Death of Father Joël Bigot, a pedagogue of religious culture

The Priest Joël Bigot, born in 1937 and ordained in 1962, passed away on Friday, May 8, 2026, at the Maison des Petites Sœurs des Pauvres in Rennes.

He was often discreet but was an indispensable assistant to Father Eugène Royer, who passed away in 2018. Both teachers, they shared a passion for passing on the faith to young people and a firm belief that the church should be interested in culture and media.

Embracing the new opportunities offered by technological advancements, they did not hesitate to engage in them to benefit Christians, always with the intention of building bridges between the church and society.

With a background in pastoral animation at the Saint-Vincent-La-Providence High School in Rennes, the two priests, who were also artists and educators, worked for several decades in the Rennes diocese in arts and culture. This included developing cinema through patronage and associations, amateur theater groups, musical works, dramatic plays, book publishing, photography, and collaborations with Father Royer on various projects.

Father Joël Bigot was specialized in popularizing religious heritage, like publishing guides on chapels and saints in Brittany, and working as a photographer for books on Breton calvaries.

Passionate about communication within the church, he became the editor-in-chief of the Catholic newspaper “Actualités Notre Temps (ANT)” in 2000, which later became “Actualités Région Ouest (ARO).” The newspaper was a common fund for the parish newspapers of the dioceses of Rennes, Coutances, Bayeux, and Séez, with 75 editions. Father Joël led an interdiocesan editorial team and worked closely with Eugène Royer. The newspaper is still in operation under a Norman team, led by the association’s president, Charles-Henri Piffarelly.

His funeral will be held on Friday, May 15, 2026, at 10:30 am in the chapel of the Petites Sœurs des Pauvres in Rennes, at 122 rue Général Leclerc.

Let us pray for him.