Bishop of Milan
Ambrose of Milan
c. AD 340–397
A Roman governor unexpectedly elected bishop by popular acclaim, Ambrose became one of the great pastoral and political figures of the fourth century, and the man whose preaching converted Augustine.
Life and work
Ambrose was serving as the Roman governor of Aemilia-Liguria, based in Milan, when the city's bishop died amid factional tension between Nicene and Arian Christians in 374. Though only a catechumen (unbaptized), Ambrose was acclaimed bishop by the crowd trying to keep the peace, and was baptized and consecrated within days.
As bishop, Ambrose proved a formidable defender of Nicene orthodoxy against Arianism and a fearless check on imperial power — most famously compelling the emperor Theodosius I to do public penance after a massacre of civilians in Thessalonica in 390, establishing a precedent for church authority over even the emperor in matters of conscience.
Ambrose's eloquent preaching in Milan drew the young rhetoric teacher Augustine, who came initially to admire his oratory and was gradually won over to Christian belief, receiving baptism from Ambrose in 387.
Ambrose also composed hymns still used in Christian worship and contributed to Latin theological vocabulary, helping to establish an intellectual and liturgical foundation for the Western church distinct from its Greek-speaking Eastern counterpart.
- Occupation
- Roman governor, bishop, hymn writer
- Places
- Trier, Rome, Milan
- Dates
- c. AD 340–397 Traditional dating
In their own words
"When in Rome, live in the Roman style; when elsewhere, live as they live elsewhere" (the origin of the modern proverb "When in Rome...").attributed
Further reading
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