King Abdullah II of Jordan was recently awarded the 2018 Templeton Prize. He is renowned for his tireless work to promote peace and mutual respect both within Islam and between Islam and other religions.andnbsp;
Templeton Foundation President, Heather Templeton Dill presented the Prize. She described the Jordanian king as “a spiritual entrepreneur, a person shaped by temporal and political responsibilities, yet one who holds the conviction that religious belief and the free expression of religion are among humankind’s most important callings.”
King Abdullah accepted the prize on behalf of all Jordanians. He reaffirmed the commitment to fight extremism, saying Islam is not about “cherry picking verses from the Quran to justify a political agenda.” A portion of the £1.1 million prize funds, he said, will be used for restoration work in Jerusalem, including the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a major pilgrimage destination for Christians. andnbsp;
Prior to the King’s acceptance of the Prize, United Nations Secretary General, António Guterres, offered his congratulations and gave remarks in which he praised the king’s generosity for taking in waves of refugees fleeing conflict and persecution.andnbsp;
King Abdullah is the 48th recipient of the Templeton Prize. The Prize is awarded annually to an individual who, “through insight, discovery or practical work,” has helped to affirm life’s spiritual dimension.” It is one of the world’s largest annual individual awards and was established in 1972 by the late global investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton. Prior recipients include Mother Teresa, who received the inaugural award in 1973; the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
(For more details, seeandnbsp;indcatholicnews.com)
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