On May 30, 2025, Friar Michael LASKY and other members of Roman VI (JPIC delegates for the Franciscan Family) attended the Laudato Si’ Award Ceremony at the Pontifical Antonianum University in Rome. The Friars Minor honored the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and Liberation Theologian Leonardo BOFF of Brazil. Also honored were the Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network (REPAM) and the Laudato Si’ Movement.
In his acceptance speech, Patriarch Bartholomew emphasized how the Orthodox tradition—especially through the work of theologian John ZIZIOULAS—has helped raise awareness of the environmental crisis among both Christians and non-Christians, linking it to issues of social justice. The heart of his message was expressed when he said, “We have emphasized the spiritual dimension of this crisis and called for a rediscovery of a Eucharistic vision of creation.”
The friars of the Antonianum then hosted a celebratory dinner in the refectory. Gathered around the table with representatives of the Laudato Si’ Movement and His Excellency Alfredo VÁSQUEZ RIVERA, Guatemala’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Holy See, we discussed how the Franciscan charism captures what Leonard BOFF called the importance of being brothers and sisters to one another, of being people who treat one another―and all of creation―as family. The beautiful image Boff left us with was: “Care is the Christian caress extended to all beings of nature.”
Friar Michael LASKY
