In June 1963, five ministers met in a Memphis hotel room to pray about the need to establish a new seminary. At that time there was no seminary in the southeastern United States holding to Reformed theology and committed to the Bible as God’s inerrant Word, the final authority for faith and life. When the meeting ended, the seed that would become Reformed Theological Seminary had been planted.
Through the Lord’s provision, the original Jackson campus property was acquired. The property consisted of 14 acres on which was located a two-story white colonial home used for offices and classrooms in those early years.
Chaplain Sam Patterson, USN.
The founding evangelist of RTS
In the fall of 1966, RTS opened its doors for resident studies in Jackson, Mississippi. Seventeen students enrolled. On September 6, Dr. C. Darby Fulton, former Executive Secretary of the Board of World Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, delivered the first convocation address entitled “The Relevancy of the Gospel.”
Since that time RTS has grown to nine degree-granting campuses: Jackson, MS; Orlando, FL; Charlotte, NC; Washington DC; Atlanta, GA; Houston, TX; Dallas, TX; Sao Paulo, Brazil; and Global Education (U.S. and International). RTS has one partial degree campus in New York, NY.