He said that Renan , a mixture of artist and chemist , had created a work that breathed new life into the Gospels rather than destroying them .
Sainte - Beuve wrote in the Constitutionnal that the book simultaneously upset devout believers , radical freethinkers and liberal politicians .
Sainte - Beuve said that Renan , a mixture of artist and chemist , had created a work that breathed new life into the Gospels rather than destroying them .
Sainte - Beuve wrote in the Constitutionnal that the book simultaneously upset devout believers , radical freethinkers and liberal politicians .