Shafique Keshavjee

Born on December 13, 1955 in Nairobi, Kenya, I grew up in an Ismaili family — a branch of Shia Islam led by the Aga Khan, known for its openness and modernity. After a stay in England, my family settled in Switzerland, first in Winterthur then in Lausanne from 1964.

In 1974, after my high school diploma at the Gymnase de la Cité, I embarked on an eight-month journey through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan to India. It was there that I discovered the New Testament, finding 'wonders and, above all, Christ.' This profound adherence transformed my life and allowed me to reconcile my Indian and Christian identities.

Back in Switzerland, I pursued a double university education: a degree in social and political sciences (1980, with the award for best results) then in theology (1982). I became the French-speaking Swiss head of the University Biblical Groups from 1982 to 1985, before defending my doctoral thesis on Mircea Eliade in 1991, crowned by the Vaud Academic Society prize.

"There is nothing more beautiful than Christ… and Christ is our passage through our dead ends!"

Ordained as a pastor at Lausanne Cathedral in 1991, I was also appointed lecturer at EPFL where I taught the relationship between science and religion. In 1996, I co-founded the Maison de l'Arzillier, a pioneering place for interreligious dialogue in French-speaking Switzerland where Muslims, Jews, Christians and Buddhists meet in mutual respect.

My novel The King, the Sage and the Jester (1998) achieved international success with over 150,000 copies sold and translations into fifteen languages. I was then appointed professor of ecumenical theology at the University of Geneva (2005-2010), before committing to the Haute École de Théologie in Saint-Légier.

My journey has led me to defend what I call a 'generous orthodoxy': faithful to fundamental Christian doctrines while maintaining an openness to dialogue. As I often write, 'to dialogue is to accept being transformed by the other while remaining oneself.'