Peter Ben Smit

Prof. Peter Ben Smit is a Professor by Special Appointment at Utrecht University's Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, affiliated with the Faculty of Humanities. He also holds a professorship in Contextual Biblical Interpretation at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. His research focuses on Christian community structures, early church rituals, ecumenical theology, and the intersection of religion with gender, ecology, and societal models. Key projects include the NWO-funded 'Blueprints of Hope' examining European unification post-World War II. He has supervised multiple PhD students, including Ari Troost, Clemens van den Berg, and Ruth Nientiedt, whose works span topics from early Christian gender studies to ecumenical networks in European integration.

Research interests include: 1) Early Christian community dynamics and rituals within the Roman Empire, 2) Ecumenical relations between Anglican, Roman Catholic, and Orthodox traditions, and 3) Theology's engagement with ecological and participatory societal models. His work bridges historical scholarship with contemporary ecumenical challenges, emphasizing the Old Catholic tradition's role in global Christian unity.

Teaching responsibilities include Old Catholic Church Structures and contextual biblical interpretation. His publications span over 50 peer-reviewed articles and books, including Old Catholic Theology: An Introduction (2019) and contributions to Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. He delivered his inaugural lecture in 2011 and actively participates in international theological dialogues, such as those with the Mar Thoma Syrian Church.

Advising and grants: Supervised 5 completed PhD trajectories at Utrecht and co-supervised others. Involved in interdisciplinary projects like the EU integration research group. His work is supported by grants from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO).

Labs/teams: Member of the Humanities Research Institute for Philosophy and Religious Studies at Utrecht, contributing to the Institutions for Open Societies (IOS) research theme. Collaborates with the Old Catholic Seminary's theological initiatives.