THEOLOGY@Brisbane

From a Ministry for Youth to a Ministry of Youth – Aspects of Protestant Youth Ministry in Sydney 1930-1959 by Ruth Lukabyo. Why is Protestant youth ministry in Sydney vibrant, and in many places growing? A pioneering model of youth ministry evolved in the 1930s and was already flourishing in churches, schools, and university by the 1950s. Its early high point was the Billy Graham Crusade of 1959, which may legitimately be seen as an Australian youth revival. The new model broke with past practice by cultivating ministry leadership by young people, by promoting peer groups to nurture and share faith, and by fostering ministry collaboration between young men and women. The model, used by theological conservatives and liberals alike, and has proved both enduring and fruitful. This book will engage with the model of youth ministry and the religious experiences of young people in Sydney. By reading it you will not only learn from the significant achievements of young people in the past but be better equipped to creatively consider new methods of ministry for the twenty-first century. https://wipfandstock.com/from-a-ministry-for-youth-to-a-ministry-of-youth.html

The ACT is looking for a new Director of Teaching and Learning. The role covers teaching and learning policy for the whole ACT Consortium, as well as offering assistance to affiliated colleges in their own teaching and learning practices. The role requires academic qualifications in theology/theological education/education and relevant higher education teaching experience, publications/presentations in the field of theological educationa nd proven interpersonal skills. The position is based in the Sydney CBD,  Australia. Applicants should provide a current CV, a letter addressing the requirements of the position (as given in the job description) and two academic and one church-related referees. Please email applications to ceo@actheology.edu.au. Applications close on October 19th, 2020.You can find the full job description here and here. https://www.actheology.edu.au/position-vacant-director-of-teaching-and-learning/

Plenary speaker J. Aaron Simmons of Furman University presents his paper, “Of God and Trout Fishing: Phenomenology, Desire, and Faithfulness,” for “Art, Desire, and God: Phenomenological Perspectives,” a virtual conference hosted by the University of Notre Dame on October 2-3, 2020 …

Art and desire have been perennial objects of philosophical and theological questioning throughout the history of ideas in the West. Phenomenology in particular has proven itself uniquely equipped to explore these topics with its method of examining human experience. Thinkers such as Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Jean-Françoise Lyotard, Jacques Derrida, Richard Kearney, and David Tracy, as well as those conventionally associated with the so-called theological turn in French phenomenology, such as Michel Henry, Jean-Luc Marion, Jean-Louis Chrétien, and Emmanuel Falque, frequently treat one or another of these topics. However, the relation between art and desire together in the human experience of the divine or Absolute broadly construed goes overlooked in contemporary academic discussions. The question remains: what is the role of the desire of/for God in art and aesthetic experience? Registration is free. Click on home on top right hand corner for details. https://sites.google.com/view/artdesiregod

Australian Association for the Study of Religion (AASR) annual conference Meeting in Zoom webinars on 11-12 December 2020, the conference program will highlight the strength and diversity of the study of religion, in Australia and New Zealand especially, expanding networks of scholarship and support. Proposals of up to 300 words and additional questions may be sent to aasrconference2020@gmail.com until 31 October 2020, https://www.aasr.org.au/2020-conference

The recent Online IRCI Religion & Theology Seminar series by David Newheiser on ‘Hope in a Secular Age – argues that hope is the indispensable precondition of religious practice and secular politics. Drawing on Jacques Derrida and Dionysius the Areopagite, David Newheiser construes hope as a discipline of persistence that acknowledges its uncertainty. Against this background, he develops a negative political theology that resiHope in a Secular Age argues that hope is the indispensable precondition of religious practice and secular politics. Drawing on Jacques Derrida and Dionysius the Areopagite, David Newheiser construes hope as a discipline of persistence that acknowledges its uncertainty. Against this background, he develops a negative political theology that resists both quietism and theocracy in the name of a circumspect hope.s both quietism and theocracy in the name of a circumspect hope. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pR6hEb9Q0Nk&feature=youtu.be

Applications to the PhD and MPhil are now open for domestic and international Higher Degree Research candidates commencing in 2021 at ACU’s St. Patrick’s Campus in Fitzroy, Melbourne, ACU offers a range of prestigious scholarships to reward outstanding academic achievement. Scholarships are available to both domestic and international research candidates looking to undertake a research course. https://www.acu.edu.au/research/become-a-research-candidate/research-scholarships

James Dunn is a fine New Testament scholar who will be greatly missed. James is remembered for his desire and intention to encourage and educate all members of the Christian church to learn more of their faith. He did this with clarity and simplicity and he could impart the findings of his rigorous research. .https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/sep/09/james-dunn-obituary

The church in earlier centuries endured pandemics or plagues, both with more frequency as well as having a more theological worldview.Tom Wright’s book directs us to such a biblical theological worldview. Wright argues that more than the question, “Why?”, the pandemic ought to drive us to “What?” What should we do? In Acts and the epistles, he shows examples of practical Christian love, in caring for the poor and needy, God and the Pandemic: A Christian Reflection on the Coronavirus and Its Aftermath, by Tom Wright (SPCK Publishing, 2020)http://tma.melbourneanglican.org.au/reviews/god-and-the-pandemic-reviewed-080920

It is welcome and refreshing to read a book on preaching that addresses Australians. This multi-denominational book, with contributors who are Baptists, Presbyterians, from the Reformed Church as well as Anglicans, is published by Morling College, the Baptist College in Sydney. It is evangelical in approach but stimulating for any preacher. Preaching with an Accent: Biblical genres for Australian congregations, edited by Ian Hussey (Morling Press, 2019). http://tma.melbourneanglican.org.au/reviews/preaching-with-an-accent-reviewed-270420