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Ambrosiaster's Background

Sophie Lunn-Rockliffe

in Ambrosiaster's Political Theology

This chapter explores the religious and secular background of Ambrosiaster. Ascertaining the nature of Ambrosiaster' s religious background is tricky, but establishing his likely secular background ... More

This chapter explores the religious and secular background of Ambrosiaster. Ascertaining the nature of Ambrosiaster' s religious background is tricky, but establishing his likely secular background is easier. Having benefited from an education in the classics and forensic rhetoric, Ambrosiaster appears to have been involved in, or at least in a position to observe, aristocratic and official life in Rome. Although the bulk of evidence places Ambrosiaster's work as written in the city of Rome, historians have suggested that he spent time elsewhere, particularly Egypt, from his references to Egyptian customs. Although he was acquainted with classical texts, it was Christian works which exercised the more obtrusive intellectual and literary influence on his writing.Less

Diabolical Tyranny

Sophie Lunn-Rockliffe

in Ambrosiaster's Political Theology

This chapter explores Ambrosiaster's presentation of the Devil as the tyrannical opponent of God, and a spiritual political model for earthly tyrants and usurpers. He was not the first Christian to ... More

This chapter explores Ambrosiaster's presentation of the Devil as the tyrannical opponent of God, and a spiritual political model for earthly tyrants and usurpers. He was not the first Christian to pair the diabolical and the political. Christian writers before Ambrosiaster had characterized persecuting emperors as tyrants and close to the Devil, and the Devil himself as a cruel, tyrannical ruler. However, where earlier writers had tended to focus on the brutal aspects of the Devil's tyranny, that is, on his cruel persecution of Christians, Ambrosiaster insisted that the Devil was a contumacious rebel who attempted a usurpation of God's kingship and successfully won mastery over sinful man. It is argued that historical circumstances may have influenced this shift; Ambrosiaster's Latin predecessors had lived under the threat of persecution and suffering (Lactantius under the pagan Diocletian, Hilary and Lucifer under the Arian Constantius), whereas Ambrosiaster's immediate historical context was that of a plethora of western usurpers.Less

The Emergence of Ambrosiaster

Sophie Lunn-Rockliffe

in Ambrosiaster's Political Theology

The chapter begins by explaining that two major Latin works, a set of Commentaries on all the Pauline epistles save Hebrews, and 127 Quaestiones on the Old and New Testaments are now known as the ... More

The chapter begins by explaining that two major Latin works, a set of Commentaries on all the Pauline epistles save Hebrews, and 127 Quaestiones on the Old and New Testaments are now known as the work of a single author, an anonymous author who has for over 300 years been referred to as Ambrosiaster. There have been several distinct stages in the emergence of Ambrosiaster. In the earliest phase of their circulation, portions of the Quaestiones and Commentaries were attributed by their readers to various different authors or they were said to be written anonymously. This confusion over the authorship of Ambrosiaster's works is further reflected in the manuscript tradition.Less

Conclusion

Sophie Lunn-Rockliffe

in Ambrosiaster's Political Theology

This chapter discusses the significance of the writings of Ambrosiaster. His writings present a rich repository of the theological, political, ecclesiastical, and social thought of a late Roman ... More

This chapter discusses the significance of the writings of Ambrosiaster. His writings present a rich repository of the theological, political, ecclesiastical, and social thought of a late Roman Christian. They provide a window into the preoccupations and intellectual horizons of a writer who influenced writers in his own time and throughout the Middle Ages. It is important to recognize and preserve the very intertwining of the political and theological when reading Ambrosiaster. His own analysis of the political was inspired by scripture, expressed in biblicizing language, and supported by lengthy quotations from the Bible.Less

Introduction

Sophie Lunn-Rockliffe

in Ambrosiaster's Political Theology

This introductory chapter begins with a discussion of how Ambrosiaster's writings can be examined. An overview of the succeeding chapters is then presented.