Auguste Joseph Alphonse Gratry
Encyclopedia
Auguste Joseph Alphonse Gratry (usually known as Joseph Gratry) (10 March 1805 − 6 February 1872) was a French
author and theologian
.
Gratry was born at Lille
and educated at the École Polytechnique
of Paris. After a period of mental struggle which he has described in Souvenirs de ma jeunesse, he was ordained priest in 1832. After a stay at Strasbourg
as professor of the Petit Séminaire, he was appointed director of the Collège Stanislas
in Paris in 1842 and, in 1847, chaplain of the École Normale Supérieure
. He became vicar-general of Orleans in 1861, professor of ethics
at the Sorbonne
in 1862, and, on the death of Barante, a member of the French Academy
in 1867, where he occupied the seat formerly held by Voltaire
.
Together with others (abbé Pétitot, curé of Saint Roch
, and Hyacinthe de Valroger
) he reconstituted the Oratory of the Immaculate Conception, a society of priests mainly devoted to education. Gratry was one of the principal opponents of the definition of the dogma
of papal infallibility
, but in this respect he submitted to the authority of the First Vatican Council
.
He died at Montreux
in Switzerland.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
author and theologian
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
.
Gratry was born at Lille
Lille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
and educated at the École Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
of Paris. After a period of mental struggle which he has described in Souvenirs de ma jeunesse, he was ordained priest in 1832. After a stay at Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
as professor of the Petit Séminaire, he was appointed director of the Collège Stanislas
Collège Stanislas de Paris
Le Collège Stanislas de Paris is a private Catholic school in Paris, situated on "Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs" in the Montparnasse arrondissement. It has approximately 3,000 students, and is the largest private school in France....
in Paris in 1842 and, in 1847, chaplain of the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
. He became vicar-general of Orleans in 1861, professor of ethics
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
at the Sorbonne
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
in 1862, and, on the death of Barante, a member of the French Academy
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
in 1867, where he occupied the seat formerly held by Voltaire
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet , better known by the pen name Voltaire , was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion, free trade and separation of church and state...
.
Together with others (abbé Pétitot, curé of Saint Roch
Église Saint-Roch
The Church of Saint Roch is a late Baroque church in Paris. Located at 284 rue Saint-Honoré, in the 1st arrondissement, it was built between 1653 and 1722.- History :...
, and Hyacinthe de Valroger
Hyacinthe de Valroger
Hyacinthe de Valroger was a French Roman Catholic priest and Oratorian. He first studied medicine, and was later ordained priest , and made director of the lesser seminary of Bayeux. In 1847 he became titular canon of Bayeux Cathedral...
) he reconstituted the Oratory of the Immaculate Conception, a society of priests mainly devoted to education. Gratry was one of the principal opponents of the definition of the dogma
Dogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
of papal infallibility
Papal infallibility
Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, by action of the Holy Spirit, the Pope is preserved from even the possibility of error when in his official capacity he solemnly declares or promulgates to the universal Church a dogmatic teaching on faith or morals...
, but in this respect he submitted to the authority of the First Vatican Council
First Vatican Council
The First Vatican Council was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This twentieth ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church, held three centuries after the Council of Trent, opened on 8 December 1869 and adjourned...
.
He died at Montreux
Montreux
Montreux is a municipality in the district of Riviera-Pays-d'Enhaut in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.It is located on Lake Geneva at the foot of the Alps and has a population, , of and nearly 90,000 in the agglomeration.- History :...
in Switzerland.
Selected works
- De la connaissance de Dieu, opposing PositivismPositivismPositivism is a a view of scientific methods and a philosophical approach, theory, or system based on the view that, in the social as well as natural sciences, sensory experiences and their logical and mathematical treatment are together the exclusive source of all worthwhile information....
(1855) - La Logique (1856)
- Les Sources, conseils pour la conduite de l'esprit (1861−1862)
- La Philosophie du credo (1861)
- Commentaire sur l'évangile de Saint Matthieu (1863)
- Jésus-Christ: réponse à M. Renan (1864)
- Les Sophistes et la critique (in controversy with E. Vacherot) (1864)
- La Morale et la loi de l'histoire, setting forth his social views (1868)
- Mgr. l'évêque d'Orléans et Mgr. l'archevêque de Malines (1869), containing a clear exposition of the historical arguments against the doctrine of papal infallibility.
Further reading
- Chauvin, Amédée (1911) Le père Gratry, 1805-1872: l'homme et l'oeuvre d'apres des documents inedits; Nouv. éd., rev. et augm. Paris: Bloud. (1st ed. 1901)
External links
- Catholic Encyclopedia article
- El sentido de lo infinito en Gratry by Máximo Lameiro.