Nicolas Ysambert (1565 or 1569—May 14, 1642) was a French,
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...
, and lifelong teacher at the
Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...
.
Life
Born at
Orléans
Orléans (;["Orleans"](_blank)
(US) and [Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...]
and was made a fellow (''socius'') of the college in 1598. Thenceforth he professed theology with such success as to attract public attention.
In 1616
King Louis XIII
Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...
founded at the Sorbonne a new chair of theology for the study of the controversial questions between
Catholics
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Protestants
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
. The professor in charge had to give on every working day an hour's lecture followed by a half-hour of familiar conference with his auditors. Ysambert was appointed to this chair by the king, who in this instance had reserved to himself the nomination. This appointment, which was an honour in itself, was still more enhanced by the
eulogies
A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as a ...
bestowed on Ysambert in the letters patent which designated him, wherein the king praises his competence and station, and his experiences in theology, controversial matters, and other sciences. From the time of his appointment as is evident from the manuscripts of his course, one of which is preserved at the
library of Toulouse, which was begun in 1618, Ysambert took as the basis of his letters the ''
Summa Theologica
The ''Summa Theologiae'' or ''Summa Theologica'' (), often referred to simply as the ''Summa'', is the best-known work of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), a scholastic theologian and Doctor of the Church. It is a compendium of all of the main th ...
'' of
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, OP (; it, Tommaso d'Aquino, lit=Thomas of Aquino; 1225 – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican friar and priest who was an influential philosopher, theologian and jurist in the tradition of scholasticism; he is known wi ...
upon which he seems to have commentated until the end of his career of teaching. His lessons won him a wide reputation, which he retained until his death.
In the councils of the theological faculty he was chiefly distinguished for his share in the censure directed against
Marc Antonio de Dominis
Marco Antonio de Dominis ( hr, Markantun de Dominis; 1560September 1624) was a Dalmatian ecclesiastic, archbishop of Split and Primate of Dalmatia and all Croatia, adjudged heretic of the Catholic faith, and man of science.
Early life
He was ...
, the
apostate
Apostasy (; grc-gre, ἀποστασία , 'a defection or revolt') is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that i ...
Archbishop of Spalatro, and author of ''
De republica christiana'', against