Castel Gandolfo: Far from their home country, three young seminarians from Mexico are living a summer unlike any other serving in the serene expanses of the Laudato Si’ Village in Castel Gandolfo. Amid hills, gardens, and open skies, Porfirio Ramírez Méndez, Sergio Camarillo Gámez, and Jesús Israel Aguirre Legaria are part of a living project born from the ecological dreams of Pope Francis, now passionately carried forward by Pope Leo XIV.
Nestled within the 55 hectares of the Pontifical Villas, the Laudato Si’ Village is more than just a garden it is a vision come alive. With 35 hectares dedicated to lush gardens and 20 to fertile farmland, it serves as a spiritual and ecological formation ground, where seminarians, visitors, and caretakers unite in service and sustainability.
The three volunteers hail from different dioceses in Mexico, and their summer is not structured by bells or rigid schedules. Their day begins with the land tending to gardens, cleaning fountains, and welcoming pilgrims into what they call a “living laboratory” of Pope Francis’ Laudato si’.
“It’s a rare blessing,” says Porfirio, from the Archdiocese of Huajuapan de León in Oaxaca. “To be able to grow in my vocation while contributing to a vision that cares for creation it’s a profound gift in my formation.”
For Sergio, a 27-year-old seminarian from Puebla, the experience has been equally transformative. “This place is a school of the Gospel in action. Every tree we water, every person we greet it's all part of a deeper mission.” One unforgettable moment for Sergio was participating in Mass with Pope Leo XIV an encounter he calls “a grace beyond words.”
Continuing Pope Francis' legacy, Pope Leo XIV presided over the first Mass for the Care of Creation on July 9 in the Garden of the Madonnina, a natural sanctuary inside the village. In his homily, the Pope invited everyone to live out the call of Laudato si’ daily not just in words but in witness.
“This place is a cathedral of nature,” the Pope said. “Your work your presence is the heartbeat of this Laudato Si’ Center. May it always reflect the love, simplicity, and urgency with which Pope Francis asked us to protect our common home.”
At 24, Jesús Israel Aguirre Legaria, also from Huajuapan de León, views his time at the village as a sacred commission. “To care for creation is to live the Gospel. What we do here welcoming visitors, helping at liturgies, working the land is our way of saying yes to God’s call.”
For Israel, this mission is just beginning. “I hope many more seminarians from across the world come here. Not just to serve but to grow to become stewards of creation and healers of a world in pain.”
Though most of the students and visitors to the Laudato Si’ Village are not Catholic many are Buddhists or spiritual seekers the space unites people across beliefs through shared values: care, communion, and reverence for the Earth.
What began as a project under Pope Francis has become a pilgrimage destination, a formation center, and a mirror of what the Church can be when it listens to creation. For these three Mexican seminarians, it is a journey that reshapes priesthood not only as ministry but as stewardship.
The seeds they plant both literal and spiritual may one day bloom across the global Church, forming a generation of clergy rooted not just in doctrine but in compassion for the Earth and all its people.