Mississippi College Supporters Flocking to Southern Baptist Convention

Chairman of MC's Department of Christian Studies & Philosophy Burn Page

Tortilla chips, vegetable quesadilla and braised beef empanada with chipotle dip will be on the menu as Mississippi College supporters gather at the Southern Baptist Convention in Houston.

It should be an evening of fun, food and fellowship as MC alumni and friends gather for a June 11 reception at the George R. Brown Convention Center.

President Lee Royce, Vice President for Advancement Bill Townsend, admissions personnel and others with ties to the Christian university will be on hand welcoming visitors.

There’s an open invitation to MC alums and friends in the Lone Star State, and nearby states to attend the two-hour reception in Room 320 (Level 3) beginning at 5 p.m. that Tuesday.

MC leaders can’t wait to rekindle friendships and greet new friends at the June 11-12 convention. Activities kick off during the weekend with a meeting of Southern Baptist Convention pastors on June 9. Mississippi College operates alumni chapters in New Orleans and in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, both just a few hours drive to the annual conference in Houston.

“I’m looking forward to meeting Mississippi College graduates, Mississippi pastors and friends from across the convention,” says Burn Page, chairman of the MC Department of Christian Studies & Philosophy. A former Baton Rouge pastor, Page doubles as director of the university’s Institute for Christian Leadership on the Clinton campus.

The bustling city of Houston is home to NASA, a world-class zoo, the Houston Ship Channel, the Texas Medical Center, and Minute Maid Park where the Houston Astros play baseball. Convention-goers are expected to squeeze in a little time for the city’s many attractions.

As they’ve done in previous conventions, Southern Baptists will have plenty of opportunities to share Christ through ministry evangelism as the event Crossover Saturday (June 8) works with a local initiative to serve the city in Texas. SBC President Fred Luter participated in the 2012 Crossover New Orleans when the conference was held last June in the Crescent City.

Crossover Saturday will include all of the traditional components of evangelism training, block parties and special events in Houston. “From the very beginning, Crossover was designed to bless the city hosting the annual meeting,” said Al Gilbert, North American Mission Board vice president.

Convention business begins shortly after 8 a.m. on Tuesday June 11 with remarks from Luter, senior pastor at Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans. Luter made history last summer as the SBC’s first African-American president.

Mississippi College people will encounter plenty of higher education colleagues from around the nation. William Carey University of Hattiesburg, Union University of Jackson, Tennessee, among others, are hosting ice cream socials for their alumni in-between Southern Baptist Convention meetings. Alumni from as nearby as Cedarville University in Houston and as far away as Golden Gate Seminary in California will be there.

For more information or to make a reservation at the Mississippi College reception, contact MC’s regional alumni associate Lisa Williams at 205.332.4100 or lwilliam@mc.edu or visit mc.alumni.edu/houston2013.