Are you interested in investigating how the first Christian communities perceived themselves in light of God's future? And think about how this is relevant for churches today? The Protestant Theological University (PThU) has a vacancy for a PhD candidate for the project: ‘Prefiguring God’s Future: Paul’s Letters and Contemporary Ecclesiology in Dialogue’ (1 fte, 4 years or 0.8 fte, 5 years).

About the embedding of the research project
This research project is part of the broader research project Future-Oriented Church, which runs from 2025-2029. This overarching project involves collaboration between researchers from the PThU and staff from the PCN Service Centre, divided into nine sub-projects.

The PhD position falls under the sub-project ‘Prefiguration: the Church as a Foretaste of the Kingdom of God’. This sub-project investigates, through the study of a selection of relevant New Testament sources, the following question: How can prefigurative beliefs and practices in early Christianity, against the backdrop of the culture and literature of that time, open pathways in thinking about the nature of the church today (ecclesiology) and its vision for the future (eschatology), in light of contemporary cultural developments? This subproject explicitly seeks to enter into dialogue with systematic theology and ancient and contemporary philosophy. Thus, it seeks to provide insight into the exegetical, systematic, and practical implications of a vision of the church as a community where the ideal future of God’s kingdom is lived out in the here and now.

Through the notion of ‘prefiguration’, this sub-project is also closely involved with a broader initiative of researchers from four different Dutch universities and various disciplines, the ‘Prefiguration Collective’, who meet several times a year to shape research around religion and prefiguration.

About the research project
In close collaboration with those involved in this sub-project, the Prefiguration Collective, and the broader research group Future-Oriented Church, the PhD candidate investigates first-century sources that testify to a ‘prefigurative’ self-understanding of Christian communities, focusing on the letters of Paul of Tarsus. Although the emphasis of this research project lies in New Testament studies, the candidate is expected to make connections with specific thinkers and/or themes within systematic theology or contemporary philosophy. Original ideas regarding this requested interdisciplinary approach to the project are warmly encouraged.

Within this broader framework, candidates can develop specific research lines, including (but not limited to):

a comparative study between early Christian prefigurative and utopian thought in Paul and that of other ancient religious and/or philosophical groups
a more semantic-contextual approach, examining several key concepts (hope, promise, time, renewal, future) within the literary and cultural context of the first century
a text-oriented approach, taking several key Pauline texts as a starting point, whereby insights into the ancient context of these texts enter into dialogue with the reception of the same texts by recent (systematic) theologians or philosophers
a broad thematic focus, for example, the relationship between ethics and eschatology, connecting recent developments in Pauline studies (including apocalyptic interpretations of Paul) and systematic theology

For more information about the subproject and the ideas behind it, see the Explanatory Notes.

What do we ask?

a master’s degree in Theology, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Classics, or a related field
good command of Ancient Greek, with demonstrable experience in studying primary sources in this language. Knowledge of Latin and Hebrew is an advantage
experience in research at the intersection of Biblical Studies and Philosophy or Systematic Theology, or a demonstrable ability to develop such interdisciplinary research
ability to collaborate and make connections between your own research, that of other researchers within the Future-Oriented Church project, and societal and ecclesiastical partners
excellent oral and written command of the English language. Additionally, oral and written command of the Dutch language, or willingness to invest in this during the project, with a view to participation in the Future-Oriented Church research group

What do we offer?
We offer a position of 1.0 fte for the duration of one year. After assessment and positive evaluation of progress, an extension of 3 years will follow. A position of 0.8 fte over a total of 5 years is also possible.

The salary follows the collective labour agreement of the Dutch Universities for PhD candidates (scale P) and starts in the first year of employment at € 2,901 gross per month for a full-time position. The final scale is € 3,707 gross per month for a full-time position. Additionally, there is a reimbursement for travel costs for commuting and business trips. There is also a budget for attending conferences, symposia, and training.

We provide the embedding of your research within teams consisting of experienced and novice researchers: the PThU project Future-Oriented Church and the inter-university Prefiguration Collective. Additionally, you will be organizationally part of the chair group New Testament & Historical Theology. You will have a supervision team that meets with you approximately every four to six weeks to discuss the research, consisting of Dr. Suzan Sierksma-Agteres, Prof. Dr. Edward van ’t Slot, and Prof. Dr. Annette Merz.

We offer ongoing training in theological research through (mutually agreed components of) the (Initial) Graduate School of the PThU, NOSTER, and participation in (international) networks that enhance your knowledge, network, and skills. We provide a workplace in the centre of Utrecht and the possibility of remote work.

About the PThU
At the PThU, you work in an environment where fascination for what faith does to people prevails. From this fascination, the PThU conducts research into developments in faith, church, society, and world Christianity. The university is connected with the Protestant Church in the Netherlands. For more information about our organisation, see www.pthu.nl.

More information
If you have questions about the position, please contact the chair of the Appointment Advisory Committee and first supervisor of this project, Dr. Suzan Sierksma-Agteres (sjmagteres@pthu.nl) or Prof. Dr. Edward van ’t Slot (evantslot@pthu.nl), who takes on the more systematic-theological aspect of the supervision. For questions about the Future-Oriented Church Being project, you can contact one of the project leaders of Future-Oriented Church Being, Dr. Marten van der Meulen (mvandermeulen@pthu.nl).

Application
You can respond until 30 April 2025. Please send with your application:

a motivation letter
a curriculum vitae
a copy of the master’s thesis or an equivalent publication
a brief (maximum two pages A4) elaboration of how you would develop this project in line with the description

If you respond via the button, you can upload a maximum of two documents. Therefore, please add your publication and elaboration to your motivation letter or send them by email to sollicitatie@pthu.nl.

The first interviews will take place in the week of 19 May.

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