sustain:if:able kiwi

promoting practical and scholarly excellence: kicking 3 quick goals

At Uniting College, one of our 5 strategic signposts is promoting practical and scholarly excellence. We’re seeking a spiral of heart, head and hand.

So tomorrow we celebrate a book launch. Our missiologist, Dr Rosemary Dewerse launches Breaking Calabashes, Becoming an intercultural community. It takes her PhD, so it’s scholarly. In 140 pages, it applies it to local Christian living. So it’s practical – readable, woven with stories, poetry, questions and pictures. It’s a compelling mix of Biblical reflection, theological depth and compassionate vision. If you’re in Adelaide, join the party at 4:45 pm tomorrow, 34 Lipsett Tce.

Last week was the news that Dr Liz Boase earned a Gold Award at the Australian Religious Press Association for Best Theological Article for her writing in New Times. Mixing personal story with her PhD work on lament, here’s the commendation. “A thoughtful and reflective piece, well researched on the psalms and prayer. A much needed call to recover the literature and practice of lament in communal worship and private devotions … Its clarity and simplicity makes this article immediately accessible to a broader audience.” Scholarship, made practical. (To read the article – Learning in Lament – go here and scroll down to October 2012).

Today, I heard that my paper at the U2: TRANS conference has been accepted for publication, in a book in which academics will produce something readable by the non-expert, though college-educated, reader. Again, scholarship – analysis of performance gestures and lyrical adaptations – made practical.

Practical and scholarly excellence. Not either/or but both/and. Three quick goals from our Faculty team at Uniting College.