Hugo Enomiya-Lassalle

Hugo Enomiya-Lassalle was both a Jesuit priest and an authorized Zen teacher. Maria Reis Habito told me several stories about her time with him: “When I first came to sesshin, and I asked Father Lassalle, I said, ‘You know, I’m Christian, but I met this Buddhist master, and now he wants me to meditate, and do you think Jesus would mind if I did Buddhist meditation?’ And he looked at me and he said, ‘You know what? I wouldn’t worry about that.’ So I said, ‘Fine.’

“On another occasion I came into his dokusan, into the interview, and – I don’t know – I said a lot, and I was in trouble, I don’t know what. And he looked at me and said, ‘I forgot to put in my hearing-aids. Would you say all of this again?’ And with a smile I dropped it all and said, ‘You know what? It’s not important.’”

Catholicism and Zen: 14, 32-36, 38-41, 43, 45, 46, 53, 55, 56, 59, 66, 68, 76, 89, 90, 91, 111, 112, 119

The Story of Zen: 256-58, 317, 435

Willigis Jäger

Willigis Jäger was a Benedictine monk who trained in the Sanbo Zen tradition. He was a major influence on many Catholic religious who also took up Zen training. “Many can argue whether a Christian can validly do or teach Zen or not,” Jäger said. “The fact is, I am doing it.”

He died on March 20, 2020.

Catholicism and Zen: 75-85, 104, 105, 125, 126, 140, 141, 143, 184, 187, 194, 196

The Story of Zen: 258