Jeff Cavins, Father Mike Schmitz awarded Pillar Award by Museum of the Bible

The Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., awarded Father Mike Schmitz, known for hosting “The Bible in a Year” podcast, and Bible scholar Jeff Cavins with its prestigious Pillar Award for Narrative on Feb. 20.

This was the fourth Pillar Awards, which, according to its website, celebrates “individuals who embody the Museum of the Bible’s mission to invite all people to engage with the transformative power of the Bible through its history, narrative, and impact.”

Cavins and Schmitz are the first Catholics to receive the award, joining past winners including Dallas Jenkins, the creator of the hit series “The Chosen,” and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

The award recognized the global impact of Cavins’ “The Bible Timeline” learning system and the reach it has had through the chart-topping “The Bible in a Year with Fr. Mike Schmitz” podcast.

Cavins received the award on behalf of himself and Schmitz and said in his acceptance speech he was “deeply honored” to receive the award.

He went on to share how he met his wife, Emily, and the impact she had on his life, as well as his time away from the Catholic Church as a Protestant pastor and his eventual return to the Catholic faith.

“I speak evangelical and Catholic with no accent on either,” he said jokingly.

Cavins shared with those in attendance that there are a lot of people like him in the world “that when they hear the story of salvation history it changes our lives. It’s the story that changes our lives. It’s the word of God that changes our lives. It isn’t our own skill, it isn’t our own cleverness, but it is the word of God that transforms the human soul.”

Carlos Campo, Museum of the Bible president and CEO, said in a press release: “We’re honoring leaders, teachers, artists, and scholars who have carried the Bible into culture and changed lives with its truth.”

“The Bible does not only inform us, but it also transforms us. It changes the way we love, changes the way we lead, changes the way we serve. We celebrate the truth of that Bible; preserved through history, proclaimed story and proven through changed lives,” he added.

Honorees are selected by a committee of Museum of the Bible leadership and representatives of the board of directors. Nominees for the Narrative award bring the stories of the Bible to life through cultural mediums.