Jean-Paul Courvezy Explained

Type:Bishop
Honorific Prefix:Right Reverend
Jean-Paul Courvezy
Honorific Suffix:M.E.P.
Vicar Apostolic of Malacca-Singapore
Term Start:10 September 1841
Term End:7 September 1844
Predecessor:Office created
Successor:Jean-Baptiste Boucho
Birth Date:14 January 1792
Birth Place:Narbonne
Death Date:1 May 1857 (aged 65)
Nationality:French
Religion:Roman Catholic
Previous Post:Vicar Apostolic of Siam (1834–1841)
Ordination:30 November 1833 as Titular Bishop of Bida
Death Place:Narbonne

Jean-Paul Hilaire Courvezy M.E.P. (14 January 1792 – 1 May 1857) was a French Roman Catholic missionary and bishop who served as Vicar Apostolic of Siam (1834–1841), and Vicar Apostolic of Malacca-Singapore (1841–1844).

Biography

Courvezy was born on 14 January 1792 in Narbonne. After his priestly ordination, he served in the diocese of Carcassone, and in 1825 was appointed canon of Chartres and professor of theology at its seminary. In 1832, he joined the seminary of the Paris Foreign Missions Society and in the same year was sent to the Siam mission.[1] [2]

In 1832, he went to Singapore and played a leading role in the building of the first Catholic chapel in the settlement, the forerunner of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.[3] In 1833, he returned to Bangkok where he was ordained Titular Bishop of Bida, and appointed coadjutor of Bishop Esprit Marie Joseph Florens, and nominated his successor in the event his death. When Florens died on 30 March 1834, he assumed the office of Vicar Apostolic of Siam. Later that year, he returned to Singapore where he became involved in jurisdictional differences with the Portuguese Catholics who opposed the mission.[4]

In 1841, the Apostolic Vicariate of Siam was divided into the Apostolic Vicariate of Eastern Siam with jurisdiction over Siam, and the Apostolic Vicariate of Western Siam with jurisdiction over the Malay Peninsula. On 10 September 1841, Courvezy was appointed Vicar Apostolic of the Vicariate of Malacca-Singapore. On 18 June 1843, he blessed the foundation stone of the Church of the Good Shepherd, Singapore.[5] [6]

In 1844, he returned to France and his resignation was accepted by Rome on 7 September 1844. He settled in Narbonne where he died on 1 May 1857.[7]

References

  1. Web site: 0397 - Courvezy Jean-Paul . 2024-10-10 . IRFA . en-GB.
  2. Web site: Bishop Jeanpaul Hilaire Courvezy, MEP . 10 October 2024 . History of the Catholic Church in Singapore.
  3. News: 5 June 1936 . A Singapore Landmark - Cathedral of the Good Shepherd . Malaya Tribune . 12.
  4. Web site: Bishop Jean-Paul-Hilaire-Michel Courvezy [Catholic-Hierarchy] ]. 2024-10-10 . www.catholic-hierarchy.org.
  5. Web site: Malaysian Catholic History . 2024-10-10 . Herald Malaysia Online.
  6. News: 11 May 1843 . The Free Press . The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser . 3.
  7. News: 21 May 1846 . The Free Press . The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser . 3.