Bourdaloue, Louis

BOURDALOUE, būr´´dɑ̄´´lū´, LOUIS: Jesuit preacher; b. at Bourges Aug. 20, 1632; d. in Paris May 13,1704. He was for some time a teacher in literature and philosophy; in 1665 he was sent to preach in the provinces, in 1669 was recalled to Paris; after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, he was sent to Languedoc to preach to the Protestants; his last years he devoted to the service of the poor and unfortunate in Paris. As a man he was justly esteemed and loved; as a preacher his strength is in the clearness of his argument, its readiness and its cogency. The first edition of his works was edited by Bretonneau (16 vols., Paris, 1707–34); a good recent edition is that of Lille, 1882 (6 vols.).

Bibliography: L. Pauthe, Bourdaloue, d’aprés les documents nouveaux, Paris, 1900; A. Feugère, Bourdaloue, sa prédication et son temps, ib. 1874; M Lauras, Bourdaloue, sa vie et ses œuvres, 2 vols., ib. 1881; E. de Ménorval, Bourdaloue, Paris, 1897; F. Castets, La Vie et la prédication d'un religieux au xvii. siècle, vol. i, Montpellier, 1901.