Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion

"The Templeton Prize honors a living person who has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life’s spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical works. Established in 1972 by the late Sir John Templeton, the Prize aims, in his words, to identify "entrepreneurs of the spirit"—outstanding individuals who have devoted their talents to expanding our vision of human purpose and ultimate reality. The Prize celebrates no particular faith tradition or notion of God, but rather the quest for progress in humanity’s efforts to comprehend the many and diverse manifestations of the Divine." The Prize is a monetary award in the amount of £1,100,000 sterling.

Judges
Accessed June 2013:


 * H.R.H. Princess Areej Ghazi - is the Founder, Director and Curriculum Designer for The School of Life in Amman, Jordan. She serves as the Senior Advisor for Educational Affairs at The Royal Aal-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought and is the Head of the Curriculum Committee for Social Studies National Curriculum at the Jordanian Ministry of Education.
 * Stephen Barr - is a professor in the department of physics and astronomy at the University of Delaware, and a member of its Bartol Research Institute, with primary research in theoretical particle physics and cosmology.
 * Russell Cowburn - is the Director of Research of the Thin Film Magnetism group in the Department of Physics at Cambridge University.
 * Gurcharan Das - is an author, columnist and management consultant, and the former CEO of Procter & Gamble India.
 * Matthieu Ricard - is a Buddhist monk, author and photographer. He is the Founding director of Karuna-Shechen, a charitable non-profit association.
 * Vladimir Shmaliy - is an associate professor of theology and vice rector for academic affairs at the Moscow Theological Academy and also holds a master's degree in applied physics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology.
 * Esther Sternberg - is Director of Research at the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona at Tucson, AZ and is Research Professor at American University (Washington, DC).
 * Faraneh Vargha-Khadem - is Professor of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London Institute of Child Health and Director of the UCL Centre for Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience.
 * Miroslav Volf - is the Director of the Yale Center for Faith & Culture and Henry B. Wright Professor of Theology at Yale University Divinity School.

Winners
Accessed June 2013:


 * Desmond Tutu (2013)
 * Dalai Lama (2012)
 * Martin J. Rees (2011)
 * Francisco J. Ayala (2010)
 * Bernard d'Espagnat (2009)
 * Michael Heller (2008)
 * Charles Taylor (2007)
 * John D. Barrow (2006)
 * Charles H. Townes (2005)
 * George F. R. Ellis (2004)
 * Holmes Rolston III (2003)
 * John C. Polkinghorne (2002)
 * Arthur Peacocke (2001)
 * Freeman J. Dyson (2000)
 * Ian Graeme Barbour (1999)
 * Sigmund Sternberg (1998)
 * Pandurang Shastri Athavale (1997)
 * William R. "Bill" Bright (1996)
 * Paul Davies (1995)
 * Michael Novak (1994)
 * Charles W. Colson (1993)
 * Kyung-Chik Han (1992)
 * Lord Jakobovits (1991)
 * Baba Amte (1990 ; awarded jointly)
 * L. Charles Birch (1990 ; awarded jointly)
 * Lord MacLeod (1989 ; awarded jointly)
 * Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker (1989 ; awarded jointly)
 * Inamullah Khan (1988)
 * Stanley L. Jaki (1987)
 * James McCord (1986)
 * Alister Hardy (1985)
 * Michael Bourdeaux (1984)
 * Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1983)
 * Billy Graham (1982)
 * Cicely Saunders (1981)
 * Ralph Wendell Burhoe (1980)
 * Nikkyo Niwano (1979)
 * Thomas F. Torrance (1978)
 * Chiara Lubich (1977)
 * Leon Joseph Cardinal Suenens (1976)
 * Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1975)
 * Brother Roger (1974)
 * Mother Teresa (1973)

Contact
Web: http://www.templetonprize.org

Related Sourcewatch

 * Templeton Foundation