ISCAST’s 15th Biennial Conference on Science and Christianity

COSAC 2026Entangled Worlds: Seeking Understanding Through Faith and Science

6–8 November 2026 Melbourne, Australia
Hybrid Event In Person & Online
Watch the speakers in conversation See the program
COSAC 2026 attendees talking during a break at Catholic Theological College

Thank You

Thank You for Joining Us

Thank you to everyone who joined us for COSAC 2026, in Melbourne and online, and to the speakers, presenters, and volunteers who brought it together.

Recordings of the Saturday and Sunday sessions will be emailed to registered attendees in the coming weeks.

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About the Conference

A Space for Robust and Generous Dialogue

COSAC 2024 panel discussion COSAC 2024 audience and speaker

COSAC 2026 explored the vibrant history and prospects of the dialogue between science and religion.

Scholars have long debated how science and faith meet. Some see them as fundamentally unintelligible to one another. Others see a deeply fruitful partnership where different approaches offer complementary insights into the nature of reality.

Today, new thinking is breathing fresh life into the field. Movements like “science-engaged theology” and work described as “after science and religion” are renewing the conversation. These developments reexamine old assumptions to connect rigorous scholarship with the lived experiences of churches, professionals, and the wider community.

The conference offered a space for robust, generous discussion, bringing together scholars, church leaders, educators, and curious laypeople to reflect on enduring questions:

01 How does our faith inform our understanding of the natural world?
02 How can scientific discovery enrich the life of the church?
03 In a fractured world, how can we foster a dialogue that is intellectually serious, pastorally attentive, and publicly engaged?

Supported by

We are very grateful to Catholic Theological College (a college of the University of Divinity) for its generous hospitality in hosting COSAC 2026 and for its support of the conference. We were also delighted to present the Friday evening public lecture in partnership with Scots’ Church Melbourne.

Keynote Speakers

Meet the Speakers

Peter Harrison

Australia

Peter Harrison

Professorial Research Fellow, University of Notre Dame Australia

Nicola Hoggard Creegan

Aotearoa New Zealand

Nicola Hoggard Creegan

Director, New Zealand Christians in Science

Nick Spencer

United Kingdom

Nick Spencer

Senior Fellow, Theos; author of Magisteria

Paul Tyson

Australia

Paul Tyson

Philosophical theologian; author of A Christian Theology of Science

Read the full speaker biosWatch the speakers in conversation

Program

Three Days in Melbourne and Online

A Friday evening public lecture, then two days of keynote addresses and paper sessions. Saturday and Sunday were in person at Catholic Theological College and online via Zoom.

  • 4 keynote speakers
  • 30+ papers
  • 16 themed sessions

Friday 6 November · 7–9:30 p.m.

Public Lecture

Werner Brodbeck Hall, Melbourne CBD. In person only.

  • Peter HarrisonTalk and conversation
  • Nick SpencerTalk and conversation
  • James CarletonModerator

Saturday 7 November · 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m.

Keynotes and Papers

Two keynotes, a plenary session, and two rounds of paper sessions.

  • Nicola Hoggard CreeganEntangled Worlds: Science, Theology and the Disruption of Mātauranga Māori in Aotearoa
  • Peter HarrisonSeeking Understanding Through Faith—and Science?

Sunday 8 November · 9 a.m.–3 p.m.

Keynotes and Papers

Two keynotes, a plenary session, and two rounds of paper sessions.

  • Nick SpencerEntangled Humans: What Science Can (and Cannot) Tell Us About Ourselves
  • Paul TysonNo Conflict? Thomas Huxley’s Scientific Naturalism and the De-Christianisation of the West
See the full program