Exposition on the Christian Faith

by Ambrose of Milan, H. De Romestin (Translator)

Aurelius Ambrosius, better known in English as Saint Ambrose (c. between 337 and 340 – 4 April 397), was a bishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century. He was one of the four original doctors of the Church. 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 followed his father's career. He was educated in Rome, studying literature, law, and rhetoric. As bishop of Milan, he immediately adopted an ascetic lifestyle, apportioned his money to the poor, donating all of his land, making only provision for his sister Marcellina (who later became a nun),[2] and committed the care of his family to his brother. Ambrose also wrote a treatise by the name of "The Goodness Of Death". On the eve of setting out for the East, to aid his uncle Valens in repelling a Gothic invasion, Gratian, the Emperor of the West, requested St. Ambrose to write him a treatise in proof of the Divinity of Jesus Christ. Gratian's object in making this request was to secure some sort of preservative against the corrupting influence of Arianism, which at that time (a.d. 378) had gained the upper hand of Orthodoxy in the Eastern provinces of the Empire, owing to its establishment at the Imperial Court. In compliance with Gratian's wish, the Bishop of Milan composed a treatise, which now forms the first two Books of the De Fide. With this work the Emperor was so much pleased that on his return from the East, after the death of Valens at Hadrianople, he wrote to St. Ambrose, begging for a fresh copy of the treatise, and further, for its enlargement by the addition of a discourse on the Divinity of the Holy Spirit. The original treatise was, indeed, enlarged by St. Ambrose in 379, but the additional Books dealt, not with the Divinity of the Holy Spirit, but rather with new objections raised by the Arian teachers, and points which had either been passed over or not fully discussed already. In this way St. Ambrose's Exposition was brought into its present form.

Genres: Theology, Christianity, Nonfiction

238 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

born 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.

Reviews

[Brian Eshleman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The reading experience FEELS like overkill, but I admit that's my presentism kicking in. Well, of course Jesus was and is coequal with God the father. Give your three points and appointments, and move on.

Moving back to Ambrose's time, though, this was crucial, and his was the spade work both of adoration of the Trinity and love for baby Christians who could be so easily trapped in the intellectual currents of the time.

I may not NEED hundreds of Scriptural references buttressing up Christ's Divine authority, but if I do, I know what brief book is loaded like an arsenal with them.

[Jarrett Vandiver · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, though it became a bit hard to read at times, is an absolute slam dunk for demonstrating the full divinity of Jesus Christ, and good Trinitarian theology in general. St. Ambrose (c. 339-397) writes to the Roman Emperor at the time about the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus, the most fundamental aspects of the Christian faith. When I say he puts Arius (4th century heretic who claimed Jesus was merely a creation) into the wringer in this one, I mean it. I think Ambrose demolishes objections to Jesus' divinity that even Arius wouldn't have thought of. If you are looking for a book that will give you a super solid understanding of how the Trinity works, this one is armed to the teeth with biblical and philosophical support for the historic Christian doctrine of God.

For a snippet, here is a quote on the Trinity that stood out to me:

133. Whereby is meant no personal duty, but an indivisible sentence of co-operation. For this does not signify any actual hearing of words, but the unity of will and of power, which exists both in the Father and in the Son. He has stated that this exists also in the Holy Spirit, in another place, saying, “For He shall not speak of Himself, but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak,” so that we may learn that whatsoever the Spirit says, the Son also says; and whatsoever the Son says, the Father says also; for there is one mind and one mode of working in the Trinity. For, as the Father is seen in the Son, not indeed in bodily appearance, but in the unity of the Godhead, so also the Father speaks in the Son, not with a voice of earth, not with a human sound, but in the unity of Their work. So when He had said: “The Father that dwelleth in Me, He speaketh; and the works that I do, He doeth;”3 He added: “Believe Me, that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me; or else believe Me for the very work’s sake.”

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three distinct persons who are one God because they share the same will and always work inseparably.

Lastly, I will quote Ambrose's reasons for saying that it is imperative to describe Jesus correctly:

"For he who believes wrongly of the Son cannot think rightly of the Father; he who thinks wrongly of the Spirit cannot think rightly of the Son. For where there is one dignity, one glory, one love, one majesty, whatsoever thou thinkest is to be withdrawn in the case of any one of the Three Persons, is withdrawn from all alike. For that can never have completeness which thou canst separate and divide into various portions."

If we get the doctrine of Christ wrong, by saying that he is only a creation, a human, or just a mask of the Father, then it will crumble the foundation of the Trinity and thus the Christian faith as a whole.
Ambrose's book is a great way to learn to get the doctrine of Jesus right and it is no less a meditation for wonder at how God himself, not a lesser creation, added our humanity to himself to reconcile us back to God.

[Connor Longaphie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing work. Ambrose sets out in this book to dispell the Arian heresy. Going through the trinitarian doctrine with early bilbical theology joining the two testaments of the Word and proclaiming that it was CHRIST who spoke in the Old Testament of Himself. What a book. Modern theologians really do not have a monopoly on truth. A wonderful church father to read.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A few takeaways...

- The different names for Christ, his attributes, the unity of his actions and thoughts with the Father, all point to the fact that Christ is God, along with the Father.
- I thought that the interpretation of "our image" in Gen 1:26 as being the trinity was a modern invention. But Ambrose says that's exactly what it means.
- God could not have become a father at some point in time because God is unchangeable. He's always been Father, Son and Spirit.
- Ambrose's advise about peering into the mysteries of God "Do thou, then (like the angels), cover your face with your hands, for it is not given you to look into surpassing mysteries!"
- Two more books follow, but I stopped. I think Ambrose made his point, and he was speaking against a very particular heresy, Arianism, which accepted Christ's divinity, just not his "begottenness". The points he made are interesting, and valid, but I'm not entirely sure there is much rampant Arianism today. Instead, today, most people, except for perhaps the Unitarians, either reject Christ's divinity, or accept it. I'm not sure there's much middle ground. Maybe the idea that Christ was a "good teacher", but I think C.S. Lewis addresses that.

[Michael T Moos · Rating 4 out of 5]

The contents of this book would best be titled “against Arianism” as that is the sole subject Saint Ambrose discusses.

[Adonis McReynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

A masterful exposition against the Arian heretics! Highly recommend!