Emmanuel Célestin Suhard (; April 5, 1874 – May 30, 1949) was a French cardinal of the

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 ...

. He served as Archbishop of Paris from 1940 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1935. He was instrumental in the founding of the Mission of France and the

worker-priest Worker-priest (french: Prêtre ouvrier, Prêtres au travail) was a missionary initiative by the French Catholic Church in particular for priests to take up work in such places as car factories to experience the everyday life of the working class. A ...

movement, to bring the clergy closer to the people.

Early life and education

Emmanuel Suhard was born in Brains-sur-les-Marches,

Mayenne Mayenne () is a landlocked department in northwest France named after the river Mayenne. Mayenne is part of the administrative region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Manche, Orne, Sarthe, Maine-et-Loire, and Ill ...

, to Emmanuel Suhard (died May 1874) and his wife Jeanne Marsollier. Suhard entered the minor (October 1888) and major seminaries (October 6, 1892) in Laval. He then went to

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 ...

to study at the

Pontifical French Seminary The Pontifical French Seminary (La. ''Pontificium Seminarium Gallicum'', Fr.: ''Séminaire Pontifical Français'', It. ''Pontificio'' ''Seminario Francese'') is a Roman College dedicated to training French speaking Roman Catholic priests. History ...

and the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

, where he received a gold medal for his grades. From the Gregorian he also obtained

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

s in philosophy and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, and a licentiate in

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

to the priesthood on December 18, 1897, in the private

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

of Cardinal

Lucido Parocchi Lucido Maria Parocchi (13 August 1833 – 15 January 1903) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Secretary of the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office from 5 August 1896 until his death. Biography Luci ...

, and then finished his studies in 1899.

Priestly ministry

Returning from Rome in June 1899, Suhard was made

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

of philosophy at the Grand Seminary of Laval on the following September 30. He began teaching

in 1912, and was made the seminary's vice-rector in 1917. In 1919, he became a

titular Titular may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Title character in a narrative work, the character referred to in its title Religion * Titular (Catholicism), a cardinal who holds a titulus, one of the main churches of Rome ** Titular bisho ...

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

of Laval's

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

chapter.

Episcopal ministry

On July 6, 1928, Suhard was appointed Bishop of Bayeux-Lisieux by Pope Pius XI. He received his

episcopal consecration 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 ...

on the following October 3 from Bishop Grellier, with Bishops Florent de La Villerabel and Constantin Chauvin serving as co-consecrators. Pius XI later appointed Suhard to become the

Archbishop of Reims The Archdiocese of Reims (traditionally spelt "Rheims" in English) ( la, Archidiœcesis Remensis; French: ''Archidiocèse de Reims'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastic territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese a ...

on December 23, 1930, and created him cardinal in the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

of December 16, 1935. Suhard was one of the

cardinal electors A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

who participated in the 1939 papal conclave that selected Pope Pius XII, who named him Archbishop of Paris on May 11, 1940. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the cardinal was briefly detained in his archiepiscopal residence by German forces on June 26, 1940. He subsequently addressed a dispatch to

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

on October 26, 1941, to save the hostages of Nantes and Châteaubriant. He was a supporter of

Philippe Petain Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Count ...

and presided over a number of quasi-political services in Notre-Dame Cathedral during the war, including a service for victims of RAF bombings attended by Petain, whom the Cardinal greeted upon his arrival, in April 1944. Suhard also presided over the funeral, again at Notre-Dame, of Vichy Minister and propagandist

Philippe Henriot Philippe Henriot (7 January 1889 – 28 June 1944) was a French poet, journalist, politician, and minister in the French government at Vichy, where he directed propaganda broadcasts. He also joined the Milice part-time. Career Philippe Henriot, ...

who had been murdered in his office by resistance fighters. From 1945 to 1948, he was

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the Assembly of Cardinals and Archbishops of France and thus the spokesman of the Church in France. He then served as the assembly's

vice-president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

, under Cardinal Achille Liénart, until 1949.

Later life

Suhard died in Paris, at age 75. He was buried in the crypt of the archbishops in Notre Dame de Paris, Notre-Dame Cathedral on June 8, 1949.

Legacy

Like most of the French clergy during that time, Suhard initially supported Philippe Pétain, Marshal Pétain's Vichy France, Vichy government. In July 1942, during the History of the Jews in France#World War II and the Holocaust, deportation of the Jews of Paris, he appealed to Pétain to maintain "the exigencies of justice and the rights of charity." He was subsequently confined to his palace for some time by Nazi Germany, Nazi German troops. Charles de Gaulle was unimpressed by Suhard's wartime record, however. Upon returning to Paris in August 1944, de Gaulle excluded Suhard from the service at Notre Dame de Paris and refused to meet with him. The cardinal was influential in establishing the Territorial Prelate, Territorial Prelature of Mission of France and the Worker-priest, worker-priest movement. This quote was attributed to him via Madeleine L'Engle. "To be a witness does not consist in engaging in propaganda, nor even in stirring people up, but in being a living mystery. It means to live in such a way that one's life would not make sense if God did not exist." Another quote is attributed to him from Donald Cozzens' ''The Changing Face of the Priesthood'': "One of the priest's first services to the world is to tell the truth."

References

External links

Writings by or about Cardinal Suhard
* *https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/changing-face-priesthood
{{DEFAULTSORT:Suhard, Emmanuel Celestin 1874 births 1949 deaths Pontifical French Seminary alumni Pontifical Gregorian University alumni 20th-century French cardinals Bishops of Bayeux Archbishops of Reims Archbishops of Paris Cardinals created by Pope Pius XI Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint-Charles