Prizes and Awards

The St. Thomas Philosophy of Religion Project announces two prizes for work in the philosophy of religion and/or philosophical theology. Both prizes have been made possible by a generous grant from the John Templeton Foundation.

2009 Excellence in Philosophy of Religion Prize

The 2009 Excellence in Philosophy of Religion Prize attempts to identify the three best papers published in 2009 in the areas of philosophy of religion or philosophical theology. A panel of three expert reviewers will select three winners. Each winner will receive an award of $2,000.

Papers should have a date of publication of 2009. (If the actual paper will not appear until 2010, that is acceptable, as long as the official publication date of the journal issue or book is 2009.) Preference will be given to papers that are published in academic forums (e.g., peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes). Papers will be judged on quality of argumentation, clarity of exposition, the significance of the positions argued for, and the degree to which the paper advances the discussion on the topic in question. Entries are limited to one per person. Self nominations are encouraged. Nominations of a paper by someone other than the author(s) are accepted, but only with permission of the author. Papers should be published in English.

Please submit entries by email to ustphilrel@stthomas.edu, and write "Excellence in Philosophy of Religion Prize" in the subject line of your email. Attach an electronic copy of your paper (Word or pdf) to your email. Please also include your contact information and a bibliographical entry for your paper in the body of your email. The deadline for submissions is March 31, 2010. Winners will be announced September 15, 2010.

The C.S. Lewis Book Prize

The C.S. Lewis Book Prize recognizes the best recent book in the philosophy of religion or philosophical theology written for a general audience. A panel of three expert reviewers will select one first place winner, who will receive a $15,000 prize, and one second place winner, who will receive a $7,500 prize.

Entries will be judged on quality of argumentation, importance of the positions argued for, level of accessibility to a general audience, and stylistic or literary merits.

Books submitted should have a publication date of 2007 or later. Books that are in press but have not yet reached the shelves are eligible. Only books published in English are eligible. To make a submission, please send a cover letter containing your contact information and three copies of the monograph to:

C.S. Lewis Book Prize
The St. Thomas Philosophy of Religion Project
Department of Philosophy, JRC 241
University of St. Thomas
2115 Summit Avenue
Saint Paul, MN 55105-1096

If published reviews of the book are available, they may be included with your submission. The submission period will begin on May 1, 2010 and close on March 1, 2012. The winner will be announced in September 2012.

Questions on either prize can be directed to Dr. Michael Rota at ustphilrel@stthomas.edu.