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(Photo credit: Templeton Prize: / Ilan Godfrey)
Tutu celebrating Templeton Prize win with members of the Cape Town Opera Voice of the Nation Ensemble
Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu with members of the Cape Town Opera Voice of the Nation Ensemble, at the Templeton Prize celebration at St. George’s Cathedral in Cape Town last April.2 of 2
Desmond Tutu celebrates Templeton Prize win
Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu celebrated his Templeton Prize win recently at the St. George’s Cathedral in Cape Town last April.
Desmond Tutu, the former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, will be presented with the 2013 Templeton Prize at a ceremony in London’s Guildhall next Tuesday 21st May starting at 5pm.
The event will be attended by dignitaries from the Anglican Church, leaders from other faiths, Ambassadors and High Commissioners, members of both Houses of Parliament and distinguished individuals and representatives from charities and campaigning groups for Africa.
The £1.1 million award has been made in recognition of Tutu’s lifelong work in advancing spiritual principles such as love and forgiveness which have helped to liberate people around the world. The award will be presented by Heather Templeton Dill representing the John Templeton Foundation.
The Templeton Prize has been the world's largest annual monetary award given to an individual for the past 40 years. Tutu joins a distinguished group of 42 former recipients including last year’s Laureate, the Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. It celebrates living persons who have made an exceptional contribution to affirming life’s spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical works.
Musical performers at this year’s ceremony will include British singer-songwriter Annie Lennox who received an OBE two years ago for her charity work fighting AIDS and poverty in Africa. Also appearing will be American Grammy award-winning composer Eric Whitacre, leading his own choir in a performance of his celebrated work Lux Aurumque. Members of the London African Gospel Choir will add their own mixture of song and dance to the live performing entertainment.
Established in 1972 by the late global investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton, the Templeton Prize is a cornerstone of the John Templeton Foundation’s international efforts to serve as a philanthropic catalyst for discoveries relating to the Big Questions of human purpose and ultimate reality.
In response to the Templeton Prize announcement last month, Tutu said: “When you are in a crowd and you stand out from the crowd it’s usually because you are being carried on the shoulders of others. I want to acknowledge all the wonderful people who accepted me as their leader at home and so to accept this prize in a representative capacity.”