MARET, Henri-Louis. – Theologian, b. at Merquies on 20 Apr. 1805, d. in Paris on 16 June 1884. Ordained in 1830, he became famous for an *Essai sur le panthéisme dans les sociétés modernes* (Paris 1839), which earned him the chair of dogmatic theology at the Sorbonne, and for the *Théologie chrétienne* (ibid. 1844).
During the Second Empire he supported the religious policy of Napoleon III, who would have wished to make him Bishop of Vannes, but Pius IX merely conferred upon him a titular diocese, also in view of M.’s liberal and Gallican sentiments. Indeed, he took a stand against the proclamation of the dogma of papal infallibility, subsequently publishing two much-debated books, *Du concile général et de la paix religieuse* and *Le pape et les évêques* (Paris 1869), and during the Vatican Council he was among the few to vote against the dogmatic definition, though he quickly hastened to submit to the majority of votes. Another battle he fought vigorously and likewise lost was his effort to secure the Holy See’s recognition of the theological faculties established by the French government in state universities.
Renzo U. Montini