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Anglican leader honored for writings with Jesuit prize
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NEW YORK (CNS) -- For his writings that span theology, lives of saints, religious identity, poetry, the 9/11 terrorist attacks and contemporary television themes, Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury, England, was presented Jan. 25 with the 2009 Campion Award for Achievement in Christian Letters. In an informal ceremony at America House, a Jesuit publishing company and residence, Father Drew Christiansen, editor-in-chief of America magazine, noted that the event fell most appropriately on the last day of the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the modern ecumenical movement among the churches of Scotland. Though the award recipient was chosen months ago, Father Christiansen said Archbishop Williams was unable to be in New York until late January, causing the ceremony to be held on St. Edmund Campion's birthday, the feast of the conversion of St. Paul and the end of Christian unity week. Recalling some of the recent efforts toward Christian unity such as recognition of both Protestant and Catholic martyrs by both the Church of England and the late Pope John Paul II, Father Christiansen said the Campion award to Archbishop Williams is a further step on that path. "It is an ecumenical event blessed and guided by our martyred forebears, both Anglican and Catholic," he said. "It is also a celebration of our common ministry of the word."
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