About the Lectures
Dr. Harold O.J. Brown was a man known for his winsome ecumenical spirit, keen intellect, and warm piety. His personal love for Christ and commitment to living a faithful Christian life was evident to all who knew him. Dr. Brown was much beloved by his colleagues and students at RTS, and we honor the memory of our dear friend with an annual lecture series at RTS Charlotte which bears his name.
Each year, guest lecturers for the series come to RTS Charlotte to present on a topic of their choice. Past lecturers include Carl Trueman, Russell Moore, Oliver Crisp, Mark Dever, Derek Thomas, Al Mohler, Mark Noll, and George Marsden.
Dr. Harold O.J. Brown served as John R. Richardson Professor of Theology and Philosophy at the Charlotte campus of Reformed Theological Seminary from 1998 to 2007. Dr. Brown was a leading evangelical voice in the pro-life movement immediately after Roe v. Wade, co-founding the Christian Action Council (now Care Net) with former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop in the 70s. Dr. Brown was a widely respected evangelical scholar during his professional life, writing books, essays and articles in the areas of culture, science, theology and politics. His books include: The Protest of a Troubled Protestant (1969), Christianity and the Class Struggle (1970), Death Before Birth (1977), The Reconstruction of the Republic (1977), Heresies: The Image of Christ in the Mirror of Heresy and Orthodoxy from the Apostles to the Present (1984), and Sensate Culture (1996).
Upcoming Lectures
“Transfiguring Biblical Interpretation: The Light of Christ in the Letter of the Text”
Dr. Kevin Vanhoozer
Dr. Kevin Vanhoozer, Research Professor of Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, will deliver the annual lecture series.
Dr. Vanhoozer is the author of twelve books, including The Drama of Doctrine, Faith Speaking Understanding: Performing the Drama of Doctrine, and Biblical Authority after Babel: Retrieving the Solas in the Spirit of Mere Protestant Christianity – all three named Christianity Today Theology Books of the Year (2006, 2015, 2017). His most recent book is the one from which his lectures are drawn: Mere Christian Hermeneutics: Transfiguring What it Means to Read the Bible Theologically. He has served on the editorial board of the International Journal of Systematic Theology, Journal for Theological Interpretation, and Pro Ecclesia and was the North American Consultant for the second edition of the New Dictionary of Theology (IVP).
In 1999 he was featured on the cover of Christianity Today, and in 2015 was the subject of a feature article by Wesley Hill. He has lectured in several countries on four continents. In 2017, he was on the steering committee that drafted A Reforming Catholic Confession, a document that celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. He is the theological mentor of the Augustine Fellowship, one of four groups associated with the Center for Pastor Theologians, and a member of the Theology Working Group that produced a statement on hermeneutics for the Lausanne 2024 Seoul Statement.
He is married and has two adult daughters, one son-in-law, and sixteen doctoral students. He is an amateur classical pianist and serious reader, and finds that music and literature help him integrate academic theology, imagination, and spiritual formation.
Past Speakers
To listen to past lectures, select the session you would like to hear, if available.
2023 | Dr. Timothy George
Calvin: A Theology Worth Smuggling
2022 | Dr. Simon Gathercole
Jesus in Canonical and Apocryphal Gospels
2019 | Dr. Michael Horton
The Gospel in a Secular Age
2018 | Dr. Rosaria Butterfield
The Issue of Sexual Purity
2017 | Dr. Carl Trueman
Reformation Preaching and the Modern Mind
2016 | Dr. Russell Moore
Pro-Life and Adoption Ministry in the Local Church
2015 | Dr. Oliver J. Crisp
God, Election, and Incarnation [Part 1] [Part 2]
2014 | Dr. Mark Dever
Being and Doing: Christian Discipleship [Part 1] [Part 2]
2013 | Dr. Derek Thomas
Anything Less than Exposition is Tyranny [Part 1] [Part 2]
2012 | Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr
2011 | Dr. Mark A. Noll
2010 | Dr. George M. Marsden