Gérard Bessière (born 1928) is a French diarist, poet, priest of the

Diocese of Cahors The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cahors (Latin: ''Dioecesis Cadurcensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Cahors'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The diocese comprises the whole of the department of Lot. In the begin ...

, former national

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

for the teaching staff of university parish, former journalist of the weekly magazine '' La Vie'', and author of numerous books on spirituality. He is now retired to a village in Lot.

Career

Bessière was born in Luzech, Lot, in south-western France. His studies took place at the

seminaries A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

in Gourdon, in

Cahors Cahors (; oc, Caors ) is a commune in the western part of Southern France. It is the smallest prefecture among the 13 departments that constitute the Occitanie Region. The main city of the Lot department and the historical center of the Que ...

and the Institut Catholique de Paris. After studying theology, philosophy,

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Biblical works. In modern usage, exegesis can involve critical interpretations ...

and Biblical languages, he obtained a Philosophy Degree at the

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University (french: Sorbonne Université; la Sorbonne: 'the Sorbonne') is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de So ...

, and was occupied for a long time with clergy training in the department of Lot. He has collaborated with the publishing house

Éditions du Cerf ''Éditions du Cerf'' (French: "Editions of the Deer") is a French publishing house specializing in religious books. It was founded in 1929, and operated by the Dominican Order. The name is a reference to Psalm 42 (41): As the hart panteth ...

, for which he created the collection . Together with

Hyacinthe Vulliez Hyacinthe is a given name. It is generally a male name. The form Hyacinth may be masculine or feminine. People with this name * Hyacinthe (actor) (1814–1887), French actor and operetta singer * Hyacinthe Besson (1816–1861), French painter and ...

he founded the magazine . He made headlines in 2009 by excommunicating the pope. Bessière is particularly interested in research on

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

, he has published several works at Éditions du Cerf, including , , , ; and a richly illustrated monograph , published in the collection "

Découvertes Gallimard (, ; in United Kingdom: ''New Horizons'', in United States: ''Abrams Discoveries'') is an Collection (publishing), editorial collection of Book illustration, illustrated monographic books published by the Éditions Gallimard in Pocket edition, ...

Selected publications

* ''Where is the Pope?'', 1974 * ''Jesus Ahead'', Burns and Oates, 1977 * ''Alors Jésus s'assit et dit…'', collection « Contes du Ciel et de la Terre ». Gallimard Jeunesse, 1993 ** ''Jesus Sat Down and Said…'', Creative Education, 1997 * ''Jésus : Le dieu inattendu'', collection «

» (nº 170), série Religions. Éditions Gallimard, 1993. * With

Francesco Chiovaro Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation), sever ...

, ''Urbi et Orbi : Deux mille ans de papauté'', collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 269), série Religions. Éditions Gallimard, 1995. * With

, ''Frère François : Le saint d'Assise'', collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 354), série Religions. Éditions Gallimard, 1998.

References

1928 births Living people French Roman Catholic priests 20th-century French male writers 21st-century French male writers Institut Catholique de Paris alumni University of Paris alumni {{France-nonfiction-writer-stub