On Saturday 13 June, the main conference hall of Forum St. Michel – the Jesuit faith-culture center in Brussels from the EOF Province – during its General Assembly in Brussels, the Centre Religieux d’Information et d’Analyse de la Bande Dessinée (CRIABD) presented the 2026 European Gabriel Awards for Christian Comics.

The main award was given to author Jean-François Vivier for his graphic novel Saint Damien of Molokai, Apostle of the Lepers. During an interview with journalist Héloïse Dautricourt at the Saint Michel Forum, Vivier reflected on his work dedicated to the life of this Belgian missionary priest, who in 1873 volunteered to live among people affected by leprosy who had been quarantined on the Kalaupapa peninsula in Hawaii.

Fr Damien devoted himself to caring for the patients, defending their dignity and improving their living conditions, until he himself died of leprosy in 1889. The event provided an opportunity to rediscover the personality, faith and commitment of a figure who remains an inspiration for many today. Brother Quentin Huilliard from the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts and a representative of Action Damien, a Belgian NGO working to combat tuberculosis, leprosy and other neglected diseases affecting vulnerable communities worldwide, also shared their reflections on his legacy.

A special Coup de Cœur Award was presented to the authors of the comic À toucher le Ciel, published to mark the 800th anniversary of the Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula in Brussels. The authors met many readers during the event and signed numerous copies of their work.

A New Chapter for Christian Comics

The gathering also marked an important moment for CRIABD, as it paid tribute to Brother Roland Francart SJ, from the former Southern Belgian Province, now part of the EOF, founder of the organisation, for his forty years of commitment to promoting Christian comics as a means of evangelisation and cultural engagement. After four decades dedicated to this mission, Fr Francart stepped down from his role as administrator and was named honorary founding administrator by the General Assembly.

To honour his contribution, a portrait of Fr Francart was created by watercolour artist Dominique de Haan, a member of the CRIABD jury, and presented to him during the ceremony. In return, he offered the association's president a handcrafted Ecuadorian artwork, a reminder of one of his many journeys as a Jesuit.

Founded in Belgium in 1985, CRIABD is an ecumenical organisation dedicated to promoting Christian comics in Europe and supporting their presence within the wider world of comics. The organisation works to highlight the religious, cultural and artistic dimensions of this medium and has representatives in six other European countries.