Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard is a conservative former Archbishop of Bordeaux and president of the French bishops’ conference who had to step down in 2022 after disclosing abuse of a young girl in the 1980s for which he asked forgiveness.

Born on September 26, 1944, in Marseille, France, Ricard was ordained priest on October 5, 1968, and served in various pastoral roles within the Archdiocese of Marseille for 25 years. His early career included positions such as assistant pastor, head of religious culture, and diocesan delegate for seminarians.

Ricard’s ascent in the Church hierarchy began with his appointment as auxiliary bishop of Grenoble in 1993. He later became the Bishop of Montpellier in 1996 and served as vice-president and then president of the French Bishops’ Conference. In 2001, Pope John Paul II appointed Ricard as the Archbishop of Bordeaux, a position he held until 2019.

On March 24, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI elevated Ricard to the cardinalate, assigning him the title church of Sant’Agostino. Throughout his career, Ricard has been involved in various Vatican congregations and councils, including membership of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Pontifical Council for Culture.

Ricard has been an influential voice within the Church, addressing issues such as the use of human embryos in scientific research and the wider use of the Traditional Latin Mass. He authored a book titled “Les Sept Défis pour l’Eglise” (The Seven Challenges for the Church) in 2003.

In November 2022, Ricard admitted to sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl in the 1980s while serving as a parish priest. The cardinal said that his misconduct had “grave and lasting consequences,” for which he asked forgiveness. His admission led to investigations by French prosecutors and the Holy See, though criminal proceedings were eventually dropped due to the statute of limitations. As a result, Church authorities imposed restrictions on Ricard’s ministry for a period of five years.