Despite being the first pro-Nicene defense of the divinity of the Holy Spirit written in Latin and influencing the Trinitarian theology of Augustine of Hippo, Ambrose of Milan’s On the Holy Spirit has received little scholarly attention. Jerome maligned the book as badly written and even plagiarized. Modern scholars have followed in that judgement. This study contradicts this perspective, claiming that Ambrosedefines the Holy Spirit in a way consistent with pro-Nicene theology using classical Ciceronian rhetoric to interpret Scripture in a quasi-judicial situation: Emperor Gratian played the role of judge, Ambrose’s theological opponents served as the prosecution, and Ambrose was the defendant. Instead of merely viewing Ambrose’s On the Holy Spirit through the lens of source-criticism, this study utilizes classical rhetorical theory, especially stasis theory, as a methodology that gives due weight both to the conflict in which Ambrose was embroiled and the bishop’s pro-Nicene theological reasoning. Stasis theory helped the rhetorically educated to generate the relevant arguments for the case before them. After documenting the ecclesiastical-political conflict that occasioned On the Holy Spirit’s composition, this study provides the first comprehensive account of the pneumatology of Ambrose’s opponents, the Latin Homoians. Ambrose’s own intellectual formation is then investigated, revealing his intimate knowledge of rhetoric and his acquaintance with some philosophical doctrines, both of which factored into the genesis of On the Holy Spirit. Rhetorical analysis of the text uncovers Ambrose’s attention to the concerns—theological and political—of his primary audience, the Emperor Gratian. Ambrose used Greek sources, but selected ideas which helped him craft his case. Finally, it is demonstrated that Ambrose used the “definition issue” in stasis theory to understand the Holy Spirit’s identity, interpreting Holy Scripture to discover his differentiaefrom creatures but also his shared propriawith the Father and the Son. A lengthy appendix helps advance our understanding of the extent and character of Ambrose’s borrowing from Greek sources.
Not only does this study provide the first full study of Ambrose’s On the Holy Spirit, but it also suggests that rhetorical theory significantly influenced argumentation in fourth-century Trinitarian controversies, though this has been overlooked in modern scholarship.
REVIEWS
"Andrew Selby does scholarship a great service by providing such a thorough examination of Ambrose’s DSS. By treating the diverse facets of the work (historical, political, rhetorical, and theological), he reveals “a man whose integrity of purpose was the very characteristic that has caused him to be the object of so much reproach and renown in his own day and beyond” (283). Selby also shows the valuable insights that can be gained by examining late antique Christian theological works through the lens of ancient rhetoric. Finally, he demonstrates the same rhetorical excellence which he highlights in Ambrose’s work, as his study is well-organized, clearly written, and pleasing to read."
-- Anthony Thomas, Church History, December 2021
doi:10.1017/S0009640722000051
| Contributor | Biography |
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| Andrew Selby | Andrew M. Selby is Dean of Classical Instruction and teaches humanities and Latin at Trinity Classical Academy in Valencia, CA a school participating in the classical Christian education revival movement. He holds a Ph.D. in Religion from Baylor University. |
Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
Chapter One. Introduction
The Challenge of Fourth-Century Pneumatology
The Near Inevitability of Pro-Nicene Arguments for the Spirit’s Divinity
The Son’s and Spirit’s Divinity in Ambrose
Patristic Pneumatology: Literature Review
Jerome, Quellenforschung, and Ambrose’s De Spiritu Sancto
Literature on Ambrose in General
Methodology: Classical Ciceronian Rhetoric
The Task of the Present Study
Chapter Two. The Emperor Gratian’s Role in the Genesis of De Spiritu Sancto, 378–381
A Rhetorical–Judicial Situation
The “Homoians”: Real or a Rhetorical Invention?
The Origin of De Spiritu Sancto, 378–381
The Aftermath of the Battle of Hadrianople
The Letters Exchanged by Ambrose and Gratian and the Request for De Spiritu Sancto
De fide3–5 and the Resolution of the Basilica Sequestration
The Challenges Facing Ambrose in the Composition of DSS
Chapter Three. The Prosecution’s Position: Homoian Pneuma-tology
Summary of Homoian Texts and their Dating
1. Palladius of Ratiaria’s Pneumatology
2. The Pneumatology of Auxentius of Durostorum and Ulfila
3. The Holy Spirit in the “Adversus Orthodoxos et Mace-donianos”
4. The Holy Spirit in the Instructio verae fidei
5. The Pneumatology of the “Arian Sermon”
6. Collatio cum Maximino
7. Pneumatology in the De sollemnitatibus sermones
8. The Contra Hereticos
Summary of Homoian Pneumatology
Chapter Three Conclusion
Chapter Four. The Defendant: Ambrose’s Rhetorical, Legal, and Philosophical Formation
Paulinus’ Testimony regarding Ambrose and the liberales disciplinae
Ambrose’s Rhetorical Education
The Late Antique Decadence Narrative and Stylized Epideictic Rhetoric in Twentieth-Century Histori-ography
Rhetorical Invention in the Church in Late Antiquity
Ambrose as a Lawyer
Ambrose and Philosophy
Chapter Four Conclusion
Chapter Five. Ambrose’s Use and Modification of Pathostoward Emperor Gratian
Section Two—Chapters Five, Six, and Seven
Ambrose, Pathos,and Gratian
Arrangement and Pathosin the Ciceronian Tradition
Prologues and Epilogues in Ambrose’s DSS
The Strange Case of DSS’s Two Prologues and Epilogues
The Exordium of Book 1: Gideon the Judge, Gratian the Judge, and the Holy Spirit the Judge
The Exordium of Book 2: The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament and Samson
The Two Epilogues
Chapter Five Conclusion
Chapter Six. Rhetorical Invention and Refutation of Homoian Pneumatology in De Spiritu Sancto
The Ciceronian Theory of Issues
Stasis Theory in Cicero’s De inventione
The Stasis of DSS
Cicero’s Rules for the Definitional Issue
Definition of the Holy Spirit and Refutation of the Opponent’s Definition
Ambrose’s “Brief, Clear, and Conventional” Definition of the Holy Spirit in his Propositio/Partitio
Ambrose’s Refutation of the Opponents’ Definition of the Holy Spirit
The locusof Definition and Ambrose’s Use of differentiaeto Refute Homoian Pneumatology
Biblical Exegesis as the New Legal Documentation in the Restructuring of the Topics of falsum,turpis, and inutilis
Borrowing Refutation Arguments from Didymus and other Greek Writers
Chapter Six Conclusion
Chapter Seven. Ambrose’s Confirmation Arguments for the Divinity of the Holy Spirit
Finding the Propriaof God to Demonstrate the Spirit’s Equality: Common and Inseparable Operations
Power Argumentation in Pro-Nicene Theology at Large
Veni Creator Spiritus: The Holy Spirit as Creator
Excursus: Didymus as Ambrose’s Primary Source for “Operations-Power”
Arguments from the Equal Dignity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
The Pro-Nicene Tradition of Arguments from Dignity
Ambrose’s Non-Subordinationist Exegesis of Jn 4:24 (DSS3.11.69–12.89)
Excursus on Ambrose’s Borrowing from Basil: Biblical Prepositions and the Inner Life of the Trinity
On Jn 4:24: Worshipping the Spirit while Worshipping in the Spirit
Chapter Seven Conclusion
Chapter Eight. Conclusion
Appendix: Ambrose’s Greek Sources in Parallel Columns with His De Spiritu Sancto
Results
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Secondary Sources
Indices
Index of Names and Subjects
Index of Biblical Citations