The Francisco de Vitoria University and the Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI Foundations have already identified the winners of the 2nd edition of the “Expanded Reason Awards.”
The “Expanded Reason Awards” award 100,000 euros (divided in four prizes of 25,000 euros) to those University researchers and docents that engage in “a dialogue, from their particular science, with Philosophy and/or Theology,” explains Francisco de Vitoria University.
The ceremony to award the prizes will take place on Monday, September 24, in the Casina Pio IV, headquarters of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, in the Vatican Gardens.
The celebration is being held in the framework of an International Symposium, which will reflect on the meaning and proposals for dialogue between Science, Philosophy and Theology in today’s international university community. The winners of the 2nd edition, as well as members of the jury and finalists, are invited to this Congress. Registration for the rest of the participants opened on July 20 at http://expandedreasonawards.org/.
The Jury’s Decision
The International Jury of the 2nd edition of the “Expanded Reason Prizes,” met in Madrid’s Francisco de Vitoria University on July 18-19, 2018. The jury included Don Daniel Sada, Father Federico Lombardi, SJ, Don Rafael Vicuna, Don Stefano Zamagni, Don Andrew Briggs, Don Paolo Benanti and Don Javier Maria Paredes.
The jury’s decision, which took into account the challenge to establish a dialogue between particular sciences with Philosophy and Theology, in line with Benedict XVI’s thought, and exactly as proposed by the “Expanded Reason Prizes,” awarded prizes to the following University researchers and docents:
— In the RESEARCH CATEGORY
Javier Sanchez Canizares for “Singular Universe,” of the University of Navarre, Spain.
Juan Arana for “Conscience Explained. Essays on the Limits of Naturalist Understanding,” of the University of Seville, Spain.
— With SPECIAL MENTION in this Research Category
Brad Gregory for “The Unintended Reformation: How a Religious Revolution Secularized Society,” of Notre Dame University, Indiana, United States.
David Wilkinson for “Science, Religion and the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence,” of Durham University, United Kingdom.
— In the EDUCATION CATEGORY
Gonzalo Genova and Maria del Rosario Gonzalez for “Ethics for Engineers: Between Survival and Dignity,” of Madrid’s Carlos III University and the Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain, respectively.
John C. Cavadini, James Martin, Patricia Bellm and Christopher T. Baglow for “Catholic Educators to Engage in the Dialogue between Science and Religion, of Notre Dame University, Indiana, United States.
The object of the continuation of these Prizes, in addition to recognizing researchers and docents, is to create an “Expanded Reason Community,”which will provide a meeting place for all researchers pursuing Benedict XVI’s intuition to expand the horizons of reason.
The 1st Edition received works from 170 universities and 30 countries, whose winners were from Universities in Argentina, the United States and Poland.
