Roelof "Roel" van den Broek (born 20 December 1931) is a Dutch religious scholar. He was a professor of Religious History of the

Hellenistic period In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; , formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public university, public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2023, it had an enrollment of ...

between 1979 and 1991. He subsequently was a professor of

history of Christianity The history of Christianity began with the life of Jesus, an itinerant Jewish preacher and teacher, who was Crucifixion of Jesus, crucified in Jerusalem . His followers proclaimed that he was the Incarnation (Christianity), incarnation of Go ...

until his retirement in 1997.

Career

Van den Broek was born in

Alphen aan den Rijn Alphen aan den Rijn (; or "Alphen on the Rhine") is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The city is situated on the banks of the river Oude Rijn (Utrecht and South Holland), Oude Rijn (Old Rhine ...

on 20 December 1931. He attended the gymnasium and later studied theology at Utrecht University. In 1972 he obtained his title of

Doctor Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

under

Gilles Quispel Gilles Quispel (30 May 1916 – 2 March 2006) was a Dutch theologian and historian of Christianity and Gnosticism. He was professor of early Christian history at Utrecht University. Early life and education Born in Rotterdam, he was the son of ...

, with a thesis titled: ''The myth of the Phoenix, according to classical and early Christian traditions''. He subsequently worked as scientific employee on the early history of Christianity. Van den Broek was appointed as (professor not paid by University funds) of Religious history of the

in 1979. In 1991 he was named professor of history of Christianity. He retired on 1 January 1997. Between 1998 and 2005 he was rector of education institute OVP. Van den Broek was elected a member of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...

in 1993. He received an honorary doctorate of the

Paris-Sorbonne University Paris-Sorbonne University (also known as Paris IV; ) was a public university, public research university in Paris, France, active from 1971 to 2017. It was the main inheritor of the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Paris. In 2018, it m ...

in 1999.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Broek, Roel van den 1931 births Living people Dutch historians of religion Historians of Christianity Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences People from Alphen aan den Rijn Utrecht University alumni Academic staff of Utrecht University Historians of Gnosticism