Mosab Hassan Yousef, son of one of the founders of Hamas and author of Son of Hamas (Tyndale Momentum), is working on a movie based on his memoir and another about the Muslim prophet Muhammad.

Yousef announced the two projects at a press conference in Jerusalem last month—his first visit to Israel since he left in 2007, the Jerusalem Post reported. He is working with Israeli film producer and actor Sam Feuer (Munich), who will produce a feature film adaptation of Son of Hamas as well as the yet-untitled Muhammad movie—which Feuer said would be a "historical account" faithful to Muslim texts, the Post reported.

"I think this is the time to expose the real nature of Islam," Yousef told reporters. "Islam is not a religion of peace. Islam is a religion of war and most Muslims don't understand the true nature of Islam. This is the time and I would like to announce it today here from Jerusalem, next to the Temple Mount."

Depictions of Muhammad are forbidden according to Islamic tradition. But Yousef and Feuer insisted they are not frightened by the possibility of violence surrounding the film, the Post reported.

Released in 2010, Son of Hamas is New York Times best-selling book that details Yousef's six-year-long conversion process that originated with a Bible study in Jerusalem and resulted in his departure from the Palestinian terrorist organization. In his memoir, Yousef explains how he worked with Israeli security from around 1996 to 2006 to stop terror attacks against the Israelis. There are approximately 150,000 copies in print of Son of Hamas, Tyndale officials said.

Best-selling author Myles Munroe was recently awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his contribution to leadership development in Peru and other emerging Latin American nations.

In a July 2 ceremony held at the Congress Building in Lima, Peru, Peruvian Congressional President Manuel Arturo Merino De Lama gave the Bahamian author the governing body's most prestigious award.

"We are honored and privileged to present this high honor to such a distinguished leader as Dr. Munroe who has positively impacted our nation with his dynamic and engaging leadership programs," he said.

Peruvian Congressional Vice President Michael Urtecho Media, who had recommended Munroe for the award, also praised Munroe's books and leadership conferences.

"I can personally testify to the great impact his knowledge and unique wisdom can have on the individual," he said. "His books have been a tremendous source of inspiration, encouragement and inspiration to me; I am proud to commend him to our nation as an honored global leader."

Whitaker House has published several books by Munroe, including Becoming a Leader and The Purpose and Power of Authority. Destiny Image released Munroe's Understanding Your Place in God's Kingdom in November 2011.

Whitaker House President Bob Whitaker Jr. said Munroe was deserving of the award. "Those who hear him speak or read Dr. Munroe's books are inevitably inspired and often transformed," he said. "One beautiful thing about Dr. Munroe is that he's as eager to talk to one guy in our warehouse as he is to address 100,000 packed into a stadium. He's like the good shepherd described in the book of Mathew—he seeks that one lost sheep who has strayed and may be feeling alone and alienated."

Prior to receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor, Munroe spoke to standing-room only crowds in Lima's largest arena for a weeklong leadership training conference hosted by one of the largest ministries in South America, Agua Viva International.

HarperCollins Publishers has finalized the acquisition of Thomas Nelson. The takeover was announced last October when HarperCollins—a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. that is also the parent company of Zondervan—had agreed to acquire the Nashville-based publisher "for an undisclosed sum."

Thomas Nelson will continue to operate as an independent company with its unique editorial focus on inspirational and Christian content. Details, such as how Thomas Nelson will benefit from HarperCollins global print and digital platform, will be forthcoming.

Christian fiction author and lawyer Pamela Binnings Ewen was recently honored with the Eudora Welty Memorial Award for her novel Dancing on Glass. The award was given by the National League of American Pen Women (NLAPW) for its 2012 Biennial Letters competition.

"For a Christian fiction author, this secular award is a huge nod toward her writing ability and the crossover potential for this novel," said Senior Vice President of Sales Craig Featherstone at B&H Publishing Group, which published the novel.

Founded in 1897, the NLAPW is an organization for women artists, composers and writers. It is headquartered in the historic Pen Arts Building in Washington, D.C., formerly the home of Robert Todd Lincoln—the first son of President Abraham Lincoln and his wife, Mary Todd.

Dancing on Glass was also nominated in the Contemporary Series, Sequels and Novellas category for next week's 13th annual Christy Awards, to be held during the International Christian Retail Show in Orlando, Fla. The awards for excellence in Christian fiction are to be presented at a dinner event Monday, July 16.

Ewen, who has practiced law for 25 years, is "a masterful storyteller, and we are excited her work has been recognized in both the Christian and secular book publishing industries," said Julie Gwinn, Ewen's editor at B&H.

Dancing on Glass is Ewen's third novel. Her book The Moon in the Mango Tree was a 2009 Christy Award finalist in the Historical Romance category.

Some of the nation's largest retailers posted weaker-than-expected sales in June as shoppers cut back on spending due to worries about the troubled job market, Knight Ridder reported.

Analysts called the results trouble for the crucial back-to-school shopping season, the industry's second biggest revenue-generating event, which starts next month.

"The bigger picture is worrisome," said New York retail consultant Robin Lewis, who expects back-to-school sales to be flat or decline. "The consumer has been spending less and they are saving more. Manufacturing has been declining. All of this signals decreasing demand."

Worried about unemployment and the European economy, consumers don't want to fill up their shopping carts, analysts said.

As a result, same-store sales at the nation's retail stores increased just 2.6% in June, compared with 8.1% a year ago, according to the research firm Retail Metrics/Bloomberg. That data, which measures sales at stores open at least a year, is a key indicator of a retailer's financial health, Knight Ridder reported.

Thomson Reuters, which polls 20 U.S. retail chains, saw its Same-Store Sales Index inch up only 0.1% in June, far below last year's 6.7% rise for the month. Analysts have said that warm weather may have prompted consumers to make summer apparel purchases earlier than usual, shifting sales from later months like June.

Last month, 28% of consumers said they earned less take-home pay compared to a year ago, according to Britt Beemer, chairman and founder of America's Research Group. That's compared to just 16% in March.

"Middle America is truly being squished in this whole thing," said Beemer, known for his Christian retail channel studies. Shoppers will likely buy only the necessities for back-to-school and defer purchases to the Christmas shopping season, he said.

Three years ago, only 6% of customers bought back-to-school items during the holidays. Last year, that grew to 23% of consumers, Beemer told Knight Ridder.

Covenant Group has launched its first mobile phone apps for iPhone and Droid for member stores of the country's second-largest independent Christian chain.

The apps, which will be made available to all existing users of the Covenant Group branded website program beginning in early August, allow customers to search the member stores' inventory database, check availability and pricing, and place reservation orders for pick-up—without pre-payment.

"As far as we are aware, these are the first phone apps available for any Christian retail brick-and-mortar retailer," said Chuck Wallington, Covenant Group founder and president. "We envision someone sharing a book over lunch with a friend, and that person taking the book and scanning the bar code to see if their local Christian store has it in stock. Of course, they can also type in the author, title or other keyword to locate it as well.

"Over the last several months of testing it in our retail store, I've had dozens of people who asked me, 'Do you have that in your store right now?' " added Wallington, owner of Christian Supply in Spartanburg, S.C. "[They were] very anxious to download it for themselves so that they could search our inventory as well."

Covenant Group provides marketing and support services to stores with a standard program for retailers with annual income of more than $1 million and an affiliate program for stores under $1 million in annual sales.

The app search capabilities and database are driven from the website database of each individual store.

"In today's retail environment, our stores literally need every tool they can get to compete," Wallington said. "We're all about driving customers into the stores we serve, using any technology we can apply."

For more information, contact Chuck Wallington at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Christian Retailing magazine will announce the winners of the 2012 Retailers Choice Awards at the International Christian Retail Show in Orlando, Fla. Mark your calendars and join us for the awards presentation Tuesday, July 17, at 4 p.m. at the Orange County Convention Center, room W110B.

Retailers have chosen the finalists in the 12th annual Retailers Choice Awards. Baker Publishing Group tops the list with 14 finalists in the running, with Tyndale House Publishers close behind with 12, Zondervan with 11 and Thomas Nelson with nine. Click here to see all of the finalists, selected from among the 300-plus products nominated in 41 categories.

Worship leader Ricardo Sanchez—author, GRAMMY nominee and Dove Award-winning songwriter—will join Christian Retailing in presenting the awards. Formerly minister of music at Jentezen Franklin's Free Chapel Worship Center in Gainesville, Ga., Sanchez has recently partnered in ministry with a number of artists, including Israel Houghton, Darlene Zschech and Mac Powell of Third Day.

Introduced in 2001, the Retailers Choice Awards have been increasingly acknowledged as an important way of recognizing some of the most significant new life-changing products in the Christian retail industry. Retailers were asked to judge nominations on the impact they have had on staff and customers, including their ability to: speak to people's hearts and evoke emotion; open people's minds to new ways of thinking; and encourage and affirm Christ-like living.

For more information, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..