Morling College is delighted to share the news that Rev Aidan Luke, PhD student and postgraduate research fellow at Morling, was recently invited to participate in the distinguished Baptist Scholars International Roundtable (BSIR) as a BSIR Scholar for 2020. Aidan is the second member of the Morling community to be named a BSIR Scholar, following in the footsteps of Morling adjunct lecturer Nicole Starling who presented a paper on Baptist history at the BSIR Roundtable in Oxford last year.

“We would like to congratulate Aidan on his appointment as a Roundtable Scholar,” said Morling College Principal, Ross Clifford. “It will provide Aidan with a wonderful opportunity to join with theologians, historians and biblical scholars from around the world, including such eminent Baptists as Paul Fiddes, David Bebbington and Beth Barr. His appointment is both an affirmation of the quality of theological research at Morling College and an opportunity see it strengthened further.”

Aidan was selected from an international field of applicants to present his paper on the 2020 theme: The Kingdom of God. Along with the papers written by the six other 2020 BSIR scholars, Aidan’s paper on Contingency, Joy and the Kingdom of God focused on how Baptist perspectives on the kingdom of God inform and shape the life of the academy and the church.  

Aidan’s passion for God’s kingdom is reflected not only in his scholarship but also in his work as pastor of Mudgee Baptist Church and an Adjunct Lecturer at Morling College. He is currently completing a PhD on the nature of human and divine joy in the gospel of Luke, with a special focus on the Parables of the Lost in chapter 15.

The BSIR Roundtable convenes annually at the University of Oxford. Due to COVID19, the Roundtable originally scheduled for 2020 has been postponed to August 2021.

If you would like more information on Morling’s postgraduate coursework and research programs, please contact our Future Student Advisor at (02) 9878 0201.