William Johnston (born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1925 — died in Tokyo, Japan, 2010) was a Jesuit priest and a Zen meditation advocate. His family was a supporter of Irish Republican Army and suffered terror under the Irish Civil War. He studied in Liverpool University and at the National University of Ireland, then joined the Jesuit Order and in 1951 moved to postwar Japan.[1] [2]
Johnston held a doctorate in mystical theology from the Sophia University, Tokyo, and had also carried out specific studies on Buddhism. Been heavily influenced by Jesuit priest Hugo Enomiya-Lassalle, he participated actively in the dialogue between Zen Buddhism and Christianity.[3] He practiced Zen under the guidance of Yamada Koun Roshi, and insisted on continuing to recite the Jesus Prayer despite Yamada's contrary instructions. This stopped the master-disciple link.[1]
Johnston's reflections on his background in Northern Ireland, his transition to Japan and the practice of Zen, are about how the relationship of Catholicism and Zazen meditation can transform Ireland, Japan, Zen Buddhism, and Christian mysticism.Toward the end of his life, influenced by the Japanese experience of bombing of civilian populations and his understanding of the Buddha and Christ's teachings, he embraced the active promotion of nonviolence.[1]