Joseph Gérard
Jean-Joseph Gérard , OMI (born March 12, 1831 in Bouxières-aux-Chênes , † May 29, 1914 in Roma in Basutoland ) was a missionary in Basutoland (now Lesotho ). He was an oblate to the Immaculate Virgin Mary .
Jean-Joseph Gérard attended the ecclesiastical school in Pont-à-Mousson from 1844 , and in 1849 he entered the seminary in Nancy . In 1851 he began his novitiate with the Oblates at Notre-Dame-de-l'Osier . In 1850 he was ordained a deacon and traveled to South Africa with a group of missionaries. In 1853 the father came to the Zulu in Natal , where he tried in vain to win the Zulu over to the Christian faith. From 1862 he worked in Basutoland and because of his work the Roman Catholic Church expanded there rapidly. He wrote a catechism , a reader, a biblical story and a Gospel of Luke in Sesotho , the national language of the Basotho . He died on May 29, 1914 in Roma in a reputation for holiness.
He was beatified on September 15, 1988 by Pope John Paul II . His Catholic feast day is May 29th.
literature
- Ekkart Sauser : GÉRARD, Jean-Joseph: religious, missionary. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 18, Bautz, Herzberg 2001, ISBN 3-88309-086-7 , Sp. 501.
Web links
- Gérard in the dictionary of saints
- Blessed Joseph Gérard ( Memento from November 18, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Gérard, Joseph |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Gérard, Jean-Joseph |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French missionary, Blessed |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 12, 1831 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Bouxières-aux-Chênes |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 29, 1914 |
| Place of death | Roma |