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Photo: Institute for Ecumenical Research

Photo: Institute for Ecumenical Research

The Harding Meyer Prize in Ecumenism has been awarded to Mennonite theologian Anne Cathy Graber, German Protestant theologian Jan Gross, and Roman Catholic theologian Jakob Karl Rinderknecht.

Harding Meyer, a leading figure in the ecumenical movement of the past 50 years, passed away in December 2018. He had a decisive influence on the international Lutheran-Catholic dialogue, and many methodological approaches of contemporary ecumenism can be traced back to him.

The Harding Meyer Prize, sponsored by the Institute for Ecumenical Research in Strasbourg, is awarded every two years. For the 2020 prize, ten outstanding works were submitted by applicants from different countries and different Christian traditions. The work of the three theologians constitutes an important contribution to Catholic-Lutheran dialogue as well as to intra-Protestant dialogue, continuing Harding Meyer's methodological approaches.

Graber’s winning work is entitled “Mary: A Study Comparing John Paul II’s Redemptoris Mater and Luther’s Commentary on the Magnificat in Light of Ecumenical Dialogues.”

Gross was awarded for “Plurality as a Challenge: The Leuenberg Agreement as a Mediation Model for Reformation Churches in Europe.”

Rinderknecht was honored for the study “Mapping the Differentiated Consensus of the Joint Declaration.”

The Harding Meyer Prize in Ecumenism is normally awarded during an international summer seminar organized by the Institute for Ecumenical Research each year. Due to COVID-19, the seminar will not take place this summer. The prize will therefore not be awarded until 2021, and the next award ceremony will take place in 2022.