Erskine Theological Seminary announces new faculty member Jonatan C. Simons

Erskine Theological Seminary is pleased to announce the appointment of the Rev. Dr. Jonatan C. Simons as Associate Professor of Systematic Theology.

Simons comes to Erskine after serving for six years as a missionary professor at Fundación Universitaria Seminario Bíblico de Colombia [Biblical Seminary of Colombia; a non-profit university] in Medellín, Colombia, South America. He previously served as Associate Pastor at Clover Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church (ARPC) in Clover, S.C., Dean of Students at the Clapham School in Wheaton, Ill., and as a fellow of Early Christianity at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando.

“The appointment of Rev. Dr. Jonatan Simons represents another significant step forward as Erskine Theological Seminary builds its faculty for the future,” says Erskine College President Dr. Steve Adamson. “Our seminary values not only historic Christian orthodoxy and a gracious Reformed theology but also the priority of the Church and academic excellence wedded to practical application.”

Simons has a B.A. in Cross Cultural Studies from Palm Beach Atlantic University, an M.Div. from Reformed Theological Seminary, an M.A. in the History of Christianity from Wheaton College in Illinois, and a Ph.D. in Theology from Australian Catholic University (ACU).

At ACU’s Research Institute of Religion and Critical Inquiry, Simons studied under patristics scholar Dr. Lewis Ayres and examined the doctrine of divine simplicity in the theology of the early church father Irenaeus of Lyons. He is the author of numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and the book Divine Simplicity in the Theology of Irenaeus (Brill, 2023). His current research focuses on the retrieval of early Christian theology for the church today, including reflections on Athanasius’s view of displacement in his Christology and Augustine’s theological preaching.

In its search for a new professor of systematic theology, Erskine was looking for someone “with a specific set of characteristics and God-given gifts: a keen mind for theology, a deep love for Jesus Christ, a pastor’s heart, experience as a seminary professor, substantial ordained pastoral ministry experience in a Presbyterian church, and a humble disposition,” says Dean of the Seminary Dr. Seth J. Nelson. “I am overjoyed that the Lord brought Dr. Jon Simons to us—a man in whom all these characteristics reside.”

As an ordained ARP minister in Catawba Presbytery, Simons looks forward to serving the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church and further strengthening the connection between the denomination and its seminary. He will teach full-time from Erskine Theological Seminary’s Columbia, S.C. campus hosted at First Presbyterian Church (ARPC).

“Based on his pastoral experience and his experience mentoring students, Jon will take over the directorship of our M.Div. program,” Nelson says. “I am excited to see what the Lord will do through Dr. Simons’s leadership of this important program that prepares future ordained ministers of the gospel.”

Dr. Adamson notes that Simons’s “extensive pastoral experience” will enable him to “immediately apply theology to the realities of ministry practice in all his classes. Our students are going to benefit greatly from Dr. Simons’s teaching as he models the heart of a shepherd.”

Simons is married to Teresa, and they have three teenage children: Norah, Caedmon, and Lina. They enjoy indoor board games and outdoor competitive family sports, especially soccer, volleyball, and basketball, and are thrilled by the opportunity to experience the beauty of the Carolinas once again. They also enjoy cooking meals together, especially when those meals can be shared with others, and they look forward to inviting Erskine students to join them.