D. Blair Smith

President & Associate Professor of Systematic Theology @RTSCharlotte || Presbyterian Minister #pca

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

Today is publication day for my 'The Fatherhood of God: The Divine Father in Fourth-Century Pro-Nicene Trinitarian Theology' in T&T Clark's Studies in Systematic Theology series.
I'm grateful to @BloomsburyBooks.

https://t.co/LsQWGICkb2

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

Along with @LigonDuncan and Justin Wilson, I will be at the @ReformTheoSem Alumni and Friends gathering at #ARPsynod after the close of synod business on Tuesday (June 9) until 11pm. We will be at Dry Falls Brewing Company (425 Kanuga Road Hendersonville, NC). We would love to see you!
You can register below:
https://t.co/Nmr6d6YVaL

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

Some professional news. I'm very grateful to continue in my first calling @RTSCharlotte - which is to teach and be with students - alongside my other duties.

https://t.co/bLPBQtlYsK

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

This includes an article I wrote in 2020 on 'Catholicity in Presbyterian Perspective': https://t.co/UlYYArCaLC

[Journal of Biblical and Theological Studies @jbtsonline]

Did you know every article in the JBTS is freely available online? JBTS is committed to making high-level evangelical scholarship accessible to scholars and students alike. No paywall. No subscription required.

Explore our full archive at https://t.co/72SRqJO3hE

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

A beautiful video of a special day in the life of our seminary. Congratulations to all 2026 graduates!

[RTS Charlotte @RTSCharlotte]

Charlotte Graduation 2026.

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

Please follow the link 👇 to register for the @RTSCharlotte gathering at #PCAGA. Location is one mile from the convention center.
Alumni, students, and friends, we would love to see you!

[RTS Charlotte @RTSCharlotte]

Register at the link below to sign up for our annual RTS Charlotte Alumni and Friends event at PCA General Assembly! It will be Wednesday, June 24th from 8:30pm-11:30pm. More details included on the registration link. https://t.co/yjDZixYObp

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

@GJShearer You got a copy before I did!

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

I enjoyed this conversation with Dr. Brandon Crowe of @WestminsterTS on my book Reformed Confessionalism.

[Brandon Crowe @brandondcrowe]

In this Clarity & Brevity YouTube episode I discuss Reformed Confessionalism with @dblairsmith @prpbooks

https://t.co/luqBl5OE2I

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

Chancellor @LigonDuncan will post on this soon, but these numbers do not reflect the reality at @ReformTheoSem. We are seeing overall growth, especially among the MDiv degree (20% growth since 2007). At @RTSCharlotte, for example, this academic year will finish either second or third highest all time for total credit hours--only behind the post-COVID year when most graduate programs spiked.

[Ryan Burge 📊 @ryanburge]

What seminaries are growing? Which ones are declining?

I compared the 2024 data from ATS to the same data from 2007 below.

Midwestern Baptist is up 290%
United Theological is up 244%

Southwestern Baptist is down 46%
Fuller Theological is down 63%

[Ligon Duncan @LigonDuncan]

There is some discussion about seminary size and growth because of @ryanburge's recent post on this site, and his @Substack article (which has tons of helpful and accurate info). @ReformTheoSem is the only confessional reformed seminary in the top 20 largest seminaries. Ryan's stats are from the ATS SIR and based on FTE (full time equivalent) students.

But FTE is not the gold standard for institutional comparison. In fact, Bob Cara, my Provost and a recognized expert in accreditation says: “For grad schools, FTE based on one semester is virtually useless to compare across schools." Just for fun, I asked AI to to tell me all about FTE, and this was its conclusion: “While FTE is a helpful metric for internal planning and funding distribution, its inconsistencies across institutions make it unreliable for direct comparisons between schools. To get a clearer picture of enrollment, FTE should be used alongside other metrics, such as total credit hours (TCH), headcount, retention rates, and graduation rates.” That’s actually not a bad conclusion! Score one point for AI.

To illustrate the limitations of FTE as a measure, RTS was ranked 18th in the top 20 of FTE list that Ryan produced on his graph. But we have a higher annual enrollment, teach more credit hours, and twice the residential credit hours of the school ranked 10th in FTE!

TCH is the gold standard in determining the comparative size of seminaries and graduate schools. It is the measure preferred by the Evangelical Seminary Deans' Council (ESDC). I'll write more on this soon.

[RTS Charlotte @RTSCharlotte]

What Is God’s Omniscience?

[Tabletalk Magazine @Tabletalk]

The same love that eternally binds Father, Son, and Spirit is shared with us by grace. —@DBlairSmith https://t.co/IbijtKf4lF

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

@Danielfwells @jfhooker3 @RTSCharlotte @ReformTheoSem @CovenantCollege The large RTS lunch invitation went out a while ago. I think it's already full.

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

@Danielfwells @jfhooker3 @RTSCharlotte @ReformTheoSem @CovenantCollege We sent out the @RTSCharlotte invitation on April 28. Maybe check your spam? It says it comes from RTS Charlotte but the specific email is [email protected]. Let me know if you have trouble finding it. We want you all there!

[Reformed Seminary @ReformTheoSem]

This Week on Wisdom Wednesday Dr. Blair Smith, President of RTS Charlotte and Associate Professor of Systematic Theology, answers the question “Is Reformed Theological Seminary for a specific denomination?”

RTS is not a denominational seminary, but it is confessional. Rooted in the authority of Scripture and the Westminster Confession of Faith, its teaching is shaped by the Reformed tradition while serving students from a variety of denominational backgrounds.

Watch the full video at https://t.co/y1EPC0PBJM.
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Reformed Theological Seminary
Wisdom Wednesday
Confessional Theology
Reformed Tradition

[RTS Charlotte @RTSCharlotte]

This past Friday, we had our Spring Picnic. We are so thankful for our community-family that makes up RTS Charlotte.

[Harrison Perkins @PastorPerks]

Great days at @OrthodoxPC Timothy Conference, studying under the CVD at @RTSCharlotte and with the DVD of @wscal !

Thanks to @dblairsmith for accommodating us. Glad to meet @William_A_Ross !

[D. Blair Smith @dblairsmith]

Dr. Neil Stewart, Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, SC, gave a powerful sermon in @RTSCharlotte Chapel this week on Jesus as a Friend to Sinners.