§ 161. Сочинения нравственные. Учреждения богослужебные.

Between all the works of St. Ambrose, his 3 books on positions take first place. According to ancient lists, they are appointed for ministers of the Church; they contain a statement of the duties of a Christian, summed up under general principles, with the application of several instructions to the ministers of the Church. St. Ambrose had in mind Cicero’s essay on duties and wanted to show the superiority of Christian moral teaching over the moral teaching of the best pagans. About Christian morality of St. Ambrose wrote a lot. These are his writings: about withdrawal from the world; about Patr. Jacob and about the blessed life - two books, where in the first he says that a blessed life is a life without carnal passions, in the second he describes the life of Jacob as an example of a happy life; about Patr. Joseph - as a model of chastity and other virtues, about Elijah and fasting with praise for abstinence; about Naboth, against stinginess and cruelty towards the poor; instructions to soldiers and other members of the state 809. Books on virginity, instructions to virgins, 3 books on virgins, exhortation to virginity, letter on virginity 810, and a book on widows contain everything that can be said in praise of virginity and widowhood and in instruction to them. In his letters he either exhorted to repentance 811, then gave the concept of Christian perfection, acquired gradually 812, then gave advice to the clergy 813, judges 814, bishops 815, or those in sorrow 816. In moral teaching, Ambrose is what he was in life: here sublimity and fortitude are expressed in their worthy form; here he is great both as a teacher of piety and as a spiritual speaker. The works of St. Ambrose for the organization of Divine services. Valafrid Strabo wrote at the beginning of the 9th century: “Ambrose the Bishop of Milan arranged the order of both the liturgy and other services for his church and for the other Ligurians, which is preserved to this day in the Church of Milan” 817. Everything that St. arranged in this regard. Ambrose, imprinted with thoughts about the East, expressed desires to get closer to the rituals of the bright East 818. At the service of St. Ambrose introduced the following: a) He compiled the Lectionary, or, as the ancient news says, he marked the beginning and end of the readings from the Gospel, the Apostle and the Prophets 819. For all holidays, including Sundays, he, in accordance with ancient Eastern custom, appointed readings not only from the Gospel and the Apostles, but also from the Old Testament. The power of the pope did not have time to erase the seals of Ambrose's time on this establishment - the ancient Italian translation of the readings. b) The rite of celebrating the Eucharist with prayers and prefaces (liber missalium orationum et profationam), which also has many similarities with the Eastern rite, not with the Roman rite 820. c) The Antiphonarium was entirely an innovation of St. Ambrose, received from the east. St. Ambrose introduced antiphonal singing when his faithful flock was oppressed by the emperor. Justina - Arian. “Then,” says Augustine, it is established to sing psalms and hymns according to the custom of the East, so that the people do not weaken 821 or, as Peacock says, “they began to sing hymns and vigils antiphonally in the choirs” 822. St. Ambrose wrote both the notes and hymns for the antiphonary. Augustine, Prosper, Isidore of Seville 823 testify that the hymns of St. Ambrose in their time was sung in churches in the West. Blzh. Augustine writes about himself that “once overwhelmed by sorrow, I sang the hymn of Ambrose and the sorrow of my heart subsided.” This was the evening hymn of Ambrose 824. Ambrose himself wrote: “They say that the people delight in my hymns. I do not reject...what is stronger than the confession of the Trinity, which is glorified daily by the lips of the people?” 825 The hymns of Ambrose are written in compliance with the measure and, moreover, in such a way that the meaning always ends with the fourth verse; the latter itself indicates that they are intended for antiphonal singing. Between the authentic hymns of St. Ambrose (all up to 13), it should be noted especially the hymn: We praise God to you 826. It is in vain that some take it away from Ambrose, carried away by the example of some ignorant scribes 827. The composition of this hymn must be dated back to the time when the complete victory over Arianism was achieved, i.e. by 386, and in 388, when Augustine was baptized by St. Ambrose, it was sung by the baptized and the baptized 828. Since the 5th century we have already seen its general use in the West, among other things at the coronation of kings and at Councils 829. But this is something that has not yet been paid attention to, and which together speaks of the authenticity of this hymn! A very similar hymn is found between the hymns of St. Gregory the Theologian; this is a hymn of praise and prayer to the Trinitarian: “Let me sing, let me praise You, Immortal King and Lord... Countless hosts of Angels live through You, You have illuminated the sun,” etc. 830. Literally in places, and in content the entire hymn of Ambrose is similar to this hymn. And since we already know that Ambrose, more than any other Western teacher, transferred the Eastern to the West, and even introduced a lot of Eastern writings into his own: then there is no doubt that the song We Praise You God really belongs to St. Ambrose. Some of these works in Chr. Thurs. 1838. 1839 Er. 27–33. 37. 38. 70. 71. 73–75. Lib. de reb. eccles s. 22. Missale Ambrosianum, Mediolani 1831. Mabillonii Museum italicum. T. 1. P. 14. p. 99–109. Paris. 1724. Epist. Pavli et Gebehardii in Mabillon T. 1. Musaei ital. r. 96. Mitte nobis Antiphonarium cum notatis et sacramentarium cum solis orationibus et praefationibus Ambrosianis. And at the beginning of the letter: Nos nullum apellamus sacramentarium, nisi librum missalium orationum absque actionibus evangelicis, apostolicis et propheticis, quarum fines et principia secaudum Ambrosianam exceptionem petentibus nobis annotare pollicitus es. See note. 44. Augusti Christ. Archeol. V. 4. S. 284–286. Bona rer. liturg. lib. 4. c. 40. Confession. lib. 9. p. 7. Prosper Chronicon ad an. 386. Isidore de eccl. offciis. 1. 6. Confess. lib. 9. p. 120. Beginning of the hymn: Deus creator omnium Solique rector vestiens Diem decoro lumine, Noctem soporis gratia. On another occasion he also speaks of the morning hymn of St. Ambrose: Jam surgit hora tertia (Retract. 1, 21. 9, 12. De nat. et grat. c. 63). Orat. adv. Avxent. T. 5, p. 109. In addition to the two that Augustine speaks of (pr. 49), the Council of Rome in 430 speaks of the hymn: Veni Redemptor gentium. This is a wonderful hymn for Christmas. Cassiodorus mentions the other two. Seven others were found by the card from ancient manuscripts. Thomassin (Op. T. 8). Others known by the name of St. Ambrose, do not belong to him. In some Latin manuscripts this hymn is inscribed with the name Abundini, or S. Sisenii, or Sisebuti, or Sisebuli. But the very difference in the inscription and its irregularity shows that its origin was due to the ignorance of the scribes. About the last Chronica Dacii, or rather Landulfii, also the life of Augustine, an unknown writer (Vita S. Augustini, incerti auctoris. 1833, Kiliae, p. 35–38), and the psalter of Charles Vel. (see note 54). St. Benedict and Caesarea of ​​Arles (in the 5th century) already prescribed the singing of this hymn (Benedicti regula p. 44). Also in the antiphonary of Gregory Dvoeslov. Alcuin, the psalter of Charles the Great, the Mabillonian manuscript of the 9th century, Bishop Smaragd of the 10th century (Comm. ad regul. S. Benedicti) speak of this hymn as the hymn of St. Ambrose. In the Charles Psalter there is an inscription on it: hymnus, quem. S. Ambrosius et S. Augustinus invicem condiderunt. Weiss Leben d. Väter u. Märtyrer Th. 42. S. 456. Binterim Denkwürdigk. der Kirche. B. 4. Th. 4. S. 404. Hymn to St. Gregory in Chron. Thurs. 1836.2, 478. You might be interested in: