Jean-Paul Vesco | |
|---|---|
| Cardinal,Archbishop of Algiers | |
 | |
| Church | Catholic Church |
| Archdiocese | Algiers |
| Appointed | 27 December 2021 |
| Predecessor | Paul Desfarges |
| Other post | Cardinal-Priest of Sacro Cuore di Gesù agonizzante a Vitinia (2024–) |
| Previous post |
|
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 24 June 2001 |
| Consecration | 25 January 2013 by Philippe Barbarin |
| Created cardinal | 7 December 2024 byFrancis |
| Rank | Cardinal priest |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jean-Paul Vesco (1962-03-10)10 March 1962 (age 63) |
| Nationality | Algerian[1] |
| Coat of arms |  |
Jean-Paul Vesco,OP (French pronunciation:[ʒɑ̃pɔlvɛsko]; born 10 March 1962) is a Franco-Algerian cardinal of theCatholic Church who serves as theArchbishop of Algiers. He has spent most of his clerical career inAlgeria and wasBishop of Oran from 2012 to 2021. He is a member of theDominicans and headed the French Dominicans from 2010 to 2012. He was made a cardinal on 7 December 2024 byPope Francis.
Jean-Paul Vesco was born on 10 March 1962 in Lyon. After earning a degree in jurisprudence, he practiced law in Lyon for seven years before joining the Dominicans in 1995, taking his vows on 14 September 1996. Vesco was ordained a priest of the Dominican order on 24 June 2001.[2] His uncle, Jean-Luc Vesco (1934–2018), also a Dominican, was a biblical scholar who headed the École Biblique from 1984 to 1991 and led the Dominican province of Toulouse from 1976 to 1984.[3] After studies at theÉcole Biblique in Jerusalem, he moved toTlemcen, Algeria, in the Diocese of Oran on 6 October 2002.[2] This assignment reestablished the Dominican presence in that diocese six years after the assassination of its bishop,Pierre Claverie.[4] From 2005 to 2010 he wasvicar general of the diocese and from 2007 to 2010 he was also diocesan treasurer. On 16 October 2007 he was elected head of the Dominicans in Tlemcen.[2]
In December 2010, Vasco was elected Prior Provincial of the Dominicans in France and took up his duties in Paris on 11 January 2011.[4]
On 1 December 2012,Pope Benedict XVI appointed him bishop of Oran.[2] He received his episcopal consecration on 25 January 2013 in the Cathedral of Oran from CardinalPhilippe Barbarin, Archbishop of Lyon, assisted byGhaleb Moussa Abdalla Bader, archbishop of Algiers andAlphonse Georger, bishop Emeritus of Oran.[5][6]
In 2015, he called for the Church to re-evaluate its treatment of divorced Catholics who remarry, writing: "The church's discipline regarding divorced and remarried couples has long troubled me, even revolted me, because of the unnecessary suffering it inflicts on individuals without consideration for their unique situations."[7]
Among his sensitive assignments was the organization of celebrations in 2018 to mark the beatification of 19 Algerian martyrs.[8]
On 27 December 2021,Pope Francis appointed Vesco archbishop of Algiers.[9]
On 27 February 2023, PresidentAbdelmadjid Tebboune granted Vesco Algerian citizenship by presidential decree.[1]
On 6 October 2024, Pope Francis announced that he planned to make Vesco a cardinal on 8 December,[10] a date that was later changed to 7 December.[11]
On 7 December 2024, Pope Francis made him a cardinal, assigning him as a member of the order of cardinal priests the title ofSacro Cuore di Gesù agonizzante a Vitinia.[12]
In 2022, he said he expects to live in Algeria for the rest of his life. When he learned he was being made a cardinal he said: "I am the pastor of this church, which seeks to be a bridge, to foster fraternity, and to connect with all humanity. I don’t think being made a cardinal will distance me from Algiers and Algeria. On the contrary, this appointment will root me here even more."[7]
Vesco participated as acardinal elector in the2025 papal conclave that electedPope Leo XIV.[13]
