 21-22 in Nashville, Tenn.

Fish, a seminary professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary for 40 years, will be nominated by Ted Stone, a trustee at the Fort Worth, Texas, seminary. Stone described Fish as the teacher and preacher in Southern Baptist life whose name is virtually synonymous with evangelism.

“He has taught evangelism to more of our denomination’s pastors, missionaries, evangelists, educators and other church and denominational staff members than any other professor. Because of this dedicated teacher’s efforts to instill a burden for lost people in the hearts of his students, thousands have gone out into the world and won millions to Christ.”

Stone noted that Fish is worthy of the recognition that goes with election to the vice presidency but underscored that Fish also would contribute positively to the convention-wide campaign to renew emphasis on evangelism.

“Roy Fish is well-deserving of the honor of serving as second vice president of the convention and I also believe that he would work well with SBC President Bobby Welch to re-energize the evangelistic efforts of our denomination. The inclusion of Dr. Fish would serve to further inspire Southern Baptists to reach out to a lost and dying world with the Good News of salvation through faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord.”

In April 2005, Southwestern’s trustees named the seminary’s new school of evangelism and missions for Fish.

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Born and raised in Arkansas, Fish was saved while pursuing his undergraduate degree at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. He came to Southwestern Seminary first as a student and received a bachelor of divinity degree — then the equivalent of a master of divinity degree — in 1957. It was in Fort Worth that he met his wife, Jean Holley, another divinity student. They have been married since 1960.

He completed his doctoral degree in church history at Southwestern in 1963 with a thesis titled, “The Awakening of 1858 and Its Effects on Baptists in the United States.” During his doctoral studies, Fish pastored First Baptist Church in Fairborn, Ohio.

He has been active in denominational life, having served on the executive board and then as president of the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio. Fish also has served on the Southern Baptist Convention’s Committee on Committees and on the Strategic Planning Task Force of the Home Mission Board (now North American Mission Board).

In 1965, Fish accepted the call to teach evangelism at Southwestern and now occupies the seminary’s legendary “Chair of Fire.” B.H. Carroll, Southwestern Seminary’s founder and first president, designated the professorship of evangelism the Chair of Fire during the seminary’s earliest days. L.R. Scarborough was the first person to occupy the chair in 1908. Shortly before Scarborough’s death in 1945, gifts were secured to endow the L.R. Scarborough Chair of Evangelism, thus ensuring that the Chair of Fire would be an integral component of the seminary’s training.

Fish will be among the featured speakers at this year’s SBC Pastors’ Conference.
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