Heser, George

Heser, George a German ecclesiastical writer, was born at Weyern, near Passau, Austria, in 1609. He joined the Jesuits in 1625, and taught rhetoric, dialectics and controversy at Munich and Ingolstadt. In 1642 he became preacher at St.Maurice's Church, Augsburg, and in 1649 went in the same capacity to St. Mary's Church, Ingolstadt. In 1662 he retired to Munich, where he was still living in 1676. The exact time of his death is not ascertained. He is especially noted for his efforts in proving Thomas k Kempis (q.v.) as the author of De imitatione Christi. In his Dioptra Kempensis he has gathered a number of testimonies, and describes pretty accurately a number of editions and of translations of Kempis, which appeared during the 16th and 17th centuries. He wrote also Vita et Syllabus omnium Operum Thomea a Kempis ab auctore anonymo, sed coaevo, non longe post obitum illius conscripta (Ingolstadt, 1650,1 2mo; Paris, 1651, 8vo): — Faemonitio nova ad lectorem Thomea a Kempis (Ingolstadt, 1651, 18mo; Paris, 1651, 8vo): — LXX Palmae, seu panegyricus in laudem librorum IV Thoniae a

Kempis, ex hominumpiorum elogiis LXX concidmnatus (Ingolstadt,1651, 8vo), etc. See Veith, Biblioth. Augustana; Ersch und Gruber, Allem. Encyklopadie; Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Géneralé, 24, 559.