This Saint Will Change Your Life by Thomas J. Craughwell

Author:Thomas J. Craughwell [Craughwell, Thomas J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-59474-534-8
Publisher: Quirk Books
Published: 2011-11-01T04:00:00+00:00

Lawyers • St. Ivo

Learning

ST. AMBROSE

ABOUT 340–397 • FEAST DAY: DECEMBER 7

In St. Ambrose’s day, all Roman boys studied the Latin classics. But Ambrose’s mother found him a tutor who also taught him Greek so that he could read Plato, Aristotle, and other great authors of Greece’s golden age. This mastery of both the Latin and Greek schools of philosophy gave Ambrose an intellectual edge over his contemporaries.

As bishop of Milan, he tailored his sermons to fit the audience. To worshippers at Sunday Mass, he spoke of the joys of living virtuously. But when addressing the emperor or Roman senators or some other highbrow audience, he drew upon his classical education to present sophisticated arguments that his cultured listeners would appreciate.

About 386, a woman named Monica arrived in Milan and began attending Mass at Ambrose’s cathedral. The sorrow of Monica’s life was that her brilliant son Augustine had rejected Christianity in favor of a pagan sect known as the Manicheans. Upon hearing Ambrose preach, Monica knew she had found a man whose learning equaled, perhaps even surpassed, that of her son. Monica dragged Augustine to Ambrose’s Masses, and her instincts proved to be correct. Augustine was impressed by this bishop, who was as familiar with Plato’s philosophy as he was with the four gospels. After listening to a few sermons, he sought out Ambrose for private discussions about Christianity. Unfortunately, no scribe was present to record the conversations of these two great minds; whatever was said, Ambrose convinced Augustine of the truth of the Catholic faith. On the night of April 24/25, 387, at the Mass of the Easter Vigil, Ambrose baptized Augustine. It was a triumph for classical learning and for the faith.

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