Jean Guitton facts for kids

Jean Guitton (born August 18, 1901 – died March 21, 1999) was an important French thinker. He was a Catholic philosopher, which means he studied big questions about life and faith. He was also a theologian, someone who studies religious beliefs. A famous French newspaper, Le Monde, once called him "the last of the great Catholic philosophers."

Jean Guitton's Life Story

Jean Guitton was born in August 1901 in Saint-Étienne, a city in France. His father was an industrialist, meaning he owned or managed a large business, probably a factory.

Jean was a very bright student. He studied at the Lycée du Parc in Lyon and then got into a very famous school in Paris called the École Normale Supérieure in 1920. This school is known for training top teachers and researchers in France.

A blind priest named Francois Pouget greatly influenced Jean Guitton's religious and intellectual ideas. After finishing his studies in the early 1920s, Jean Guitton taught in several high schools. He was also a follower of the famous philosopher Henri Bergson.

During World War II

During World War II, Jean Guitton was captured and became a prisoner of war by the Nazis. After the war, he became a university professor. He taught in Montpellier and then in Dijon, two cities in France.

In 1954, he received a special literary award from the Académie française. This is a very old and respected group in France that protects the French language and its literature. From 1955 to 1968, he continued his work as a philosophy professor at the Sorbonne, one of the oldest and most famous universities in the world. In 1961, he became a member of the Académie française.

Working with the Pope

Jean Guitton was invited to a very important meeting called the ecumenical council of Vatican II. This was a big meeting of Catholic leaders from around the world. He was the first lay person (someone who is not a priest or religious leader) to be given this special honor. During this time, he became a close friend of Pope Paul VI, who was the head of the Catholic Church.

Later Life and Awards

Jean Guitton lived a long life and passed away in Paris in 1999 at the age of 97. During his life, he received many important awards. These included the Great Cross of the National Order of Merit, Commander of the Légion d'Honneur, and the Arts and Letters Medal. These awards are given for great achievements and contributions to France.

Jean Guitton's Writings

Jean Guitton wrote about fifty books! In most of his books, he explored the big questions about how human faith (what people believe) and human logic (what people can figure out with their minds) connect. He often discussed how these two ideas might seem to disagree but can actually work together.

Some of his well-known books include:

• Portrait d'une mère (1933)
• Le Problème de Jésus (1946)
• La Vierge Marie (1949)
• Dialogues avec Paul VI (1967)
• Ce que je crois (1971)
• Dieu et la science (with Igor and Grichka Bogdanoff, 1991)

See also

In Spanish: Jean Guitton para niños