Wayne Robert Teasdale (16 January 1945 – 20 October 2004) was a Catholic monk, author and teacher from Connecticut, best known as an energetic proponent of mutual understanding between the world's religions, for an interfaith dialogue which he termed "interspirituality".[1] He was also an active campaigner on issues of social justice.
Teasdale was inspired by Bede Griffiths[2] and was particularly focussed on looking at Christianity and Hinduism in the way of Christian sannyasa.[3]
Career
Teasdale spent 10 years as a Trappist monk at St. Joseph’s Abbey in Massachusetts, under the direction of Abott Thomas Keating, founder of the centering prayer movement; he then travelled to India to study at Bede Griffiths's Benedictine ashram.[4]
Teasdale served on the board of trustees of the Parliament of the World’s Religions;[4] he was also a member of the Monastic Interreligious Dialogue and helped draft their Universal Declaration on Nonviolence. He was an adjunct professor at DePaul University, Columbia College, and the Catholic Theological Union, Chicago, and he also co-ordinated the Bede Griffiths International Trust.[5] He held an M.A. in philosophy from St. Joseph College and a Ph.D. in theology from Fordham University.
