During a solemn ceremony held on Wednesday evening at the Lincoln Centre in New York City, the prestigious Templeton Prize was presented to His Holiness Bartholomew I, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and spiritual leader of over 300 million Orthodox Christians. Bartholomew I was honoured for his exemplary contribution to scientific and spiritual insight in the search for the deeper meaning of human existence. Known as the ‘Green Patriarch’ due to his strong commitment to the care of Creation, Bartholomew was honoured for his pioneering efforts “to bridge scientific and spiritual understandings of humanity’s relationship with the natural world”, states the award citation.
In his acceptance speech, the Patriarch reflected on the relationship between faith and science. He referred to a “cosmic liturgy” where there is no “separation between faith and science.” “When I see a physicist measuring the acceleration of melting glaciers in the Arctic and a theologian contemplating the groans of creation, I see two people reading the same book—the book of nature and the book of scripture—in different languages”, explained the Patriarch. Bartholomew, who introduced the concept of ecological sin in 1997, remarked: “We get it wrong when we treat environmental destruction as someone else’s problem instead of recognizing it as the spiritual crisis of our age.” His vision for the future is that of a “theology of interconnectedness,” where “the health of our planet and the welfare of its people are not separate concerns but aspects of a single reality.”
The presentation of the award, with a current value of $1.1 million, marked the culmination of the Patriarch’s ten-day apostolic journey to the United States, during which he also met with US President Donald Trump in Washington. “The meeting was cordial and sincere,” said the Ecumenical Patriarch.
Bartholomew reported that he discussed issues that concern the hardship faced by the few Christians still living in Turkey, the war in Ukraine, and the granting of autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in 2019. “We spoke about persecution, victims, the kidnapped children, about all these tragic events that wound the conscience of humanity,” said the Patriarch, who also expressed concern over the continuous decrease of Christians in the Middle East and the indefinite closure of the Theological School of Halki by the Turkish government.
The Ecumenical Patriarch also visited the US Congress, where he received a warm welcome from House Speaker Mike Johnson. In his speech, the Patriarch emphasised that “spiritual values and the virtuous exercise of power are essential”, adding that “stewardship encompasses all of Creation, entrusted to humanity by its Creator”. He went on to praise the United States’ resilience, founded on the equality of all people. He added: “Here at the Capitol — the ‘House of the People’ — we see how a young nation has become a symbol of unity in diversity.”
During the UN High-Level Week in New York, Patriarch Bartholomew met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres. They discussed the initiatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the role of the UN in fostering global peace. He also held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who thanked him for his support and solidarity with the Ukrainian people, and for his recent speech at the Council on Foreign Relations and the Concordia Foundation.
In fact, on that occasion, Bartholomew denounced the Russian invasion as “illegal” and criticised the Russian Church’s response to the tragedy in Ukraine.
During the visit, the Patriarch planted trees with children from the community at St. Nicholas Church, which was rebuilt after 9/11, in a symbolic gesture of hope and rebirth. New York City Mayor Eric Adams then presented the Ecumenical Patriarch with the Key to the City.
The visit culminated in the awarding of the Templeton Prize, which inspired the Ecumenical Patriarch’s universal appeal. In his address, the Patriarch asked everyone to “discover that caring for creation is not a burden, but a gift; the opportunity to participate in God’s ongoing creativity”. His words touched the hearts of the international and interfaith audience, further confirming his prophetic voice on the care for the environment and his role as a bridge-builder between faiths.
