Czech Catholic priest, philosopher, and theologian
Toma? Halik
(
Czech:
[?toma:?
??ali:k]
;
[1]
born 1 June 1948) is a Czech
Catholic
priest, philosopher, and theologian. He is a professor of
sociology
at the
Charles University in Prague
, pastor of the Academic Parish by
St. Salvator Church
in Prague, and president of the Czech Christian Academy.
Since
1989
, Halik has lectured at universities and international scientific conferences in Europe, the United States, Asia, Australia, Canada, and Southern Africa. He was also a
visiting professor
at
Oxford University
,
Cambridge University
and
Harvard University
.
[2]
He is an author of several books on religion and spirituality and a recipient of numerous awards and prizes including the
Templeton Prize
,
[3]
Romano Guardini
Prize
[4]
and an honorary degree from Oxford University.
[5]
In 2008,
Pope Benedict XVI
granted him the title of Monsignor
Honorary Prelate of His Holiness
.
[2]
[6]
As an active member of religious and cultural dissent during
Communist
era, Halik was appointed by
Pope John Paul II
as an advisor to the
Pontifical Council for Dialogue with Non-Believers
in 1992.
[2]
In the Saint Salvator Church in Prague, he often holds joint prayers and meditations with members of other religions such as Jews, Buddhists,
[7]
and Muslims.
[8]
Due to his views on the other religions, his support for
registered partnerships
(but not
gay marriage
), and his stance on
immigration
, he has received both praise and criticism.
[9]
[10]
Biography
[
edit
]
Communist era
[
edit
]
Halik converted to
Catholicism
at 18 years old, due to the influence of writers like
G. K. Chesterton
and
Graham Greene
. He studied Sociology and Philosophy at
Charles University
, in
Prague
, then
Czechoslovakia
, where he was a student of
Jan Pato?ka
. He moved briefly abroad to study English at the
University of Wales
, in
Bangor
, where he was surprised by the Soviet-led invasion of his country, meant to crush the
Prague Spring
, in August 1968. He returned to Prague, where he graduated in 1972. He did a speech at his doctoral graduation ceremony that was deemed subversive by the Communist regime, which banned him from teaching or holding any academic position. He then worked as a psychotherapist, from 1972 to 1975. He held the chair of Psychology of Work for the Institute of the Ministry of Labour, from 1975 to 1984. Meanwhile, Halik clandestinely studied Theology in Prague, and on 21 August 1978, was secretly ordained as a
Roman Catholic priest
at
Erfurt
,
East Germany
. He studied and received a post degree in Psychology from the Institute of Medicine in Prague in 1984. He worked as a psychotherapist for drug addicts and alcoholics at the clinic for cure of addictions of the Charles University, in Prague, from 1984 to 1990. In the 1980s he was active in the "underground church" and was a close associate of Cardinal
Franti?ek Toma?ek
, before the fall of communism in
Eastern Europe
in 1989.
Democratic regime
[
edit
]
After the "Velvet Revolution", which meant the triumph of democracy in his country, he was one of the external advisers of Czech president
Vaclav Havel
.
Pope John Paul II
appointed him as an adviser to the Pontifical Council for Dialogue with Non-Believers in 1992. He licenciated in Theology at the
Pontifical Lateran University
, in
Rome
, in 1992. The same year he took a higher doctorate in Sociology from Charles University and ThDr.hab. in theology at the Pontifical Faculty of Theology in
Wrocław
,
Poland
. Halik joined the Sociology Faculty at his alma-mater in 1993 and became a professor in 1997. He is also the head of the Religious Studies Department. As a visiting fellow, he held lectureships at both
Oxford University
and
Cambridge University
, in
England
. Halik is the rector of the Church of the Holy Saviour, in Prague, since 1990, and co-founder and longtime President of the Czech Christian Academy.
Pope Benedict XVI
nominated him monsignor, as an honorary prelate of the pope, in 2008.
[11]
He often publicly discusses ethical issues, such as racism, political and religious intolerance, the process of
secularisation
, as well as the process of European expansion and integration.
Toma? Halik is a member of several scientific societies, including the
European Society for Catholic Theology
, the International Society for the Psychology of Religion, and
Washington-based Czechoslovak Society for Science and the Arts
.
In 2010, his book
Patience with God
(
Vzdalenym nablizku: va?e? a trp?livost v setkani viry s nevirou
) was named book of the month by the
U.S. Catholic
Book Club
[12]
and was awarded Europe's best theological book prize.
[13]
Halik has publicly speculated a run for the
Czech presidency
. In 2015,
Zden?k ?kromach
announced he would run,
[14]
to which Halik had said the year earlier that, if there were no candidates worthy, naming ?kromach as one such candidate, he would have a moral obligation to run.
[15]
However, in early 2016, he stated that he believed the office of president no longer appealed to him, as "it is the time for demagogues" such as the current Czech President
Milo? Zeman
and
Donald Trump
. He also did not believe he had high chances of succeeding in the
2018 race
, as he would have only won "the voices of the sane and educated", believing that he would need to go against his moral compass and campaign on a populist and controversial platform.
[16]
Controversial views
[
edit
]
Halik is generally blamed for positions he shares with Pope Francis that are considered controversial by traditionalist circles of the Catholic Church. Halik has criticized the controversial stands of some catholics on homosexuality. He warned of the risks associated with the legislation on abortion, specially in Eastern Europe, claiming that the near-total ban on
abortion in Poland
would "encourage ‘abortion tourism’ of Polish women to the Czech Republic and Slovakia, contributing very little to the protection of the unborn and failing to actually stop the evil of abortion."
[17]
Honors, awards and prizes (selection)
[
edit
]
- 1997: The prize of the Masaryk Academy of Arts for creative activity (Prague)
- 2002: The Andrew Elias Human Tolerance Award for outstanding services in disseminating the values of tolerance and spiritual and intellectual freedom (USA)
- 2003: The
Cardinal Konig
Merit Award for defence of human rights and spiritual freedom, Austria (Laudator:
Vaclav Havel
, President of the Czech Republic)
- 2006: The Literary Award of the Czech Literary Fund for the book
Night of the Confessor
- 2007: The Fenix Prize of Polish Booksellers for the best book by a foreign author, for the
Both Called and Not Called
book (Poland)
- 2007: The Prize of the Czech Society for Science and Art for his literary, scholarly and pedagogical activity
- 2010: The
Romano Guardini
Prize for outstanding merits in interpreting contemporary society, Germany (Laudator: Karel Schwarzenberg, Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic)
- 2010: The Golden St. Adalbert medal for extraordinarily efficient explanation of religion to fellow citizens, Prague (Laudator: Cardinal Dominik Duka, archbishop of Prague)
- 2010: Medal for outstanding services to inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue (Islamic society Mosaika-Platform, Prague)
- 2011: Honorary title "Man of Reconciliation 2010" for outstanding services to dialogue between Christians and Jews (The Polish Council of Christians and Jews, Warsaw)
- 2012: The Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland by decision of the Polish President
- 2014:
Templeton Prize
[18]
- 2016: Honorary degree from University of Oxford
[5]
Publications
[
edit
]
Books in English
- Patience with God: The Story of Zacchaeus Continuing in Us
. Doubleday, New York?London-Toronto-Sydney-Auckland, 2009.
- Night of the Confessor: Christian Faith in an Age of Uncertainty
. Doubleday/Image, New York?London-Toronto-Sydney-Auckland, 2012.
- I Want You to Be: On the God of Love
. University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, Indiana, 2016.
- From the Underground Church to Freedom
. University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, Indiana, 2019.
- Is God absent? Faith, Atheism, and Our Search for Meaning
. (A.Grun & T.Halik). Paulist Press 2019.
- Touch the Wounds: On Suffering, Trust, and Transformation
. University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, Indiana, 2023.
Books in Czech
- O p?itomnou cirkev a spole?nost
(For Present Church and Society). Prague: K?es?anska akademie, 1992. (Essays from 1989 to 1991.)
- Sedm uvah o slu?b? nemocnym a trpicim
(Seven Meditations about Serving the Diseased and Suffering). Brno: Cesta, 1993.
- Vira a kultura
(Faith And Culture). Prague: Zvon, 1995.
- Ptal jsem se cest
(I Asked The Roads). Prague: Portal, 1997. (Interviews with Jan Jandourek.)
- Co je bez chv?ni, neni pevne
(There is No Firmness Without Trembling). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2002.
- Oslovit Zachea
(Addressing Zacheus). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2003.
- Vzyvan i nevzyvan
(Both Called And Not Called). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2004.
- Noc zpov?dnika
(Night of the confessor: Paradoxes of little faith in a post-optimistic era). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2005. (Published in English under the title "Night of the Confessor")
- Prolinani sv?t?
(Overlaps of worlds). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2006.
- Vzdalenym nablizku
. (To the distant ones nearby: Fervour and patience in the encounter of faith and non-belief) Prague: Lidove noviny, 2007. (Published in English under the title "Patience with God")
- Dotkni se ran
(Touch the wounds: A spirituality of concern). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2008.
- Stromu zbyva nad?je
(Hope remains for the tree: The crisis as opportunity). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2009.
- Divadlo pro and?ly
(A theatre for angels: Life as a religious experiment). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2010.
- Smi?ena r?znost
(Reconciled difference). Prague: Portal, 2011. (Interviews with Tomasz Dostatni)
- Uvahy na prahu tisicileti - Ranni zamy?leni na vlnach BBC
(Reflections on the eve of the millennium -Morning reflections broadcast by BBC Czech service). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2011.
- Chci, abys byl
(I want you to be: Post-religion Christianity). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2012.
- ?it s tajemstvim
(Living with mystery). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2013.
- ?it v dialogu
(Living in dialogue). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2014.
- Obnovi? tva? zem?
(Texts 1988?1998). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2014.
- Sv?t bez Boha
(A.Grun & T.Halik). Prague: Lidove noviny, 2017.
- To ?e byl ?ivot?
. Prague: Lidove noviny, 2018.
Books in French
- Patience avec Dieu: l'histoire de Zachee, continue a nous
. CERF Paris 2014 (Patience with God)
Books in Italian
- Mistica, anima della filosofia?
Fondazione nazionale "Vito Fazio-Allmayer", Palermo 1999
- Vicino ai lontani: la pazienza della fede nel dialogo con l'ateismo
. Libreria editrice Vaticana, Citta del Vaticano 2012 (Patience with God)
- La notte del confessore
. Milano, Figlie di San Paolo 2013 (Night of the confessor)
Books in German
- "Du wirst das Angesicht der erde erneuern": Kirche und Gesellschaft an der Schwelle zur Freiheit
. St.-Benno-Verl., Leipzig 1993 (You shall renew the face of the earth)
- Geduld mit Gott (Die Geschichte von Zachaeus heute)
. Freiburg: Herder, 2010 (Patience with God)
- Nachtgedanken eines Beichtvaters
. Herder Verlag, Freiburg-Wien 2012 (Night of the confessor)
- Beruhre die Wunden
. Herder Verlag, Freiburg-Wien 2013 (Touch the wounds)
- All meine Wege sind DIR vertraut: Von der Untergrundkirche ins Labyrinth der Freiheit
, Freiburg 2014
Books in Spanish
- Un proyecto de renovacion espiritual
. Narcea, Madrid 1996
- Paciencia con Dios
. Herder, Barcelona 2014 (Patience with God)
- Paradojas de la fe en tiempos posoptimistas
. Herder, Barcelona 2016 (Night of the Confessor)
- ¿Deshacerse de Dios? Cuando la fe y la increencia se abrazan
. (& A.Grun) 2018
- Quiero que seas: Sobre el Dios del amor
. Herder, Barcelona 2018
Books in Portuguese
- Paciencia com Deus
, 2013 Paulinas Editora, 3.ª edicao
- A Noite do Confessor
, 2014 Paulinas Editora
- O meu Deus e um Deus ferido
, 2015 Paulinas Editora
- Quero que Sejas Tu
, 2016 Paulinas Editora
- O abandono de Deus. Quando a crenca e a descrenca se abracam
(& A.Grun), 2017 Paulinas Editora
- Diante de ti, os meus caminhos
, 2018, Paulinas Editora
Books in Dutch
- Geduld met God: Twijfel als brug tussen geloven en niet-geloven
. Uitgeverij Boekencentrum, Zoetermeer 2014
- De nacht van de biechtvader. Christelijk geloof in een tijd van onzekerheid
. Uitgeverij Boekencentrum, Zoetermeer 2016
- Ik wil dat jij bent: over God van liefde
. Uitgeverij Boekencentrum, Zoetermeer 2017
- Geloven op de tast. Als geloof en ongeloof elkaar ontmoeten
(& A.Grun). Uitgeverij Boekencentrum, Zoetermeer 2017
- Raak de wonden aan van. Over niet zien en toch geloven
. Uitgeverij Boekencentrum, Zoetermeer 2018
- Niet zonder hoop. Religieuze crisis als kans
. KokBoekcentrum 2019
- In het geheim geloven. Autobiografie
. KokBoekcentrum 2020
References
[
edit
]
- ^
In isolation,
Toma?
is pronounced
[?toma:?]
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Monsignor Toma? Halik"
. Under Caesar's Sword, University of Notre Dame
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
Toma? Halik at Templeton Prize Official Website
- ^
"ROMANO GUARDINI PRIZE: TO BE AWARDED TO CZECH PHILOSOPHER TOMAS HALIK ON 27 SEPTEMBER"
. Societa per l'Informazione Religiosa. 24 September 2010
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
a
b
"Oxford announces honorary degrees for 2016"
. University of Oxford. 25 February 2016
. Retrieved
30 June
2016
.
- ^
"Toma? Halik se stane monsignorem"
(in Czech). iDnes.cz. 20 June 2008
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
"Mezinabo?ensky dialog na Foru 2000"
(in Czech). Katolicky tydenik. 17 October 2006
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
"INTERVIEW S TOMA?EM HALIKEM"
(in Czech). SHEKEL.CZ. 23 August 2010
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
"Valka mezi kardinalem Dukou a Halikem kv?li pochodu homosexual?? Nesmysl"
(in Czech). lidovky.cz. 20 July 2015
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
"Rozd?lena nejen spole?nost ale i cirkev. Duka versus Halik, pape? Franti?ek?"
(in Czech). skutecnosti.cz. 25 April 2016
. Retrieved
18 July
2016
.
- ^
Toma? Halik at the Encyclopædia Britannica
- ^
Sweas, Megan (July 2010).
"Patience with God: The Story of Zacchaeus Continuing In Us"
. USC Book Club.
U.S. Catholic
(Review).
- ^
"Czech philosopher Halik wins 'best theological book' prize"
.
?eska Pozice
. Archived from
the original
on 2012-04-02.
- ^
"?kromach chce kandidovat na prezidenta. Konec srandy, beru to va?n?, tvrdi | Domov"
.
Lidovky.cz
. 2 February 2015
. Retrieved
14 January
2017
.
- ^
"Halik zva?uje kandidaturu na Hrad. Nez?ikam se zodpov?dnosti, uvedl"
.
iDNES.cz
. 4 August 2014
. Retrieved
14 January
2017
.
- ^
"Halik: Cirkev mi kandidaturu nezakazala, ani nemohla, Zeman nemluvi pravdu"
.
Novinky.cz
(in Czech). 21 June 2016
. Retrieved
14 January
2017
.
- ^
Halik, Toma? (December 20, 2020).
"The Revolution of Mercy and a New Ecumenism"
.
Catholic Outlook
. Retrieved
April 27,
2023
.
- ^
Bingham, John (13 March 2014).
"Czech priest and former dissident Toma? Halik wins £1.1m Templeton prize"
. The Telegraph
. Retrieved
13 March
2014
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
1970s
| |
---|
1980s
| |
---|
1990s
| |
---|
2000s
| |
---|
2010s
| |
---|
2020s
| |
---|
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Academics
| |
---|
Artists
| |
---|
People
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|