Ridley College Podcast

🎙️ S4 S7 — Inside Ridley: End of Financial Year Special with Rhys Bezzant & Bec Muir
 
Episode Description
In this special end-of-financial-year episode of Inside Ridley,  Rhys Bezzant sits down once again with faculty member Bec Muir as they wrap up a full semester at Ridley. They reflect on the Archbishop's landmark lecture on raising leaders for the Diocese of Melbourne, before turning to some of the big questions Ridley is wrestling with heading into the next year — the future development of the Ridley Online program, the growth of the Anglican Institute, the challenge of AI in theological education...

🎙️ S4 E6 - Discernment and Partnerships: Renewal for the Diocese of Melbourne with Abp Ric Thorpe
The Anglican Institute Lecture 2026
 
Episode Description
What does renewal look like in a diocese? And what role does theological training play? 

In this lecture, Archbishop Ric Thorpe explores the importance and shape of renewal in the Diocese of Melbourne, and the pivotal role that theological colleges play as the Diocese seeks to discern God’s future together. 

This lecture was recorded on 18 May 2026 at Ridley College.

Got Questions?
Got questions about Ridley Col...

🎙️ S4 E5 —  AI, Young People & the Church with Anna Davy, Dave Chiswell & Joshua Millard
 
Episode Description
In this special episode, Ridley student and youth leader Anna Davy facilitates a rich and wide-ranging conversation on Artificial Intelligence or AI, born out of Ridley's annual Children's and Youth Ministry Training Day. Joining her are Dave Chiswell (Lead Trainer at Youth Ministry Futures, and Youth Minister at City on a Hill Geelong), and Joshua Millard (Youth Development Director of CMS Victoria) — two practitioners who care deeply about the same things but come at AI from quite different angles. Together they wrestl...

🎙️ S4 E4 Raising Up the Next Generation of Leaders with Sam Oldland
 
Episode Description
In this episode, Rhys Bezzant sits down with Sam Oldland, the minister overseeing traineeships at St Jude's Carlton — a church right across the road from Melbourne University — for a deep and practical conversation about raising up the next generation of gospel workers. As Sam puts it, when it comes to church planting, "it's never money, it's never location, it's never having enough people — it's always about having the leaders to do it." Sam shares his own quiet, unremarkable journey into ministry (and why that's a...

🎙️ S4 E3 Inside Ridley: Books, Graduation & the AI Question
with Hannah Craven & Mike Bird
 
Episode Description

In this episode of our Inside Ridley sub-series, faculty members Hannah Craven and Michael Bird sit down for a lively, wide-ranging conversation about what's been happening at Ridley. Mike shares highlights from his OSP — including finishing a new book on the Roman Empire and the early church, visiting the city of his birth in Germany, and lecturing across India, the US and UK. Hannah reflects on the landmark new intensive, Women in the New Testament, and her new role sup...

🎙️ S4 E2 — Tools for a Lifetime of Ministry
with Tim Johnson

In this episode, our Principal, Rhys Bezzant, sits down with newly appointed faculty member Tim Johnson for a rich conversation about life, ministry, and what it means to be well-equipped for the long haul. 

Tim shares his journey from growing up in a minister's home in Sydney's western suburbs — with no intention of ever becoming a pastor himself — to over 12 years as vicar of St John's Diamond Creek, and now joining Ridley's faculty to teach preaching and pastoral care. Along the way, they discuss the...

🎙️ S4 E1 — Confident in the Lord
with Rhys Bezzant & Bec Muir

Episode Description
In the inaugural episode of the Ridley College Podcast, Principal Rhys sits down with New Testament faculty member Bec for a warm and wide-ranging conversation about life at Ridley. They dive into Bec's PhD research on suffering in the book of Hebrews, the new off-campus evening classes running at Glen Waverley Anglican Church, and what it really means to help students grow in confidence — not just academically, but for a lifetime of ministry. Rhys also shares the college's theme for the year drawn fro...

🎙️ S3E14 — The Alf Stanway Lecture in Mission 2025
Australian Churches and Intercultural Communities: At Arms-length or Embraced?
Guest Speaker: Dr Enqi Weng & Revd Associate Professor Darrell Jackson 

Episode Description
Are Australian churches part of, set apart from, or a form of resistance to their cultural context? What does multiculturalism mean in Australian churches today, given global polarisation and rising ethno-nationalism? This public lecture engages with these pressing questions as contemporary churches face multiple challenges, including building disciples and communities amidst cultural diversity.

Dr Enqi Weng will draw on her postdoctoral research findings to prese...

🎙️ S3E13—  Paul, Papyri, and Prayer: A Conversation with Dr Gillian Asquith

Episode Description
In this episode of the Ridley College Podcast, Dr Gillian Asquith, Academic Dean at Melbourne School of Theology, joins Revd Dr Mike Bird, Deputy Principal, to explore the fascinating intersection of archaeology, ancient letters, and biblical language. Drawing from her recent Leon Morris Lecture and upcoming book Paul’s Letter Openings: An Analysis of High Register Language (Cambridge University Press), Gillian reveals how everyday papyri from Oxyrhynchus shed light on Paul’s pastoral heart and linguistic creativity. From solemn oaths to surprising word choices...

🎙️ S3E12— Unveiling the Song: Kamina Wüst on Love, Desire, and Divine Jealousy

Episode Description
In this compelling episode of the Ridley College Podcast, faculty member Hannah Craven sits down with biblical scholar Kamina Wüst to explore the Song of Songs—one of Scripture’s most enigmatic and provocative books. Drawing from her PhD research and recent teaching at the Ridley Preachers Conference, Kamina unpacks the poetic, theological, and cultural layers of the text, challenging long-held assumptions about Solomon, sexuality, and spiritual fidelity. With insights into Hebrew language, ancient Near Eastern poetry, and the powerful voic...

🎙️ S3E11— Translating the Word: A Conversation with Dr Andrew Abernethy

Episode Description
In this episode of the Ridley College Podcast, former principal, Dr Brian Rosner welcomes Dr Andrew Abernethy, Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College and former Ridley faculty member, for a deep dive into the art and challenge of Bible translation. From revising the Christian Standard Bible to shaping the New Living Translation, Andrew and Brian share behind-the-scenes stories, theological insights, and the challenge of maintaining the delicate balance between faithfulness and readability when translating the Bible. Whether you're a scholar, student, or curious...

🎙️ S3E10— The Leon Morris Lecture in New Testament Studies 2025
Theme: Paul and Papyri

Guest Speaker: Dr Gillian Asquith

Episode Description
Archaeological excavations in Egypt have unearthed thousands of ancient everyday papyrus documents written in the same kind of Greek as the New Testament. This lecture will demonstrate how these “voices from the sand” shed exciting new light on Paul’s letters.

Speaker
Dr Gillian Asquith grew up in England and studied Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford. She taught in schools in England and Australia before moving into theological s...

🎙️ S3E9— The Peter Corney Lecture in Youth Ministry 2025
Theme: Can I Buy Myself Flowers? Speaking grace and truth to girls growing up in a complex and conflicting world.

Guest Speaker: Dr Fiona Isaacs

Episode Description
In as much as girls are told they are full of girl power, the experience of being a girl is often one of powerlessness, fraught with conflicting pressures and expectations placed upon them from home, the church, school, and social media. God loves girls far too much to let them be anything less than powerful agents in his pla...

🎙️ S3E8— The Charles Perry Lecture in Melbourne Evangelical History 2025
Marvellous Melbourne: A Representative Denominational Society in the Nineteenth-Century Evangelical World

Episode Description
This lecture highlights the distinctive evangelical character of “Marvellous Melbourne” in the nineteenth century. As the richest city in the world at the time, Melbourne’s denominations embodied a vision for church and society, which has had powerful and ongoing impact, and is most clearly represented in the design of the Melbourne General Cemetery.

Speaker
David Bebbington is Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Stirling in Scotland, and a leading...

🎙️ S3E7 — Gender, Sexuality, and the Church - Sam Allberry
 
Episode Description

This episode features Sam Allberry, who preached on Gender, Sexuality, and the Church at Ridley Chapel on 20 May 2025. 
https://samallberry.com/

Study With Ridley
If you are interested in finding out more about studying at Ridley College or have any questions regarding any courses or units, we invite you to contact us via this link: https://www.ridley.edu.au/study/

Ridley Chapel Podcast
Be sure to check out our Ridley Chapel Sermons Podcast through this link...

🎙️ S3E6— Pursuing a PhD for God’s Glory

Episode Description

Pursuing a PhD for God’s Glory is a two part series where Dr. Mike Bird sat down with two recent Ridley PhD graduates – Dr. Joseph Byamukama (Fount Church and Team Leader at Veracity Fount, Kampala, Uganda) and Dr. Amber Dillon (Denver Seminary, Colorado, USA) – to discuss their experiences at Ridley College, their journeys into scholarship, and the life of faith. 

In this episode, we hear from Dr. Amber Dillion, who shares her story of a happy accident that led to her starting her PhD...

🎙️ S3E5— Pursuing a PhD for God’s Glory

Episode Description

Pursuing a PhD for God’s Glory is a two part series where Dr. Mike Bird sat down with two recent Ridley PhD graduates – Dr. Joseph Byamukama (Fount Church and Team Leader at Veracity Fount, Kampala, Uganda) and Dr. Amber Dillon (Denver Seminary, Colorado, USA) – to discuss their experiences at Ridley College, their journeys into scholarship, and the life of faith. 

In this episode, Dr. Joseph shares his aspirations to plant churches in Uganda and to resource the Ugandan church.  

If you are co...

🎙️ S3E4— Impacts of Pastoral Supervision with Kate Beer

Episode Description

In today’s podcast, Kate Beer met with a panel of members from the 2023 Pastoral Supervision training cohort. The panelists share what led them to apply for supervision training, their experiences during the training and how the training has impacted their work in their respective ministries. The group also discuss the joys, benefits and challenges of undertaking supervision training, and their experiences and future plans regarding supervision in their respective ministries. The conversation ends with a reflection on the impact of pastoral supervision on their liv...

🎙️ S3E3— What can early church history teach us about trauma and recovery with Scott Harrower

Episode Description

Revd Dr Scott Harrower talks with Andy Judd about his new book, Trauma and Recovery in Early North African Christianity. While many see church history as a dry compulsory subject, Scott's trademark pastoral approach helps us see how God has worked in the lives of Christians like us across the ages, and how our own Christian communities can learn from martyrs like Perpetua and Felicity (AD 203) about the resources for dealing with traumatic events. 

Study Wi...

🎙️ S3E2— What’s next in ministry amongst children’s and young people with Kristina Kettleton

Episode Description

What's next in ministry for children and young people in Australia? This episode reflects on the current state of ministry among children and young people in Australia today, some of the challenges we’re facing, and what could be done to overcome them. Graham Stanton, Director of the Ridley Centre for Children’s and Youth Ministry, is in conversation with Kristina Kettleton, the keynote speaker at the recent Children’s and Youth Ministry Training Day. Kristina has served in youth m...

🎙️ S3E1— Meet the new Principal of Ridley College
 
Episode Description

Revd Canon Dr Rhys Bezzant begins this year as the tenth Principal of Ridley College. He sits down in this interview with Andy Judd to talk about how he went from a 14-year-old debating against the resurrection of Jesus to training men and women for Christian ministry. He also shares his insights into what makes a good theological college, and what studying theology can provide that you can't get on the internet.

Children's and Youth Ministry Training Day 2025
Join us for this...

Brian Rosner's Farewell as Principal Public Lecture
Strengthened By The Gospel: The Purpose of Romans and the Future of Ridley College

This is a recording of Brian Rosner's farewell as principal public lecture, held on the evening of Wednesday, 16 October 2024. His lecture theme was “Strengthened by the Gospel: The Purpose of Romans and the Future of Ridley College.”

About Brian Rosner

Brian is a New Testament scholar of international standing, having contributed to many of the major journals and supervised over a dozen PhDs.  He is a member of the Studiorum Novi Testa...

Episode Description

Dr Katherine Firth was a guest speaker at our 2024 Women's Writing Retreat and joins us on the podcast to share her new book "Writing Well and Being Well for Your PhD and Beyond: How to Cultivate a Strong and Sustainable Writing Practice for Life" (Routledge, 2023). Dr Firth is head of Lisa Bellear house, a residential hall at Melbourne University, and author or co-author of several books on academic writing, and a recent monograph Martin Luther and the Arts (Brill, 2023).

Study With Ridley
If you are interested in finding out more about...

Song of Songs: A metaphor for God and the church or a celebration of sexuality?
 
Episode Description
One of the most beautiful parts of the Bible, Christians often do not know what to do with the Song of Songs. Is it a metaphor for God and the church? A celebration of human sexuality? Or something else? In this panel discussion, Dr Kamina Wüst and Dr Lindsay Wilson help us appreciate this precious piece of Scripture.
This webinar is part of the Ridley Online Old Testament Prophets and Writings Unit (OT002D).

About Dr...

Episode Description

Tamie Davis was at Ridley for this year's Alf Stanway lecture in mission. In this episode, Hannah Craven sits down with Tamie to learn a bit more about her research, to dig a bit deeper into the "Mafanikio" theology of Tanzanian Christian women, and to reflect on the value of missiological thinking in our Christian lives and ministry.

About Dr Tamie Davis:  

Dr Tamie Davis is a missiologist who served in Tanzania for 10 years, partnering with the Tanzania Fellowship of Evangelical Students. She is a Mentor with the Angelina Noble Centre a...

Episode Description

In this episode, Deputy Principal: Academic, Revd Dr Mike Bird, chatted with faculty member Dr Andrew Malone about his book, To Walk and to Please God: A Theology of 1 and 2 Thessalonians. This book explores 1 and 2 Thessalonians and highlights the life cycle of Christian discipleship—turning away from idols, trusting in the gospel message, having hope that the Lord will return, and continually pleasing the one true God until that return.

Check out Andrew's book.
To Walk and to Please God: A Theology of 1 and 2 Thessalonians
Andrew Malone 

ht...

Episode: 12

The Alf Stanway Lecture in Mission 2024
Pleasure, Pain.... And Prosperity: Advancing The Mission Conversation In Australia
Guest Speaker: Dr Tamie Davis

Description:
Majority World theology is growing as the Spirit of Christ grows God's people in both breadth and depth. What might Christianity in Australia stand to gain from it? This lecture will propose that a Tanzanian theology of prosperity points to a way for God to be known from within Australia’s secular pleasure/pain worldview.

About Dr Tamie Davis:  

Dr Tamie Davis is a missiologist who...

The Leon Morris Lecture in New Testament Studies 2024
Ambassadors of Hope: A New Testament Theme

Episode Description
This lecture will explore one of the key themes of the New Testament – that of reconciliation. Reconciliation shows the heart of God, and the church is called to reflect that heart. This echoes something Leon Morris himself emphasized decades ago (although in a broader sense). The Bible calls it demonstrating an unconventional wisdom and it is our overall mission. It leads to hope and enablement, impacting how we present and reflect the gospel in a needy world. It ca...

Description
Dr Darrell Bock gave the 2024 Ridley College Leon Morris Lecture in New Testament Studies on 18 July 2024. While visiting Ridley, our principal, Dr Brian Rosner, sat down with Darrell to discuss several topics in New Testament Studies and also the question of how to promote the gospel in our fractured world.

About Dr Darrell Bock 
Darrell Bock is a Senior Research Professor of New Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas. He is also the Executive Director of Cultural Engagement at the Hendricks Center for Christian Leadership. He has served on the board o...

Description
In this episode, Dr Mike Bird interviewed one of his students, Lachlan Vines, who won the Journal of Anglican Studies Student Essay Competition in April 2024. Lachlan is currently studying for the Master of Divinity at Ridley College and wrote an essay on Rowan Williams' Theology of Revelation for one of his assignments. He shares how he coincidentally met and spent some time interviewing Rowan Williams (former Archbishop of Canterbury) on his trip to the UK. His essay will be published in the Journal of Anglican Studies later this year.  Listen to what he has to say.

Description:
This episode, Atonement Culture, is one of three expositions presented by Dr Rory Shiner at the Ridley College's Annual Preachers' Conference: Set Apart - Preaching from Leviticus, held on 23 - 24 April 2024.

The conference featured Dr Rory Shiner (Providence Church, Perth) and Revd Dr Katy Smith (SMBC), who spoke on theological themes in Leviticus. 

Ridley Preachers’ Conferences aim to encourage us in our leadership and ministry by focussing on skills for preaching. This is an opportunity for pastors, campus workers, clergy, and missionaries to be refreshed as they learn and nurture relationships wit...

The Anglican Institute Lecture 2024
Deep Things We Share: Discipleship and the Lord's Supper

Description
We celebrate the Lord's Supper as Jesus instructed, but for many its role in daily discipleship has been neglected. Learn again how the discipleship agenda for your church - whatever it is - might be strengthened by sharing in the deep things of the Lord during the Communion service.   

Speaker:
Revd Canon Dr Rhys Bezzant
Rhys studied German at the Universities of Melbourne and Cologne, graduating with an MA, before commencing theological studies at Ridley where he ga...

Episode Description

In this episode, faculty member Hannah Craven chatted with the Revd Dr Mike Bird, Deputy Principal: Academic, about his book, A Bird’s-eye view of Luke and Acts. Mike shows us how these two books, when read together, tell a cohesive narrative about Jesus, the Church, and the mission of God--with implications for the whole of our lives today. 

Check out Mike's book.
A Bird's-Eye View of Luke and Acts: Context, Story, and Themes
Michael Bird

https://amzn.asia/d/d3Pq29t

Ridley Chapel Podcast
...

Welcome to the new season of the Ridley College Podcast in 2024 

In 2024, we are pleased to be expanding our podcast with more regular episodes and a broader range of conversations. Here, you’ll find Public Lectures, stories from our students and faculty, and insights from leading experts on the Bible, theology and ministry.  

Episode Description
In this episode, our deputy principals, Mike Bird and Andy Judd, chat about Andy's recently published research, Playing with Scripture, which explores how the Bible can be authoritative and relevant given how often we disagree on what it means.
T...

Episode Description
Stepping into the world of Leviticus with Dr Rory Shiner.
Dr Rory Shiner (Providence Church, Perth) is our guest preacher in the upcoming Ridley Annual Preachers' Conference. We have an opportunity to chat with him about his life as a preacher and the importance of preaching from the Old Testament, especially from the book of Leviticus.

Ridley Annual Preachers' Conference 2024
The Ridley Annual Preachers’ Conferences aim to encourage us in our leadership and ministry by focussing on skills for preaching. This is an opportunity for pastors, campus workers, clergy, and missionaries to be...

Episode Description
On 1-2 March 2024, our Ridley Students Committee organised the return of Launch Camp. In this overnight getaway, faculty, staff, and students got together and bonded through games, meals, and prayer. Faculty member Hannah Craven had the opportunity to chat with some of them to try to get to know them better. Get to know some of our students, their aspirations, and ambitions. 
Also, in this podcast, we would like to share the prayers at the end of the camp. These prayers were led by various faculty members and Ridley students serving across a range of m...

Welcome to the new season of the Ridley College Podcast in 2024 

In 2024, we are pleased to be expanding our podcast with more regular episodes and a broader range of conversations. Here, you’ll find Public Lectures, stories from our students and faculty, and insights from leading experts on the Bible, theology and ministry.  

Episode Description 
This episode is for anyone with some kind of involvement in children's ministry or youth ministry—whether you’re a volunteer, a vocational leader, a church pastor, or even a parent. 
Ridley Centre for Children's and Youth Ministry Director G...

Welcome to the new season of the Ridley College Podcast in 2024 

In 2024, we are pleased to be expanding our podcast with more regular episodes and a broader range of conversations. Here you’ll find Public Lectures, stories from our students and faculty, and insights from leading experts on the Bible, theology and ministry.  

Episode Description 
In this episode, we speak to the Revd Dr Mike Bird, Deputy Principal: Academic, about the upcoming Study Tour to Greece & Türkiye. We discuss the benefits and experiences participants will gain, and the way the tour can enrich our st...

The Charles Perry Lecture in Melbourne Evangelical History 2023
God, Menzies and Christian Public Engagement

Description
This lecture will highlight the evangelical formation of Sir Robert Menzies, Australia's longest serving Prime Minister, and explain how this Christian formation impacted Menzies's public engagement in Melbourne and beyond.

Click here to read the edited transcript published by the ABC for this lecture.

Speaker:
David Furse-Roberts is a Research Fellow at the Menzies Research Centre and works for a Member of the NSW Parliament. He is the author of God & Menzies (2021) & The Making of...

Special Edition
This is a special edition of the Ridley College Podcast.
David Furse-Roberts is the Research Fellow at the Menzies Research Centre and also our guest speaker for the upcoming Charles Perry Lecture in Melbourne Evangelical History.
Faculty member Rhys Bezzant had the opportunity to interview David where they chatted about child protection laws in nineteenth-century England, Menzies’s early spiritual formation, and the importance of studying evangelical history.

About David Furse-Roberts
David Furse-Roberts is a Research Fellow at the Menzies Research Centre and works for a Member of the NSW Parliament. He...