11 Facts About Ivan Gagarin

Prince Ivan Sergeyevich Gagarin SJ was a Russian Jesuit, known as Jean-Xavier after his conversion from Orthodoxy to Roman Catholicism.

Ivan Gagarin was the son of the Russian state-councillor, Prince Sergey Gagarin, and Varvara Pushkina.

Ivan Gagarin entered the service of the state at an early age, and was first named attache to his uncle, Prince Gregory Gagarin, at Munich, on whose death, in 1837, he acted as secretary to the legation at Vienna.

Ivan Gagarin was afterwards transferred to the Russian embassy at Paris, where his services were requisitioned in a similar capacity.

Ivan Gagarin frequented the salon of his near relation, Madame Sophie Swetchine, and was on terms of familiar intercourse with Father de Ravignan, Lacordaire's successor in the pulpit of Notre-Dame de Paris.

Ivan Gagarin was afterwards sent to Brugelette where the French Jesuits in exile had a high school.

Ivan Gagarin then taught church history and philosophy, at the College of Vaugirard and the school of Ste-Genevieve, and at Laval.

Ivan Gagarin spent some time in Versailles and, in 1855, was back at Paris.

Ivan Gagarin was thorough, and his work as a Catholic apologist was of great importance.

Ivan Gagarin's writings were later an influence upon the philosopher Vladimir Solovyov, through whom they helped lay the intellectual groundwork for Metropolitan bishop Andrey Sheptytsky to organize the first Apostolic Exarchate led by Fr.

Ivan Gagarin spent several years in Constantinople, where he founded the Society of St Dionysius the Areopagite, which aimed at reuniting the Greek and Latin Churches.