Thomas Philippe

OP
Thomas Philippe in 1986
Born
Jean Marie Joseph Philippe[1]

(1905-03-18)18 March 1905
Cysoing, Nord, France
Died4 February 1993(1993-02-04) (aged 87)
Saint-Jodard, Loire, France
NationalityFrench
OccupationPriest
Known forCo-founder of L'Arche
Parent(s)Henri Ignace Louis Joseph Philippe (father, 1875–1959) and Élisabeth Marie Joseph Dehau (mother, 1878–1968)
RelativesMarie-Dominique Philippe (brother), Marthe Robin, and Marie Philippe
ReligionRoman Catholic
Ordained25 July 1929 at Le Saulchoir, Kain, Belgium

Jean Marie Joseph Philippe (18 March 1905 – 4 February 1993), professionally known as Thomas Philippe, was a French Dominican priest. Along with Jean Vanier, he co-founded L'Arche, an organisation which helps support people with mental disabilities. Both he and Vanier were later found to be sexual abusers.[2]

Alongside teaching theology and philosophy, Philippe conducted retreats (at which his sexual abuse cases took place) and gave spiritual direction.[3]

Biography

Philippe was the third of twelve children born to Henri Ignace Louis Joseph Philippe (1875–1959) and Élisabeth Marie Joseph Dehau (1878–1968).[4] The Philippes were distantly related to French mystic Marthe Robin. Elisabeth's brother Pierre Dehau, a Dominican, lived with the family and acted as tutor to the children. Eight of the children later entered religious life, with five of them, including Philippe and his brother Marie-Dominique Philippe, joining the Dominicans.[5] Philippe was ordained a priest in 1929, taking the name Pere Thomas.[4]

In 1938, he had a so-called "spiritual experience" at Rome while contemplating the painting of Mater Admirabilis, which was the beginning of a process whereby he developed a heterodox and sexually abusive theology based on "Marian Maximalism". This was developed from a premise that Jesus and his mother Mary had been in an incestuous sexual relationship.[6]

He taught theology at Le Saulchoir and at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome, before starting various religious communities, including L'Eau Vive (living water). It was through the L'Eau Vive community in 1950 that Phillipe met Jean Vanier and founded L'Arche in 1964. Vanier called Philippe his "spiritual father".[7] In 1963, Thomas was the chaplain for Val Fleuri (flowered valley), a community of men with mental disabilities in Trosly-Breuil.[8] Val Fleuri was later integrated into L'Arche.

His conversations with Tim Guénard led to Guénard's conversion to Catholicism.

Philippe died on 4 February 1993 at the priory of Saint-Jodard, where the Brothers of Saint John looked after him in his old age. His brother Marie-Dominique discovered him dead and later celebrated his funeral in Trosly-Breuil, where he was buried.

Strife at Le Saulchoir

Paul Weindling, in his 2010 book, said:[9]

Thomas Philippe ... inspired vibrant spirituality and social activism, standing in the Dominican tradition of saving souls through preaching while looking to the very earliest Christian communities.
...
Père Thomas clashed with the philosophically innovative Père Marie-Dominique Chenu, who was Régent of Studies at the Studium Generale of Le Saulchoir from 1932 until debunked in 1942. ... In 1937 Chenu's tract Une école de théologie: Le Saulchoir[10] was condemned for challenging papal authority and split the ranks of the Thomists at the Saulchoir. ... The Angelicum in Rome ordered young Père Thomas "to put things right" by debunking Père Chenu. ... Thomas Philippe ousted Chenu as Régent at Le Saulchoir in June 1942. ... Chenu's condemnation meant his fellow Dominicans resented Père Thomas, who tried to bring about a fusion of the metaphysical and the mystical, but he realized that he could not change the rank and file at Le Saulchoir, who were loyal to Chenu.

Sexual abuse of adult women

Thomas Philippe and his brother Marie-Dominique Philippe (also a priest) were accused of having sexual relations with several women over a period of more than 20 years.[11]

In the early 1950s, after complaints from two women, Philippe was ordered to leave the L'Eau Vive center and travel to Rome for a canonical investigation.[5] Following this investigation, in 1956 the Vatican forbade Philippe to exercise any priestly ministry and in particular spiritual guidance, due to Philippe's teaching of false mysticism and associated deviant sexual practices.[12] Dominican archives show that Philippe ignored this prohibition.[13] Although the Vatican dissolved L'Eau Vive, Philippe continued to run it clandestinely through his protégé Jean Vanier. The two men later formed L'Arche at Trosly-Breuil and Philippe resumed his priestly activities, including the spiritual direction of men and women.[5]

In 2015, a second canonical instruction validated by Pierre d'Ornellas, Archbishop of Rennes, stated that Philippe was guilty of sexual abuse in the context of spiritual guidance of adult women. According to this document, fourteen people (two witnesses and twelve victims) were heard, confirming the facts of abuse which took place from the 1970s until 1991. The document states: “Father Thomas committed sexual acts against adult women, by which he said to seek and communicate a mystical experience ... They attest to a psychological and spiritual hold on these women to whom he asked for silence because, according to him, this corresponded to special graces 'that no one could understand' ". The canonical investigation confirmed that these testimonies were trustworthy.[14]

In early 2016, the association Aid to Victims of Deviant Religious Movements in Europe and their Families (AVREF)[15] published the testimony of a former Carmelite nun, who recounted in detail the story of her sexual relationship with Philippe.[16] The publication of this first testimony prompted two other women to testify to AVREF in turn a few weeks later, explicitly confirming that Philippe also had sexual relations with them.[17][18][19]

The L'Arche community recognized the truth of the facts and published them on the L'Arche international website.[20] Several nuns - victims of the sexual abuse of Phillipe and his brother - testified in a documentary broadcast on Arte and on Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS).[21]

In February 2020, L'Arche International issued its Summary Report,[22] being a summary of the full report by GCPS Consulting (a UK-based group with expertise in the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse) and the historical work by Antoine Mourges, concerning alleged or proven sexual abuse of women by Thomas Philippe and Jean Vanier.[23]

A defense of Thomas Philippe and Marie-Dominique Philippe has been published online by their niece Marie Philippe.[24]

Books

In English

  • Philippe, Thomas; Shaw, Russell (1979). Church & state: a novel of politics and power. Our Sunday Visitor. ISBN 9780879736491. 384 pages.
  • The Fire of Contemplation: A Guide for Interior Souls, translated and edited by sister Verda Clare Doran, CSC. New York, Alba House, 1981.
  • Philippe, Thomas (10 August 2009) [1990]. O'Connor, Edward Dennis (ed.). The Contemplative Life. Translated by Buonaiuto, Carmine (2nd ed.). CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 9781448658435. Forewords by Henri J. M. Nouwen and Jean Vanier. 144 pages.
  • Philippe, Thomas (1995) [1993]. Mystical Rose: Mary, Paradigm of the Religious Life. Our Sunday Visitor. ISBN 9780879736491. OCLC 32859232. 175 pages.

In French

  • Prayer, 1974.
  • The Heart of God, the Heart of Man, Trosly-Breuil, Les Chemins de l'Arche-la Ferme, 1987, 204 p.
  • The wheat is already white for the harvest: the Lion of Judah at the heart of a new community, Paris, Le Sarment / Fayard / Éditions du Lion de Juda, 1987, 207 p.
  • Fidelity to the Holy Spirit, Nouan-le-Fuzelier, Éditions du Lion de Juda, 1988, 281 p.
  • Crumbs for all: advice for the interior life and prayer of the heart, Paris, Éditions Saint-Paul, 1994, 219 p.
  • The quarter of an hour of prayer, Paris, Éditions Saint-Paul, 1994, 31 p.
  • Philippe, Thomas (2008) [1994]. Une nouvelle maturité chez nos aînés [A new maturity for our seniors] (in French). Paris: Saint-Paul éditions religieuses. ISBN 9782351170373. 31 pages.
  • Paths of light in children, Paris, Éditions Saint-Paul, 1994, 31 p.
  • The awakening to the love of the little one, Paris, Éditions Saint-Paul, 1994, 31 p.

In Polish

  • Wytrwała modlitwa, 1992.
  • Wierność Duchowi Świętemu, 1994.
  • Drogi światła u dziecka, 1998.
  • Nowa dojrzałość u najstarszych, 1998.
  • Czas żywotnych sił u nastolatka, 1998.
  • Mądrość różańca, 2002.
  • Obieram Cię dzisiaj, Maryjo, 2002.
  • Okruchy: rady dotyczące życia wewnetrznego i modlitwy serca, 2002.

References

  1. ↑ "Acte de naissance de Jean Marie Joseph Philippe" [Birth certificate of Jean Marie Joseph Philippe] (État-civil numérisé de la ville de Cysoing [digital vital statistics of the town of Cysoing]) (in French). fr:Archives départementales du Nord, view 209.
  2. ↑ "L'Arche International Mandated Study Commission 2020 Report Summary (January 30, 2023): Abuse and psychological coercion An investigation into Thomas Philippe, Jean Vanier and L'Arche". Study Commission Set Up by L'Arche International. January 30, 2023. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  3. ↑ Karickal, P. Jose Thomas (20 October 2006). From Professional Functioning to Personal Confession: Henri J.M. Nouwen's contribution to the contemporary spirituality of pastoral care (PDF) (ThD dissertation). Germany: Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg. p. 18. Pere Thomas Philippe, O.P. (1905-1993) was a teacher of philosophy and theology besides carrying on the apostolate of preaching, giving recollections, retreats and spiritual direction.
  4. 1 2 Delcourt, Gérard-Jean. "Jean Marie Joseph PHILIPPE: Family tree". Geneanet. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 Podles, Leon J. (16 May 2021). "Corruptio optimi". The Catholic World Report. Ignatius Press. Archived from the original on 23 June 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  6. ↑ A Toxic Nucleus Within the Church by Michael W. Higgins, Commonweal Magazine May 2023
  7. ↑ "Catholic charity founder sexually abused women, says report". The Guardian. The Associated Press. 22 February 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2020. The report noted similarities with the pattern of abuse of the Rev. Thomas Philippe, a Catholic priest Vanier called his 'spiritual father'. Philippe, who died in 1993, has been accused of sexual abuse by several women. A statement from L'Arche International said analysis of archives shows that Vanier 'adopted some of Father Thomas Philippe's deviant theories and practices'. Philippe was banned from exercising any public or private ministry in a trial led by the Catholic church in 1956 for his theories and the sexual practices that stemmed from them.
  8. ↑ Mathieu, Marie-Hélène; Vanier, Jean (25 September 2014). Never Again Alone!: The Adventure of Faith and Light from 1971 Until Today. WestBow Press. p. 10. ISBN 9781490846064. In 1963, Father Thomas was living in Trosly-Breuil, a village ten kilometers from Compiegne. He was the chaplain for Val Fleuri, an institution that welcomed about thirty men with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
  9. ↑ Weindling, Paul (2010). John W. Thompson: Psychiatrist in the Shadow of the Holocaust. University of Rochester Press. pp. 211–212. ISBN 9781580462891. 440 pages
  10. ↑ Chenu, Marie-Dominique (1937). Une école de théologie: le saulchoir. Etiolles: Le Saulchoir. OCLC 491085255. 128 pages
  11. ↑ Auvillain, Elisabeth (16 April 2019). "French Catholics raise voices, demand measures to prevent further clergy sex abuse". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 24 February 2020. [Marie-Dominique Philippe] and his brother, Thomas Philippe, also a priest, are accused of having sexual relations with several nuns for more than 20 years.
  12. ↑ "L'Arche Internationale publie les résultats de l'enquête sur son fondateur" [L’Arche International announces findings of Independent Inquiry]. L'Arche (in French). 22 February 2020. Archived from the original on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
  13. ↑ Heneghan, Tom (11 November 2019). "Brothers of Saint John denounce sexually abusive founder". The Tablet. Retrieved 24 February 2020. Dominican archives show that Fr Thomas was suspended from public ministry by Rome but he ignored this.
  14. ↑ Céline Hoyeau (15 October 2015). "L'Arche fait la lumière sur la face cachée du P. Thomas Philippe" [L'Arche sheds light on the hidden side of Fr. Thomas Philippe]. La Croix (in French). Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  15. ↑ "Aide aux Victimes des dérives de mouvements Religieux en Europe et à leurs Familles (AVREF)" [Aid to Victims of deviant Religious movements in Europe and their Families (AVREF)]. AVREF website (in French). Retrieved 23 July 2016.
  16. ↑ "Témoignage de Anne-Claire Fournier" [Testimony of Anne-Claire Fournier] (PDF). AVREF (in French). 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  17. ↑ "Testimonial of Mary Donnelly Regarding Sex Abuse by Thomas Philippe, O.P." AVREF. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  18. ↑ "Témoignage de Cynthia Howard" [Testimony of Cynthia Howard]. AVREF (longer version) (in French). Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  19. ↑ "Cynthia Howard's Testimonial". AVREF (shorter version). Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  20. ↑ "A propos du Père Thomas Philippe" [About Father Thomas Philippe]. L'Arche (in French). Retrieved 22 April 2019..
  21. ↑ "Religieuses abusées, l'autre scandale de l'Église" [Abused nuns, the other scandal of the Church]. Arte (in French). 16 February 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019..
  22. ↑ "Summary Report". L'Arche International. 22 February 2020. Archived from the original on 23 February 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2023. L'Arche International wishes to make the findings of the recent investigation public and at the same time protect the confidentiality of the women who testified, so we have created the following summary from the full report by GCPS and the historical work by Antoine Mourges.
  23. ↑ Mbengue, Eva (23 February 2020). "Founder of French Charity Is Accused of Pattern of Abuse". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 February 2020. The inquiry was commissioned in 2019 by the nonprofit charity after suspicions were raised as far back as 2014 by 'two women denouncing serious sexual misconduct' committed by Thomas Philippe, a Catholic priest and scholar whom Mr. Vanier considered a spiritual father.
  24. ↑ Marie Philippe (ed.). "Pere Marie Dominique Philippe: Les pères Thomas et Marie-Dominique Philippe sont-ils des criminels ?" [Father Marie Dominique Philippe: Are Fathers Thomas and Marie-Dominique PHILIPPE criminals?] (in French). Retrieved 24 February 2020.

See also

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