Notre Dame theologian John Cavadini to receive the 2026 Ratzinger Prize

The Vatican's Joseph Ratzinger-Benedict XVI Foundation has awarded the 2026 Ratzinger Prize to the American theologian John Cavadini, a professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. The prize recognizes his work on patristics, the study of the early Church Fathers, and in particular his focus on the thought of St. Augustine. Pope Leo XIV will preside at the ceremony at the Vatican on December 19.

The foundation's president, Father Roberto Regoli, stressed Cavadini's intellectual and pastoral commitment. His career has been devoted to spreading the faith and to theological study. Cavadini thanked the foundation for the award and said his model had been Origen of Alexandria, the third-century theologian who sought to be a "vir ecclesiasticus," a man of the Church. "At Notre Dame I have been able to live my vocation as a man of the Church and, at the same time, as a man of the academy," he said.

Cavadini has also worked on contemporary theology. According to Regoli, he has written extensively on the works of Benedict XVI and on the theology of Pope Leo XIV. For years he directed the McGrath Institute for Church Life at Notre Dame, where he promoted theological reflection and the life of faith in the United States and abroad.

Cavadini is the 32nd scholar to receive the Ratzinger Prize. It has been awarded since 2011 for scholarly merit in theology and in related fields such as philosophy, law and the arts.

The foundation has also scheduled three international congresses to mark the centenary of Joseph Ratzinger's birth, which falls in 2027. The first will be held November 2 to 4 at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, under the title "Beauty Will Save Us: Wonder and Hope in the Works of Joseph Ratzinger-Benedict XVI." The symposium will address the disconnect between technical possibilities and moral energy, a central theme in Benedict XVI's thought.

The other two congresses will be held in Minnesota and in Nairobi, Kenya, in November 2026, and will focus on Ratzinger and his influence on the renewal of the Church, with particular attention to the African context. The foundation is also planning a series of concerts and liturgical celebrations in Rome, among them a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica on April 16, the date of the centenary of his birth.