The Spiritual Sons of Victor Hugo
The Spiritual Sons of Victor Hugo
From Séance to Battlefield
The third chapter deals with his rival for visibility as a leader of overseas Caodaists—Trần Quang Cảnh, the son of Caodaism’s greatest military commander, Trần Quang Vinh (1901–1975), who also served as South Vietnam’s Minister of Defense (1947–1952). Taking on the mantle of his father’s divine appointment as Victor Hugo’s “spiritual son,” Cảnh believes that the Vatican in Vietnam cannot be moved elsewhere. After many years of criticizing government suppression, he is now the most prominent advocate of reconciliation with the Tây Ninh hierarchy. In 2010 he became the first American citizen to be ordained as an official member of the Tây Ninh administration. He wants to rebuild Caodaism in Vietnam by focusing on a new information center for tourists, recognition at academic conferences, and Internet connections. The chapter begins by tracing the reasons that Victor Hugo has been recognized as a “saint” or “prophet” within Caodaism, and the history of his own participation in spirit séances in the 19th century.
Keywords: Victor Hugo, spiritism, militarized religions, transnational outreach, decolonization in Vietnam
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