FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(TORONTO, Canada – July 7, 2026) During Tuesday’s Global Council Session at the 2026 Annual Gathering, the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) presented the 2026 Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award to Daniel Zacharias of Canada in recognition of his faithful leadership advancing truth, reconciliation, and justice with Indigenous peoples.
Established in 2006, the Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award recognizes a Baptist leader who has taken significant and effective action to secure, protect, restore, or preserve human rights in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other internationally recognized human rights principles.
Longtime Canadian Baptist leader and former BWA Vice President Harry Gardner nominated Zacharias for the award, highlighting the remarkable combination of character and conviction that has defined his ministry. “With gentleness, passion and deep conviction arising from his discipleship to Jesus and his own heritage, his significant contribution is widely respected and valued,” said Gardner.
As Associate Dean and Professor of New Testament Studies at Acadia Divinity College, Zacharias has become a leading Baptist voice helping churches engage the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action. Through his scholarship, teaching, and denominational leadership, he has equipped congregations to confront the legacy of residential schools, deepen relationships with Indigenous communities, and pursue reconciliation as an expression of the Gospel.
Reflecting on this year’s selection, Jennifer Lau, chair of the BWA Awards Committee, highlighted both the remarkable field of nominees and Zacharias’s faithful witness.
“As a committee, it is encouraging to receive and review nominations from those who are making such an impact in the world,” said Jennifer Lau, chair of the BWA Awards Committee. “Among this year’s outstanding nominees, Daniel Zacharias exemplifies the Gospel call to pursue justice, truth, and reconciliation. His faithful leadership has helped churches engage difficult conversations with humility and hope, inspiring Baptists in Canada and around the world to live out Christ’s ministry of reconciliation.”
Receiving the award, Zacharias emphasized that the recognition reflects the work of many people committed to the journey of reconciliation.
“I receive this award with deep gratitude and humility. I have been blessed to join alongside and learn from many people in this work and continue to pursue a faithful response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. I am especially thankful for my Baptist family and for the opportunities I have had to help churches face hard truths and imagine ways to respond well going forward,” said Zacharias. “This recognition from the Baptist World Alliance is an encouragement to continue pursuing justice, healing, and right relationship. My prayer is that it will also encourage more churches to see reconciliation as an essential expression of faithfulness to Christ and love of neighbor across this continent and in the many contexts where Indigenous peoples have been harmed by colonialism and by the church.”
Throughout his ministry, Zacharias has helped shape Canadian Baptist engagement with reconciliation by developing educational resources, facilitating national conversations, and encouraging churches to cultivate lasting partnerships with Indigenous communities. He served as keynote speaker for the first two annual Canadian Baptist National Day for Truth and Reconciliation services, facilitated the Canadian Baptist National Working Group for Indigenous Relations, and serves on the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada’s 7 Commitments Working Group advancing the Reconciliation Proclamation.
In addition to his leadership at Acadia Divinity College, Zacharias serves on the faculty of the North American Institute for Indigenous Theological Studies (NAIITS). He is the author of Reading the Bible on Turtle Island: An Invitation to North American Indigenous Interpretation, which invites the Church to engage Scripture through Indigenous perspectives while pursuing faithful relationships marked by justice, repentance, and hope.
The members of the BWA Resolutions Committee are Chair Jennifer Lau, Vice Chair Lina Sawan, Victoria Maame Esi Aidoo, Denise Apetogbo, Jonathan Kedaj, Pau Khan Khai, Shane McNary, Nadia Morokhovets, Jane Mwangi, Scott Pilgrim, Edward L. Taylor, Vesekhoyi ‘Vee’ Tetseo, Anslem Warrick, and BWA Staff Liaison Merritt Johnston.
To learn more about previous award winners, visit BaptistWorld.org/awards.
(L-R) First Photo: BWA Chair Karl Johnson, BWA Awards Committee Chair Jennifer Lau, 2026 Denton and Janice Lotz Human Rights Award Recipient Daniel Zacharias, former BWA Vice President Harry Gardner, and BWA General Secretary and CEO Elijah Brown
Second Photo: A special time of prayer for Daniel Zacharias led by Renée MacVicar, Executive Director of Canadian Baptists of Atlantic Canada