Issue #95 | September 7, 2010 |
RTS SUCCESSION PLAN TAPS PRESIDENT MILTON AS CHANCELLOR ELECT
The succession of top leadership is a common challenge among churches, ministries and even companies and corporations. It is best for organizations to prepare for such changes by developing a succession plan that leads to a smooth transition. Reformed Theological Seminary, in an effort to glorify God and to be an example of good stewardship and effective preparation, has therefore planned and is now implementing a succession plan for Chancellor and CEO, Dr. Robert C. (Ric) Cannada, Jr.
The executive committee of the RTS Board of Trustees, at their September 2nd meeting, unanimously elected Dr. Michael A. Milton as chancellor elect and successor to Dr. Cannada. Both Dr. Milton and Dr. Cannada will share leadership responsibilities for the next 21 months, until June 1, 2012, at which time Dr. Milton will assume full responsibilities as chancellor and CEO of RTS. At that time, Dr. Cannada will remain with RTS as chancellor emeritus assisting the seminary with the anticipated 50th anniversary financial campaign to help provide for the future operational and capital needs of all the RTS campuses. Read more here.
SMART CLASSROOM
Due to a generous donation, RTS has almost completed the installation of two "smart" classrooms. These classrooms include a full complement of multimedia components and the capability for live interactivity between campuses. The RTS/Orlando classroom is now complete (pictured right where a training was held) and the RTS/Charlotte classroom installation will begin shortly. An additonal gift that will be given next year will allow for a smart classroom to be installed on the RTS/Jackson and RTS/Atlanta campuses.
MANY FACULTY SERMONS ON THE GOSPEL COALITION SITE
Search for faculty by name on this insightful site of resources. The Gospel Coalition was founded in 2005 and is a “fellowship of evangelical churches deeply committed to renewing our faith in the gospel of Christ and to reforming our ministry practices to conform fully to the Scriptures.” Find blogs, publications, interviews, book reviews and more here. RTS Faculty resources provided by Dr. Mike Milton, Professor Mike Glodo, Dr. Derek Thomas, Professor John Muether, Dr. Robert Cara, Dr. John Frame, Dr. Mark Futato, Dr. Reggie Kidd, Dr. Simon Kistemaker, Dr. Doug Kelly, as well as numerous notables and RTS alumni.
PICTURES FROM RTS/ORLANDO CONVOCATION
RTS/Orlando held their orientation on Aug. 23 and convocation on Aug. 25.
PICTURES FROM RTS/JACKSON ORIENTATION
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CHANCELLOR IS KEY SPEAKER AT MARRIAGE CONFERENCE IN MICHIGAN
RTS Chancellor & CEO, Dr. Ric Cannada, and Ryan McVicar (M.Div. ’07), associate pastor at Knox Presbyterian Church in Harrison Township, Mich, will be leading a marriage conference October 22-23 at the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit. Dr. Cannada is the key-note speaker. Click here for more information
NEW RTS/CHARLOTTE ADJUNCT PROFESSOR
Dr. Rod Mays was approved as adjunct professor of practical theology by the RTS Executive Committee on Sept. 2. Dr. Mays has served as the coordinator of Reformed University Ministries (RUM), the campus ministry of the Presbyterian Church in America for 11 years. Prior to assuming his current position, Rod served for nine years as senior pastor of the Woodruff Road Presbyterian Church in Greenville, SC. He has also pastored Presbyterian churches in St. Albans, WV, and Jackson, Miss. He holds a Doctor of Ministry degree and a master’s degree in education and counseling.As the co-author of Things That Cannot Be Shaken, (Crossway Books, Spring 2008) he also currently teaches Pastoral Theology and Counseling at RTS/Charlotte and will be an adjunct there. Dr. Mays has taught Pastoral Ministry, Pastoral Counseling, and a specialized class for the Institute for Reformed Campus Ministry called Pastoral Ministry: Local Church and College Campus. Going forward he will regularly teach Pastoral Counseling and Pastoral Ministry: Local Church and College Campus.
His wife Debra serves on the staff of Mitchell Rd. Presbyterian Church in Greenville, SC as a counselor to women and families. Dr. Mays and his wife have a daughter, Morgan, who is married.
Dr. Milton remarked, "Dr. Rod Mays has been an outstanding teacher for RTS/Charlotte in the recent years and has made an enormous impact in our department, in particular through biblical and pastoral counseling courses. His contribution to the Institute for Reformed Campus Ministry at RTS/Charlotte, along with his godly mentorship to our students and relationships with our faculty, have all pointed to this event, which we have prayed for: that Rod would be a part of RTS in an official faculty relationship. We praise God for his labors in the PCA and at RTS and look forward to many years of laboring together in the Gospel of Jesus Christ."
Dr. Mays was interviewed in a ByFaith article in June. Click here to read the article.
RTS/HOUSTON
Classes began Sept. 3. Contact admissions.houston@rts.edu for more information about the spring semester, or call 800-752-4382.
RTS/WASHINGTON D.C.
Oct. 15-16 - A conference “The Church and Islam”, hosted by the CS Lewis Institute and RTS Washington DC, will be held at McLean Presbyterian Church in McLean, Va., with speaker Dr. Patrick Sookhdeo. For more information, click here.
RTS/ORLANDO
Sept. 14 – Women in Ministry (WIM) Connections Luncheon at 12:00p.m.
Sept. 16 – WIM Coffee House (Q&A with Ted Sinn (M.Div. 02) and his wife Tricia) on “Doing Seminary Well” from 7-9p.m.
Oct. 7 - A Conversation with Arlene Richardson: "Lessons Learned in Ministry" from 7-9p.m.
WIM small groups meet the 3rd Thursday of each month.
Nov. 3-4 - James Davison Hunter will discuss his book, To Change the World; The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World, at RTS/Orlando. His book is the RTS/Orlando “One School One Book” title that the entire Orlando campus will read for the 2010-2011 academic year.
RTS/CHARLOTTE
Women in Ministry (WIM) event – Mondays with the Olivers (Sept 13th & 27th) & Fortsons (Oct. 11th & 25th) at 7:00 p.m. in the dining room on campus. The topic of conversation with Dr. and Mrs. John Oliver will be on “Personal Sanctification and Transformation.” Dr. and Mrs. Don Fortson will talk about “Church History and a Christian Worldview in Today’s Culture.”
Psalm Breakfasts - Fridays 7:30 a.m. in the dining room on campus.
Newlywed Women’s Breakfast & Support Group - Saturday mornings with Tom and Tari Williamson.
Sept. 28 - The Fall Lectures at RTS/Charlotte will be led by one of America's most famous church historians, Dr. George Marsden, retired professor of American Christianity at the University of Notre Dame. Dr. Marsden will give a series of lectures on Jonathan Edwards at RTS/Charlotte.
Oct 1-3 (DATE CHANGE) Women of RTS will hold a retreat at Bonclarken, on “Resting and Waiting on God” with speaker Elizabeth Garn (MATS ’09).
RTS/JACKSON
Sept. 7-9 - A missions conference will be held on campus. The main speaker will be Rev. Doug Nichols (http://www.dougnichols.org/), founder of Action International, highly recommended by Dr. John Piper.
Sept. 16-17 - Sharon Hersh will be conducting a series on Addictions for the Marriage and Family Therapy and Counseling (MFTC) annual conference. Lectures will be held in the RTS/Jackson Biblical Studies Building.
Nov. 9-11 - The John Reed Miller Lecture Series will be held on campus. The speaker is Dr. Steve Lawson (D.Min. ’90), senior pastor of Christ Fellowship Baptist Church in Mobile, Ala.
ALUMNI SNIPPETS
(Joseph) Hong (Ph.D. ’10) – will relocate to Asia to work with Wycliffe International for the next five years and continue to work to engage Asian Diaspora churches into worldwide Bible translation movements. He will spend one year in South Korea from this July and the following four years in southeast Asia. Please pray for his relocation process and settlement in new locations.
Robert Rothwell (M.Div. ‘04), associate editor of Tabletalk magazine, and his wife Sarah celebrated the birth of their first child, Leah Margaret, on June 28, 2010. Congratulations!
Patrick Stefan (current RTS/Washington DC M.Div. student) recently published an article in a publication from the Edinburgh 2010 Missions conference (Edinburgh 2010: Youth Perspectives). Click here (scroll down to Youth Perspectives and download the article.
Tim R. Watson (M.Div. '01) was elected to served on the Board of Trustees for Erskine College and Seminary.
Mark Auffarth (M.Div. '03) and his wife Anne, along with five of their six children, recently moved to Greenville, SC, where Mark is senior pastor of Shannon Forest Presbyterian Church. For the past six years he was senior pastor of Iglesia Presbiteriana Cristo Rey in Santiago, Chile. Their oldest son Robbie married Natalia Figueroa in Chile and is pursuing a PhD in math at the Catholic University in Santiago.
Scott G Davenport (M.Div. ‘08) is raising support to join the Peru Mission team. Once in Peru, they’ll attend language school for 4-6 months and then plant themselves in Trujillo (mission headquarters). He will work chiefly with the little seminary the mission has established, but will also do what is needed in the church planting/revitalization initiatives. He asks for prayer that the Lord would speed them to Peru and speed their transition to the people, language and culture! Read more here or on his blog here.
David Donovan (M.Div. ‘08) completed a year-long internship at Grace OPC in Sewickley, Pa., and was recently ordained by the Tennessee Valley Presbytery of the PCA and installed as senior pastor of Reformed Presbyterian Church of Lookout Mountain. Read more about David here.
Gordon Duncan (MAR ‘05) and his wife Amy founded Sovereign King Church in Garner, NC, in 2006. The church continues to grow as they have now moved into their fifth location since their beginning. The new facility seats 200 with the former only seating 80. Gordon was featured in an article recently in the Garner Citizen Newspaper. Click here to read the entire article.
Andres Garza (M.Div. ’06) and his wife Ruth are currently serving with Mission to the World (MTW) in Mexico. This summer they served with six short-term teams on VBS, construction and medical brigades and had around 690 children in VBS and around 20% of these families started attending their churches. Also, in response to Hurricane Alex passing through Monterrey, Andres’ team started a disaster response plan called Genesis--raising $35,000 among MTW and churches in Mexico. With two medical brigades they helped around 800 people and families. It was a “great privilege” for Andres, “to help them have hope.” They shared the gospel with these people and “trust the Lord who is the one working on their hearts.” Monterrey has also been the target of some gang-related drug cartels at the border of Texas. They ask for prayers for safety, that the Lord gives them boldness to keep praying the gospel of Jesus Christ in the middle of the violence they are witnessing in their cities. Their daughters Priscila and Lissete are attending college.