Tribute to Thomas Berry by Stefano and Julien Panzarasa of “Rete Bioregionale Italiana”
I met Thomas Berry at the meeting “Spirituality and Sustainability organized from “Center for Respect of Life and Environment” and the Saint Thoamas University in Assisi, July 1996. The organizers wanted to meet members of the Italian Bioregional Web of which I am one of the founders.
To see, to listen and to meet Thomas Berry (I’ve already read and appreciated his book The Dream of the Earth), was a great experience and I found a wonderfull person and I’m really happy that that day.
At the meeting my son Julien was with me (he was 8 years old) and at the end of all, I thalked with Thomas and I carried with me, I don’t know what my soon exactly understood about who was this person but I just thought that he was important for him to meet Thomas, like a positive “imprinting” for a special person…
Now Julien is 21 years old and he really seems that some beautiful experiences have formed fim well. By the way the italian text of this letter was tanslate by him…
A few day after the meeting I wrote a letter to Thomas Berry asking him also if he could send to me his report:“Dear Thomas Berry,(,,,) I heard with much interest your relation. Thanks you for your words. You give me a very deep sense to the ecologist’s role in the western society and to the work for our planet.As ecologist and bioregionalist we are often alone and isolated in this society based on the myteof progress and on the desacralized world.Your word will be very important for me to go on in my ecological life also I hope for my son Julien. (…)
So, I was very happy when he answered…Later on for AAM Terra Nuova, an italian ecological revue, I have translate his article “An ecological sensitive spirituality” and I’ve also translate, with my friends Paolo D’Arpini and Mariagrazia Pelaia, and diffused, like a mission, in meetings, conferences, magazines, newsletters, the web and my blog, the “manifesto” of the Ecozoic Era.In all this years the eco-spiritual vision of Thomas Berry has been my guide and I really thank him because of his contribution to give an ecological sense to my lifeBy dear Thomas, wherever you are now between earth and sky…
Stefano Panzarasa (Italy) – Member of Italian Bioregional Web and Responsable Environmental Education Area of The Regional Nature Park of Lucretili Mountains (near Rome).
