The award Per artem ad Deum (Through Art to God) is bestowed every year by the Pontifical Council for Culture for excellent achievements in culture, especially for supporting intercultural dialogue. The previous recipients of this award include the film director Krzysztof Zanussi and the composers Krzysztof Penderecki and Arvo Pärt.
The Pontifical Council for Culture was founded in 1982 by John Paul II and its current president is Cardinal Giafranco Ravasi. Professor Halík lectured together with Ravasi as part of Benedict XVI’s initiative „Courtyard of the Gentiles“.
Tomáš Halík, priest, university professor and writer,is going to receive the medal Per artem ad Deum for „his testimony of true faith, participation in the life of the society, and public protests against race discrimination“ during the festival Sacroexpo in Poland in July. There will be two other recipients of the award: Polish astronomer and theologian Michael Heller, the only Polish recipient of the Templeton Prize, and the German artist Claudia Henzler.
