Jay Phillips Center Programs

Fr. Yann Vagneux: Dialogue Thrives on Friendship

Document Type

Presentation

Publication Date

9-10-2024

Sponsoring Department(s)

Jay Phillips Center for Interfaith Learning

Abstract

Fr. Yann Vagneux (born in 1976) is a Catholic priest and a member of the Foreign Missions Society who has studied in Paris, Rome and New York. His Doctorate Dissertation in Theology was published in his book “Co-esse” (DDB, 20151) which set out the Trinitarian Theology of Jules Monchanin, a pioneer of the dialogue between Christianity and Hinduism. He first visited India in 1997 and lived in the slum area of Chennai. Since 2010, he resides in the multi-religious city of Varanasi where he follows the path of a contemplative Christian presence to Hinduism as had originally been traced by Jules Monchanin and Swami Abhishiktananda (Henri Le Saux). Deep friendships unite him to the traditional world of the Brahmin Pandits, with whom he continues his Sanskrit studies and engages in a fruitful inter-religious dialogue. Since 2022, he is the co-director of Maitri Bhavan, the centre for interreligious dialogue of the Catholic diocese of Varanasi. His first book published in English “A Priest in Banaras” (ATC, 2020) recounts his early years on the banks of the Ganges. His second book “Indian Portraits. Eight Indian Encounters with Hinduism” (Nirala, 2021) is a token of gratitude towards those who have sculpted his spiritual bond with Hinduism. His new book (in French) “An Emulation of Sanctity. Hinduism and Christianity in Dialogue” is a theological reflection at the crossroads of the two spiritual traditions in which he dwells. Father Yann shares his life between Varanasi and Kathmandu, at the heart of the main religions of Asia.

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