About Me

Hi, I’m Csilla Saysell, a Hungarian married to a Kiwi and living in Christchurch, New Zealand. My name is pronounced Chee-lah. Ever since I came to faith, Scripture has played a large part in my life from leading Bible studies early on, to studying at theological college/seminary (London Bible College/London School of Theology). I wanted to teach the Bible and so completed a PhD at Durham University (UK) under the supervision of Professor Walter Moberly. My dissertation was subsequently published as According to the Law: Reading Ezra 9-10 as Christian Scripture (Eisenbrauns, 2012). I taught Old Testament and Hebrew in a number of institutions since completing my doctorate: as guest lecturer at Cranmer Hall (Durham University), then at St John’s College, Nottingham and for seven years at Carey Baptist College, Auckland (NZ). Towards the end of 2019 I decided to go freelance in order to have a wider impact in a church context and do more church-facing teaching and preaching so as to help everyday Christians know and read their Bible better.

It concerns me that so many of my students and even more Christians in our churches do not know the story the Bible tells and increasingly do not have the skills to read it well. Sermons from the pulpit often lack depth and a faithful engagement with God’s Word, so Christians have a hard time learning healthy habits of reading and interpreting Scripture. On the other hand, academic knowledge can be dry, and the gems of insights buried under so much technical detail are completely inaccessible to the average Christian. It is my desire to bridge that gap, to bring the benefits of academic knowledge to practical living through Bible reading notes posted on this site.

I have been a regular contributor to Scripture Union’s Bible reading notes (Encounter with God series) since 2015 and I also preach from time-to-time at different churches. If you want to hear me, Greenlane Presbyterian Church, where I used to attend in Auckland, has sermons recorded on YouTube here. Earlier sermons are also available as podcasts here.

I had the privilege in 2019 to preach also at St Andrew’s Anglican Cathedral in Singapore during Holy Week. Not all of those messages have been recorded but the couple that have are available here.