Sacy, Louis Isaac Le Maistre De

Sacy, Louis Isaac le Maistre de, an eminently pious and learned Port-Royalist divine and Biblical critic, was born at Paris in 1613. He was shut up in the Bastille on account of his Jansenist doctrines, and died in 1684. The New Test. translated by De Sacy, and known as the Testament de Mons, was condemned by pope Clement IX in 1668. De Sacy's version of Thomas a Kempis's De Imitatione has had 150 editions. His commentary on the Scriptures has continued to maintain a high character. It is essentially valuable for unfolding the spiritual meaning of the sacred text. De Sacy was assisted in the work by Du Fosse, Charles Hure, and Le Tourneaux. Many editions have been printed, both of the original work and of abridgments. The edition of 1692 is the best; that of 1705-30, bound variously in 40, 45, or 54 vols. 12mo, is esteemed for its convenient form; that of 1781, printed at Nismes, in 25 vols. 8vo, has the advantage of being edited, with additions, by Rondet. De Sacy also wrote Lettres Chretiennes et Spirituelles (Paris, 1690, 2 vols. 8vo).