Wikipedia

Michel Aupetit

Michel Aupetit (born 23 March 1951) is a French prelate of the Catholic Church who was Archbishop of Paris from 2018 to 2021, when he resigned following reports of a relationship with a woman in 2012.

The Most Reverend

Michel Aupetit
Archbishop Emeritus of Paris
Michel Aupetit in 2019
Michel Aupetit in 2019
ArchdioceseParis (emeritus)
ProvinceParis (emeritus)
SeeParis (emeritus)
Appointed7 December 2017
Installed6 January 2018
Term ended2 December 2021
PredecessorAndré Vingt-Trois
SuccessorLaurent Ulrich
Other post(s)Ordinary of French Faithful of Eastern Rites (2018-)
Previous post(s)
Orders
Ordination24 June 1995
by Jean-Marie Lustiger
Consecration19 April 2013
by André Vingt-Trois
Personal details
Born
Michel Christian Alain Aupetit

(1951-03-23) 23 March 1951 (age 73)
Versailles, France
MottoJe suis venu pour que les hommes aient la vie pour qu'ils l'aient en abondance ("I am come that they might have life, and have it in abundance")
SignatureMichel Aupetit's signature

He was previously the Bishop of Nanterre beginning in April 2014 and before that an Auxiliary Bishop of Paris. Before becoming a priest, he was a physician and practised medicine for more than twenty years.

Early years

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Born in Versailles (Yvelines) on 23 March 1951,[1] Michel Aupetit grew up in Chaville et Viroflay in the western part of the Île-de-France.[2]

After attending his secondary school at the Lycée Hoche (Versailles), Aupetit studied at the Bichat Medical School of the University of Paris VII where he received an MD degree in 1978.[3] He further specialized in medical ethics with obtaining a DU degree in this field from the Faculty of Medicine of Créteil in 1994. His studies included time at Hôpital Bichat [fr] and Hôpital Necker. After that, he practiced general medicine in Colombes from 1979 to 1990.[2] He taught medical ethics from 1997 to 2006 at the Centre hospitalier universitaire Henri-Mondor in Créteil.[1]

Aupetit then studied for the priesthood at the seminary of Paris where he earned a Canonical Baccalaureate in Theology.[4] He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Paris on 24 June 1995 at the age of 44. He served initially as a vicar of the Church of Saint-Louis-en-l'Île from 1995 to 1998, and then of Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis from 1998 to 2001. He was also chaplain of high and middle schools of the Marais from 1995 to 2001. From 2001 to 2006, he was assigned to the parish of Église Notre-Dame-de-l'Arche-d'Alliance [fr], and dean in the Pasteur-Vaugirard deanery from 2004 to 2006.[1]

From 2006 to 2013 he was vicar general of the Archdiocese of Paris.

Bishop

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On 2 February 2013 Pope Benedict XVI named him auxiliary bishop of Paris and titular bishop of Massita.[1] He received his episcopal consecration from Cardinal André Vingt-Trois.

Pope Francis appointed him Bishop of Nanterre on 4 April 2014[5][6] and he was installed there on 4 May.[7][8]

On 7 December 2017, Pope Francis appointed him Archbishop of Paris,[9] and he was installed there on 6 January 2018.[10] Pope Francis named him a member of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches on 6 August 2019.[11]

On 5 September 2019, Aupetit and Rémy Heitz, the lead prosecutor in Paris, signed an accord agreeing to better cooperation which will speed up sex abuse investigations.[12]

In late November 2021, Aupetit offered to resign after admitting to having had a relationship with a woman in 2012, before becoming a bishop, though he disputed press reports that described that relationship as a "double life" and called it an "ambiguous" relationship that did not include sexual relations.[13] Pope Francis accepted his resignation on 2 December 2021.[14] He was replaced by Mgr Laurent Ulrich.

Sexual assault probe

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In November 2022, French police began an investigation with allegations that several years before, Aupetit had sexually assaulted a woman who was under legal protection as a vulnerable individual.[15] Aupetit stated that he had never had a romantic or sexual relationship with the woman in question, while the woman stated that the situation did not constitute a criminal offense, resulting in the case being closed in September 2023.[16]

Selected works

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  • Construisons-nous une societe humaine ou inhumaine?, Dumoulin, 2016
  • La mort, et après?: Un prêtre médecin témoigne et répond aux interrogations, Salvator, 2009
  • L'homme, le sexe et Dieu: Pour une sexualité plus humaine, Salvator, 2011
  • Qu'est ce que l'homme?, Francois-Xavier de Guibert, 2010
  • L'embryon, quels enjeux?, Salvator, 2008
  • Contraception: la réponse de l'Eglise, Pierre Téqui, 2000

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Rinunce e Nomine, 02.02.2013" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 2 February 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2013. Il Rev.do Mons. Michel Aupetit è nato il 23 marzo 1951 a Versailles...
  2. ^ a b "L'intérêt d'un diocèse comme celui de Nanterre, c'est la mixité sociale" (in French). Le Parisien. 19 April 2014. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
  3. ^ Paris’s new archbishop has a very unconventional background - website of the British Catholic Herald
  4. ^ "Biographie de Mgr Michel Aupetit" (in French). L'Église catholique à Paris. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  5. ^ Senèze, Nicolas (4 April 2014). "Mgr Michel Aupetit nommé évêque de Nanterre, Mgr Pierre-Yves Michel à Valence" (in French). La Croix. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
  6. ^ "Rinunce e Nomine, 04.04.2014" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 4 April 2014.
  7. ^ "Michel Aupetit nommé évêque de Nanterre" (in French). Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
  8. ^ Mass for the installation of Msgr Aupetit in the temple of Notre Dame (in French). Paris. 6 January 2018. Archived from the original on 12 May 2019.
  9. ^ "A former doctor becomes archbishop of Paris". La Stampa. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  10. ^ "Mgr Michel Aupetit devient officiellement l'archevêque de Paris". Valeurs actuelles (in French). 6 January 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  11. ^ "Resignations and Appointments, 06.07.2019" (Press release). Holy See Press Office. 6 August 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  12. ^ Paris prosecutor steps up effort to investigate clergy abuse Archived 2021-12-02 at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ White, Christopher (26 November 2021). "Paris archbishop offers resignation to Pope Francis following reports of questionable relationship". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  14. ^ "Rinunce e nomine, 02.12.2021" (Press release) (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  15. ^ Leicester, John (4 January 2023). "Former Paris archbishop target of sexual assault probe". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  16. ^ "Soupçons d'agression sexuelle visant Michel Aupetit, ancien archevêque de Paris : enquête classée pour absence d'infraction". Le Monde. 14 September 2023.
Sources
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