Astrophysicist Wins 2004 Templeton Prize

By Michael Anft

George F.R. Ellis, a South African astrophysicist and cosmologist, is the winner of the 2004 Templeton Prize for Progress Toward Research or Discoveries about Spiritual Realities. The annual prize is valued at about $1.4-million and is awarded to people who use the tools of science to investigate spiritual matters.

A researcher whose work often has centered on Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, Mr. Ellis has lectured on the subject at Cambridge, Oxford, and other colleges and universities around the world. He has also explored the role of faith in science and investigated evidence of the divine in the universe, as well as in such human traits as free will and self-sacrifice, said John M. Templeton Jr., president of the John Templeton Foundation, in Radnor, Pa., which awards the prize. The majority of the $20-million the foundation distributes annually in grants goes to researchers who explore links between science and religion.

“Mr. Ellis fits our profile because he was an early leader in scientific research who then expanded his investigations to include religious matters,” said Dr. Templeton. “He has done a lot of research that counters much of the reductionism found in science, such as the idea that humans are merely collections of atoms, molecules, and chemicals.”

Mr. Ellis, a Quaker, has also been a social activist, espousing anti-apartheid and social-justice causes. He plans to keep half of the prize money in a trust to support his cosmological research, while the other half will go to charitable programs that attempt to promote education and economic development among the poor, and to help autistic children in South Africa.

He is the 34th winner of the prize. Mr. Ellis will receive the prize during a ceremony on May 5 at Buckingham Palace.