In this issue
Other Notes
Register for Winter Classes: Winter registration has begun. Click here to see the Winter Course Schedule.
Donate Online: You can donate to RPTS securely online! Click here.
Planned Giving Calculator: Explore how a planned gift to RPTS could work for you with our online planned giving calculator.
Bicentennial: Learn more about our 200th Anniversary in 2010, including a bicentennial video, here!
Professor Videos: Watch professors sharing their vision for their respective departments here.
Scripture Verse: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
-- Proverbs 9:10 (NKJV)
Quote: True philosophy was designed to help humanity walk with God in accordance with his creation design. Since that is a good working defintion of true philosophy, any philosophical system that does not have this aim would necessarily be false philosophy. While there are gradations of true philosophy and false philosophy, the Bible denies that any non-Christian philosophy is good ... The early chapters of Genesis delineate a path of proper behavior. The rest of the Pentateuch is a handbook of godly laws that also inform right conduct. Therefore, ethics as a formal discipline cannot be separated from theology.
-- Richard C. Gamble, The Whole Counsel of God, Vol. 1: God's Might Acts in the Old Testament
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Conference Videos and Audio Sermon of Rev. Edward Donnelly's October Visit to RPTS Now Available Online
The Reformation Society of Pittsburgh hosted its Fall Conference at RPTS on October 17. The popular Rev. Edward Donnelly of Northern Ireland (RPTS '68) spoke about The Mystery of the Kingdom.
Rev. Donnelly's three messages, "The Kingdom in the Old Testament", "The Revelation of the Mystery", and "The Implications of the Mystery", were video taped and are made available for free viewing online here.
Professionally recorded audio files of the conference lectures will be sold by The Alliance of Confession Evangelicals.
Rev. Donnelly also gave a chapel message to students and faculty at RPTS the following Tuesday entitled "An Understanding Heart", which can be listened to here.
Dr. Scipione Speaks at First Baptist Church of Clarion, PA, November 7-8 for “Discipleship: Are You Competent to Counsel” Fall Conference
First Baptist Church of Clarion, PA, will host RPTS Biblical Counseling Institute Director Dr. George Scipione as a guest speaker for its fall conference entitled “Discipleship: Are You Competent to Counsel?” on Saturday and Sunday, November 7 and 8. The church is located at the corner of Main & Seventh in Clarion.
Other than a brunch for pastors and lay leaders to be held at the Clarion Holiday Inn on Saturday morning prior to the rest of the event, the conference is free and open to the public. For more information on the details of the conference, click here.
Also contact the church at 814-226-8233 or visit www.clarionfbc.com. RSVPs are encouraged, but walk-ins are welcome for all events held at the church.
"New Perspective on the New Perspective on Paul" Webinar Now Available for Online Viewing
RPTS hosted a recent webinar entitled “A New Perspective on the New Perspective on Paul” led by Dr. Jack Kinneer, adjunct professor of New Testament Studies, on Tuesday, October 20.
To view the recorded webinar for free online, please click here. The video is about an hour in duration and includes a question and answer session at the end.
Background of this Webinar:
N. T. Wright's book, What Saint Paul Really Said, and other writings of his have challenged the traditional understanding of Paul's doctrine of justification in the Bible.
“The standard critiques have not focused on the exegetical fallacies from which N. T. Wright’s position arises,” says Kinneer. “He has this nice system, but it’s simply not what Paul says.”
Dr. Kinneer’s webinar critique endeavored to show that N.T. Wright has misconstrued the expressions and thought of Paul by arbitrarily assigning meanings to Paul's language which cannot stand the test of literary analysis, most importantly, Wright’s insistence that “righteousness of God” does not refer to that righteousness that is reckoned to believers.
Thanks to our sponsor, RP Missions!
Next RPTS Webinar: “The Damage of the Parachurch Model for Short-term Missions, and What is the Solution” with Steven Miller, Adjunct Professor of Missions
On Tuesday, December 8, at 3 p.m. EST, RPTS will host its next webinar for alums and friends with Adjunct Professor of Missions, Rev. Steven Miller.
The webinar, which is sponsored by RP Missions
, is entitled “The Damage of the Parachurch Model for Short-term Missions, and What is the Solution", and will include a critique of the Short-Term Missions "industry" after he attended a major conference on the topic this summer in Chicago, and will address industry buzzwords and phrases such as "Contextualization of the Gospel", "Theology is Local", "Missiology", and the new label for missionaries now being "practitioners". Professor Miller also will share surprising statistics, such as the fact that four to six billion dollars are spent annually on the Short-term Missions “industry", what doesn't get done and what is redone with service projects, and common dangers with limited local connections. As well, he will raise concerns about the questionable purposes today in Short-Term Missions as noted by industry
leaders, that of the experience of “being there”, deeds not doctrine, and a committment not to transform culture but to preserve it for study.
>>READ MORE>>
Seminary Hires 2006 Alum, Rev. Andrew Cooper, as New Church and Student Relations Specialist
RPTS hired Rev. Andrew Cooper (RPTS '2006) to fill the position of Church and Student Relations Specialist. He continues to serve as Adjunct Professor of Church History teaching the Black Church History course.
Cooper is responsible for recruiting minority and urban students by developing current relationships and creating new ones with local church pastors. In addition, he will mentor current students on and off campus through efforts such as needs-assessment and an on-campus Bible study. >>READ MORE>>
Library Volunteers Needed!
We have great need for volunteer help in the Library. If you or someone you know might be able and willing to help a day or so a week (at least a half day) with the RPTS Library, please let us know!
Types of work to be done as a volunteer in the Library include:
- Shelving
- Processing library materials
- Repairing library materials
- Shifting the collection
- Preparing and moving into the Library Storage facility in the Willson Center
- Supporting the regular Library staff
Training will be provided. To learn more, please call Librarian Tom Reid at 412-731-8690, Ext. 104, or email him at treid@rpts.edu.
Do Your Online Holiday Shopping through GoodShop and Support RPTS
A reminder that as you begin your holiday shopping, you can maximize many of your online purchases by supporting RPTS through GoodShop by GoodSearch. Most major retailers are participants, and you pay no fee to choose to purchase from them through the Seminary's GoodShop "portal".
As well, we encourage business friends of RPTS to buy office supplies via GoodShop to benefit RPTS. All of the top stores including Staples, OfficeDepot, and OfficeMax are on-board as partners.
Also, a reminder that every time you search the Internet using GoodSearch RPTS gets paid. Collectively with all our friends, this can really add up!
The Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary ID number to enter before you GoodShop (or GoodSearch the Internet) is 902181.
Here is a link to news clips about GoodShop and GoodSearch to learn more about how the program benefits nonprofit organizations: GoodSearch on TV.
Online Donation Page Makes Convenient Year-End Giving
As we near the last two months of 2009 and you consider your year-end giving plans, we encourage you to remember the ministry of RPTS.
For your convenience, RPTS has an online donation page that is safe, private, and expedient. Click here to make an online donation.
Thank you for partnering with us in training pastors and other servants of Christ's Church! Remember that your gifts count toward our comprehensive bicentennial campaign, From Strength to Strength -- based on Psalm 84, which culminates next year. To date, we still need to raise $2 Million to complete the campaign, which we trust the Lord will provide for through the generosity of our friends like you. Thank you!
Student Emergency Medical Fund Established
Recently, a benefactor of the Seminary established a Student Emergency Medical Fund. If you would like to contribute to the fund, please contact the Development Office.
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