Research output per year
Research output per year
Prof. van den Brink holds the Chair of Theology & Science at the VU School of Religion and Theology. His research is mainly focused on the interface of Christian theology and the natural sciences, but Van den Brink also participates in wider debates in the fields of science-and-religion and the Christian doctrine of creation. While his previous work focused on the interaction (and specifically the compatibility) of Christian theology and theories of biological evolution, his current research is mainly concentrated in the following two projects:
(1) The nature and future of theology as an academic discipline; the output of this project is mainly in the form of scholarly papers, an edited volume on "progress in theology" and related contributions. The project is part of FOAT, a VU-based research group working on the Future of Academic Theology led by Van den Brink
(2) A theology of the Anthropocene: how do the many challenges of the Anthropocene (like the global climate crisis) interact with existing patterns of Christian thinking and what forms of theological innovation and/or retrieval may be required in light of these challenges?
Prof. van den Brink is a Fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion (ISSR) and a life-long member of the Center for Theological Inquiry (Princeton, NJ). He also participates in the Abraham Kuyper Center for Science and the Big Questions at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. He spent the Fall semester of 2021 as a Visiting Fellow of the Henry Center for Theological Understanding (HCTU) at Trinity International University, Deerfield IL.
In 2017, Van den Brink devised the plan to compose a "Science Bible" - a modern Bible translation along with hermeneutical notes which interpret the gap between the ancient near eastern and hellenistic cultures in which the Bible took shape and our own science-imbued world. This "Bible with contributions on faith, culture and science" was published in 2022 by the Dutch Bible Society, comprising contributions of 60+ Bible-loving scientists and scholars of all sorts.
In 2024, along with two colleagues Van den Brink published an edited volume on Progress in Theology (with Routledge). In 2025 his Dutch book Het experiment van broeder Juniper - a collection of 12 essays on interactions between science and religion - came out at KokBoekencentrum (Utrecht). The next book project is entitled Towards a Theology of the Anthropocene (currently under review at an English publisher).
Since Van den Brink currently supervises some 15 PhD-students, potential new PhD-candidates in the field are discouraged to turn to him for supervision.
As a member of the works council in his faculty, Van den Brink in particular strives for democratization of policy-making procedures in the university.
Most recent update: August 11, 2025
* Science, Religion and Theology
* Systematic Theology - Reformed and Ecumenical
* Christian Theology and Evolutionary Theory
* Theology and the Philosophy of Science
* Religion, Theology and Climate Change
Ancillary activities are updated daily
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review
Research output: Chapter in Book / Report / Conference proceeding › Entry for encyclopedia/dictionary › Academic › peer-review
Research output: Book / Report › Book › Professional
Research output: Chapter in Book / Report / Conference proceeding › Chapter › Academic › peer-review
Research output: Book / Report › Book › Professional
| van den Brink, G. 1/09/25 → 31/08/26 |
Course
van den Brink, G. (Project Researcher), Bouman, M. (Project Researcher), van der Linden, M. (Project Researcher), Smalbrugge, M. (Project Researcher), Tolstoj, K. (Project Researcher), Teeuwen, M. (Project Researcher), Thieme, M. (Project Researcher) & Alinurdin, D. (Project Researcher)
1/01/24 → 1/01/29
Project: Research
van den Brink, G. (Project Researcher)
1/09/21 → 31/08/28
Project: Research
van den Brink, G. (Principal Investigator) & Van Eyghen, H. (Project Researcher)
1/09/17 → 1/10/19
Project: Research
Koster, E. (Project Researcher), de Ridder, J. (Project Researcher), van den Brink, G. (Project Researcher), Peels, R. (Project Researcher), Bouter, L. (Project Researcher), Bisschop, W. T. C. (Project Researcher), van Woudenberg, R. (Principal Investigator), Haven, T. (Project Researcher) & Rutten, E. (Project Researcher)
1/09/16 → 31/07/21
Project: Research
Peels, R. (Organiser), Rulkens, C. (Organiser), van den Brink, G. (Organiser) & Van Eyghen, H. (Organiser)
Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Conference › Academic
Peels, R. (Organiser), van Woudenberg, R. (Organiser) & van den Brink, G. (Organiser)
Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Conference › Academic
van den Brink, G. (Speaker)
Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Academic
van den Brink, G. (Speaker)
Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Professional
van den Brink, G. (Invited speaker)
Activity: Lecture / Presentation › Academic
van den Brink, G. (Recipient), Paas, S. (Recipient), Peels, R. (Recipient), van Urk-Coster, E. (Recipient) & Zwiep, A. (Recipient), 2021
Prize / Grant: Prize › Academic
van den Brink, G. (Recipient), van Urk-Coster, E. (Recipient), Peels, R. (Recipient), Paas, S. (Recipient) & Zwiep, A. (Recipient), 8 Apr 2021
Prize / Grant: Grant › Academic
24/12/22
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Public Engagement Activities
6/08/24
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Public Engagement Activities