Discendi Studio

Today we wrap up Discendi Studio the theology conference supported by the three Presbyterian Colleges in Australia. The title means "zeal to learn" and comes from a line from Calvin's Institutes. The theme has been "Calvin and theological scholarship" and we've had some great examples of just that. Some of the papers have been Calvin Scholarship - such as Calvin and the Jews, or Calvin as a commentator. Others have looked at historical issues such as the rise of Calvinism in Australia (1938-78) or various theological and Biblical topics with some interaction with Calvin. One of the highlights of the conference have been the short papers which students and others have done. The genre of a 20-25 minute brings as brevity and clarity which Calvin would have appluaded.

It has been great seeing students, staff and others from different states getting to know each other, talking through issues and finding out about the state of play in different states. I hope that people will stay in touch.

The presentations have been recorded and they should be available in some form (watch this space).

Discendi Studio - a conference for theological scholarship

It's a strange day when PTC hosts a conference with a Latin title, but we think it makes sense! Discendi studio means 'zeal to learn' and it comes from a couplet at the end of the “Dedication to the Reader” in 1559 Edition of Calvin’s Institutes of Christian Religion (see more details below).

In April the three colleges of the PCA are going to hold a conference in which we share our work in scholarship in the varying theological fields. It should be a good chance to hear  what staff and students are thinking about and researching as well as a time to build some bridges between Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. The conference will be at PTC in Sydney April 7-9, 2009. If it is successful there may be further conferences in the other cities.

There will be lots of Calvin conferences next year with the 500th anniversary of his birth, but this one will be a bit different, because it won't so much be about Calvin as it will be trying to continue his heritage of scholarship devoted to God and ruled by his word.

Anyone is welcome to attend the conference and to propose a paper for the plenary sessions or the interest sections. You don't have to be at one of the colleges or in the PCA. You can download the full details and registration from the download section of our website. 

The title comes from the couplet: Quos animus fuerat tenui excusare libello; Discendi studio magnum fecere volumen. Battles translates this as “ ’Tis those whose cause my former booklet pled, Whose zeal to learn has wrought this tome instead”. Calvin acknowledges that it has been the enthusiasm of his readers to learn from him that stimulated his writing, so that the Institutes grew to be a remarkable work of theology. We hope to continue the same zeal, stimulated by Calvin’s writings.