Orlando, Fla. – March 25, 2013 – Reformed Theological Seminary is pleased to announce that John Muether, who established the library at RTS/Orlando and has served as chief librarian for the past 24 years, will be assuming new responsibilities for the institution as of June 1. He will become the Dean of Libraries, which includes greater oversight of the development and resource-sharing of the RTS libraries among the six campuses. And he will serve as the editor of the new online theological journal that RTS plans to launch with a tentative start date in Spring 2014.
In addition to those duties, Muether will continue to administer a special curriculum initiative that will provide more instruction on Islam in the seminary’s M.Div. program, and continue in his role as professor of church history at the Orlando campus. “Professor Muether’s talents are unusually broad,” noted RTS Chief Academic Officer Robert Cara, “and this new position dovetails well with those talents.”
President Don Sweeting states, “John has served RTS/Orlando so well over the years as our chief librarian. We are glad to that he can now bless all the RTS campuses as Dean of Libraries. But we are also glad that John will continue to be a part of our RTS Orlando community and faculty in the days ahead.”
Muether earned two master’s degrees: an M.A.R. from Westminster Theological Seminary and M.S.L.S. from Simmons College. His undergraduate degree is from Gordon College. He has authored or co-authored several books including Cornelius Van Til: Reformed Apologist and Churchman, Love on the Rocks: Stories of Rusticators and Romance on Mount Desert Island (co-authored with his wife Kathy), Seeking a Better Country: 300 Years of American Presbyterianism, and With Reverence and Awe: Returning to the Basics of Reformed Worship (both co-authored with D.G. Hart).
Before joining RTS, Muether served on the library staff at Harvard Divinity School, and directed the libraries at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Mich., and Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia.