Relating academics and mission: Trinity researchers' conference

25 June 2012

For the past few days twenty-five of our research students have been gathering in Trinity for their own Postgraduiate Research Conference. This has given the opportunity for them to present papers based on their research and to receive comments and questions, as well as to get to know other researchers, and to have some input from Trinity faculty and visiting speakers. Many of our postgraduate research students are part-timers, studying while doing other work, some in the USA, Canada and Australia. We currently have over 50 research students; meet some of them.

One of our Associate Faculty Members, Revd Dr David Hart (bottom left in the photo above), Superintendent of the Bristol and South Gloucestershire Methodist Circuit, was impressed by the standard of the 15 or so papers presented. He was also struck by the way academic research was being related to Christian mission and ministry.

The conference included an Asian banquet cooked by Trinity alumnus (1985) Revd Hwee Yang Tan from Singapore, a chef and a pastor, who has been living in Cambodia, teaching cooking to poorer communities as a way of helping them to earn extra money.

Also included was a walking tour of churches in Bristol, including John Wesley's New Room, and a tour of Oxford relating to C.S. Lewis, led by former faculty member Revd Dr Jeanette Sears.

'Fantastic, particularly for building community', was the verdict on the conference from Michelle (left in the photo below), a part-time postgraduate research student in the Old Testament who comes from the USA.

More about Trinity's postgraduate research degrees.