How is RTS standing firm, but not standing still, on and through its campuses? As the various RTS campuses have grown and developed, each one has found unique ways to live out the seminary’s time-honored values while reaching students and their broader communities in new and fresh ways. Here are a few timely examples.
Jackson:
The relocation of the Jackson campus in 2023 has created a number of new opportunities for community outreach at the seminary. Members of the community often attend weekly chapel services, local pastors and teachers can be found preparing sermons or Sunday school lessons in the library, and the campus bookstore—one of the only publicly available Reformed Christian bookstores in the region—has marked a significant increase in traffic.
Several church and professional groups have also been able to use spaces in the new campus for events and conferences. The Jackson office of accounting firm FORVIS, LLP used the campus for a training seminar in early 2023. More recently, the PCA Presbytery of the Mississippi Valley Women’s Ministry held its regional conference at the campus.
“The new campus really is a return to the old days of RTS and our relationships and partnerships with the presbytery and our churches,” said the Rev. Perry McCall, who leads church relations for RTS Jackson.
Orlando:
In February 2023, the Institute for Faith, Work and Culture (IFWC), part of the Paideia Center at RTS Orlando, hosted a colloquium for academics and faith and work practitioners to discuss five papers written on key doctrines. Twelve practitioners participated, including leaders from organizations such as Redeemer City to City, the Collaborative, and the Faith CO/OP.
“The purpose of the discussion was to bridge theological insight with practical application in the realm of faith and work,” said IFWC Director Dr. Damein Schitter.
The colloquium, the first of what is expected to be a series, aims to broaden the work of the institute to a broader constituency.
Charlotte:
Founded in 2016, the Center for Church Planting at RTS Charlotte seeks to be an international resource for the planting of healthy Reformed churches by training future pastors for the unique challenges, complexities, and opportunities faced by church planters. The center hosts regular conferences and lectures as well as specialized training and assessment experiences and provides students with hands-on ministry and internship opportunities.
In January 2024, the Presbyterian Church in America’s Mission to North America (MNA) held its 2024 Church Planting Summit at RTS Charlotte. The summit provided a platform for leaders to workshop their plans to create more sustainable leadership pipelines—intentional systems that identify, disciple, and send out leaders in churches to maximize their giftedness.
Washington:
In 2023, RTS Washington received a grant from the Abraham Kuyper Christian Leadership Fund for a new initiative on Neo-Calvinist scholarship. A renewed interest in figures such as Abraham Kuyper and Herman Bavinck has led to deeper investigation of Neo-Calvinist theology in the academy and the global Reformed community. The grant allows the campus to host lectures by global Neo-Calvinism scholars, sponsor book events for new translations of Neo-Calvinist publications, and offer elective courses for advanced readings in the tradition.
Due to popular demand, RTS Washington will offer two theological Dutch courses to students across all RTS campuses as a sync course for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Atlanta:
The Edmiston Center was established at RTS Atlanta in order to allow the campus to better train men and women for gospel ministry, orienting them to global church issues such as persecution and endurance. Each semester, RTS Atlanta offers classes connected with the center and several lectures—the Francis Grimké Lecture Series—that deal with issues in practical theology, especially focusing on believers who are living and persevering on the margins. Last January, the Edmiston Center visited a restricted country, teaching workshops on worldview and discipleship to church planters and seminarians.
Outside of the Edmiston Center, the campus is offering several unique courses that will address areas of need in the church such as pastoral leadership, church planting, and contemporary Reformed theology.
Houston:
In the fall of 2024, an agreement will go into effect between RTS Houston and Christ Community Church (C3), an Acts29 church in Houston. RTS and C3 entered into an arrangement in January that will provide interns in C3’s church planting initiative with theological education through financial aid at RTS Houston.
“RTS Houston will provide a significant scholarship to any intern in the C3 church planting initiative enrolled at our campus,” said Campus Administrator Markus Berger. “RTS and C3 are delighted agreement as we patiently wait to see what God does in Houston with this partnership.”
Dallas:
The Dallas campus will host Dr. Justin Holcomb, Adjunct Professor of Theology at RTS Orlando, in the fall of 2024 for an evening lecture on the topic of abuse in the church. Much of Dr. Holcomb’s speaking, writing, and ministry has focused on issues related to abuse in Christian environments. He has written or edited more than twenty books on abuse, theology, and biblical studies.
Dr. Holcomb says he hopes the lecture will serve as an example of pastorally applying the gospel to difficult situations: “RTS is committed to a clear articulation of the gospel as the pivotal declaration of God’s saving work accomplished solely through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It will be a joy to explore how important this commitment to the gospel is with regard to some effects for survivors of abuse such as shame, despair, distorted identity, fear, and trauma.”
New York City:
RTS New York City hosted a free conference, “Living the Christian Life in New York City,” at Exilic Church in January 2024. Over 300 people attended the conference to be instructed on themes from 1 and 2 Peter and to receive encouragement for joyful and intentional discipleship in a city context.
A variety of scholars, pastors, and professionals served as speakers and panelists for the conference, including Dr. Christopher Watkin, Dr. Mike Kruger, Dr. Jay Harvey, Dr. Michael Keller, the Rev. Arthur Yuen, Paul Hurst, and many more.
Global:
RTS Global’s RTS Mobile app serves over 220,000 users worldwide and underwent a complete overhaul and rerelease in 2022. The app provides free biblical and theological course content, sermons, special lectures, and more. It also includes courses from past RTS faculty members.
Global classes now accommodate a greater variety of learning styles by offering course content in a variety of mediums through Canvas: high-definition video, audio-only, and screencast technology—of particular benefit to students in biblical language classes.