Photo by Ugnius Bagdonavičius / Vilnius University
Dr. Vilius Bartninkas, an Associate Professor at Vilnius University’s Faculty of Philology, has been honored with the prestigious 2025 Manfred Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise for his monograph titled "Traditional and Cosmic Gods in Later Plato and the Early Academy."
This recognition comes from an international jury, marking a significant achievement in the field of theology.
"I can hardly express my excitement. This is my first international award, and it’s in theology! It's remarkable for the jury from the University of Heidelberg, which typically recognizes biblical and contemporary theologians, to choose a winner from the realm of pagan theology. I am incredibly grateful to my supervisors, Gábor Betegh and Vytautas Ališauskas, for their invaluable support," Dr. Bartninkas shared on Facebook.
In 2023, Dr. Bartninkas published a 300-page monograph with Cambridge University Press.
"This book reflects my childhood dreams surrounding Greek myths and gods, and it delves into the broader dream world we all share — exploring the universe and our desire to learn more about celestial bodies like Mercury and Venus. These two realms came into sharp focus in Plato's thought when he recognized celestial bodies as gods. For example, Mercury is simply the Greek translation of Hermes, and it was through the works of Plato and his disciples that these celestial bodies began to be referred to by their Greek names as gods. This brings up the question: how this transition affected other traditional gods, such as Athena? The answers can be found in my book," Dr. Bartninkas explained his work in 2023.
The Manfred Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise annually honors 10 young scholars from around the world for outstanding dissertations or first post-doctoral works within the thematic complex of "God and Spirituality." This selection process involves 20 reviewers from 15 countries, and the laureates are celebrated at a festive ceremony held at Heidelberg University in Germany.