TWOGIG
Aurelius Ambrose (340–397 AD)
• Aurelius Ambrosius[a] (c. 340–397), better known in English as Ambrose (/ˈæmbroʊz/), was an Archbishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century. He was the Roman governor of Liguria and Emilia, headquartered in Milan, before being made bishop of Milan by popular acclamation in 374. Ambrose was a staunch opponent of Arianism. Ambrose was born into a Roman Christian family about 340 and was raised in Gallia Belgica, the capital of which was Augusta Treverorum.[4] His father is sometimes identified with Aurelius Ambrosius,[5][6] a praetorian prefect of Gaul;[1] but some scholars identify his father as an official named Uranius who received an imperial constitution dated 3 February 339 (addressed in a brief extract from one of the three emperors ruling in 339, Constantine II, Constantius II, or Constans, in the Codex Theodosianus, book XI.5).[7][8][9] His mother was a woman of intellect and piety[10] and a member of the Roman family Aurelii Symmachi,[11] and thus Ambrose was cousin of the orator Quintus Aurelius Symmachus. He was the youngest of three children, who included Marcellina and Satyrus (who is the subject of Ambrose's De excessu fratris Satyri), also venerated as saints.[12] There is a legend that as an infant, a swarm of bees settled on his face while he lay in his cradle, leaving behind a drop of honey. His father considered this a sign of his future eloquence and honeyed tongue. For this reason, bees and beehives often appear in the saint's symbology. After the early death of his father, Ambrose went to Rome where he studied literature, law, and rhetoric. He then followed in his father's footsteps and entered public service. Praetorian Prefect Sextus Claudius Petronius Probus first gave him a place in the council and then in about 372 made him governor of Liguria and Emilia, with headquarters at Milan.[1] In 286 Diocletian had moved the capital of the Western Roman Empire from Rome to Mediolanum (Milan). Ambrose was the Governor of Aemilia-Liguria in northern Italy until 374, when he became the Bishop of Milan. He was a very popular political figure, and since he was the Governor in the effective capital in the Roman West, he was a recognizable figure in the court of Valentinian I. Ambrose was one of the four original Doctors of the Church, and is the patron saint of Milan. He is notable for his influence on Augustine of Hippo. Ambrose studied theology with Simplician, a presbyter of Rome.[10] Using to his advantage
his excellent knowledge of Greek, which was then rare in the West, he studied the Old Testament and Greek authors like Philo, Origen, Athanasius, and Basil of Caesarea, with whom he was also exchanging letters.[15] He applied this knowledge as preacher, concentrating especially on exegesis of the Old Testament, and his rhetorical abilities impressed Augustine of Hippo, who hitherto had thought poorly of Christian preachers. Traditionally, Ambrose is credited with promoting”antiphonal chant", a style of chanting in which one side of the choir responds alternately to the other, as well as with
composing Veni redemptor gentium, an Advent hymn.
(Ambrose. Wikipedia. <en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambrose>)
HIT:
● [Of the Trinity]
”By this is the spirit of God known. Every spirit which confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that dissolveth Jesus is not of God. And this is Antichrist, of whom you have heard that he cometh: and he is now already in the world.”(1 John 4:2-3) And again”Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? This is he that came by water and blood, Jesus Christ: not by water only but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit which testifieth that Jesus is the truth.
And there are three that give testimony on earth: the spirit and the water and the blood. And these three are one.”(1 John 5:5,6,8) [end of chapter]
o Latin: Quod confirmans beatus Ioannes apostolus et evangelista (I Ioan. IV, 2 et 3), dicit: In hoc cognoscitur Spiritus Dei, omnis spiritus qui confitetur Iesum Christum in carne venisse, ex Deo est, et omnis spiritus, qui solvit Iesum, ex Deo non est: et hic est antichristus, quem audistis quoniam venit; et nunc iam in mundo est; et iterum: Quis est qui vincit mundum, nisi qui credit quoniam Iesus est Filius Dei. Hic est qui venit per aquam et sanguinem Iesus Christus, non in aqua solum, sed in aqua et sanguine. Et Spiritus est qui testificatur quoniam Iesus est veritas;
quia tres sunt, qui testimonium dant in terra, spiritus, aqua et sanguis, et tres unum sunt. (I Ioan. v, 5,6,8)
(Ambrose, De Trinitate Alias in Symbolum Apostolorum Tractatus. VII; Migne Latina PL 17.517)
Comment:
• The clause
”in earth” (Greek: ἐν τῇ γῇ) of the eighth verse, points to”in heaven” (Greek: ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ) of the seventh, and by consequence supposes the genuineness of the whole verse. Accordingly, the adversaries of the disputed text impugn the authenticity of ”in earth” (Latin:”in terra"), and Greisbach has not scrupled to put it out of his text. ”The truth is,” says the Quarterly Reviewer, ”that not a single manuscript can be produced wanting the seventh verse, and also reading 'in earth', in the eighth.”If this be true, [PAGE 94] the converse of it must be true, namely, that the manuscript which contained this clause of the eighth verse, contained also the seventh verse. On the Reviewer's own principle then...
('Ben David' [John Jones], 'Letters to the Editor', The Monthly Repository of Theology and General Literature, vol 21, 1826, p. 93-94.)
HIT:
[Hymn]
Every threefold thrives under the majesty of the Thunderer.
Three are Father, Word and Holy Spirit, One.
Threefold types [or substances] come from the saving cross, one redemption.
Third light received the Lord’s coming back from the dead.
Three days Jona continued in the bowels of the whale.
Three were the men that God exalted in the fiery furnace.
Three times Sabaoth [Isa. 6:3, note the use of Greek here ‘Lord of hosts’ is ‘Kurios Sabaoth’ in Greek] is rendered
holy in the blessing it sings.
Three times immersed in water is he who receives the full grace of the bath.
By three witnesses also is firmly established every deed.
Three is the number wherein the months return their members to their seasons.
Three are the ages, blossom [youth], toughness and painful senility.
Three are the roles in trial, judge, solicitor and prosecutor.
Three are the stages of time, beginning, progression, end.
Three things flatter the hope, rest, light, glory in life.
(Ambrose, Hymn; Translated by Jeroen Beekhuizen, correspondence, February 2020)
Latin:
Omnia trina vigent sub maiestate Tonantis.
Tres Pater, et Verbum, sanctus quoque Spiritus unum.
Trina salutaris species crucis, una redemptrix.
Tertia lux Dominum remeantem a morte recepit.
Trina dies Ionam tenuit sub viscere ceti.
Tres pueri crevere Deum flagrante camino.
Ter Sabaoth sanctum referens benedictio psallit.
Ter mergendus aqua est cui gratia plena lavacri.
Testibus et stabilis constat tribus actio cuncta.
Terno mense suis redeunt sua tempora membris.
Tres sunt aetates, flos, robur, et aegra senectus.
Tres moduli in causis, iudex, defensor, et actor.
Tres in saecla gradus, ortus, transcursio, finis.
Tres spem quae palpant, requies, lux, gloria vitae.
(Ambrose, Hymn; Migne Latina, PL 100.291 & PL 125.0822)
Comment:
•
[Dijkstra] Ambrose was a prolific writer. Most of his works are of exegetical nature. The “Expositio euangelii secundum Lucam” is the only work devoted to the New Testament. The influence of Hilary is tangible in his hymns (especially with regards to theology), but the bishop of Poitiers was only one of Ambrose's many sources of inspiration.286 He wrote letters, published in ten books and many ethical, catechetical and doctrinal writings. Ambrose's authorship of the Carmen de temarii numeri excellentia
(15 hexameters about the number three) is disputed. (p. 138)
• [Dijkstra] Ambrose's most famous poetic creations are his hymns, but his authorship of several of them is disputed. The oldest manuscripts date from the eight
century, but they contain many Milanese hymns (approximately 40) without any indication of the author. Moreover, due to the enormous success of Ambrose's hymns, apparently almost immediately after their publication, many people imitated them, which makes it very hard to separate the real Ambrosian hymns from the
”forgeries".292 Four hymns are generally accepted as
authentic: Aeterne rerum conditor (1), lam surgit hora tertia (3), Deus creator omnium (4) and Intende, gui regis Israel (5).293 They are mentioned in contemporary sources. Even if some of the hymns were not written by Ambrose himself, [PAGE 140] they date in all likelihood to the period contemporary to or immediately after Ambrose's life; they may have been written by Ambrose himself or by some of his pupils.294 The content of the other hymns is often the same as that which was dear to Ambrose, which is especially clear in the hymns about martyrs (e.g. 8: Agnes, io: Victor, Nabor and Felix, n: Protase and Gervase, n: Peter and Paul, and 13: Laurentius).
(Dijkstra, The Apostles in Early Christian Art and Poetry, 2016, p. 139-140)
Ambrose Hymn quoted by the fathers:
• [Alcuin (730-804 AD) : Epistle 90 to the Brothers of Lugdunesis (Year 798) He warns to be careful for the various errors of the Spaniards. He responds to questions about observing the Sabbath before the Lord’s resurrection] There are also the verses of the blessed bishop
Ambrose [340–397 AD], about the excellence of the most noble number ‘three’, which it seems right to insert into this epistle for the confirmation of the three immersions:
(Alcuinus, Epistle 90 to the Brothers of Lugdunesis; Migne Latina, PL 100.291; Translated by Jeroen Beekhuizen, correspondence, February 2020)
Latin: Epistola XC. ad fratres Lugdunenses. (Anno 798.) Cavendum monet ab erroribus Hispanorum variis. Respondet quaestioni de observatione sabbati ante Dominicam Resurrectionis. Sunt etiam versus beati Ambrosii episcopi, de ternarii [numeri] excellentia nobilissimi, quos ad confirmationem trinae mersionis huic epistolae inserere placuit.
(Alcuinus, Epistola XC. ad fratres Lugdunenses; Migne Latina, PL 100.291)
• [Hincmar (806–882 AD) : The meaning of Solomon's palanquin] Of two hundred and ten lines then, about the ecclesiastical doctrines against the poor opinions of the doctors saying their feelings, one discerns that this pillar consists: of which this calculation has the intention, that first we start with the lesser number, that is with ten, and from that we might make further progress afterwards. About the number ten the catholic doctors have naturally said many eloquent and forceful things, from which I have taken the trouble to record with diligence a certain amount here as a summary. For they say that it is consecrated in the decalogue: in which decalogue, conform the ten strings of the psalter, God gave ten commandments to His servant Moses on the mount written on two stone tables. Three on one table concerning God,
for God is Triune, and in the mystery of our redemption there are three who give testimony, the Spirit, water and blood, and the three are one: the Spirit of sanctification, and the blood of redemption and the water of baptism: which three are one and remain inseparable, and there is indeed nothing by which one could separate the connection, as also
the blessed Ambrosius [340–397 AD] sings:
(Hincmar, The meaning of Solomon's palanquin; Translated by Jeroen Beekhuizen, correspondence, February 2020)
Latin:
Ducentis etiam et decem versibus, de dogmatibus ecclesiasticis contra prave sentientes doctorum loquens sensibus, haec columna constare dignoscitur: cuius est supputationis ista intentio, ut primum incipiamus a minori numero, id est a decem, et ab eo progrediamur in postmodum. De denario quippe numero catholici doctores multa dixerunt diserta et fortia, ex quibus quaedam hic compendii studio adnotare curavi. (0821D) Dicunt namque quia in decalogo sit consecratus: cuius decalogi, psalterii videlicet decem chordarum, decem praecepta Deus famulo suo Moysi in monte in duabus tabulis lapideis conscripta dedit: tria in una tabula ad Deum pertinentia, quia Deus Trinitas est, et in redemptionis nostrae mysterio
tres sunt qui testimonium dant, spiritus, aqua, et sanguis, et tres unum sunt: spiritus utique sanctificationis, et sanguis redemptionis, et aqua baptismatis: quae tria unum sunt
et individua manent, nihilque etiam a sui connexione seiungitur, et ut beatus cantat Ambrosius:
(Hincmar, Explanatio in ferculum Salomonis; Migne Latina, PL 125.0822)
Comments:
• [Translator] Alcuin is proving that one should be immersed three times in baptism and in that context brings up the verses of Ambrose. (Jeroen Beekhuizen, correspondence, February 2020)
• [Translator] Hincmar is explaining the Scriptural numbers of Solomon's temple. In the number ten he finds the Decalogue. It has always been a tradition of some to assign the first three commandments to the first table, because they relate to serving God, and the seven other commandments to the second table, because they relate to loving men. Anyone who owns Calvin's Institutes can read his discussion of this matter as he even points back to Augustine, whereas it is clear that this opinion is very old. Three commandments about serving God on One table should be a type of the Trinity. This leads Hincmar to some thoughts on the number three in 1 John 5:8 which is where he records a song of Ambrose. I
n this song it is evident that the first several “threes” are coming straight from Scripture. The first is a reference to 1 John 5:7. The second is a reference to 1 John 5:8, referring to the three types (Latin species) of material that were at the cross Spirit, water and blood yet being one redemption (Ambrose like many others compared 1 John 5:6-8 with John 19:30, 34). This is the phrase Hincmar refers to. The third is a reference to Jonah 1:17. The fourth is a reference to Daniel 3. The fifth is a reference to Isaiah 6:1. From then on the references begin to be more general or no longer related to Scripture.
(Jeroen Beekhuizen, correspondence, February 2020)
Ambrose Hymn : Christian Latin Hymns
• [Carl Weyman] 3.
About the Pseudo-Ambrosian verses on the number three. R. Ehwald has delivered to us in his splendid edition of the works of Aldhelm (Monum. Germ. auct. ant. XV p. 381) fifteen ”verses of the holy Ambrose about the Trinity,” which were inserted in the cod. Petropolitanus F XIV 1 (R) s. VIII-IX between v. 676 and 677 of the poem De virginitate – so after the section that treats of Ambrose. It concerns – with one exception – the already known verses of the number three which Alcuin cites in epist. 137 (Mon. Germ. epist. IV p. 213) and later Hincmar of Rheims in his Explanatio in ferculum Salomonis (Migne, Patrol. Lat. CXXV 821 f.) both under the name of Ambrose. Verses which G. Mercati, Studi e Testi XII (1904) p. 17ff. is inclined to effectively hold for a poem of the great Milanese bishop, while F. Diekamp, Theol. Revue 1904 Sp. 464 – and I think correctly – expresses his objections to this view. The Aldhelm manuscript includes one extra verse compared to those handed down by Alcuin and Hincmar (v. 8 ”trina Petro et Johanni in monte refulsit imago” about the transfiguration of Christ) and also contributes to an improved text, as for instance v. 11 ”terno mense suis (here divided incorrectly:”ter nomen sesuis”) redeunt stata (so thinks Ehwald, who’s conjectures have repeatedly been confirmed by the Hincmar/Alcuin version, and is evidently correct compared to the ugly”statuta") tempora membris”– where “stata” certainly deserves precedence over the ”sua” of Alcuin and Hincmar. Besides, ”stata” is also found in the so far neglected citation of Julian of Toledo (see below). This concoction is unworthy of Ambrose in my opinion. It is rather a later (compare below note to v. 6) playing with the type of the griphus ternarii numeri of Ausonius (p. 200ff. Peiper) and received perhaps the name of this illustrious author from one of Ambrose’s readers that was attentive to the role of the”mysticus numerus”(Expos. in evan. Luc. II 29 p. 56, 14 Schenkl; compare Mercati a.a. O. p. 21; J. B. Kellner, Der hl. Ambrosius, Bischof von Mailand, als Erklärer des Alten Testamentes, Regensburg 1893 S. 51f.) in his exegesis.
(Weyman, Beitrage Zur Geschichte Der Christlich-Lateinischen Poesie, 1975, p. 43; Translated by Jeroen Beekhuizen, correspondence, February 2020)
