Poussines, Pierre

Poussines, Pierre a French Jesuit, was born in 1609 at Laurac (diocese of Narbonne). After studying at Beziers, he entered the Society of Jesus at Toulouse in 1624, and was in the latter city and at Montpellier professor of humanities, of rhetoric, and of theology. Called to Rome in 1664 to continue The History of the Society, interrupted by the death of Sacchini, he devoted several years to that work, and was subsequently professor of exegetical theology at the Roman College. Many illustrious personages honored him with proofs of their esteem, among others queen Christina of Sweden and cardinal Barberini, who committed to him the interpretation of the works of Pachymeres. Poussines was chosen to give Greek lessons to the young prince Orsini and to the abbé Albani, who afterwards became pope under the name of Clement XI. He returned to Toulouse towards the end of 1682, and continued his literary activity in spite of his failing health. He died at Toullouse Feb. 2. 1686. He left, Nicetae Laudatio sanctorum archangelorum Michaelis et Gabrielis (Toulouse, 1637, 8vo): — Polemonis Sophistae Orationes (ibid. 1637, 8vo): — Annce Conneme Posphyrogenite Alexias (Paris, 1651, fol.): — Sancti Nili Opera quaedam (ibid. 1639, 4to): — Nicephori Bryennii Commlentarii de Rebus Byzantinis (ibid. 1661, fol.): — Georgii Pachymeris Michael Palesologus (Rome, 1666, fol.): — G. Puchimeri Andronicus Palaeologus (ibid. 1669, fol.): — Sancti Methodii Convivium Virginum (Paris, 1657, fol.): — Catena Grcecorum Patrum in Evangelium secundum Marcunt (Rome, 1673, fol.): — Thesaurus Asceticus (Paris, 1684, 4to): Theophylacti Institutio Regua (ibid. 1641, 4to). All these editions are accompanied with commentaries and notes full of erudition. Poussines is the author of a considerable number of lives of saints of Greece, of Languedoc, and of Gascoyne inserted in the collection of the Bollandists; of a Latin translation of the letters of St. Francis Xavier, and of a number of other works, the list of which is given in the Biblioth. Soc. Jestu. See Lombard, Eloge hist. du P. Poussines, in the Menoires de Trevoux (Nov. 1750) and in the Dict. of Moreri (ed. 1759); De Baecker, Biblioth. des Ecrivains de la Compagnie de Jesus, vol. 1. — Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Géneralé, s.v.