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Colin Battersby

University of Divinity, Whitley College, Department Member

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Colin Battersby
B.Mus. Ed. (Hon), UWA, and currently completing MA Theol. (Social Justice), University of Divinity, Melb.

Colin is a National Partnering Advisor for World Vision Australia's Indigenous Programs

He has worked in education and the not for profit sector for over 20 years, with experience in the following:
• Management & Strategic Leadership - NGOs, youth & faith based organisations, tertiary institutions, volunteer initiatives
• Education Specialist - secondary & tertiary curriculum development, delivery & assessment
• Fundraising & Partnership Development - strategy, innovation, supporter experiences - corporate, schools, major donors, churches, community groups, artists, ambassadors & general public, social enterprise
• Community Engagement - partnership brokering, community consultation, facilitation, project design, implementation, monitoring & evaluation, strategic planning, Indigenous communities, education bodies
• Community Development - facilitation, theories of change, collective impact, project models, specialist gender training, advocacy, poverty alleviation, reconciliation programs

Colin has worked in Australia and the United Kingdom. He has been a guest speaker for various national and international conferences focused on youth, leadership, creativity, social justice and faith.

In 2014, Colin trained as a Gender Facilitator with World Vision International's Channels of Hope for Gender program in Johannesberg, South Africa. Channels of Hope is an internationally recognised community development program which seeks to mobilise and empower communities of faith to address challenging social issues like HIV and Gender Based Violence.

Colin and his wife Andrea live in Perth, Western Australia with their three children.
Address: Perth, Western Australia, Australia

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Papers by Colin Battersby

“Beyond Our Borders” A Study of the Canaanite Woman Narrative in Matthew’s Gospel

The Subversive and Transformative Genealogy of Jesus

Luthers 95 Theses Document Study

1483-1546), was born in Eisleben, Saxony. A student of Erfurt University (1501-1515), Luther was ... more 1483-1546), was born in Eisleben, Saxony. A student of Erfurt University (1501-1515), Luther was schooled in Classical Greek philosophy and the writings of St. Augustine and the mystics. In a time of existential crisis, Luther turned to monastic life (1505), entering a strict Augustinian order in a failed attempt to exorcise his personal demons through an unrelenting regime of penance, religious rituals and self-punishment. 1 Luther was later sent as an ordained priest to the Wittenberg Cloister (1508), where he would dedicate himself to studying the original Greek and Hebrew scriptures, as well as giving lectures in the University's Arts Faculty. As Professor of Bible from 1513, Luther had the time and motivation

New Testament Readings - Forum Reflections

The very first miracle Matthew chooses to tell us clearly demonstrates Jesus mission for the marg... more The very first miracle Matthew chooses to tell us clearly demonstrates Jesus mission for the marginalised that was proclaimed strongly in his Sermon on the Mount. Coming straight off the mountain, with large crowds following, Jesus does what any good preacher does do, he demonstrates and models his message. He doesn't just talk about the poor and the broken and

God at Work - In Sandals and Sneakers

A Critical Review of Three Readings on " Paul and Empire "

The Nature of Hope

So what are the implications for us today as we consider this future hope Paul taught to the earl... more So what are the implications for us today as we consider this future hope Paul taught to the early church? We are clear that Paul insisted on a communal life; a faith expressed not only in private, but also in public. He calls us to finding community spaces both locally (and I suggest globally), where the hope of the crucified Christ can be expressed as we engage in the world’s present suffering, in anticipation that ‘all things will be made new’ (2 Cor. 5:17). As “image bearers” of Christ’s hope, what modern responsibilities do we have as the ekklesia? Is our responsibility ecological; sustaining life and protecting the wonder of God’s creation? Surely we also have a responsibility to the world’s poor and to the socially and politically marginalised? I suggest we also care about other things as well, such as nurturing creativity in the arts; so that God’s beautiful story can be revealed in new prophetic ways. Our ecclesiology may also need to be challenged. How can we not just “do” church but “be” a missional community, reflective of God’s future Kingdom, without buying into the world’s consumerism and individualism? Finally, do we need to nurture a new generation of church songwriters and song leaders who promote sound theology in their worship? Whilst churches are beginning to wake up to the eschatological hope that Paul speaks of, our hymns and songs have yet to catch up. We need to rediscover songs (and write new ones) that collectively renew hearts and minds and broaden our perspective of community, mission and our future hope on earth. Many of today’s worship songs (and past hymns) are sadly filled with Gnostic imagery of heaven that indulge in personal introspection and “escapism”.[1]

________________________________________
[1] Examples of hymns and songs with questionable lyrics:
1. How Great Thou Art - and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
2. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of Your glory and grace.
3. Away in a Manger - and fit us for heaven, to thee with Thee there
4. Amazing Grace (“My Chains are Gone” version, last verse from J. Newton’s poem) - The earth shall soon dissolve like snow; the sun forbear to shine. But God who called me here below, will be forever mine.
5. This World Is Not My Home - This world is not my home. I'm just a-passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.
6. Lord I Lift Your Name On High - from the cross to the grave from the grave to the sky
7. Leader of Faithful Souls - travel to the sky…meeting our Saviour in the skies, our everlasting home above. This earth not our place
8. Love Divine, All Loves Excelling - Till in heaven we take our place.
9. Christ the Lord is Risen Today - Soar we now where Christ has led, following our exalted Head. Ours the cross, the grave, the skies

"Isaiah, Empire and an Ethiopian Eunuch:" Reimagining the Church's Response to Gender Identity

Australia Day: Celebration, commemoration or something else?

Why does the 26 th of January evoke such strong emotions and opinions in our country and where is... more Why does the 26 th of January evoke such strong emotions and opinions in our country and where is the church's voice within this national conversation? The purpose of my research entitled, "Australia Day: Celebration, Commemoration -or Something Else", is to help the church and broader community reflect on such questions and to explore some of the divergent views and attitudes that contribute to this contentious debate and to think about how our missional spirituality connects with this cultural event.

“Beyond Our Borders” A Study of the Canaanite Woman Narrative in Matthew’s Gospel

The Subversive and Transformative Genealogy of Jesus

Luthers 95 Theses Document Study

1483-1546), was born in Eisleben, Saxony. A student of Erfurt University (1501-1515), Luther was ... more 1483-1546), was born in Eisleben, Saxony. A student of Erfurt University (1501-1515), Luther was schooled in Classical Greek philosophy and the writings of St. Augustine and the mystics. In a time of existential crisis, Luther turned to monastic life (1505), entering a strict Augustinian order in a failed attempt to exorcise his personal demons through an unrelenting regime of penance, religious rituals and self-punishment. 1 Luther was later sent as an ordained priest to the Wittenberg Cloister (1508), where he would dedicate himself to studying the original Greek and Hebrew scriptures, as well as giving lectures in the University's Arts Faculty. As Professor of Bible from 1513, Luther had the time and motivation

New Testament Readings - Forum Reflections

The very first miracle Matthew chooses to tell us clearly demonstrates Jesus mission for the marg... more The very first miracle Matthew chooses to tell us clearly demonstrates Jesus mission for the marginalised that was proclaimed strongly in his Sermon on the Mount. Coming straight off the mountain, with large crowds following, Jesus does what any good preacher does do, he demonstrates and models his message. He doesn't just talk about the poor and the broken and

God at Work - In Sandals and Sneakers

A Critical Review of Three Readings on " Paul and Empire "

The Nature of Hope

So what are the implications for us today as we consider this future hope Paul taught to the earl... more So what are the implications for us today as we consider this future hope Paul taught to the early church? We are clear that Paul insisted on a communal life; a faith expressed not only in private, but also in public. He calls us to finding community spaces both locally (and I suggest globally), where the hope of the crucified Christ can be expressed as we engage in the world’s present suffering, in anticipation that ‘all things will be made new’ (2 Cor. 5:17). As “image bearers” of Christ’s hope, what modern responsibilities do we have as the ekklesia? Is our responsibility ecological; sustaining life and protecting the wonder of God’s creation? Surely we also have a responsibility to the world’s poor and to the socially and politically marginalised? I suggest we also care about other things as well, such as nurturing creativity in the arts; so that God’s beautiful story can be revealed in new prophetic ways. Our ecclesiology may also need to be challenged. How can we not just “do” church but “be” a missional community, reflective of God’s future Kingdom, without buying into the world’s consumerism and individualism? Finally, do we need to nurture a new generation of church songwriters and song leaders who promote sound theology in their worship? Whilst churches are beginning to wake up to the eschatological hope that Paul speaks of, our hymns and songs have yet to catch up. We need to rediscover songs (and write new ones) that collectively renew hearts and minds and broaden our perspective of community, mission and our future hope on earth. Many of today’s worship songs (and past hymns) are sadly filled with Gnostic imagery of heaven that indulge in personal introspection and “escapism”.[1]

________________________________________
[1] Examples of hymns and songs with questionable lyrics:
1. How Great Thou Art - and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
2. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of Your glory and grace.
3. Away in a Manger - and fit us for heaven, to thee with Thee there
4. Amazing Grace (“My Chains are Gone” version, last verse from J. Newton’s poem) - The earth shall soon dissolve like snow; the sun forbear to shine. But God who called me here below, will be forever mine.
5. This World Is Not My Home - This world is not my home. I'm just a-passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.
6. Lord I Lift Your Name On High - from the cross to the grave from the grave to the sky
7. Leader of Faithful Souls - travel to the sky…meeting our Saviour in the skies, our everlasting home above. This earth not our place
8. Love Divine, All Loves Excelling - Till in heaven we take our place.
9. Christ the Lord is Risen Today - Soar we now where Christ has led, following our exalted Head. Ours the cross, the grave, the skies

"Isaiah, Empire and an Ethiopian Eunuch:" Reimagining the Church's Response to Gender Identity

Australia Day: Celebration, commemoration or something else?

Why does the 26 th of January evoke such strong emotions and opinions in our country and where is... more Why does the 26 th of January evoke such strong emotions and opinions in our country and where is the church's voice within this national conversation? The purpose of my research entitled, "Australia Day: Celebration, Commemoration -or Something Else", is to help the church and broader community reflect on such questions and to explore some of the divergent views and attitudes that contribute to this contentious debate and to think about how our missional spirituality connects with this cultural event.