A. D. 396. brose convened the Bishops to decide the case. 1 There was no accuser, nor sufficient evidence against Indicia; and be1 § 21,22,23. sides, there were several witnesses' to her good fame, viz. her nurse, who was a trustworthy person and a free woman, St. Marcellina, sister to St. Ambrose, and the virgin Paterna, with whom she had lived at Milan, during the prosecution. * § 24. 3 The sentence of the Bishops' was, that Indicia had done nothing contrary to her profession; that Leontius and Renatus should be excommunicated, till they made satisfaction to the Church by penance; and that Maximus should not be admitted to communion unless he made amends for his error. St. Ambrose announced this judgment to Syagrius, Epist. 5. by a letter3 in very strong and severe terms, representing to 4 ' § 2. him his fault in sentencing a virgin to be examined without any accuser or witnesses; telling him, that this of itself is a * § 5, 6, &c. severe punishment to a virgin'; and besides, that the proof thereby is very uncertain, according to the opinion of the most learned physicians; which he confirms by a late example. He seems inclined wholly to lay aside such indecent proofs. Syagrius excused himself, by alleging that unless he required this scrutiny certain persons had threatened to withdraw from his communion'. Upon which St. Ambrose reproaches him with weakness, in suffering private persons to give laws to Bishops, and to prescribe to them the forms of their judicial decisions. 7 6 • § 8. * § 15. XVII. Ambrose for his Clergy. $ Off. 1. It may be judged what care St. Ambrose took in the choice Care of St. of his Clergy, by the instances which he himself relates. One of his friends was very assiduous in paying his respects to him, in hopes of obtaining a position among the Clergy, c. 18. § 72. but St. Ambrose would never admit him, for no other reason, but that there was some great impropriety in his carriage. Another, who was already one of the Clergy, having committed a fault, was interdicted for some time, and when he was restored, St. Ambrose forbade him to walk before him, because there was something particular in his gait that was offensive to him. For the holy Bishop was persuaded, that the irregular motions of the body proceeded from the irregularity of the mind. The event shewed that he was not mistaken in either of them; the first deserted the Faith in the time of the Arian persecution; and the other also, be 2 netius and c. 36. § 184. cause he would not submit to the judgment of the Bishops A. D. 396. in a case where his interest was concerned, renounced the Catholic religion. He relates these two instances in the treatise On Offices or Duties, which he composed for the instruction of his Clergy, in imitation of Cicero, and of the Greeks, whom Cicero followed in his book on the same subject'. St. Ambrose chose out the best of their morality, ['viz. Paconfirming it by the authority of the Scripture, and improving Hecato.] it by evangelical maxims. He forbids' the Clergy to meddle offic. 1. with business or traffic; wishing them to be contented with their small patrimony, or if they had none, with their salaries3. Some grew weary of the service of the Church, by reason of Carth. 4. the difficulties which they met with. "To what purpose," Ep.81. ad ch. 33.] said they", "should we continue in the Clergy, expose Cleric. "selves to ill usage, and undergo such labours, when we might live on our own fortunes, or make them in some "other way?" To these he answers, that they are not made Clerks only to get their maintenance, but that they may merit in the sight of GOD after this life. And this is the [ Divinam subject of one of his letters. 4 our [ See Infra. Conc. 5 8 9 § 2. sibi post mortem 19. There is another letter' to Constantius, then newly ordained subsidium locet.] a Bishop in the neighbourhood of Ravenna, who seems to Ep. 2. al. have been chosen from among his Clergy, since he calls him his son. This contains rules for his conduct, particularly § 27. for his instructions to the people. He commends to him the Church of Cornelii Forum', which is supposed to be Imola, ibid. which was vacant, and near him; begging him to visit it often, till a Bishop should be ordained; "for," says he, "my "employments in Lent, which now draws near, will not per"mit me to go so far." There is a letter' also to another new Bishop', called Vigilius, who had applied for his advice. He recommends to him in particular, to exhort his people to fors, of do justice to their hired servants, to avoid usury, and to practise hospitality; but, above all, to prevent marriages with infidels. Many of the disciples of St. Ambrose had the government of Churches, which they discharged with great holiness. In the first rank we may place St. Augustine; next, his friend Alypius, and St. Paulinus of Nola. Among his Clergy, Venerius and Felix are eminent, who had been his Deacons : 1 Ep.19. al. 24. [A. D. 385.] Trent.] Rom. 4to. A. D. 396. Venerius was Bishop of Milan, and Felix of Bologna, and they Martyrol. are both reckoned in the number of the saints'. Theodulus, Dec. et 4to. Who had been secretary to St. Ambrose, was Bishop of Modena. St. Ambrose laid his hands upon St. Gaudentius of Brescia, as has been related, St. Felix of Comum, and St. Honoratus of Vercellæ. We see by his letters the esteem which he had for St. Felix, and the strict friendship that there was between them3. Maii. Paul. vit. § 35. Ep. 3, 4. [al. 59, 60. A. D. 380.] XVIII. His letter to the Vercellæ. 25. al. 25. [A.D. 396.] The ordination of St. Honoratus was one of the last acts of St. Ambrose. After the death of Limenius, Bishop of Church of Vercellæ, who had been present at the Council of Aquileia', Supra bk. the see remained long vacant, by reason of the divisions in 18. ch. 10. the Church; and St. Ambrose was blamed, because, being Metropolitan, it was thought incumbent upon him to put a Not. in stop to the disorders". This led him to write a long letter to Ep. 63. al. them, which begins thus: "I am extremely afflicted that your Ep. 63. "Church has yet no Bishop, and that she only, of all the "Churches in Liguria, Emilia, Venetia, and the neighbour"ing provinces, should be without one, she from whom the "other Churches were wont to be supplied; and (which I feel "still a greater shame) that it is I who am blamed, whereas 'your animosities are the only obstacle. For so long as "these divisions are among you, what can we decree, or what "choice can you make? Who will be able, seeing you so "much at variance, to accept an office, which can hardly be "supported in the greatest unanimity? Are these the in"structions of that holy Confessor? Are you the children "of those, who preferred the holy Eusebius, a stranger, and "wholly unknown, before their own countrymens?" 7 § 2, 68, 70, 71. 69, He afterwards makes several digressions in praise' of St. Eusebius of Vercellæ. He exhorts them to beware of two § 7, 8, 9. apostate Monks, Sarmatio and Barbatianus, who had lived some time in the monastery at Milan; but being unable to bear the regularity, the silence, the fasts, and confinement; and not having profited by the charitable advice of St. Ambrose, they left it, and when they would have returned, were refused admittance. Being exasperated at this refusal, they It was usually the custom to choose the Bishop from the Clergy of the Church over which he was to preside. See Bingham, bk. 2. ch. 10. § 2, 3. and infra, ch. 24. 2 19. ch. 19, 5 spread a pernicious doctrine, much like that of Jovinian', A. D. 396. namely, that abstinence and fasting, virginity and continence, ['Supr. bk. were of no value. St. Ambrose treats them as Epicureans, 42.] and fully confutes them, by authorities and examples from Scripture. He afterwards admonishes the faithful of Vercellæ § 43. to lay aside all malice and slander", the spirit of division,3 § 52. and desire of revenge'; to bear with one another, and not to § 83. be puffed up on account of riches'; but to exercise hospitality § 86. and charity, and the reciprocal duties of husband and wife, of § 107, &c. mothers and children, masters and slaves. He shows them what ought to be the qualifications of a Bishop, particularly in the Church of Vercella', where the monastic and clerical' § 66. life were joined together, [for the first time in the West, by s vit. S. the holy Eusebius.] St. Ambrose was obliged to go in person Novariens. to Vercellæ, a few months before his death, to reconcile their ap.Bolland. differences; and by his care, they chose Honoratus for their [Vid. Jan. Bishop, a man of great merit, whom the Church reckons p.419, 420.] among the saints". 8 Gaudent. Feb. 3. 22. tom. 1. p.419,420.] 9 Martyrol. R. 28. Oct. 1 Vit. § 25. The reputation of St. Ambrose had reached the most XIX. Reputation distant countries, and had some years before drawn to Milan of St. Amtwo Persians of the greatest authority and wisdom in that brose. nation, who came furnished with many questions, to make trial of his wisdom'. They discoursed with him by the help 1 Paulin. of an interpreter, from the first hour of the day to the third of the night; that is, from six in the morning till nine at night, and departed full of admiration. To shew that the only design of their journey was to have a personal knowledge of St. Ambrose, the next day, as soon as they had taken leave of the Emperor, they went to Rome, to see the power and grandeur of Probus, the Præfect", and then returned home. Count Arbogastes' being at table with some of the Ibid. § 30. Kings of the Franks, with whom he was treating about a peace, was asked by them if he knew St. Ambrose: "I do," "It happened sometimes that a "Bishop and all his Clergy chose an "ascetic way of living. St. Ambrose "seems to say that Eusebius Vercel"lensis was the first that brought in "this way of living into the Western "Church. For before his time the "Monastic life was not known in cities, "but he taught his Clergy to live in "the city after the rules of Monks in 66 66 note a. A. D. 396. said he, " and am one of his friends, and frequently eat with "him." "This then is the reason, Count," replied the Frank king, "that you are victorious; you are the friend of a man, "who says to the sun, 'Stand thou still,' and it standeth.” Paulinus says he learned these particulars from a young man who was cupbearer to Count Arbogastes at this entertainIbid. § 36. ment. A little before the death of St. Ambrose', a queen of the Marcomanni, named Fritigil, having heard of his fame from a certain Christian that came from Italy, believed in CHRIST, and sent ambassadors with presents for the Church of Milan, entreating St. Ambrose to instruct her by writing, in what she was to believe. He sent her an excellent letter in form of a catechism, in which he likewise exhorts her to persuade her husband to observe the peace with the Romans. The Queen having received this letter, prevailed with the King to surrender himself and his people to the Romans, and went herself to Milan; but, to her sorrow, did not find St. Ambrose alive. The letter which he wrote to this Queen is not extant. Miracles of St. Am brose. X XX. One of the slaves of Count Stilicho, having been dispossessed of an evil spirit that tormented him, dwelty in the Basilica Ambrosiana; and his master, who was attached to him, commended him to St. Ambrose. It was discovered that he had counterfeited grants for the office of a Tribune, so that some persons were arrested for going to exercise that office, by virtue of these letters. Stilicho, at the request of St. Ambrose, set at liberty those who had been thus imposed on, but he did not punish his slave, and only complained of him to the holy Bishop. This man having quitted the Basilica, St. Ambrose gave orders to have him searched for, and brought to him. Having examined and convicted him of the crime, he said, "He must be delivered unto Satan for the ? 1 Cor. 5.5. "destruction of the flesh', that none hereafter may dare to attempt the like." At the same instant, and even before the holy Bishop had done speaking, the unclean spirit seized on him, and began to tear him; "at which," says Paulinus, we were all much terrified;" and he adds, "We saw in those * See Bingham, bk. 3. ch. 4. § 6, 7. and Conc. Carth. 4. can. 91. infr. ch. 33. y For the nature of the early Basilicas, see supra, bk. 18. ch. 21. note d. |