To the mark the 51st anniversary of Earth Day and the end of the year-long fifth anniversary celebration of Pope Francis' landmark encyclical on climate change and environmental ethics, Laudato Si', Gonzaga University welcomes Daniel P. Horan, OFM, Ph.D., to campus to offer a lecture entitled, "Beyond Laudato Si': Embracing the Challenge of Franciscan Eco-Spirituality in the Age of Pope Francis."
From the beginning of his papal ministry, Pope Francis has sought to bring together two rich heritages: the Ignatian tradition of his Jesuit formation and identity with the Franciscan legacy of his papal namesake and inspiration. As we celebrate the fifth anniversary of his landmark encyclical letter Laudato Si', which inaugurated renewed commitment among Jesuit entities to “collaborate in care for our common home,” this lecture considers some of the ways that a Catholic Jesuit University might embrace the challenge of Franciscan eco-spirituality initially signaled in Laudato Si', but that have remained generally underdeveloped. In this way, we might not only appreciate the beauty, wisdom, and pastoral urgency in the papal document itself, but also build on it in the spirit of both the Ignatian and Franciscan traditions.
Daniel P. Horan, OFM, PhD is a Franciscan friar of Holy Name Province (NY), Duns Scotus Chair in Spirituality and associate professor of systematic theology and spirituality at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, a columnist for the National Catholic Reporter, and the author of several books including All God’s Creatures: A Theology of Creation (2018), Catholicity and Emerging Personhood: A Contemporary Theological Anthropology (2019), and Reading, Praying, Living Pope Francis’s Rejoice and Be Glad (2019). He is currently working on a book about the Incarnation and is also co-host of The Francis Effect Podcast.
This event is co-sponsored by the Office of Mission & Ministry, Environmental Studies Department, Religious Studies Department and Catholic Studies Program.