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  DOCTORAL PROGRAMME IN MULTI-MODAL SYSTEMS SCIENCE

"Paul calls charity to edify your neighbour... to teach the ignorant: to lift up him that is fallen: to comfort and courage him that is in heaviness: to help him that labours: to succour the needy."

Erasmus of Rotterdam, The Manual of the Christian Knight

"How richly deserving of honour are the liberal sciences, which polish man, so as to give him the dignity of true humanity!"

John Calvin, Commentary on Corinthians

"These arts are called humanities, therefore, let them restore our humanity. The good God entrusted them to us, let them makes us good."

Juan Luis Vives, The Teaching of the Disciplines or Christian Education
Holbein the Younger, Erasmus of Rotterdam


Holbein the Younger, Philipp Melancthon


Gerrit Dou, The Night School

"Indeed, the arts form a kind of whole world, within which all are bound and linked together, so that in order to grasp each one, much must be taken from the others."
Philipp Melancthon, On Philosophy



About Multi-Modal Systems Thinking

Multimodal systems thinking (i.e. epistemology) builds on the Philosophy of Christ as articulated by Erasmus and his followers. This tradition rejected the metaphysical speculations of Aristotle and inaugurated a new endeavour: the subordination of all scientific disciplines to the wisdom of Christ and his mission to redeem and civilise humanity through Christian education. Multimodal systems thinking carries this vision forward by drawing on insights from systems science and cybernetics, together with Dooyeweerd’s theory of modalities.




Programme's Objective

The programme seeks to equip researchers with an intellectual perspective distinct from modernism and post-modernism, one that is devoted to serving family and community through fresh approaches to economics, social structure, technology, and work.


Programme's Structure

Our students complete four modules that prepare them for their thesis. On completion, they defend their work before a committee of examiners, in keeping with established academic convention. In line with our commitment to academic and scientific freedom, the programme is independent and does not seek accreditation under the Australian Qualifications Framework or government recognition in Australia.


Description of the Modules

1 Emergence of Modern Thought and Society

A historical study of the second millennium introduces students to the times in which we live and the long processes that have shaped today’s social and cultural decline. Grasping these developments is essential for making an effective Christian contribution in the present.

2 Principles of Multi-Modal Systems Thinking

An introduction to Christian philosophy as a grammar of science, integrating the various disciplines into a unified body of knowledge that, like the Bible, centres on life rather than on Aristotelian notions of existence. The module is grounded in Herman Dooyeweerd’s theory of modalities and in systems science.

3 Introduction to Socio-Cybernetics

Socio-cybernetics examines the processing of information in Creation. This module seeks to learn from that order and apply its lessons to the handling of information in society, ensuring that information systems are designed to strengthen the family and community as the normal biblical structures of human life.

4 Multi-Modal Systems Research Methods

An introduction to modelling methods and software for social research consistent with Christian philosophy. This module equips students with the tools needed for their project and ensures that the research methods they employ remain in harmony with Christian scientific thought.