What do you think?
Rate this book
عن العذارى
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
79 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 388
2 people are currently reading
69 people want to read
About the author
Ambrose of Milan
231 books69 followersborn perhaps 340
Saint , bishop of Milan from 374, wrote, composed, and imposed orthodoxy on the early Christian Church.
This ecclesiastical figure of the 4th century most influenced. He served as consular prefect of Liguria and Emilia, headquartered, before popular acclamation. Ambrose staunchly opposed Arianism, and people accused him of fostering persecutions of Jews and pagans.
Tradition credits Ambrose with promoting "antiphonal chant", a style in which one side of the choir responds alternately, as well as Veni redemptor gentium, a hymn of Advent.
Ambrose ranks of the four original doctors of the Church, and the patron. He notably influenced Saint Augustine of Hippo.
Saint , bishop of Milan from 374, wrote, composed, and imposed orthodoxy on the early Christian Church.
This ecclesiastical figure of the 4th century most influenced. He served as consular prefect of Liguria and Emilia, headquartered, before popular acclamation. Ambrose staunchly opposed Arianism, and people accused him of fostering persecutions of Jews and pagans.
Tradition credits Ambrose with promoting "antiphonal chant", a style in which one side of the choir responds alternately, as well as Veni redemptor gentium, a hymn of Advent.
Ambrose ranks of the four original doctors of the Church, and the patron. He notably influenced Saint Augustine of Hippo.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 25, 2016
‘For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’’ Luke 23:29
Although St. Ambrose penned Concerning Virgins in 377 A.D. to his sister, Marcellina, a consecrated nun, it’s still interesting to ordinary people today for a number of reasons.
For one thing this ancient document confirms the prevalence in antiquity of ‘taking the veil’ – or dedicating one’s life and chastity to God – as opposed to its being something invented or imposed during later eras.
For another, the filial nature of the text reminds us to be especially sensitive to its contents within that privileged relationship. Advice received from a brother would certainly be viewed in a different light than that of almost any other male-female relationship. Speaking from experience, all I still possess or care to keep from my own brother—dead 22 years now—are his letters to me.
And finally, virginity is much more than a physical condition of the body. It is a state of mind akin to wholeness, an approachable, attainable holiness, beautiful to behold. Ambrose exhorts his sister to a life of continual conversion—something required of all regardless of vocation—offering many fine suggestions if we can take off our 21st century glasses and see the world as it was in the 4th century. But then we don’t have any prejudices associated with when and where we were born, grew up, were educated. and currently live, do we?
Most interesting were the anecdotal stories, both for their instructional and historical benefits. St Ambrose even includes examples from non-Christian sources. Throughout I was reminded of Gertrude La Forte’s assertion in The Eternal Woman: The Timeless Meaning of the Feminine: “The holier a woman is, the more she is a woman.” which is not to say only virgins are holy, rather to return to the earlier assertion of our femininity becoming fully realized in holiness/wholeness.
‘Houses of ill-fame cannot injure chastity, but chastity does away with the ill-fame of the place.’ reminded me of, ‘Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good.’ Romans 12:20
In Concerning Virgins, St. Ambrose reveals a heart of love for his sister insofar as he desires what is best for her. Is it possible he also ‘hates’ women as his critics have so often claimed, or does he in fact love women better and more than so many of us have yet dared to love ourselves?
Euthymius renders a contextually perfect version of this work on Librivox.
Although St. Ambrose penned Concerning Virgins in 377 A.D. to his sister, Marcellina, a consecrated nun, it’s still interesting to ordinary people today for a number of reasons.
For one thing this ancient document confirms the prevalence in antiquity of ‘taking the veil’ – or dedicating one’s life and chastity to God – as opposed to its being something invented or imposed during later eras.
For another, the filial nature of the text reminds us to be especially sensitive to its contents within that privileged relationship. Advice received from a brother would certainly be viewed in a different light than that of almost any other male-female relationship. Speaking from experience, all I still possess or care to keep from my own brother—dead 22 years now—are his letters to me.
And finally, virginity is much more than a physical condition of the body. It is a state of mind akin to wholeness, an approachable, attainable holiness, beautiful to behold. Ambrose exhorts his sister to a life of continual conversion—something required of all regardless of vocation—offering many fine suggestions if we can take off our 21st century glasses and see the world as it was in the 4th century. But then we don’t have any prejudices associated with when and where we were born, grew up, were educated. and currently live, do we?
Most interesting were the anecdotal stories, both for their instructional and historical benefits. St Ambrose even includes examples from non-Christian sources. Throughout I was reminded of Gertrude La Forte’s assertion in The Eternal Woman: The Timeless Meaning of the Feminine: “The holier a woman is, the more she is a woman.” which is not to say only virgins are holy, rather to return to the earlier assertion of our femininity becoming fully realized in holiness/wholeness.
‘Houses of ill-fame cannot injure chastity, but chastity does away with the ill-fame of the place.’ reminded me of, ‘Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good.’ Romans 12:20
In Concerning Virgins, St. Ambrose reveals a heart of love for his sister insofar as he desires what is best for her. Is it possible he also ‘hates’ women as his critics have so often claimed, or does he in fact love women better and more than so many of us have yet dared to love ourselves?
Euthymius renders a contextually perfect version of this work on Librivox.
Read
February 9, 2021Tratado que le escribe el joven San Ambrosio a su hermana, quien decide no casarse y consagrarse a la vida religiosa. Obviamente, nunca había leído nada parecido. Escrito en latín y pasado por vaya a saber cuántos filtros hasta el inglés que conseguí, es una lectura pesada pero que de golpe te sorprende con la vida (en especial, la juventud) pensada por un cristiano educado en el siglo IV. Ambrosio habla de maquillaje, de fiestas, de lujo, de filósofos griegos, de dioses romanos, e incluso de suicidio para evitar la deshonra. Mezcla instrucciones con historias y leyendas de una y otra tradición (una termina con un soldado y una muchacha intercambiando ropa para escapar. Míralo a Ambrosio). Es difícil (claramente) razonar con la manera que tiene de pensar la castidad, aunque seguirlo es útil para entender de dónde proviene la idea de "casarse con Jesús" que afirman las órdenes actuales, y también cómo se pensaba su naturaleza en ese momento.
July 7, 2019
Protestants often wrongly look down upon the plethora of early church books on virginity. Yet, they are forgetting that our God was born by a virgin, lived life as a virgin, and the church, of which we are a part, is a virgin. How can we ignore something so interweaved into our faith? We need more Protestant writing on virginity. Not on how it relates to practicality of singleness. But on how it relates to the spirit of virginity. We need Protestants to write more books on the theology of virginity than we have writing on "the blessing of singleness". We need writing on the dedication of ones life to Chastity, not on "how to get through your season of singleness" or on "accepting Gods will for your singleness". if we believe the Bible, must be held as an honourable calling. And i don't just mean an honorable thing. An honorable calling. A calling. We are all virgins for a time. Few are called to dedicated to virginity for their whole earthly life. Yet, we must if we beleive God's Word accept that people ARE called to be virgins for their entire life, as a calling. We cannot claim Sola scriptura if we do not affirm this. I am not speaking of singleness, I am speaking of celibacy, lived to the glory of God.
"His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry. But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive" - Matthew 19:10-12
"His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry. But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive" - Matthew 19:10-12
February 17, 2024
This work, while not as comprehensive and deep as I hoped, gives a decent overview of Catholic understanding of celibacy, especially in the consecrated state, while also providing a brief commentary on marriage/family life. Also interesting in this work:
-Ambrose's reading of the book of Canticles.
-Ambrose's Mariology
-Ambrose's encouragement to parents to actually raise children towards celibacy.
-Ambrose's reading of the book of Canticles.
-Ambrose's Mariology
-Ambrose's encouragement to parents to actually raise children towards celibacy.
Read
February 27, 2021I think it would be weird to rate the Fathers?
May 21, 2022
Interesting. It’s a pretty mixed bag of persecution stories, praising celibacy, mariology, and patristic interpretation.
I really enjoyed his bit on the wrongfulness of dancing. Dancing is bad because it lead to the death of John the Baptist. Guess we’ll just forget about David and Miriam etc
I really enjoyed his bit on the wrongfulness of dancing. Dancing is bad because it lead to the death of John the Baptist. Guess we’ll just forget about David and Miriam etc
January 4, 2025
Perpetual virginity is probably one of the scariest prospects to many in our culture today. Most other virtues require a balance between two extremes, such as not over-eating NOR starving one's self, or neither lying NOR being brutally mean and honest. These are comparatively easy as they don't require renunciation, but rather moderation. Virginity however requires a certain voluntary martyrdom that few are willing to endure. In all likelihood, many more people are virgins in body than would be if they could wish it away. Augustine made this distinction in his work on virginity (bodily virginity vs moral virginity), whereas Ambrose focuses more on the godly nature of virginity: it's "a twofold martyrdom, of modesty and of religion."
I'm not sure if Nietzsche ever wrote about virginity, but I know he would have loathed it, precisely because Ambrose does such a great job of describing how heavenly it is, that is, how un-natural. Virtue in the Christian sense usually completely contradicts nature and what is natural or easy, and virginity is the prime example. The world teaches us revenge, but Christ teaches doing good toward our enemies. The world glorifies money, but Christ demands you give it all away and follow him. The world sells literally everything using sex, but Christ lives out an example of chastity among prostitutes. As with all things Christ teaches, virtue is not an abstract, theoretical thing; it's embodied theology. Thus not only is continence Christlike and Mary-like, but Mary is a type of the Church: "She, a virgin, bears us her children, not by a human father, but by the Spirit. …what bride has more children than holy Church, who is a virgin in her sacraments and a mother to her people?" Virginity has a unique ability to transcend the material world while still begetting in other senses.
Marrying and sex keep us rooted to earthly concerns, as Paul points out: "For she that is married taketh thought for the things of the world, how she may please her husband." But, if one is freed of earthly marriage, how much easier is it for that person to please their bridegroom Christ? Thus the physically renunciative act implies a sort of trade. Ambrose clarifies that "I do not then discourage marriage, but recapitulate the advantages of holy virginity." He's inverting the usual valuation that society places on marriage: Ambrose argues that virginity should be expected, while marriage should be tolerated. Rather than our attitude that everyone is entitled to marry (and it's a tragedy/injustice when they don't), we should remember that marriage really is for the weak who cannot remain virgins. That being said, few are strong enough for virginity, so, as Ambrose writes, "virginity cannot be commanded, but must be wished for, for things which are above us are matters for prayer rather than under mastery."
Because it is a gift rather than a thing of effort, virgins must not boast. Ambrose is clear about this, and he warns against the pride which risks accompanying it. In a strangely relatable turn, he also chastises parents who bully their children by saying "I can't wait to be a grandparent" and other such selfish thoughts. Rather than the culture today which encourages children to leave their parents' religion, Ambrose encourages children to suffer their parents expectations around marriage. Thus virginity entails many different kinds of martyrdom; far more than only the physical (the literal death of a few virgin martyrs, and also the physical act of virginity), it also includes the social (suffering bullying from parents, family, friends), the cultural (withstanding pressure from media, tradition, etc.), and the theological (pushing back against the cherrypicking of bible verses commanding us to multiply).
Virginity has always and will always be a very unpopular thing. The few places where it is popular, I find that it's gone horribly wrong. Around the time I originally started reading this book I watched "Boy Erased," which is a movie about a gay conversion camp. Such camps, in classic Protestant fashion, lack all the wisdom and moderation of the Church Fathers. Rather than encouraging an equality of virginity (and an allowance of marriage to those who cannot remain virgins), they fall into two deadly fallacies: they think homosexuality an especially evil sin, and they trust in psychology instead of theology.
The first is due to the earlier expectation of marriage and reproduction so common in the modern church (rather than, as Ambrose would argue, the correct view of marriage as the exception and virginity as the rule). I think the reason why we view marriage as the rule and virginity as the exception is because we're bad at math (and we're bad at math because of the popularity of relying on statistics). Often we think of norms as simply that which is most popular, which is how most trivial norms are established (for example, language). But Ambrose makes a bold claim: the minority position is the moral expectation, and the majority position is the exception. This is the way we should view all our morals, really, with the norm toward which we strive being the virtuous position, and the common, compromised approach being the exception. Though leftists are legendary in their inability to understand norms (see Derrida's "Limited Inc."), they do make one secondary point worth mentioning: what we consider norms often carry in their wake a moralizing effect. Because heterosexuality is overwhelmingly popular, and because people are bad at math and think that the most popular thing must always be the norm, this is why homosexuality is often seen as especially bad. In reality, it's no worse than heterosexual licentiousness.
The second is due to treating psychologically that which is a theological issue (as Ambrose wrote, "fruitlessly desir[ing] to drive away worldly things by worldly means"). These conversion camps attempt to psychologically repress desires rather than doing sane things like giving people something else to do instead. Ironically, these conversion camps are full of people struggling with the same sin, so it's basically asking for them to fail. As someone pointed out, make it easy for yourself to succeed. You can't get over smoking if you have cigs in your pocket AND your car AND at your desk AND... You don't have to live life on hard mode, you can make it easier for yourself! The easiest way to get past something compulsive is to, well, fill your day with other things. The answer definitely isn't to repeatedly shame yourself and fixate on not doing it (you'll do it even more often then). The answer is to find a suitable replacement which eases the separation. For smokers, they can fill their mouths with gum instead. For alcoholics they can drink coffee instead. As Ambrose implied, virgins can fill their need for connection with God. Of course these don't "fix" things overnight, but they are sane alternatives to the insane ways that modern medicine and capitalism team up with protestant churches to ruin lives.
The main point at which I think Ambrose stumbled was the ending, which encouraged suicide as a means to avoid losing one's chastity. He gave an example of a group of women who drowned themselves rather than being caught and possibly raped or murdered. Though of course it's an exceptionally difficult moral question to pose, I think the most disturbing part was how they ghoulishly twisted scripture to fit their religious fervor: "See the water, what hinders us from being baptized?" The footnote in the text helpfully notes that Augustine wasn't in agreement with Ambrose here, and I can guess why: his notion of physical versus moral virginity, which I mentioned above. Even if the women were raped (God forbid), they wouldn't be held morally accountable for that. All that that would have violated was their physical virginity, which is not as important as one's heart and soul, which is where the moral type of virginity lies. Ambrose here implies (without stating outright) that death is preferable to suffering a temporary injustice, which basically means he's justifying a lot of suicides. Because don't most suicides claim some sort of injustice done to them? Either by an uncaring universe or by those closest to them? Ambrose certainly makes some important points about the topic, but he's not perfect. Thankfully, like any good preacher, he points us back toward the only one who is perfect, the only example worth following.
I'm not sure if Nietzsche ever wrote about virginity, but I know he would have loathed it, precisely because Ambrose does such a great job of describing how heavenly it is, that is, how un-natural. Virtue in the Christian sense usually completely contradicts nature and what is natural or easy, and virginity is the prime example. The world teaches us revenge, but Christ teaches doing good toward our enemies. The world glorifies money, but Christ demands you give it all away and follow him. The world sells literally everything using sex, but Christ lives out an example of chastity among prostitutes. As with all things Christ teaches, virtue is not an abstract, theoretical thing; it's embodied theology. Thus not only is continence Christlike and Mary-like, but Mary is a type of the Church: "She, a virgin, bears us her children, not by a human father, but by the Spirit. …what bride has more children than holy Church, who is a virgin in her sacraments and a mother to her people?" Virginity has a unique ability to transcend the material world while still begetting in other senses.
Marrying and sex keep us rooted to earthly concerns, as Paul points out: "For she that is married taketh thought for the things of the world, how she may please her husband." But, if one is freed of earthly marriage, how much easier is it for that person to please their bridegroom Christ? Thus the physically renunciative act implies a sort of trade. Ambrose clarifies that "I do not then discourage marriage, but recapitulate the advantages of holy virginity." He's inverting the usual valuation that society places on marriage: Ambrose argues that virginity should be expected, while marriage should be tolerated. Rather than our attitude that everyone is entitled to marry (and it's a tragedy/injustice when they don't), we should remember that marriage really is for the weak who cannot remain virgins. That being said, few are strong enough for virginity, so, as Ambrose writes, "virginity cannot be commanded, but must be wished for, for things which are above us are matters for prayer rather than under mastery."
Because it is a gift rather than a thing of effort, virgins must not boast. Ambrose is clear about this, and he warns against the pride which risks accompanying it. In a strangely relatable turn, he also chastises parents who bully their children by saying "I can't wait to be a grandparent" and other such selfish thoughts. Rather than the culture today which encourages children to leave their parents' religion, Ambrose encourages children to suffer their parents expectations around marriage. Thus virginity entails many different kinds of martyrdom; far more than only the physical (the literal death of a few virgin martyrs, and also the physical act of virginity), it also includes the social (suffering bullying from parents, family, friends), the cultural (withstanding pressure from media, tradition, etc.), and the theological (pushing back against the cherrypicking of bible verses commanding us to multiply).
Virginity has always and will always be a very unpopular thing. The few places where it is popular, I find that it's gone horribly wrong. Around the time I originally started reading this book I watched "Boy Erased," which is a movie about a gay conversion camp. Such camps, in classic Protestant fashion, lack all the wisdom and moderation of the Church Fathers. Rather than encouraging an equality of virginity (and an allowance of marriage to those who cannot remain virgins), they fall into two deadly fallacies: they think homosexuality an especially evil sin, and they trust in psychology instead of theology.
The first is due to the earlier expectation of marriage and reproduction so common in the modern church (rather than, as Ambrose would argue, the correct view of marriage as the exception and virginity as the rule). I think the reason why we view marriage as the rule and virginity as the exception is because we're bad at math (and we're bad at math because of the popularity of relying on statistics). Often we think of norms as simply that which is most popular, which is how most trivial norms are established (for example, language). But Ambrose makes a bold claim: the minority position is the moral expectation, and the majority position is the exception. This is the way we should view all our morals, really, with the norm toward which we strive being the virtuous position, and the common, compromised approach being the exception. Though leftists are legendary in their inability to understand norms (see Derrida's "Limited Inc."), they do make one secondary point worth mentioning: what we consider norms often carry in their wake a moralizing effect. Because heterosexuality is overwhelmingly popular, and because people are bad at math and think that the most popular thing must always be the norm, this is why homosexuality is often seen as especially bad. In reality, it's no worse than heterosexual licentiousness.
The second is due to treating psychologically that which is a theological issue (as Ambrose wrote, "fruitlessly desir[ing] to drive away worldly things by worldly means"). These conversion camps attempt to psychologically repress desires rather than doing sane things like giving people something else to do instead. Ironically, these conversion camps are full of people struggling with the same sin, so it's basically asking for them to fail. As someone pointed out, make it easy for yourself to succeed. You can't get over smoking if you have cigs in your pocket AND your car AND at your desk AND... You don't have to live life on hard mode, you can make it easier for yourself! The easiest way to get past something compulsive is to, well, fill your day with other things. The answer definitely isn't to repeatedly shame yourself and fixate on not doing it (you'll do it even more often then). The answer is to find a suitable replacement which eases the separation. For smokers, they can fill their mouths with gum instead. For alcoholics they can drink coffee instead. As Ambrose implied, virgins can fill their need for connection with God. Of course these don't "fix" things overnight, but they are sane alternatives to the insane ways that modern medicine and capitalism team up with protestant churches to ruin lives.
The main point at which I think Ambrose stumbled was the ending, which encouraged suicide as a means to avoid losing one's chastity. He gave an example of a group of women who drowned themselves rather than being caught and possibly raped or murdered. Though of course it's an exceptionally difficult moral question to pose, I think the most disturbing part was how they ghoulishly twisted scripture to fit their religious fervor: "See the water, what hinders us from being baptized?" The footnote in the text helpfully notes that Augustine wasn't in agreement with Ambrose here, and I can guess why: his notion of physical versus moral virginity, which I mentioned above. Even if the women were raped (God forbid), they wouldn't be held morally accountable for that. All that that would have violated was their physical virginity, which is not as important as one's heart and soul, which is where the moral type of virginity lies. Ambrose here implies (without stating outright) that death is preferable to suffering a temporary injustice, which basically means he's justifying a lot of suicides. Because don't most suicides claim some sort of injustice done to them? Either by an uncaring universe or by those closest to them? Ambrose certainly makes some important points about the topic, but he's not perfect. Thankfully, like any good preacher, he points us back toward the only one who is perfect, the only example worth following.
July 20, 2020
I found the Public Domain Libro Vox recording of the 20 chapters in this book. My interest was peaked by the single annotation on the Second Vatican Council’s document “Perfectae Caritatis (Perfect Charity)”. How often have we fallen for the line that because we believe we are innocent any attacks on us are deemed redemptive suffering? I know I will have to meditate on the difference between self-willed determination and what it means to truly follow God’s Will. The purity found in the grace of Virginity is seen in so few; yet, we have to encourage everyone to live chastely in their state of life.
May 4, 2018
Girls and boys, men and women of all ages, this is for you. The whole book is not to be put down even after completion. Did you think virginity is not to be accompanied by purity? Think again. Purity is to be desired and placed on a pedestal of godliness in this book nd should be. Verses from SCRIPTURE and why you should strive to be a virgin for the unmarried and for the married as well.
Read
June 11, 2023old day christianity was crazy
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews