Gérard Denis Auguste Defois (born 5 January 1931) is a French prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

who was the ordinary of a series of French dioceses from 1990 until his retirement in 2008. He was Archbishop of Sens-Auxerre from 1990 to 1995,

Archbishop of Reims The Archdiocese of Reims or Rheims (; French language, French: ''Archidiocèse de Reims'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastic territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese around 250 by Sixtus of Reims, the diocese w ...

from 1995 to 1998, and finally of Bishop of Lille with the personal title of archbishop from 1998 to 2008. Before becoming a bishop he worked for the French Bishops Conference and held academic positions. He has published extensively.

Biography

He was born on 5 January 1931 in Nueil-sur-Layon,

Maine-et-Loire Maine-et-Loire () is a department in the Loire Valley in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France. It is named after the two rivers, Maine and the Loire. It borders Mayenne and Sarthe to the north, Loire-Atlantique to the west, Indr ...

. He studied at the major seminary in Angers and at the

Institut Catholique de Paris The Institut catholique de Paris (, abbr. ICP), known in English as the Catholic University of Paris (and in Latin as ''Universitas catholica Parisiensis''), is a private university located in Paris, France. History: 1875–present The Institut ...

and earned a doctorate in theology. He was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Angers on 11 October 1956. His pastoral assignments included more than seven years as a vicar in Angers. He was chaplain in Cholet from 1957 to 1963, director of religious instruction for the diocese from 1965 to 1967, co-director of the Institute for pastoral education in Paris from 1968 to 1973, and professor of pastoral theology and sociology at the Institute for religious culture in

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N'ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the largest city and the former capital of Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of the overall population ...

from 1971 to 1976. Returning to France, he joined the staff of the French Bishops Conference. He was assistant secretary for pastoral issues from 1973 to 1977 and then secretary general from 1977 to 1983. He managed conferences at the Institut Catholique de Paris in 1984. He was rector of the

Catholic University of Lyon The Catholic University of Lyon (UCLy), also known as the Lyon Catholic Institute ( French: ''Institut Catholique de Lyon''), is a French private university based in Lyon and Annecy, Southeastern France. History The Lyon Catholic University has ...

from 1984 to 1990 and preached the Lenten sermons at

Notre-Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...

from 1989 to 1991. On 26 July 1990,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

appointed him archbishop coadjutor of Sens. He received his episcopal consecration on 6 October from Cardinal

Albert Decourtray Albert Florent Augustin Decourtray S.T.D. (9 April 1923 – 16 September 1994) was a French Catholic Cardinal and Archbishop of Lyon. Biography Early life He was born in the hamlet of L'Amiteuse near Lille, France. He entered the minor semin ...

. On 21 December he succeeded to the see of Sens upon the resignation of his predecessor there. On 4 September 1995, he was transferred to the Archdiocese of Reims. Prior to the 1997 legislative elections, he said that politics is everyone's business: "God has entrusted the earth to all mankind. It forces us to humanize it." On 2 July 1998, he was transferred to the Diocese of Lille, retaining the personal title of archbishop.

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

accepted his resignation on 1 February 2008. He was made an Officer of the

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

and Commander of the National Order of Merit.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Defois, Gerard Denis Auguste 1931 births Living people Archbishops of Reims People from Maine-et-Loire Bishops of Lille Catholic University of Paris alumni Officers of the Legion of Honour Commanders of the Ordre national du Mérite