Whitley College

29/05/2026

We warmly invite you to an engaging lecture by Dr Julia Rhyder on War Commemoration from Exodus to Maccabees.

Dr Rhyder is a Hebrew Bible scholar specialising in ritual texts and the history of Israelite religion, and is Associate Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilisations at Harvard University.

THURSDAY, JULY 2, 2026
10:30 am - 1.00 pm
PILGRIM COLLEGE, College Cres, Parkville

This is a free, face-to-face event, hosted by the Fellowship for Biblical Studies in partnership with Pilgrim Theological College and Whitley College.

Please RSVP to [email protected] by Friday, June 26, 2026 to secure your attendance.

For further details please contact Associate Professor Sean Winter: [email protected]

We look forward to welcoming you.

26/05/2026

Today we gathered for our final chapel of Semester 1. Thank you to everyone who attended, and to the staff and students who helped lead the service. We are also grateful to Rev Jason Goroncy for bringing such a thoughtful message.

Drawing on the words of the Apostle Paul and French philosopher Simone Weil, Jason invited us to reflect on the treasure we carry, which is God – visible through our cracks and brokenness.

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Corinthians 4:7-9)

“When an apprentice gets hurt, or complains of being tired, the workmen and peasants have this fine expression: "It is the trade entering his body." Each time that we have some pain to go through, we can say to ourselves quite truly that it is the universe, the order and beauty of the world, and the obedience of God that are entering our body.” (Simone Weil)

You can hear more from Jason next semester by joining his class, “Who Is Jesus?”

Our Semester 2 timetable is now available. Visit our website to discover the units on offer and join us for another semester of learning, conversation and community:
https://www.whitley.edu.au/current-students/timetable/

26/05/2026

The Baptist Union of Victoria’s 2025 Annual Report is now available.

We’re grateful to be part of a movement committed to faithful ministry, theological formation, and local and global engagement.

2025 was a year of significant growth for Whitley College, with expanded online access, increased enrolments, new international partnerships, and deeper engagement with Baptist churches across Australia and beyond.

We encourage you to visit page 39 of the report to see Whitley's 2025 highlights and impact.

Some highlights from 2025 include:
- 14% enrolment growth compared with 2024
- 58 graduates and 5 PhD completions
- 75+ CALD students across programs
- 64% of units offered online
- $35K+ committed to scholarships and fee support
- New international partnerships in Thailand, Germany, and Samoa
- 80+ leadership engagements with Baptist churches

Read the full BUV Annual Report here:
buv.com.au/2025annualreport/

2 0 2 5 A N N U A L R E P O R T

The BUV Support Hub is happy to announce the release of our 2025 Annual Report.
To find out what we, our agencies and affiliates have been up to go to buv.com.au/2025annualreport/

21/05/2026

In March this year, Whitley College welcomed Professor Douglas Campbell for his public lecture, 'The Desire to Punish: Incarceration, Justice, and the Church’s Crisis of Accountability'.

The lecture explored justice, accountability, incarceration, and restorative practice within the life of the church and wider society.

We are now pleased to share two resources from the event:

- Professor Campbell’s lecture paper, The Desire to Punish.
- A restorative practices resource guide featuring recommended reading, training opportunities, and networks for further engagement.

We hope these resources encourage ongoing reflection, conversation, and faithful engagement within churches and communities.

Visit the website to read more and access the resources: https://www.whitley.edu.au/continuing-the-conversation-desire-to-punish-by-professor-douglas-campbell/

21/05/2026

Members of Faculty, Honorary Researchers and other members of the Whitley research community gathered last week to celebrate the launch of a recent book, share current research plans and projects, and learn from our 2026 Visiting Scholar Dr Nuam Hatzaw.

We were delighted to share in an international book launch for Chinese Christian Witness: Identity, Creativity, Transmission, and Poetics, edited by a team that includes Dr Xiaoli Yang, a Whitley and University of Divinity Honorary Research Fellow. As our conversation made clear, there are more books by Whitley researchers in the pipeline on topics as varied as the Bible and Gender, Baptist Churches and Indigenous Communities, Exodus and Biblical Law, Virtue and Evolutionary Psychology, Trauma and the Resurrection, Death and Immortality, and Reading Paul Then and Now.

Dr Hatsaw’s seminar on ‘Ethnic Minority Christians and Belonging’ helped us to think about the way that faith and the church help people to navigate the need for ‘flexible belonging’ in multicultural societies.
Research@Whitley: Faithful, Contextual, Global

21/05/2026

We are delighted to let you know about a new publication from Whitley’s Associate Professor, Rev Jason Goroncy:

‘Capitalist Virtue Ethics Unmasked: A Case Study of “Success” and Harm in Australia’s Finance Sector.’ Zadok Papers 297 (2026): 1–16. (With John Bottomley and Brendan Byrne)

This paper draws on Australian corporate misconduct cases, exploring how ethical concerns are frequently dismissed when weighed against business interests. Harm to stakeholders is rationalised as an acceptable cost of achieving business success and maximising profits.

This essay reanalyses survey data from the Finance Sector Union, collected from bank employees, through a theoretical framework of capitalist virtue ethics - a system that legitimises profit maximisation via three interconnected virtues: the autonomous, sovereign self; the moral valorisation of hard work; and the principle of tempered justice. These virtues form a closed system that subordinates employee welfare to financial objectives.

Through insights from Christian theology, the essay highlights the sector's closed circle of capitalist virtuosity, its culture of death, the undignified treatment of work, and the falsification of the self, raising questions about the mechanisms needed to align truth and justice within the finance sector's practices.

A second recent publication of Jason's is, 'Redeeming History: A Response to Murray Rae's Resurrection and Renewal.' You can find a link to this and other works via Jason's bio on our website:

https://www.whitley.edu.au/people/rev-assoc-professor-jason-goroncy/

Next semester, Jason will be teaching the Thursday morning unit, “Who Is Jesus?” For more information on this class and other course information, contact us!
https://www.whitley.edu.au/contact/

20/05/2026

On Wednesday mornings, students in the classroom are joined by those online for “Exodus and its Afterlives,” taught by Dr Megan Turton. Together, they journey through one of Scripture’s most powerful stories, exploring how its themes of liberation, faith, and community continue to shape our understanding of justice, identity, and belonging today. Along the way, students engage deeply with themes of oppression, exile, migration, wilderness, liberation, conquest, nationhood, holiness, and law.

As a lecturer in Hebrew Bible, Megan has taught Biblical Hebrew and Hebrew Bible subjects at Whitley and various colleges of the University of Divinity since 2016. Her academic journey began in Law and Arts before studies in the Bible and its historical contexts redirected her plans of becoming a lawyer toward biblical scholarship. Retaining her interest in the interrelationship between law, morality, and justice, she completed her PhD through the University of Sydney in 2021, focusing on the character of biblical law. Megan is a passionate advocate for the discipline of biblical studies and its continuing relevance within both religious and non-religious contexts.

20/05/2026

Sharing the stories of our past students and alumni matters deeply at Whitley because these stories speak to the real journey of theological formation - the questions, growth, challenges, calling, and transformation that happen along the way.

Dr Albert Peck’s story is one of perseverance, grassroots ministry, community, and discovering a faith lived out in the realities of everyday life.

“When I began my studies at Whitley College, what I discovered was a faith deeply entrenched in the fray of community life, where evangelism was inseparable from social justice and a sometimes radical call to mission,” Albert reflects.

“At Whitley, I encountered a vision of discipleship shaped by the model of Jesus in the Gospels, where following him became the lens through which decisions, relationships, ministry, and community engagement were filtered.”

From walking into his first Thursday night Church History class carrying uncertainty and self doubt, to completing a PhD and now leading restorative ministry initiatives in the community, Albert’s story is a powerful reminder that theological education is never simply academic - it shapes lives, communities, and ministry.

“If I can do it, anyone can do it. Don’t listen to the mind chatter or to the voices that overshadow you with doubt. Just take the step and begin.”

Read Albert's story here:
https://www.whitley.edu.au/alumni/alumni-stories/dr-albert-peck/

15/05/2026

Every journey into theology begins with a question, a calling, a conversation, or a quiet sense that God may be leading somewhere deeper.

For many people discerning study, hearing someone else’s real story can make all the difference.

If you’re a current Whitley student, graduate, or alumnus, we’d love you to share your Whitley story with us.

Your experience may encourage someone else to take the next step in their own journey of faith, ministry, leadership, or theological formation.

Stories help people see that theology is not just academic. It is personal, transformational, contextual, and deeply connected to life and calling. Your story may be featured across Whitley’s website, newsletters, and social media to help others understand the heart of the Whitley community.

We warmly invite you to share your story here: https://www.whitley.edu.au/share-your-whitley-story/

14/05/2026

In this morning’s class, students on site and joining online via Zoom continued their deep dive into the book of Romans. Few texts have shaped Christian thought as profoundly as this letter of Paul’s.

This unit is taught by our Dean of Research and Director of New Testament Studies, Rev Associate Professor Sean Winter. Sean brings exceptional depth, clarity, and scholarly insight to the study of Paul, helping students engage with Romans in ways that are academically rigorous, contextually grounded, and spiritually meaningful.

The “Reading Romans” class equips students with tools to interpret Paul’s letter, exploring its theological convictions alongside the social, cultural, and political context of Paul’s day. Sean invites students to encounter this powerful text with fresh eyes and to consider why it continues to matter today.

If you would like to know more about subjects we offer, enquire today!
https://www.whitley.edu.au/course-enquiry/?enquiry_type=enrolment

12/05/2026

Whitley is a hive of activity on Tuesdays! We have classes running in the morning, the afternoon and evening, both on site and online, and we love the conversations, engagement and deep work that takes place here.

In the middle of the day staff pause to gather for prayer and worship. We pray for our college community, issues concerning our nation, and the wider world. We also regularly use the Baptist Union of Victoria prayer calendar to pray for local churches, as we did today.

If your church has prayer needs you would like to share with us, contact us: we are here to support you in this way.