Saint Ambrose Biography Quotes 4 Report mistakes

Early Life and Formation
Aurelius Ambrosius, known to history as Ambrose of Milan, was born around 340, probably in Trier, where his father served as praetorian prefect of Gaul. After his father died, his mother brought Ambrose and his siblings, Marcellina and Satyrus, to Rome. Raised in an aristocratic Christian household, he received a classical education in rhetoric, law, and literature while absorbing the piety that marked his mother and his sister Marcellina, who embraced a life of consecrated virginity. The blend of legal training and pastoral sensibility that later defined him was already apparent in his early commitment to duty, public service, and Christian discipline.

Imperial Official in Milan
Ambrose entered the imperial administration and rose quickly. Around the early 370s he was appointed consular governor of the provinces of Aemilia and Liguria, with his residence in Milan (Mediolanum), then the Western imperial capital. Known for balance and firmness, he presided over a city divided by theological tensions as Arian and Nicene Christians contested control of the episcopal see vacated by the death of Bishop Auxentius.

Acclamation as Bishop
In 374, while Ambrose tried to keep order during a fractious assembly, a voice from the crowd called for him to be bishop. Though still a catechumen, he was acclaimed by popular consent, baptized, and rapidly ordained. He divested much of his property to support the poor and the church, and he turned to intensive study of Scripture and theology under the guidance of learned clergy, notably Simplicianus, who later succeeded him in the see of Milan. His renunciation of wealth and his pastoral accessibility shaped his reputation from the outset.

Defender of the Nicene Faith and Pastor
Ambrose became a leading Latin voice for the Nicene Creed. He wrote De fide to strengthen Emperor Gratian in orthodox belief and composed De Spiritu Sancto to affirm the divinity of the Holy Spirit. He presided over the Council of Aquileia in 381, where Arian bishops were deposed, reinforcing Nicene positions in the West. As pastor, he found and honored the relics of the martyrs Gervasius and Protasius, encouraged almsgiving, and taught ascetic ideals in works dedicated to Marcellina. The death of his brother Satyrus prompted the moving treatise On the Death of Satyrus, revealing his theology of hope and friendship.

Ambrose and the Emperors
Ambrose advised and at times opposed emperors with unusual moral authority. He supported Gratian in curbing pagan privileges and argued against restoring the Altar of Victory in Rome in exchanges with the pagan prefect Quintus Aurelius Symmachus. During the minority of Valentinian II, he resisted the pro-Arian policy of the empress mother Justina, refusing to surrender a basilica and sustaining his flock with preaching and hymnody. With Theodosius I, Ambrose combined loyalty with prophetic rebuke: he protested an imperial order requiring Christians to rebuild a synagogue at Callinicum after a riot, and after the massacre at Thessalonica in 390, he required Theodosius to perform public penance before receiving communion. He delivered funeral orations for Valentinian II and later for Theodosius, presenting a vision of Christian rulership under the judgment of God.

Teacher of Augustine
Ambrose's preaching proved decisive for the search of Augustine of Hippo. When Augustine arrived in Milan, his mother, Monica, prayed for his conversion and urged him to hear the bishop. Augustine found in Ambrose an interpreter who opened Scripture allegorically and intellectually. Over time Augustine moved from skepticism to faith, influenced by Ambrose's sermons and pastoral counsel, with Simplicianus also offering guidance. At the Easter vigil of 387, Ambrose baptized Augustine, an event Augustine later recounted in the Confessions as a turning point for his life and for Latin theology.

Writings, Ethics, and Hymnody
Ambrose wrote widely: De officiis recast Roman moral philosophy, especially Cicero, into a Christian handbook for clergy; treatises on virginity and widowhood advanced ascetic ideals; biblical commentaries such as the Hexaemeron and expositions on Luke and the patriarchs shaped Western exegesis. He cultivated congregational song and introduced antiphonal chanting in Milan, giving rise to the Ambrosian tradition of hymnody. Several hymns are securely associated with his name, and later tradition credited him with more; the attribution of the Te Deum to Ambrose and Augustine became a celebrated legend, though modern scholars are cautious about its authorship.

Public Witness and Conciliar Engagements
Ambrose also exercised a moderating voice in turbulent ecclesial politics. He helped the West receive the Nicene-Constantinopolitan faith after 381, maintained communion with bishops across the empire, and opposed the use of the sword in doctrinal disputes. Notably, he and Martin of Tours registered principled objections to the execution of Priscillian, signaling an early Christian protest against capital punishment for heresy. As an imperial envoy, he negotiated during the crises involving Magnus Maximus and later Eugenius, defending the unity and peace of the churches amid civil wars.

Final Years, Death, and Legacy
Ambrose's final years were spent consolidating pastoral structures in Milan, directing charity, and writing. His circle included devoted clergy and laity, among them Paulinus, his deacon, who later wrote the Life of Ambrose, and Monica, whose death at Ostia Augustine would memorialize with gratitude for Ambrose's ministry. Ambrose died in Milan around 397, and his remains are venerated in the Basilica of Sant Ambrogio. Subsequent centuries honored him as a saint and recognized him among the great Latin Doctors alongside Augustine, Jerome, and Gregory the Great. His synthesis of Roman civic virtue with Christian pastoral courage, his insistence that emperors are within the church not above it, and his preaching that formed Augustine, shaped Western Christianity in theology, liturgy, and public ethics for generations to come.

Our collection contains 4 quotes who is written by Saint, under the main topics: Ethics & Morality - Wisdom - Faith.

Other people realated to Saint: Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (Poet)