NZ Christians in Science holds a full programme of events, including seminars, webinars and conferences.
View our Upcoming Events HERE.
Where an event creates a resource such as a video recording these can be found in our Resources menu.

2021 Events

A wide range of events are underway in 2021. Most of these are notes in our Lectures 2021 page. In addition …

Auckland Boyle Lecture Discussion: ‘The Rediscovery of Contemplation Through Science’
On Saturday May 8th a group gathered to listen to the recorded Boyle Lecture by physicist Prof. Tom McLeish, and then have lunch. The lecture given in London on Feb 4th summarises his understanding of the relationship between science and theology.

2020 Lectures

Visit recordings at Lectures 2020

June 11th: Webinar hosted by NZCIS and CTP:
‘Are Animals Persons: The Implications for Domestication and Farming’ with Prof. Celia Deane-Drummond, Laudato si Institute, Oxford.

Finding Meaning in a Pandemic
Auckland went back into lockdown on August 13th as we were about to start the August Winter Lecture Series, which we at first named ‘Finding Meaning post Pandemic’:

Prof. Peter Lineham on ‘Finding Meaning in History: The 1918 Pandemic in New Zealand.’
Dr. Brian Broom, on ‘Finding Meaning in Disease’.
Both these were very popular and well attended with close to 100 participants form around the country and good discussion.
The last Winter lecture occurred after lockdown. Sarah Beattie spoke on ‘Finding meaning in Scripture and Science’. She spoke to a smaller group in Auckland and we had very good discussion on the last chapter of her PhD thesis for Melbourne University of Divinity.

Students

Otago Summer School Course:
Christian Theology and Science was taught in a hybrid format in November/December 2020 at Otago University’s pre-Christmas summer school. This was very successful. 92 students, many of them biomed or science students, took the course at locations around the country. A core group attended class, and another core were on zoom. Guest Lectures by Prof. John Stenhouse and Dr. Graeme Finlay were much appreciated. There was lively discussion, and involvement of students who were new to theology and even to religious belief, and some students also of other faiths. I had many comments to the effect that this course had expanded students’ horizons and that they enjoyed it much more than they expected.

Dr. Sam Macaulay has led student discussion groups at various churches in Dunedin in 2020 when NZ came out of lockdown. He was assisted by the Otago chaplain, Dr. Jordan Redding.

Emma Belcher led student discussion online mostly in Auckland throughout 2020.

NZCIS Around the Country

In Christchurch a group of scientists led by Prof. Stephen Chambers met through lockdown 2020 and afterwards, reviewing a number of current books together.

Website and Social media campaign

The website went through a thorough overhaul in late 2019 to mid 2020. This work was done by Jé-nae Freel and Jacob Martin. We continued to update the website with blogs and the webinars and a few podcasts as well during the year. Do keep going back to check it out.
In 2021 NZCIS launched into Instagram: view HERE
and increased out output through Facebook: view HERE

Supporting Churches

Teaching Children Science and Faith
In March 2021 we held a seminar at the Maclaurin Chapel. This was attended by church leaders from around the country who are active in children’s ministry, to discuss how to resource those teaching children about science.

Local Church Seminars
Nicola took part in an online zoom seminar on ‘Finding God in the Pandemic‘ on 14th May 2020 for St Barnabas Church in Christchurch.
Nicola also did a seminar on ‘Animal Suffering and the Problem of Evil’ on October 6th for St Luke’s Presbyterian Church in Remuera, Auckland

Hans Weichselbaum, a member of our Auckland core group, has a special calling to speak to creationists and the has entered into dialogue with the leaders of several Auckland churches. He is available as a resource in this area.

One of our advisors, Prof. Carolyn King, also contributed by writing short inserts to the Church bulletins throughout 2020 at the Cathedral in Hamilton, in the Waikato. We have already adapted some of these for blogs on the website.

Our Australian Cousins: COSAC and ISCAST

Dr. Jeff Tallon was one of a few New Zealanders who took part in ISCAST’s biennial conference this year online from a locked down Melbourne.
Nicola also spoke at a Thursday evening series of ISCAST Conversations during Australia’s second lockdown –speaking on ‘Conflict of Authority: Science, Faith and the Pandemic’