St. Ambrose of Milan, "the bishop who baptized St. Augustine"
Introduction
Many modern Catholics sometimes forget the struggles, the conflicts, and the hardships that the Church's great spiritual predecessors and forefathers had to endure so that the truth as Church teaches now is genuinely rooted in the teaching of Christ. One of those who courageously fought for orthodox truths was St. Ambrose of Milan. St. Ambrose is the first chronologically of the original four doctors of the Western Church (together with Sts. Jerome, Augustine, and Pope Gregory the Great). He became the most formidable Catholic opponent of Arianism in the West. It was his simplicity, hard work, dedication to the study of Scriptures, and preaching, that the Christian faith continued to rise in the West despite the deterioration of the Roman Empire.
Birth and early life
St. Ambrose was born in Trier, Germany, ca. 340 A.D., the son of a praetorian prefect of Gaul. Upon the death of his father, also named Ambrose, he was taken back to Rome. He then studied to become a lawyer and was noted much for his oratory and learning. In about 372 A.D., Ambrose was appointed by the Emperor Valentinian to be governor of Liguria and Aemilia with his capital at Milan. The bishop in Milan at the time was Auxentius - a strong advocate of Arianism. Upon the death of Auxentius in 374 A.D., there was turmoil in the city because the Arians wanted an Arian bishop to be elected while the Catholics wanted a Catholic bishop. To prevent this conflict from breaking out into open warfare, Ambrose went to the Church where an assembly to elect a bishop was being held. He spoke to the people and urged them to conduct their selection in peace. Suddenly, a voice shouted from the assembly: "Ambrose, bishop!" and then the people followed up and rallied the same cry. The bishops of the province then soon realized that the will of the people was Ambrose. So they ratified Ambrose as bishop.
Ambrose as bishop
Though professing himself as a Christian, Ambrose was still unbaptized and had really no desire to be the bishop. He sought to be excused from the office but Valentinian refused. Reluctantly, Ambrose accepted the will of the people and that of the emperor. He was then baptized and then a week later consecrated as bishop of Milan on December 7, 374 A.D. Now made a man of the cloth, St. Ambrose forsook all his worldly things and wealth - giving his money to the poor and his lands to the Church. He adopted a simple lifestyle, fasted on most days, and devoted himself to the service of his people.
Conflict with the Arians
In 385 A.D., Ambrose was successful in resisting the Emperor Valentian's order to turn over several churches in Milan to a group of Arians, headed by the Empress Justina, the mother of Valentinian and herself an Arian in secret. The conflict between Catholics and Arians deepened. In this tumultuous situation, Maximus invaded Italy. Valentinian and Justinasought the help of the Eastern Emperor Theodosius I. This emperor then defeated Maximus and had him executed in Pannonia. Victorious, Valentinian was restored to the throne but the Emperor Theodosius now controlled both the Eastern and the Western empire. At Milan, Theodosius convinced Valentinian to denounce Arianism and to recognize Ambrose. But, political developments eventually led to Theodosius himself being at odds with Ambrose, because Theodosius ordered the bishop of Kallinikum, Mesopotamia, to rebuild a Jewish synagogue that was destroyed by the Christians. In opposition, Ambrose rescinded this order. The political situation was completely in turmoil. Though it ended positively with the end of paganism in the Empire, almost in succession, it also caused the death of Valentinian in 393 A.D., the death of Theodosius, and then the death of St. Ambrose at the age of 57 years old in 397 A.D.
Writings and influence
St. Ambrose wrote very prolifically on the Bible, theology, asceticism, numerous homilies, psalms, and hymns written in iambic dimeter. He is also known for what today is called Ambrosian Chant - a forerunner of the Gregorian Chant. The biggest influence of St. Ambrose is on the life of St. Augustine. During Ambrose's episcopate, St. Augustine, who was teaching rhetoric in Milan at the time, was so impressed by the sermons of Ambrose that he began to study with him. Augustine was baptized by Ambrose at the Easter Vigil in 387 A.D. St. Augustine continued to work with Ambrose and became one of his strongest supporters. Of the writings of St. Ambrose, his best-known works are: De officiis ministrorum, a treatise on Christian ethics especially directed to the clergy, De virginibus, written for his sister St. Marcellina, and De fide, written against the Arians for Gratian. The feast of St. Ambrose in the liturgical calendar of the Church is every December 7 - the day he was consecrated as bishop.
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