Gérard Roussel (1500–50) was a French cleric, a student of

Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples ( Latinized as Jacobus Faber Stapulensis; c. 1455 – c. 1536) was a French theologian and a leading figure in French humanism. He was a precursor of the Protestant movement in France. The "d'Étaples" was not part of ...

and later a member, with his former teacher, of the Circle of Meaux around Guillaume Briçonnet, bishop of Meaux.Schmidt, C., ''Gérard Roussel: prédicateur de la reine Marguerite de Navarre'', Strasbourg, Genève, 1845."
/ref> This group was characterized by

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

sensibilities, but all the while remaining Catholics, at a time when religious identities were unclear and a matter of dispute, due to the very recent Protestant

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. Gérard Roussel, along with

, was studied by the historian Thierry Wanegffelen as being "between two pulpits", that of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and that of

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

where

Jean Calvin John Calvin (; frm, Jehan Cauvin; french: link=no, Jean Calvin ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system ...

would settle permanently in 1541, and, more generally, between Catholicism and Protestantism.A. A. Tilley
The Reformation In France.
/ref> When the Circle of Meaux was broken up in 1525, Roussel, like most of its members and unlike

Guillaume Farel William Farel (1489 – 13 September 1565), Guilhem Farel or Guillaume Farel (), was a French evangelist, Protestant reformer and a founder of the Calvinist Church in the Principality of Neuchâtel, in the Republic of Geneva, and in Switzerland ...

, stayed within the Catholic Church. He then became the personal preacher of

Marguerite of Navarre Marguerite de Navarre (french: Marguerite d'Angoulême, ''Marguerite d'Alençon''; 11 April 149221 December 1549), also known as Marguerite of Angoulême and Margaret of Navarre, was a princess of France, Duchess of Alençon and Berry, and Que ...

, queen consort of Navarre ; under her patronage, he became bishop of the

diocese of Oloron The former Roman Catholic Diocese of Oloron was a Latin rite bishopric in Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, Aquitaine region of south-west France, from the 6th to the 19th century. History The diocese of Oleron already existed in the 6th cen ...

, within the kingdom of Navarre, in 1536.

addressed on this occasion a letter to Roussel, mostly condemnatory, in which he said : Calling to mind the "former piety" of Roussel, "which I

alvin Alvin may refer to: Places Canada *Alvin, British Columbia United States *Alvin, Colorado *Alvin, Georgia *Alvin, Illinois * Alvin, Michigan *Alvin, Texas * Alvin, Wisconsin, a town *Alvin (community), Wisconsin, an unincorporated community Other ...

/nowiki> formerly admired, and which was for me an example of extreme worth", he called Roussel Calvin ended his letter with a condemnation of Roussel's new position : Gérard Roussel did not cease to be bishop of Oloron ; however, he served as advisor to

and then to her husband, king

Henry II of Navarre Henry II (18 April 1503 – 25 May 1555), nicknamed ''Sangüesino'' because he was born at Sangüesa, was the King of Navarre from 1517, although his kingdom had been reduced to a small territory north of the Pyrenees by the Spanish conquest of 1 ...

. On his advice, measures quite similar to some aspects of the Protestant

were introduced, such as preaching in

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

rather than Latin, but without formally breaking away from Catholicism. In much the same spirit, and to establish a reference for the priests of the kingdom of Navarre, he wrote the ''Familiar Exposition of the Creed, of the

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

and of the Sunday Prayer'' (''Familière exposition du symbole, de la loi et de l'oraison dominicale'') in which he explained these fundamental texts in a light that could be seen as Protestant, especially close to the idea of

justification by faith ''Justificatio sola fide'' (or simply ''sola fide''), meaning justification by faith alone, is a soteriological doctrine in Christian theology commonly held to distinguish the Lutheran and Reformed traditions of Protestantism, among others, fr ...

; it should however be noted that this trend of interpretation existed within Christianity before the Protestant Reformation, and was still held by some Catholic bishops and theologians. Furthermore, Farel did not attack, nor did he defend, the Catholic Church. However, such a stance was by now suspect at best, and in 1550 the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

, at that time Paris' university of theology and a major orthodoxy watchdog in the kingdom of France, condemned Roussel's work as "pernicious for Christiendom ../nowiki> reeking of

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

and in part obviously heretic". Thus, condemned by representatives of both the catholic orthodoxy and the

calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

orthodoxy, Roussel indeed illustrated these men "between Rome and Geneva" studied by Thierry Wanegffelen. He died in the same year 1550. He had a brother, Antoine Roussel.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roussel, Gerard 1500 births 1550 deaths 16th-century French Catholic theologians Bishops of Oloron French Renaissance humanists 16th-century French Roman Catholic bishops French male non-fiction writers