Northminster RP Church
Staff & Leaders

Frank Smith

Born in Atlanta, Dr. Frank J. Smith grew up in the South. He has ministered in suburban New York, the coal-mining region of Virginia, and rural Wisconsin. Pastor Smith graduated from Covenant College, Lookout Mountain, Georgia. He earned his M.Div. and Th.M. from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. His Ph.D. is from the Graduate Center at City University of New York. In 2005, he was awarded an honorary doctorate (D.D.) from the Methodist Episcopal Church in the USA in conjunction with the National Clergy Council, for his work in ecclesiastical journalism and interchurch relations. Among his books are The History of the Presbyterian Church in America: The Silver Anniversary Edition; Worship in the Presence of God (co-editor and contributor); and Tales from the City: Real Stories of Urban Christian Ministry (editor), which detailed the ministry of an interdenominational, multi-ethnic group in Atlanta. His recent articles have focused on the history of science and the doctrine of worship. Dr. Smith is the Founding Editor of Presbyterian International News Service (PINS). He served two terms as President of the Coeburn (Va.) Ministerial Association; is on the Board of Advisors for the Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation; and is a Contributing Editor for The Confessional Presbyterian, a scholarly journal. He is married to the former Penelope A. Wild, a British lady with a distinguished career in the Royal Air Force. Their son, daughter-in-law, and four grandchildren live in Gwinnett County. He has coached basketball, has had bit parts in movies, and enjoys reading and playing chess. And as you might guess from the engineer's hat he often wears, he is a railroad fanatic.