[1] Born in Bordeaux, France, Tauran studied at Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy, earning licentiates in philosophy and theology and a doctorate in canon law.

He was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Marius Maziers on 20 September 1969 and worked as a curate in the Archdiocese of Bordeaux before entering the Vatican's diplomatic service in 1975.

He received his episcopal consecration on 6 January 1991 from John Paul II himself, with Archbishops Giovanni Battista Re and Justin Francis Rigali serving as co-consecrators, in St. Peter's Basilica.

In regards to the Iraqi conflict, he once emphasized the importance of dialogue and the United Nations,[2] and said that "a unilateral war of aggression would constitute a crime against peace and against the Geneva Conventions".

Allen remarked: "On paper, Tauran profiles as virtually the perfect anti-candidate, meaning someone who really shouldn't be in the running at all: a history of health scares, a career bureaucrat with zero pastoral experience, and a delicate personality at a time when many cardinals are seeking a strong governor.

For Greenacre's fiftieth anniversary of his ordination at Michaelmas (the Feast of the Archangel Saint Michael) of 2005, Tauran traveled to Chichester and served as a guest preacher.

[9] In an April 2012 message marking the upcoming Buddhist celebration of Vesakh, a feast commemorating the key events in the life of the Buddha, Tauran said that "Young people are an asset for all societies" and called for education about varieties of religious practice in order to allow them to "advance together as responsible human beings and to be ready to join hands with those of other religions to resolve conflicts and to promote friendship, justice, peace and authentic human development".

[5]In June 2013, Pope Francis named Tauran a member of the five-person Pontifical Commission investigating the Institute for the Works of Religion.

[11] Pope Francis named Tauran to replace Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone as Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church on 20 December 2014.

[18] Each year, the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue sends a message, signed by its president, to Hindus for the festival of Diwali, which is celebrated during the month of October.

In the 2017 message, Tauran called for the promotion of integral development, protection of human life and respect for the dignity and fundamental rights of the person.

In a breakfast meeting with journalists in March 2008, Tauran said Rowan Williams, the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, had been "mistaken and naive" for suggesting that some aspects of Sharia law in Britain were unavoidable.

He also lamented the fact that relations with Islam so dominated interreligious dialogue, and that all religions needed to be addressed on equal terms with none assigned second-class status.