Gérard Bessière

Gérard Bessière (French: [ʒeʁaʁ bɛsjɛʁ]; 27 January 1928 – 8 December 2024) was a French diarist, poet, priest of the Diocese of Cahors, onetime national chaplain for the teaching staff of university parish, journalist of the weekly magazine La Vie,^[2][3] and author of numerous books on spirituality. He retired to a village in Lot.^[4]

Gérard Bessière
Born	(1928-01-27)27 January 1928 Luzech, France[1]
Died	8 December 2024(2024-12-08) (aged 96)
Education	Institut Catholique de Paris
Occupation(s)	Priest, writer, journalist

Life and career

Bessière was born in Luzech, Lot, in south-western France. His studies took place at the seminaries in Gourdon, in Cahors and the Institut Catholique de Paris.^[1] After studying theology, philosophy, exegesis and Biblical languages, he obtained a Philosophy Degree at the Sorbonne University, and was occupied for a long time with clergy training in the department of Lot.^[5] He collaborated with the publishing house Éditions du Cerf, for which he created the collection Jésus depuis Jésus. Together with Hyacinthe Vulliez he founded the magazine Notre Histoire.^[6] He made headlines in 2009 by excommunicating the pope.^[4][7]

Bessière was particularly interested in research on Jesus; he published several works at Éditions du Cerf, including Jésus est devant, Jésus insaisissable, Dieu est bien jeune, Le feu qui rafraîchit; and a richly illustrated monograph Jésus : Le dieu inattendu, published in the collection "Découvertes Gallimard".

Bessière died on 8 December 2024, at the age of 96.^[8]

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 « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 170), série Religions. Éditions Gallimard, 1993.
• With Francesco Chiovaro, Urbi et Orbi : Deux mille ans de papauté, collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 269), série Religions. Éditions Gallimard, 1995.
• With Hyacinthe Vulliez, Frère François : Le saint d'Assise, collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 354), série Religions. Éditions Gallimard, 1998.
• " L'Enfant hérétique ", 2004. Edition Albin Michel.
• " Jésus est à tout le monde " 2009. Edition Les Amis de Crespiat.