Bernt Torvild Oftestad is a Norwegian historian.

Oftestad graduated from the MF Norwegian School of Theology

MF Norwegian School of Theology

The Norwegian School of Theology , is a private, independent, accredited Norwegian specialised university...

 in 1968 with the degree cand.theol.

Cand.theol.

Candidatus theologiæ , Candidata theologiæ , abbreviated cand. theol. is an academic degree with a long tradition, awarded after a six year higher education in theology in Denmark and Norway. In Norway, the title has remained after the "Quality Reform", though it is equivalent to a Master of...

, and in 1979 with the degree dr.theol.. His doctoral work was on the Norwegian author Ronald Fangen

Ronald Fangen

Ronald Fangen was a Norwegian novelist, essayist, playwright, psalmist, journalist and literary critic. He was born in Kragerø, and perished in a plane accident in 1946....

. He became a professor of church history at the MF Norwegian School of Theology in 1983 and in European cultural history in 2005.

Oftestad has published books and articles within the fields of historiography

Historiography

Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...

, Reformation history

History of Protestantism

The Protestant Reformation of the early 16th century was an attempt to reform the Catholic Church.German theologian Martin Luther wrote his Ninety-Five Theses on the sale of indulgences in 1517. Parallel to events in Germany, a movement began in Switzerland under the leadership of Ulrich Zwingli...

 and the Modern Era

History of Christianity

The history of Christianity concerns the Christian religion, its followers and the Church with its various denominations, from the first century to the present. Christianity was founded in the 1st century by the followers of Jesus of Nazareth who they believed to be the Christ or chosen one of God...

. He has also written on the Norwegian author and Nobel laureate Sigrid Undset

Sigrid Undset

Sigrid Undset was a Norwegian novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928.-Biography:Undset was born in Kalundborg, Denmark, but her family moved to Norway when she was two years old. In 1924, she converted to Catholicism and became a lay Dominican...

.

He converted to Roman Catholicism in 2000.