2025: A Year of Learning, Community, and GrowthFrom the first day of classes in February to the closing celebrations in November, 2025 was a year filled with fresh beginnings, numerous events, and meaningful connections. We launched new initiatives like innerVIVID, hosted the inaugural Liturgy Winter School, and gathered for lectures that sparked conversation and reflection. Along the way, we celebrated milestones, farewelled valued colleagues, and strengthened our digital presence! Want to see the full story and photos? Read More Training for Ordained Ministryby Denise Ferguson 2025 has been a year of significant change for Ordained Ministry Formation and the Ministry Discernment Team. A new team, Clergy Development, Training and Wellbeing, now oversees ministry formation from initial exploration through to retirement. Eleven students completed the Formation Program this year, with four ordained as deacons, and from 2026 the programs will be renamed Grow (Ordained Ministry Formation) and Emerge (Newly Ordained Clergy). Read More St Francis 800by Godfrey Fryar Born in the late 12th century, Giovanni Bernadone started his early life as a rather romantic spoiled brat. When he died in 1226 at the age of 42, he had revolutionised the concept of being a follower of Christ, and in the 21st century a Pope chose his nickname to define his papacy. In many ways Francis was a Gospel fundamentalist. Almost everything Jesus taught, he would attempt to do, but never to draw attention to himself. Simply put, he was a startling authentic Christian. Following Gospel precepts about possessions greatly challenged people who had them in abundance. He knew he had to have a good relationship with the Church of his time, partly to avoid being treated as a heretic, but he refused to become part of the hierarchy, and he forbade those who joined him to relate in that way to each other. They were simply to be known and live as Little Brothers. As time went by, he increasingly yearned to be a contemplative, but Clare firmly counselled that while times of solitude were necessary for him, he must always return to the road, and the people he met on the way. His inspiration was the Incarnation and the Passion of Christ, and he particularly sought Jesus in the poorest of the poor, and the suffering. He met the same Christ in the Eucharist, humbly present in a small piece of bread. The Franciscan way is revealed when love, joy, simplicity of life and humility are evident in the lives of those who follow it. This year Franciscan communities, Roman Catholic and Anglican and many others attracted by his lifestyle who follow in less formal ways, will be celebrating the Little Poor Man of Assisi, and will be challenged to renew their commitment to his charism. American Academy of Religion Conferenceby Peter Kline In November, Peter Kline travelled to Boston to attend and present at the annual American Academy of Religion conference, which is the largest international conference for scholars of religion. Peter presented in the Theology and Continental Philosophy unit on a panel that explored the intersection of theology and psychoanalysis. Peter also sat on a panel that asked the question, "Is Theology Dying?" On that panel, scholars wrestled with the shifts in theological education and academic theology over the past few decades and wondered about how the discipline of theology will survive (or not) into the future. Peter offered insights from the Australian context and suggested that theology can still be vital even if it is dying. He argued that Christians need not be afraid of death and that the real enemies of theology are fear, defensiveness, and boring ways of thinking. Adventure of Theological Study Leads to Publicationby Kate Gardiner Early on whilst studying for a Bachelor of Theology (a ten-year journey!), I can recall a retired priest of the parish of which I was then part saying that theology is an adventure. How those words resonate with me now! I certainly could never have imagined that I would find myself where I am now, having just had a paper accepted for publication in a major international journal. The paper began as my Capstone Project — an integrative project undertaken in the final semester of the Bachelor of Theology. This was then extensively revised, especially after undergoing the peer review process. It was a lot of work, but certainly worth it. It’s immensely satisfying to be able to contribute in a scholarly way to the conversation of how scripture is interpreted, and the impact of interpretation on people’s lives. It all began whilst on my summer hiking holiday to Mt Kosciuszko National Park. I had with me Jeanette Mathew’s book Reading the Megillot: A Literary and Theological Commentary. One particular line struck me. At a basic level, [the Song of Songs] reminds us that romance and sexual attraction are part of what it means to be human and are a gift from a good creator (Mathews, 2022: 29). Where, I wondered, did that leave those who do not experience sexual attraction (asexual) and those who do not experience romantic attraction (aromantic)? The implication seemed to be that they were somehow less than human. As I walked, I began to ponder how it might be possible to do an asexual reading of the Song of Songs. This germ of an idea became my capstone project, and ultimately, a soon-to-be published paper. The next step in the theological adventure for me is the Graduate Certificate of Research Methodology which I have enrolled in for next year through St Francis/UD. I am extremely grateful to be a recipient of the Ivor Church Bursary to aid the cost of my studies. I hope to continue research on the Song of Songs from an asexual and aromantic perspective. I want to explore what are known as the wasf passages, where the lover praises the beloved’s body (or vice versa). I particularly want to think deeply about different types of attraction (sexual, romantic, aesthetic, intellectual, sensual etc), and what kind(s) of attraction these passages might exhibit. But for now I’m off to do some more hiking (and pondering). This time it’s the Walls of Jerusalem National Park in Tasmania, a destination that seems very apt somehow. The paper is titled “An Asexual Aromantic Reading of Song of Songs 5.2–6: Queering the Tradition” and will be published in the Journal for the Study of the Old Testament (JSOT).
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