(JACKSON, MS) – July 9, 2014 – Reformed Theological Seminary’s Board of Trustees has appointed five faculty members to fill vacant faculty chairs at the recommendation of Chancellor Ligon Duncan and Dr. Bob Cara, chief academic officer. They are as follows (left to right):
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Dr. Mike Kruger, president of RTS/Charlotte, has been designated the Samuel C. Patterson Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity. Rev. Sam Patterson was one of the founders of RTS and the seminary’s first president in 1975.
Dr. Derek Thomas, professor at RTS/Atlanta, and the senior pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC, has been designated the Robert Strong Professor of Systematic and Pastoral Theology. Robert Strong was a strong conservative preacher in the Southern Presbyterian Church (PCUS) who served as a long-time senior pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Montgomery, Ala., and also taught preaching courses at RTS/Jackson for a few years after retiring from the pastorate.
Dr. Guy Waters, professor at RTS/Jackson, has been designated the James M. Baird, Jr. Professor of New Testament. Rev. Baird served as 1st lieutenant in the Army during the Korean War before being called into the ministry. After serving as pastor in churches in several southern states, including First Presbyterian Church in Macon, Ga., he then pastored First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, Miss., for 12 years before retiring in 1996. He serves on several boards including the RTS Board of Trustees.
Dr. Richard Belcher, Jr., professor at RTS/Charlotte, has been designated the John D. and Frances M. Gwin Professor of Old Testament. John and Frances Gwin were long-time friends of the seminary.
Dr. Chuck Hill, professor at RTS/Orlando, has been designated the John R. Richardson Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity. John Richardson was a pastor and leader in the Southern Presbyterian Church (PCUS) and served for a long time as senior pastor at the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Ga.
We congratulate these professors in the recognition of this high honor bestowed on them for their high achievement and work at RTS.