Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS) is an

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

theological Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of an ...

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

. It is known for popularizing the theological system of

dispensationalism Dispensationalism is a Christian theology, theological framework for Biblical hermeneutics, interpreting the Bible which maintains that history is divided into multiple ages called "dispensations" in which God the Father, God interacts with h ...

. DTS has campuses in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, and

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, as well as extension sites in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Austin,

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, Northwest

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

, Europe, and

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

, and a multilingual

online education Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...

program. DTS is the largest non-denominational seminary accredited by the Association of Theological Schools.

History

DTS was founded as Evangelical Theological College in 1924 by Rollin T. Chafer and his brother, Lewis Sperry Chafer, who taught the first class of thirteen students, and William Henry Griffith Thomas, who was to have been the school's first theology professor but died before the first classes began. Their vision was a school where expository

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

preaching was taught simply, and under Chafers' leadership, DTS pioneered one of the first four-year degrees in theology, the

Master of Theology Master of Theology (, abbreviated ThM, MTh or MTheol, or ''Sacrae Theologiae Magister''; abbreviated STM) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a ...

(Th.M.). The present location of the school was purchased in 1926, and the

Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology (, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equivalent to the Doctor o ...

(Th.D.) program was started in 1927.DTS
Historical Milestones. Chafer remained president until his death in 1952. The seminary had a considerable influence in the

fundamentalist Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that are characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishin ...

movement by training students who established various

Bible College A Bible college, sometimes referred to as a Bible institute or theological institute or theological seminary, is an evangelical Christian or Restoration Movement Christianity, Christian institution of higher education which prepares students for C ...

s and independent fundamentalist churches in the southern United States. DTS has continually published a quarterly entitled ''

Bibliotheca Sacra ''Bibliotheca Sacra'' (colloquially referred to as "BibSac") is a theological journal published by Dallas Theological Seminary, first published in 1844 and the oldest theological journal in the United States. It was founded at Union Theological ...

'' initially edited by Rollin T. Chafer since 1934. In 1983, a complete collection of articles was published as a book commemorating fifty years of the journal. John F. Walvoord took over as president in 1952 after Chafer's death in 1952. In 1974, DTS added a two-year

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA) program in biblical studies, and in 1982, a two-year program in Christian Education was begun. In addition to these, a

Doctor of Ministry The Doctor of Ministry (DMin) is a doctorate in religious ministry. It often includes an original research component, and may be earned by a minister of religion while concurrently engaged in ministry. It is categorized as an advanced doctoral de ...

(D.Min.) program was opened in 1980. Walvoord retired as DTS president in 1986.DTS
A Brief History. From 1986 to 1994, Donald K. Campbell served as president of DTS. During his tenure, DTS opened a three-year MA program in Biblical Counseling and a two-year MA program in

Biblical exegesis Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible, with ''Bible'' referring to the books of the canonical Hebrew Bible in mainstream Jewish usage and the Christian Bible including the can ...

and

linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

. Chuck Swindoll served as president of the seminary from 1994 to 2001. Mark Bailey followed, serving as president from 2001 to 2020. Under Bailey's tenure, the seminary added a two-year MA program in media and communication, a two-year MA in Christian leadership, a Spanish D.Min. program, and a multi-lingual online education program. He was succeeded by Mark Yarbrough in 2020. As of Spring 2014, DTS had over 15,000 alumni serving in various ministerial capacities in 97 countries worldwide.

Accreditation

DTS was first

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

in 1944 by the Board of Regents, State Education Department of the University of the State of New York of Albany. After that institution stopped accrediting institutions outside of New York, DTS was accredited in 1969 by the

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is a regional educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. As of 2022, the organization oversees ap ...

and in 1994 by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada.DTS
Accreditation The school is also a member of the

Association of Christian Schools International The Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), founded in 1978, is an international organization of evangelical Christian schools. Its headquarters are in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It offers tiers of oversight, from school accredit ...

(ACSI), the Evangelical Training Association (ETA), the Jerusalem University College, and the Institute of Theological Studies (ITS).

Theology

DTS is known as a center of modern dispensational teaching due to Dr. Chafer's development of a

systematic theology Systematic theology, or systematics, is a discipline of Christian theology that formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith. It addresses issues such as what the Bible teaches about certain topics ...

which approaches the Bible with a " premillennial, dispensational interpretation of the Scriptures." ''Systematic Theology'', his eight-volume work describing this approach, was first published in 1948 and is still a required textbook for some courses at DTS. Notable theological beliefs of the school include: premillennialism, dispensationalism, and

Biblical inerrancy Biblical inerrancy is the belief that the Bible, in its original form, is entirely free from error. The belief in biblical inerrancy is of particular significance within parts of evangelicalism Evangelicalism (), also called evangelic ...

. The school considers itself

non-denominational A non-denominational person or organization is one that does not follow (or is not restricted to) any particular or specific religious denomination. The term has been used in the context of various faiths, including Jainism, Baháʼí Faith, Zoro ...

within

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

, and offers classes in all 66 books of the

Protestant Bible A Protestant Bible is a Christian Bible whose translation or revision was produced by Protestantism, Protestant Christians. Typically translated into a vernacular language, such Bibles comprise 39 books of the Old Testament (according to the Dev ...

Notable people

In a 2009 study conducted by LifeWay Research, Protestant pastors named preachers who had most influenced them. Three DTS alumni were among the top ten: Chuck Swindoll ('63), founder of radio broadcast Insight for Living; David Jeremiah ('67), founder of Turning Point Radio and Television Ministries; and Andy Stanley ('85), founder of North Point Ministries. Other notable people associated with the seminary include:

Alumni

* Gregory Beale, former president of the

Evangelical Theological Society The Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) is a professional society of Biblical scholars, educators, pastors, and students "devoted to the inerrancy and inspiration of the Scriptures and the gospel of Jesus Christ" and "dedicated to the oral ex ...

and professor at Westminster Theological Seminary * Darrell L. Bock, New Testament Scholar * Steve Breedlove, bishop of the

Anglican Church in North America The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba. ...

Ted Budd Theodore Paul Budd (born October 21, 1971) is an American businessman and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator for North Carolina since 2023. A member of the Republica ...

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

from

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

* Charlie Camlin, bishop of the

Reformed Episcopal Church The Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) is an Anglican Church. It was founded in 1873 in New York City by George David Cummins, a former bishop of the Episcopal Church (United States), Protestant Episcopal Church. The REC is a founding member of the ...

* Michael J. Easley, former president of

Moody Bible Institute Moody Bible Institute (MBI) is a private evangelical Christian Bible college in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded by evangelist and businessman Dwight Lyman Moody in 1886. Historically, MBI has maintained positions that have identified it as ...

* Tony Evans, pastor and widely syndicated radio broadcaster * Buist M. Fanning, Biblical Scholar * F. David Farnell, professor of New Testament at The Master's Seminary * Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Messianic Jewish scholar and founder of Ariel Ministries * John D. Hannah, Church history Scholar * Harold Hoehner, New Testament scholar * Chip Ingram, pastor and orator, founder of Living on the Edge *

Robert Jeffress Robert James Jeffress Jr. (; born November 29, 1955) is an American Southern Baptist pastor, author, radio host, and televangelist. He is the senior pastor of the 14,000-member First Baptist Church (Dallas), First Baptist Church, a megachurch i ...

, pastor of First Baptist Church in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

* David Jeremiah, author, pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church * Howard Clark Kee, American Bible scholar * Mark Keough, Republican member of the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

* Lawrence Khong, senior pastor of Faith Community Baptist Church * David Klingler, former NFL player and current professor of Bible Exposition * Peter Lillback, president and professor of historical theology and church history at

Westminster Theological Seminary Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian theology, theological seminary in the Reformed theology, Reformed theological tradition in Glenside, Pennsylvania. It was founded by members of the faculty of Prince ...

* Samuel L. Perry, Professor of Sociology at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

* Hal Lindsey, author of '' The Late, Great Planet Earth'' * Duane Litfin, former president of Wheaton College * J. Vernon McGee, founder of "Thru the Bible Radio Network" program * Paul Mills, current head men's basketball coach at

Oral Roberts University Oral Roberts University (ORU) is a Private university, private Evangelicalism, evangelical university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Founded in 1963, the university is named after its founder, Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian preacher Oral ...

* Mark Nordstrom, bishop of the

* Paul Nyquist, former president of

* Scott O'Grady, pilot whose story formed the basis for the film '' Behind Enemy Lines'' * J. Dwight Pentecost, Bible Expositior * Ernest Pickering, former president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary of Minneapolis * Jim Rayburn, founder of Young Life * Haddon Robinson, former president at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary * Brian Rosner, Principal of Ridley College Melbourne *

Charles Caldwell Ryrie Charles Caldwell Ryrie (March 2, 1925 – February 16, 2016) was an American Bible scholar and Christian theologian. He served as professor of systematic theology and dean of doctoral studies at Dallas Theological Seminary and as president and p ...

, Systematic Theologian * Priscilla Shirer, author, motivational speaker, and actress * Andy Stanley, author, and pastor of North Point Community Church * Ray Stedman, evangelical Christian pastor, and author. * Joseph Stowell, former president of

, current president of Cornerstone University * Chuck Swindoll, author, pastor of Stonebriar Community Church * Kenneth N. Taylor, creator of The Living Bible and the founder of Tyndale House * Robert Thieme, author, pastor of Berachah Church, Houston, TX * John Townsend, co-author of ''Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life'' * Merrill Unger, Old Testament scholar and archeologist * Daniel B. Wallace, New Testament textual critic * Bruce Waltke, Old Testament Scholar and a former professor at Westminster Theological Seminary * John Walvoord, Systematic Theologian * Steven Waterhouse, pastor and

teacher * Bruce Wilkinson, founder of Walk Thru the Bible

Current and former faculty

* Craig A. Blaising, Professor of Systematic Theology, proponent of progressive dispensationalism * Darrell L. Bock, Senior Research Professor of New Testament * Tony Evans, Adjunct Professor * Buist M. Fanning, Professor of New Testament studies * John D. Hannah, Scholar of Reformation Theology * Everett F. Harrison, Professor of New Testament (deceased) * Howard Hendricks, Professor of Christian Education (deceased) * Zane C. Hodges Scholar of Free Grace Theology (deceased) * Harold Hoehner, Distinguished Professor of New Testament Studies, (deceased) * Harry A. Ironside, visiting lecturer from 1925-'43 (deceased) * David Jeremiah, Adjunct Professor * David Klingler, Associate Professor of Bible Exposition * John MacArthur, Adjunct Professor * J. Vernon McGee, Professor of Bible Exposition * Eugene Merrill, Distinguished Professor of Old Testament Studies (Emeritus) * J. Dwight Pentecost, Distinguished Professor of Bible Exposition (deceased) * Haddon Robinson, Professor of Homiletics *

Professor of Systematic Theology (deceased) * Charles Swindoll, Professor * Merrill Unger, Professor of Old Testament Studies (deceased) * Daniel B. Wallace, Professor of New Testament Studies (prolific textual critic and Greek grammarian) * Bruce Waltke, Professor of Old Testament Studies * John Walvoord President, Professor of Systematic Theology (deceased) * Roy B. Zuck, Professor of Bible Exposition (deceased)

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Evangelicalism in Texas Evangelical universities and colleges in the United States Evangelical seminaries and theological colleges in the United States Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Seminaries and theological colleges in Texas Universities and colleges in Dallas Universities and colleges established in 1924 1924 establishments in Texas Council for Christian Colleges and Universities