The Vatican has confirmed Pope Francis will participate in the presentation of the Ratzinger Foundation awards on Saturday, November 18.
The foundation was created to recognize the work of academics in theology, whether they're Catholic or not. In fact, the awards, which have been presented since 2011, tend to focus more on ecumenism.
This year, the winners are a Catholic, an Orthodox and a Lutheran.
The Catholic is German professor Karl-Heinz Menke, a member of the International Theological Commission.
The Lutheran winner is also German. His name is Theodor Dieter, and he is one of the most committed figures in ecumenical dialogue. He was one of the framers of the “Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification.” It's a document that is healing wounds of the past between Catholics, Lutherans and other reformed churches.
The last recipient is Estonian musical composer Arvo Pärt. He is one of the most-recognized artists in the sphere of sacred music and, thus, the liturgy. This was one of Benedict XVI's favorite fields.
