Author Joel Belz founded World magazine, a Christian interest weekly, in 1986. He served as editor and publisher until late 1994. Before that, Belz was managing editor of The Presbyterian Journal, a magazine of theological interest started in 1942. In 1997 Belz was elected president of the Evangelical Press Association. In 1994, he received the James DeForest Murch award from the National Association of Evangelicals. Belz focuses now on editorial tasks for World magazine, having written the lead column for more than 20 years. He also speaks across the country. He is an active churchman, having served in 2003 as moderator of the highest assembly of his denomination, the Presbyterian Church in America. He has been a member of the board of Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, for most of the last 25 years. He has a B.A. from Covenant College, an M.A. in mass communications from the University of Iowa, and a doctor of humane letters from Geneva College.