His parents were German. He studied the classics at the Royal Court, he studied science at Alcala and canon law at Salamanca.
He joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1614, and subsequently became lecturer on scripture at the Jesuit seminary in Madrid until his death.
He was highly esteemed in devout circles as the author of De la afición y amor de Jesus (1630), and De la afición y amor de María (1630), both of which were translated into Arabic, Dutch, French, German, Italian and Latin. These works, together with the Prodigios del amor divino (1641), are now forgotten, but Nieremberg's version (1656) of the Imitation is still a favorite, and his eloquent treatise, De la hermosura de Dios y su amabilidad (1649), is the last classical manifestation of mysticism in Spanish literature.
Nieremberg has not the enraptured vision of St. Theresa, nor the philosophic significance of Luis de Leon, and the unvarying sweetness of his style is cloying; but he has exaltation, unction, insight, and his book forms no unworthy close to a great literary tradition.
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Last updated on Tuesday June 03, 2008 at 00:48:23 PDT (GMT -0700)
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