Recovering the Sound of Early Christian Worship
Morling College, Sydney Campus
Saturday, August 16 | 9:30am – 4:00pm
The First Hymn documentary has captured imaginations across Australia by raising awareness of the earliest known Christian hymn with music and lyrics and inspiring fresh conversations about worship in the early church and its implications for today.
Join us for a unique one-day conference where you will:
Experience insights from renowned scholars and ministry leaders as we delve into this ancient hymn celebrating Jesus as divine, crucified, and risen.
August 16, 2025
9:30am – 4:00pm
Doors open at 9:00 am
Morling College, Level 1, 5 Saunders Close
Macquarie Park, NSW
$25
Includes morning tea and light refreshments
The First Hymn follows historian John Dickson from the windswept ruins of Oxyrhynchus in Egypt, where papyrus P.Oxy 1786, the world’s oldest Christian hymn with music and lyrics, was unearthed—to the studios and concert halls where that ancient melody is reborn.
Along the way Oxford classicist Prof Armand D’Angour, early-church music expert Charles Cosgrove, and a chorus of theologians and historians reveal how the 3rd-century lyrics proclaimed Christ’s divinity long before creeds were formalised.
Grammy-winning worship writers Ben Fielding and Chris Tomlin then collaborate with Coptic vocalists, orchestras and choirs to translate the fragment’s haunting notation into a soaring modern anthem, debuted in a live concert in Texas.
Part detective story, part recording-studio chronicle, The First Hymn bridges 1,800 years of worship, inviting viewers to hear, and sing, the faith of the earliest believers in a fresh voice today.
John Dickson is an author, historian, and public communicator.
Host of Undeceptions, Australia’s leading religion podcast.
He holds a PhD in Ancient History and serves as the Jean Kvamme Distinguished Professor of Biblical Evangelism at Wheaton College.
Armand D’Angour is Professor of Classical Languages and Literature at the University of Oxford and a Fellow at Jesus College. A specialist in ancient Greek music and culture, his innovative research has contributed to the reconstruction of the sounds of ancient Greek poetry and song.
Edwina Murphy is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) at the Australian University of Theology.
A respected scholar in early church history, her work focuses on Latin Christianity and scriptural interpretation.
She is the author of The Bishop and the Apostle and co-editor of several volumes on early Christian ministry.
David Starling is Vice-Principal (Academic) at Morling College, where he teaches New Testament, Hermeneutics, and Greek.
His research focuses on the interpretation of the New Testament within its Jewish and Graeco-Roman contexts, and includes published commentaries on 1 Corinthians, Ephesians, and Colossians.
David Höhne is the Academic Dean and Senior Lecturer in Christian Thought at Moore Theological College in Sydney.
With nearly two decades of ministry and teaching at Moore, his theological work centres on Trinitarian doctrine and its implications for Christian life and worship.
Liz Mansour is Chief of Staff at Anglican Deaconess Ministries.
She previously served for 16 years with the Sydney University Evangelical Union, training leaders and shaping ministry strategy.
Liz will serve as Master of Ceremonies for the conference, bringing clarity and warmth throughout the day.
Trace the hymn’s journey from ancient texts to modern ears.
Unpack the rich doctrine embedded in its lyrics.
Experience how scholars bring the original melody back to life.
Discuss applications for worship today with practitioners.
Morling College
Level 1, 5 Saunders Close,
Macquarie Park, NSW
Parking at BaptistCare Willandra (adjacent campus).
Free, attended parking available throughout the day.
Proceeds from this event will contribute in part to the ongoing project work of The Bible Society of Egypt who are in partnership with Bible Society Australia.
