Alley, professor emeritus of Humanities at the University
of Richmond, noted author and scholarly authority on religion ,
government and education, will receive the Virginia First Freedom Award. In 1979, Havel also co-founded the Committee for the
Defense of the Unjustly Oppressed to help dissidents and their families . Congressman Edwards is the winner of the Walter
Cronkite Faith + Freedom Award (2001), "which encourages people of faith and
goodwill to stand up for religious freedom.

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"Now seems an ideal time to understand and assess the public effects of
spiritual and religious action because there seems to be a growing openness in
the social sciences towards non-material factors," says Sargeant.

Timur Kuran, Professor of Economics and Law and King Faisel Professor of
Islamic Thought and Culture at the University of Southern California: The Role
of Religion in the Economic Performance of Civilizations .templeton., on January 18, two days following National Religious Freedom
Day, to:

* Vaclav Havel, former president of both the Czech Republic and
Czechoslovakia, award-winning playwright and passionate global champion
of interfaith dialogue and freedom of conscience, will receive the
International First Freedom Award.

* Dr. Edwards is a proponent of the separation of church
and state, underscoring the tenet that government has no place within
religion. He states , "Only complete separation of
church and state, with absolutely no establishment, will guarantee free
exercise of religion.

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newscom."
This year marks the 12th year in which the Council for America's First
Freedom has sponsored the First Freedom Awards, in conjunction with National
Religious Freedom Day, observed annually on January 16. Ambassador to the United Nations; and Dr. As
a former dissident he is a passionate advocate for freedom of conscience and
interfaith dialogue globally , particularly through the Shared Concern
Initiative.

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Each project is 30 months in duration , beginning March 2005.metanexus. He
wrote the now famous "Letter to Husak" in 1975, petitioning the Czechoslovak
president about the toxic effects of one-party rule on the character of the
people . Robert S. Dr.

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"It is no
longer unusual to consider that trust, behavioral norms and religion can
profoundly shape economic, political and social developments.
For further information on the Spiritual Capital Research Program,
including submission guidelines for the new granting opportunities , or to
request a program brochure, visit http://www.

The Metanexus Institute advances scientific research, education and
outreach on the constructive engagement of science and religion .

2006 First Freedom Award Recipients Announced

1996 religion

Three Grants of $500 000 Each Awarded for Research on 'Spiritual Capital' by Metanexus Institute

* The Honorable Chet Edwards, seven-term U.

Biographical Information
President Vaclav Havel (International Award) -- Vaclav Havel served in
high office for his country twice, from 1989 - 1992 as President of
Czechoslovakia and again from 1993 - 2003 as President of the Czech Republic.

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Full grant applications will then be invited for a total of $1. Metanexus sponsors dialogue groups, lectures,
workshops, research, courses , grants, and publications.org." Vaclav Havel is a decorated and honored global public citizen.

The Honorable Chet Edwards (National Award) -- Congressman Chet Edwards,
D-Texas, has represented citizens from North Texas, Central Texas and the
Brazos Valley since 1991.

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5
million in research funds.

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National Religious Freedom Day is observed each year on January 16, the
anniversary of the date on which the Virginia General Assembly enacted the
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom , the landmark law that first guaranteed
religious liberty and became the precursor for the First Amendment guarantee
of freedom of religion. In
the late 1980s as Soviet influence in Czechoslovakia waned Havel played a key
role in the demonstrations that lead to the non-violent collapse of one -party
rule in Czechoslovakia in late 1989, known globally as the "Velvet
Revolution. Alley is a professor
emeritus of humanities at the University of Richmond, where he taught in the
religion department for 30 years." Alley has authored and co-authored several books on religion,
government and education, including School Prayer: The Court, the Congress,
and the First Amendment (1994).

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, Director for Research and Programs in the Human Sciences at Metanexus. http://www., To commemorate the 220th anniversary
of the nation's first law guaranteeing religious liberty, the Council for
America 's First Freedom is presenting the 2006 First Freedom Awards to three
distinguished advocates of religious freedom, individuals who have made
profound contributions to advancing religious liberty around the world, across
the United States and within Virginia. Holbrooke, chief negotiator of the
Dayton Peace Accords and U.

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(Logo: http://www.

Robert Woodberry, Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of
Texas at Austin: Project on Religion and Economic Change. Results will
be disseminated through scholarly and lay publications, conferences, speaking
engagements and websites.
Since then, social scientists have vigorously debated the concept of
social capital, but spiritual capital - a sub-set of the field - remains
relatively understudied. Only in recent years have leading scholars,
including Nobel laureate economists Gary Becker and Robert Fogel and political
scientists John DiIulio and Robert Putnam, called renewed attention to the
effects of spiritual and religious practices, beliefs and institutions on
economics, politics and societies . For
more information about the awards dinner ceremony, which is open to the news
media, please contact Maureen Rosenbaum at (804) 643-1786 or
mrosenbaum@firstfreedom.

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"
Principal investigators heading the award-winning teams and their projects
are:

Laurence Iannaccone , Koch Professor of Economics at George Mason
University: Creating an "Ecology" for the Study of Religion , Economics, and
Spiritual Capital. Projects include the Local
Societies Initiative, the Templeton Research Lectures, and topical
interdisciplinary research projects such as the Spiritual Transformation
Scientific Research Program, Spiritual Capital Research Program, Foundational
Questions in Physics and Cosmology, as well as studies of religion and health,
religion and human flourishing, and other endeavors. "They are people of conscience and principles
whose insights and courage have helped deepen our collective understanding of
religious freedom and fortify the foundation of this inherent human right." Edwards believes that we should educate members of Congress and the
American people that the principle of church-state separation was designed to
protect religion, not harm it. Alley is a strong proponent of clear
separation between church and state.

religion was

The
grants are awarded through a program of the Metanexus Institute on Religion
and Science, supported by generous funding from the John Templeton Foundation. One section will analyze the impact of 150 years of
missionary activity; a second section will analyze the economic consequences
of Pentecostal conversions in Brazil; a third section will focus on the
influence of revivalist Islam and Christianity in rural Malawi. Just 100 years ago Max Weber
published his provocative work The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of
Capitalism . In remarks on the House floor speech on religious freedom, he said,
"Separation of church and state does not mean keeping faith out of government. By passing language
saying 'Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion,'
known as the Establishment Clause, our founding fathers were putting religion
on a pedestal so high that the hands of government and politicians could not
reach it.

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com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050324/PHTH031LOGO )
The term "spiritual capital" refers to the economic and social
consequences of religion and spirituality. While religion and spirituality
are rich with various sources of personal meaning, they also have profound
public significance.net/spiritual_capital
or contact project manager Christopher Stawski at
SpiritualCapital@metanexus. Metanexus is
a leader in a growing network of individuals and groups exploring the dynamic
interface between cosmos , nature, and culture in communities and on campuses
throughout the world.S. Representative from Waco ,
Texas and ardent proponent of the nation's founding principle of church-
state separation , will receive the National First Freedom Award. Havel also co-founded with other dissidents Charter 77, an appeal to
the government to respect the basic human rights and freedoms to which
Czechoslovakia committed by signing the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights in 1975.

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The aim of the Spiritual Capital Research
Program is to catalyze the development of this interdisciplinary research
field, which may become a vital new field in the social sciences.

About the Council for America's First Freedom
The Council for America's First Freedom is a 501(c)(3) organization based
in Richmond, Va.

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This project seeks to evaluate the influence of various religions on
health , education and the economy by measuring religious distinctions and the
resulting impact on national , community and individual levels in societies
around the world.
The Metanexus Institute is interested in supporting high-level, impartial
scholarship on the contribution of religion - both for good and for ill - to
economic and social developments.
In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith raised key questions for the economic
analysis of religion and looked at the effects of competition among religions
and the dangers of government of religion. Council for America's First Freedom Hosts 12th Annual Event
Honoring Three Advocates for Religious Liberty

RICHMOND, Va.S.
Rather, it means keeping government out of our faith."

Dr. Alley (Virginia Award) -- Robert S. To whatever degree a form of establishment, no matter
how mild, enters the Constitution through the amending process, free exercise
is dust.

religion films

PHILADELPHIA, Three distinguished scholars have
each received grants of $500,000 to lead teams of researchers in order to
create a new interdisciplinary field of "Spiritual Capital" research.
This project includes the development of an international Consortium for
the Economic Study of Religion (CESR), bringing visiting scholars together at
George Mason University for interdisciplinary and collaborative workshops,
classes, research projects and conferences, instituting an economics-as-
religion concentration for doctoral students, and creating a global network of
scholars and institutes. Robert S.

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Winners of the invitation-only competition for the three founding grants
in the Spiritual Capital Research Program were announced by Kimon H .
In addition to the three funded projects that are just beginning, the
Metanexus Institute has issued a new call for proposals for $150,000 research
grants for interdisciplinary studies on the economic and social consequences
of religion and spirituality.net or 215-789-2200. A membership
organization, Metanexus hosts an online magazine and discussion forum with
over 140,000 monthly page views and 7000 regular subscribers in 57 different
countries.

About the Award Ceremony
The 12th annual First Freedom Awards will be presented at an evening
ceremony on January 18 , 2006 at The Jefferson Hotel, 101 West Franklin Street,
Richmond, Va.

freedom savior

Metanexus leads and
facilitates over 300 projects in 36 countries. Currently, the
Council is developing the First Freedom Center , a world-class facility that
will offer a dynamic visitor experience with state-of-the-art interactive
exhibits exploring the development of religious freedom in America, and
today's related national and international issues.

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The 12th annual awards, presented in three categories, will be awarded in
Richmond, Va. Garry
Wills, Pulitzer Prize-winning author.
Additional biographical information on each recipient is attached. that provides educational programs, materials and information
about religious freedom as an American historical development, as a
contemporary controversy, and as an international human right.
Following the suppression of the Prague Spring in 1968 Havel was banned from
the theater, his earliest passion, and became more politically active.

yahoo actual

Sargeant,
Ph. Past recipients
include Prime Minister Tony Blair of Great Britain; Lawrence Eagleburger,
former Secretary of State; Richard C. The Council also sponsors
the Presidential Proclamation of National Religious Freedom Day (January),
First Freedom Awards, and the First Freedom Student Competition.org. Alley was the first recipient of the
Virginia ACLU Bill of Rights Award in 1994.

holy haven

It will also facilitate a broader
range of study by bringing together a network of scholars, to be
known as the Institute for Economic Research on Civilizations (IERC), to
promote comparative research and raise the level of discourse on the role of
various religions and forms of spiritual capital in the economic performance
of civilizations.

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http://www.firstfreedom.

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The Spiritual Capital Research Program will fund high -
level research that could lead to new understandings of religion's role in
economic, social and political life.metanexus. The event is by invitation only but is open to members of the
news media . For more
information, please visit http://www.

belief religious

Kuran's project will advance ongoing research on the role of Islam, and
especially Islamic law, in the economic performance of the Middle East from
its rise in the 7th century to the present. Letters of intent are due no later than April
15 , 2005.net

The mission of the John Templeton Foundation is to pursue new insights at
the boundary between theology and science through a rigorous, open-minded and
empirically focused methodology , drawing together talented representatives
from a wide spectrum of fields of expertise.org

"These three honorees have dedicated much of their professional lives to
the defense of religious liberty," said Tommy Baer, president of the Council
for America's First Freedom. Dr .