As a theologian, Professor Johannes van Oort is best known for his specialty in the study of the church father Augustine, the gnostic world religion of Mani (Manichaeism), and the Gospel of Judas.
Van Oort studied Latin and Greek and subsequently theology at the University of Utrecht, where he also received his doctorate with highest distinction.
After a year as a teacher at the School of Education, he returned to the University of Utrecht as a junior researcher and later lecturer while also undertaking pastoral work.
He then took up a post at the Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences as senior research fellow. He also spent time as a fellow at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study, became visiting professor at the British Academy at Oxford, and finally full professor of Christianity and Gnosticism at the University of Nijmegen. He was appointed as Extraordinary Professor of Patristics at the University of Pretoria in 2000, a post he currently holds.
Van Oort’s most recent research has focused on the undetected influences of Gnostic-Christian Manichaeism upon St Augustine. As the most influential church father of Christian tradition, these studies have proved important for many Africans, as Augustine’s African descent has provided a sense of identification, illuminating a deeper understanding of this field.
He has published dozens of peer-reviewed articles since 2006 in such journals as Vigiliae Christianae; HTS Theological Studies; the Journal of Early Christian History; and Church History and Religious Culture. Over the years, he also contributed 25 books and numerous book chapters. He is the managing editor and book review editor of Vigiliae Christianae as well as managing editor of a number of book series such as the Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum and Nag Hammadi and Manichaean Studies.
As a student, he won the University of Utrecht Prize for Best Student in Theology and was one of only a very few non-Commonwealth citizens to receive a professorship from the British Academy.