THEODORE, one of the principal pillars of the reformed church, was born at Vezelai, in Burgundy, June 24th, 1519. He was brought up by his uncle uncle Nicholas de Beza, counsellor of the parliament of Paris, till the month of December 1528, when he sent him to study at Orleans, and afterwards at Bourges, where he was under the care of Melchior Wolmar, under whom he made an extraordinary progress in polite learning, and from him imbibed the principles of Calvinism. His uncle intended him for the bar; but the law not suiting his disposition, he spent most of his time in reading the Greek and Latin authors, and in composing verses. In 1539, he took up his licentiate's degree, and went to Paris. He fell into snares in his youth, and wrote some licentious things. Sickness awakened him; and he pursued a vow, he had formerly made, of entering into the reformed religion. According to this resolution, he went to Geneva and made public profession of the reformed religion. In 1549, he accepted of the Greek professorship at Lausanne, where he also read lectures in French on the New Testament to the refugees of both sexes who dwelt in that city. Having settled at Geneva, he adhered to Calvin in the strictest manner, and became in a little time his colleague in the church and in the university. He was sent to Nerae, at the solicitation of some great men of the kingdom, to convert the king of Navarre, and to confer with him upon affairs of importance. This was when the Guises had got the authority under the reign of Francis II. to the prejudice of the princes of the blood. The king of Navarre having testified, both by letters and deputies, that he desired that Beza might assist at the conference of Poissy, the senate of Geneva consented. The assembly hearkened attentively to his harangue, till, speaking of the real presence, he said, that the body of Jesus Christ was as distant from the bread and wine, as the highest heaven is from the earth. This made a murmur: some cried out, Blasphemavit! others got up to go away. Cardinal de Tournon, who sat in the first place, desired the king and queen either to silence Beza, or to permit him and his company to withdraw. The king did not stir, nor any of the princes; and leave was given to go on. Throughout the whole conference he behaved himself with great ability. He often preached before the queen of Navarre, the prince of Condé, and in the suburbs of Paris. After the massacre of Vassy, he was deputed to the king to complain of this violence. The civil war followed soon after, during which the prince of Condé kept him with him; and while the prince was imprisoned, he lived with Admiral de Coligni, and did not return to Geneva till after the peace of 1563. In 1571, he was chosen moderator at the national synod of Rochelle: and in the year after, assisted at that of Nîmes; after this, he assisted at the conferences of Montheliard, and at those of Bern. The infirmities of old age beginning to fall heavy upon him in 1597, he could seldom speak in public: and at last he left it off entirely in the beginning of the year 1600. However, in 1597, he wrote some animated verses against the Jesuits, on the occasion of the report that was made of his death, and of his having before he died made profession of the Roman faith. He lived till the 13th of October 1605. He was a man of extraordinary merit, and one who did great services to the Protestant cause. This, however, exposed him to innumerable slanders and calumnies; but he showed both to the Catholics and Lutherans, that he understood how to defend himself. He wrote, 1. A Translation of the New Testament; 2. Turned the Psalms into Latin verse; 3. Published a Treatise on the Sacraments; 4. Some Sermons on the Passion of Jesus Christ and on Solomon's Song; 5. A Version of the Canticles, in lyric verse; 6. A French tragi-comedy, entitled, The Sacrifice of Abraham; and many other pieces.