The Vatican announced the names of the two winners of the 2018 Ratzinger Prize, which is considered the Nobel Prize in Theology.
They are German theologian, Marianne Schlosser, and Swiss architect, Mario Botta.
Professor Schlosser is one of five women on the International Theological Commission, which advises the pope in this area.
CARD. GIANFRANCO RAVASI
Ratzinger Award Committee
'We have chosen her for her competence in Medieval and Patristic Theology. She is an expert of the Late Middle Ages and of St. Bonaventure. We also know one of the first works of the theologian Ratzinger was 'St. Bonaventure and the theology of history,' published in 1959.'
FR. FEDERICO LOMBARDI
President, Joseph Ratzinger Foundation
'This award is a way of highlighting the contributions of women to Theology and Sacred Sciences.'
As Benedict XVI's theology attaches great importance to art, Swiss architect Mario Botta was also awarded the prize, for his research of religious space.
CARD. GIANFRANCO RAVASI
Ratzinger Award Committee
'Among the best architects of today, Mario Botta is the one who has built the most churches, about 20. He has made many sacred buildings, such as the Cymbalista synagogue in Tel Aviv, or a Chinese mosque in Yinchuan.”
The prize will be awarded on Nov.17 in the Vatican. It will be during the closing ceremony of an international congress on one of the most frequently asked political questions by Benedict XVI: Fundamental rights and conflicts between rights.
