page_title: Mariano Gagnon
section_title: Early life and priesthood
hierarchical_section_title: Mariano Gagnon / Early life and priesthood
caption_attribution_description: English: St. Joseph's Seminary This is an image of a place or building that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the United States of America. Its reference number is 93000582
context_page_description: Mariano Gagnon OFM, born Joseph Theodore Gagnon was an American Franciscan friar and Catholic priest, who served as a missionary in Peru. Gagnon founded the Cutivereni mission in Peru's Ene River valley to assist the indigenous Asháninka people who were being forced out of their homes in the jungle by settlers. He would later become known for his work helping arm the Asháninka and eventually helping some Asháninka flee Cutivereni when it was facing attack from Shining Path guerrillas during the Internal conflict in Peru. He later wrote about his experiences during the conflict in the book Warriors in Eden.
context_section_description: Joseph Theodore Gagnon was born on October 7, 1929, to a Métis father and a French-Canadian mother. He grew up in New Hampshire and was raised Catholic. He completed his high school education and then studied  at St. Joseph's Seraphic Seminary, a Franciscan minor seminary in Callicoon, New York.
  Gagnon's fascination with Peru and the Asháninka  began after World War II, when he heard a bishop give a talk about them. He then worked for three years in a shoe factory and restaurant in New Hampshire to save money to allow him to visit Lima. In 1948, he came to Peru, entered the Franciscan order, and took the name Mariano. Gagnon was ordained a priest in 1957, and spent three years working with those who spoke Cocama, an indigenous language of Peru. He said of the people that he served, "They are the most virtuous people I have ever met. They never lie and have great respect for personal property. Their language is very sharp. There is no word for 'maybe' in Campa." He also observed that they did not chew coca leaves and were not prone to sharing food and drink, which had been a major cause of rampant tuberculosis. There was also a high infant mortality rate. By 1969, he had established two missions and began work on a third.
caption: St. Joseph's Seraphic Seminary, Callicoon, New York
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