Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Hubert Coppenrath (18 October 1930 – 31 July 2022) was a French Polynesian Roman Catholic prelate, who served as Archbishop of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Papeete The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Papeete (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Papeetensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Papeete'') is a Metropolitan Archdiocese in French Polynesia. It is responsible for the suffragan diocese of Taiohae o Tefenuaenata. ...

Biography

Coppenrath was born in

Papeete Papeete (Tahitian language, Tahitian: ''Papeete'', pronounced ) is the capital city of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of the France, French Republic in the Pacific Ocean. The Communes of France, commune of Papeete is located on the isl ...

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austr ...

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

. He was ordained as a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

on 27 June 1957, in

. Coppenrath was an advocate for the Tahitian language and in 1974 he became one of the founding members of the Tahitian Academy. He was formally ordained as the Archbishop of the

on 4 June 1999 after appointment by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He succeeded his own brother,

Michel-Gaspard Coppenrath Monsignor Michel-Gaspard Coppenrath (4 June 1924 – 16 August 2008) was the Tahitian Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Papeete in French Polynesia for 26 years from 1973 until 1999. Coppenrath served as the Archbishop Emeritus o ...

, as Archbishop. On 31 March 2011

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

accepted the resignation of Coppenrath from the pastoral care of the archdiocese having reached the age limit. In June 2020 he was appointed an Officer of the

Order of Tahiti Nui The Order of Tahiti Nui was established on 5 June 1996 by the Assembly of French Polynesia to reward distinguished merit and achievements in the service to French Polynesia. History The Order of Tahiti Nui was established June 5, 1996 by resolu ...

References

External links

Hubert Coppenrath at Catholic Hierarchy
1930 births 2022 deaths French Polynesian Roman Catholic archbishops Roman Catholic archbishops of Papeete Tahitian-language writers 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Oceania 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in France Officers of the Order of Tahiti Nui People from Papeete category:Members of the Tahitian Academy {{FrenchPolynesia-bio-stub