eNews March 2010
Dean's Introduction
Greetings and best wishes for 2010, the Centenary year of the Melbourne College of Divinity celebrates its Centenary. I am delighted to report that Centenary celebrations have already begun in a splendid manner with a reception at Government House hosted by the Governor of Victoria, Professor David de Kretser and Mrs de Kretser. Approximately one hundred guests, comprising representatives from all sectors of the MCD as well as people related in some way to the College, attended the reception. The proceedings began with a prayer offered by Past President and at that time Principal of Churches of Christ Theological College, Merrill Kitchen. Governor de Kretser then gave a very complimentary address about the College, its history and its lengthy contribution to theological education, and speeches were also made by the President of the MCD, the Very Revd Dr Terry Curtin, the representative of the Premier, Mr Bob Stensholt MLA, himself a BD (Hons) graduate of the College, and the Dean. Following the speeches, during supper, guests were encouraged to take a tour of Government House, and two distinguished guides were on hand to explain the significance of various rooms-the Ball Room, the Dining Room etc., and their works of art and artefacts. I think it can be said that not only the guests, but the Governor and Mrs de Kretser enjoyed themselves very much, as they were among the last to leave the reception.
One definite highlight of the evening was the announcement by Mr Bob Stensholt of up to $100,000 funding made available by the Minister for Education, the Hon Bronwyn Pike MP, ‘in recognition of the College's service since 1910 as a self-accrediting higher education institution in Victoria' to assist the MCD in making an application for Specialist University status.
The photographer that was hired for the evening took photos of all those who attended the reception, and a significant number of these can be accessed on the MCD website www.mcd.edu.au. As you will see, the reception was a great success and an ideal way to launch the Centenary.
Three other events are planned for the Centenary (details of which are available on the MCD website):
- A Centenary Dinner on the evening of Sunday, July 4th. Several venues are being considered for this event, and a choice will be made in the immediate future. Dr Kathleen Williams, former President of Yarra Theological Union and inaugural Chair of the MCD Academic Board, will give the after dinner speech. In addition to excellent food and company, attendees at the dinner will receive a bumper Centenary copy of Pacifica, featuring a 20,000 word history of the MCD compiled by the Monash University historian Dr Pamela Oliver, as well as articles written by five leading MCD scholars.
- The MCD Centenary Conference is being held from July 5th -7th at Trinity College, the University of Melbourne, under the theme, The Future of Religion in Australian Society. Six Keynote Speakers have been engaged for the Conference: Associate Professor Andrew McGowan, Warden of Trinity College, the University of Melbourne; Professor Paul Fiddes, Professor of Systematic Theology, the University of Oxford; Professor Sandra Schneiders, Professor Emerita, Jesuit School of Theology, Santa Clara University, USA; Professor John McDowell, Professor of Theology, the University of Newcastle; Mr Tom Calma, former Commissioner with the Human Rights Commission, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, and Race Discrimination Commissioner; and Old Testament scholar Revd Dr Justin Taylor from the École Biblique in Jerusalem. A further 18 Topic Keynote speakers have also been engaged to address ten sub-themes of the Conference, and the Centenary Organizing Committee has received 68 Abstracts from scholars in Australia and New Zealand wishing to present papers relating to these sub-themes as well.
There will also be two musical events during the Conference: a recital of organ music and vocal items in Trinity Chapel at 7.30 pm, Tuesday, 6th July, organized by Dr Lindsay Hutchinson, former University of Melbourne organist and member of the MCD administration staff; and Evensong will be sung by the choir of Christ Church, South Yarra, in Trinity Chapel at 5pm on July 7th to mark the end of the MCD Centenary Conference.
The MCD Centenary Conference is being run in conjunction with the ANZATS Conference, which is being held from July 7th-9th at the same venue, under the theme: The Future of God: Eschatology and the global challenges of the future. Details of the MCD Centenary Conference are available on the MCD website: www.mcd.edu.au and details of the ANZATS Conference are available at www.anzats.edu.au
I wholeheartedly encourage all those who can attend both Conferences to do so. We can promise a week of stimulating presentations and conversations at an excellent venue in the heart of Melbourne, in close proximity to Carlton and to the city. The cost of attending both Conferences at the early bird rate of $495 is, I think, extremely reasonable, considering the number and the caliber of the presenters, not to mention the prime location at which the Conferences are being held. I look forward to seeing you there!!
- The final Centenary event is a Liturgical Ceremony which will be held at St Paul's Cathedral on Friday, 17th December at 2pm, to coincide with the date the Melbourne College of Divinity Act was passed into legislation by the Parliament of the State of Victoria in 1910. More details of this event will be forthcoming closer to the date mentioned above.
I think that it is an understatement to say that we can look forward to a truly memorable and exciting Centenary year, and one which the founders of the MCD would be justifiably proud. I wish to take this opportunity to thank the members of the MCD Centenary Organizing Committee comprising Chris Mostert (Chair), Peter Sherlock, Claire Renkin, Charles Sherlock and Sue Gillard representing Conference Links & Event Management Services (CLEMS), which is assisting the MCD to organize the Conference, as well as the long-standing former Chair of the Committee, Merrill Kitchen, the Centenary Coordinator, Norma Koehne, and other previous members of the Committee which met over a four year period to bring the planned events to fruition. The Committee has done an exceptional job over the last four years, as will be evident as the abovementioned events unfold.
ALTC Competitive Grant
The Melbourne College of Divinity is the lead institution in a successful application for a $150,000 Competitive Grant from the Australian Learning and Teaching Council to undertake a study on Incorporating Student Experience and Transformative Learning into Curriculum Design and Planning of Undergraduate Theological Degrees. The submission was made on behalf of the Council of Dean's of Theology (Australasia), of which I am the current Chair. A Working Group consisting of Mark Harding (Australian College of Theology), Neil Ormerod (Australian Catholic University), Rob McIver (Avondale College), Neil Holm (Sydney College of Divinity), Gerard Moore (Charles Sturt University) and myself spent long and intense hours putting the submission together, and we, and the Council of Deans of Theology, are absolutely delighted to have procured the Grant, considering that we were competing against the entire university sector and that the success rate for Competitive Grant applications is less than 20%.
The study will be spread over two years, with the Project Manager, Dr Les Ball, former Dean of the Brisbane College of Theology, assisting the Working Group to bring the study to completion. All theological Colleges in Australia are expected to participate in the study. This certainly is a big win for the Theological sector in Australia, and comes on the heels of the Council of Deans of Theology participation in the Australian Research Council Journal Ranking Project, playing the lead role in determining the composition of the Field of Research Code 2204: Religion and Religious Studies. The MCD was the lead institution in this project as well. The Incorporating Student Experience and Transformative Learning into Curriculum Design and Planning of Undergraduate Theological Degrees project will build on the Uncovering Theology project, which was also made possible by a Grant from ALTC.
Conferral
The Annual MCD Conferral Ceremony will be held at Wilson Hall, the University of Melbourne, at 7.30pm on Thursday 22 April, 2010. This year's Ceremony will be a most significant event designed to highlight and celebrate the Centenary of the MCD. Professor Glyn Davis, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Melbourne will present the Graduation Address. We are expecting approximately 310 students to graduate this year. We hope that most of these will be able to attend the Conferral ceremony, and we hope that you will be able to do so as well.
On behalf of the team at the MCD administration in Kew, I wish you all the very best for the MCD Centenary year, 2010.
Very best wishes
Prof Paul Beirne
Visiting African Leader to Challenge Australian Thinking on Solutions to African Problems
Revd. Dr. Andre Karamaga, General Secretary of the All African Conference of Churches (AACC), will present Australian audiences with an African perspective to the raging climate change and aid effectiveness debates which have divided Australians. Revd Dr Karamaga will also alert the Australian public to the church's role as a peace keeper in the wars that plague the African continent and draw from his personal experience as a Rwandan leader, who lost family during the Genocide.
Rev Dr Karamaga will discuss with Australian audiences the AACC's whole of Africa approach to prevent the loss of innocent lives and mass displacement of populations. "Our dream is to make Africa a better place, so that Africans can live in a dignified way... The church remains one of the foundations of hope in Africa, but it must never lose sight of its prophetic and reconstructive role in societies undergoing rapid change", said Dr Karamaga.
Founded in 1963, the AACC is the largest pan-African ecumenical grouping on the continent. It brings together 173 churches, councils of churches and Christian organisations from 40 African countries and represents the voices of 120 million Africans.
Invitation to hear Revd Dr Andre Karamaga deliver a talk on the following topic:
New Hope for Africa: the role of the churches in peacemaking and development,
and tackling climate change in Africa
Location: The New Study Centre, Yarra Theological Union, 34 Bedford St., Box Hill
Time: 10am-12.00, Saturday 17 April.
Entry by donation.