Prize-winning writer says media and religion can engage positively
-30/10/06
Many chur
Prize-winning writer says media and religion can engage positively
-30/10/06
Many church leaders do not understand what journalism is all about, while the secular media is often suspicious of religion, says Portuguese journalist Antonio Marujo, this year’s winner of the John Templeton Prize for the European Religion Writer.
“In the eyes of many church leaders, the media are just a modern form of pulpit. This is one of the biggest misunderstandings,” said Marujo, religion writer with Publico, a Portuguese daily newspaper, delivering the recent annual lecture that goes with the prize in Lisbon.
He noted, “As a professional journalist I have to write on religious institutions, of course. But I find it equally important to give exposure to unknown voices, to give voice to humble but significant faith experiences. Because the religious dimension is a fundamental part of the human being, still today.”
It is the second time that Marujo has won the prize, administered by the Conference of European Churches on behalf of the US-based John Templeton Foundation. It honours journalists who write about religion in the secular press with accuracy, impartiality and in an ecumenical spirit.
“The secular media show a great ignorance of and suspicion towards religion,” said Marujo, who wrote for the weekly Expresso newspaper and the daily Diario de Lisboa before taking up his post with Publico. “On the other hand, religious institutions show a lack of confidence in the media, and seem to be unable to understand the fundamentals of journalism as well as to grasp the challenges of modern information technology.”
Marujo’s entry for the Templeton prize included a news story titled “Bono Vox, drinker of wine and reader of the Bible” (on an exhibition in Lisbon on the relevance of the Bible), a feature story on the Christian meaning of light, and an interview with Jose Tolentino Mendonca, a priest, poet and biblical scholar, titled “Jesus is a fascinating mystery, still unfinished”.
Born in 1961, Marujo was named in May as the European Religion Writer of the Year 2005. He previously won the 1995 award.
With acknowledgements to ENI. Ecumenical News International is jointly sponsored by the World Council of Churches, the Lutheran World Federation, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, and the Conference of European Churches.
Prize-winning writer says media and religion can engage positively
-30/10/06
Many church leaders do not understand what journalism is all about, while the secular media is often suspicious of religion, says Portuguese journalist Antonio Marujo, this year’s winner of the John Templeton Prize for the European Religion Writer.
“In the eyes of many church leaders, the media are just a modern form of pulpit. This is one of the biggest misunderstandings,” said Marujo, religion writer with Publico, a Portuguese daily newspaper, delivering the recent annual lecture that goes with the prize in Lisbon.
He noted, “As a professional journalist I have to write on religious institutions, of course. But I find it equally important to give exposure to unknown voices, to give voice to humble but significant faith experiences. Because the religious dimension is a fundamental part of the human being, still today.”
It is the second time that Marujo has won the prize, administered by the Conference of European Churches on behalf of the US-based John Templeton Foundation. It honours journalists who write about religion in the secular press with accuracy, impartiality and in an ecumenical spirit.
“The secular media show a great ignorance of and suspicion towards religion,” said Marujo, who wrote for the weekly Expresso newspaper and the daily Diario de Lisboa before taking up his post with Publico. “On the other hand, religious institutions show a lack of confidence in the media, and seem to be unable to understand the fundamentals of journalism as well as to grasp the challenges of modern information technology.”
Marujo’s entry for the Templeton prize included a news story titled “Bono Vox, drinker of wine and reader of the Bible” (on an exhibition in Lisbon on the relevance of the Bible), a feature story on the Christian meaning of light, and an interview with Jose Tolentino Mendonca, a priest, poet and biblical scholar, titled “Jesus is a fascinating mystery, still unfinished”.
Born in 1961, Marujo was named in May as the European Religion Writer of the Year 2005. He previously won the 1995 award.
With acknowledgements to ENI. Ecumenical News International is jointly sponsored by the World Council of Churches, the Lutheran World Federation, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, and the Conference of European Churches.