Pope to Bless Headquarters for "Catholic Nobel"

(November 07, 2009) When Pope Benedict XVI visits his predecessor’s birthplace on Sunday, he will inaugurate the headquarters for an institute dedicated to him, the sponsor of a prize Pope John Paul II called the Catholic Nobel. Pope Benedict XVI will be in Brescia on Sunday, 8^th of November, the city where Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, later Pope Paul VI was born September 26, 1897. While there, Pope Benedict will inaugurate the "elegant architectural complex" that will now house the Paul VI Institute. The new premises house the archive, a library, the Paul VI collection of modern and contemporary art, the auditorium, a study hall and laboratories. The activities of the Pope Paul VI Institute began shortly after the 1978 death of that Pope. "Some Catholics of Brescia felt the need to initiate the study of the personality, teaching and the time in which Pope Montini lived and worked," the institute explained. It worked under the patronage of an international promoting committee, peopled by personalities of the ecclesiastical and lay world, among them the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Among its objectives is the establishment of a documentary archive and a specialized library, the publication of a newsletter and of a series of books, the organization of colloquiums and international study days on specific topics, and the awarding of an international prize. Pope John Paul II called this award – the Pope Paul VI Prize -- the Catholic Nobel. It is given every five years to personalities and institutions active in the field of religiously inspired culture. During this visit the Holy Father will give this year’s award.