Fr. Jean Vernette (26 February 1929, Port-Vendres, Pyrénées-Orientales - 16 September 2002) was a French

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 partic ...

of the diocese of

Montauban Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, region of Occitania, Southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, ...

. He was considered a specialist by the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. In 1973, Vernette was appointed national secretary of the French

episcopate A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

for the study of cults and new religious movements. He published several books on cults, new therapies, and related topics. In his 1989 book, ''Le Nouvel Age'', Vernette criticised the

New Age movement New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consid ...

, which he described as an Anglo Saxon movement which was beginning to invade France. He asked if it represented the coming of the

Anti-Christ In Christian eschatology, the Antichrist refers to people prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus Christ and substitute themselves in Christ's place before the Second Coming. The term Antichrist (including one plural form)1 John ; . 2 John . i ...

, a Jewish conspiracy, or a project for a

global government World government is the concept of a single political authority with jurisdiction over all humanity. It is conceived in a variety of forms, from tyrannical to democratic, which reflects its wide array of proponents and detractors. A world gove ...

. He also noted its parallels with

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...

and said that Christians should be discerning towards it. Vernette spoke out against the 1996 report of the

Parliamentary Commission on Cults in France The French National Assembly, the lower house of the Parliament of France, set up a Parliamentary Commission on Cults in France (french: Commission parlementaire sur les sectes en France) on 11 July 1995 following the events involving the members ...

and against the

About-Picard law The 2001 About-Picard law bu pika:r officially Law No. 2001-504 of June 12, 2001, aimed at strengthening the prevention and repression of sectarian movements that undermine human rights and fundamental freedoms (French language, fr: loi n° ...

(in 2001), because of what he saw as a potential "anti-cult" attack on the Catholic Church itself. In 2000, he was auditioned by the

French Senate The Senate (french: Sénat, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. The French Senate is made up of 348 senators (''sénateurs'' a ...

about the opportuneness of a law strengthening the prevention and repression of cults.

Main works

* ''Dictionnaire des groupes religieux aujourd'hui'', with Claire Moncelon, Presses universitaires de France, 2001 * ''Les sectes'', Paris, Presses universitaires de France, « Que sais-je ? », n° 2519, 1990 * ''Le New Age'', Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, « Que sais-je ? », 1992 * ''L'athéisme'', Paris, Presses universitaires de France, « Que sais-je ? », n° 1291, 1998 () * ''L'Église catholique et les sectes'', Cerf ed. * ''Réincarnation résurrection. Communiquer avec l'au-delà, Les mystères de la vie après la vie'', Mulhouse, Salvator ed., 1988, 188p * ''Les Nouvelles Thérapies, mieux vivre et guérir autrement'', with Clermons Lons, Presses de la Renaissance ed. * ''Nouvelles Spiritualités, nouvelles sagesses'', Bayard ed. * ''Seront-ils chrétiens ? Perspectives catéchuménales'', with H.Bourgeois, Chalet ed. * ''Sectes et réveil religieux, quand l'Occident s'éveille''

References

1929 births 2002 deaths People from Pyrénées-Orientales 20th-century French Roman Catholic priests Researchers of new religious movements and cults Critics of new religious movements {{Christianity-bio-stub