Jonathan Watt was born in Sydney, Australia and immigrated to the U.S. when he was ten years old. He came to faith in Jesus Christ through the ministry of a high school teacher. He attended Syracuse University and there met his future wife, June Hamel. They were married in 1977 and have been blessed with four children: Nathan, Johanna, Benjamin and Zachary, and several grandchildren.
While at SU, Jonathan and June attended the Syracuse RPC and there grew in grace and faith through the ministry of Pastor Ed Robson. They then moved to Pittsburgh, where Jonathan attended the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary, graduating in 1982. He was licensed by the St. Lawrence Presbytery of the RPCNA to receive a pastoral call in 1981 and was ordained and installed as pastor of the Manchester PA RPC in 1982, serving there until 1986. He then pastored in our congregation in Cambridge, MA (1986-1992), followed by the College Hill (Beaver Falls) PA RPC (1992-2000). While pastoring he also obtained MA and PhD degrees in Linguistics from the University of Pittsburgh.
In 2000, he left College Hill congregation to take up a teaching position in the Department of Biblical Studies at Geneva College. He has served in that department since then and presently chairs it. In 2005, Geneva awarded him with its "Excellence in Scholarship Award." That same year, he was elected Moderator of the 2005 Synod. He has also served as Adjunct Professor of Biblical Studies at the R.P. Seminary in Pittsburgh.
Although not a formally installed pastor, Jonathan continued to preach and shepherd where there was need and opportunity, and he was ultimately called by the Tusca Area PA congregation and installed there as pastor in 2012. He continues to serve as pastor there along with his teaching and administrative responsibilities at Geneva College.
Jonathan also served as executive secretary of the RPCNA Board of Foreign Missions (now Board of Global Missions) from 1996 to 2017. Jonathan is the author of Code-Switching in Luke and Acts, editor of Pro Gloria Christi: A Festschrift in Honor of Edward A. Robson, and author of many published articles.