Access to the Invisible in Ambrose’s Baptismal Catecheses and Commentaries on the Psalms

The paper explores the relationship between Ambrose’s mystagogical and exegetical method. Both of them bring the Christian catechumen or believer from the superficial perception of the biblical text or visible reality to the realm of the invisible that is hidden from the physical senses and is accessible only through faith. After a brief introduction to the significant characteristics of Ambrose’s biblical exegesis, Ambrose’s baptismal catecheses are analysed in order to clarify the conjunction of mystagogy and exegesis. The latter part of this article focuses on an example of Ambrose’s exegetical work, i.e., his commentaries on the Psalms, the Explanatio Psalmorum xii and the Expositio Psalmi cxviii. There is a continuity in Ambrose’s ministry to bring his audience from the visible to the invisible both in the catecheses and in his exegetical and homiletical work. The invisible is not perceived by him only in the philosophical sense, but it is understood from the point of view of the Nicene faith both in theory and practice. The presence of a similar attitude in his works speaks indirectly for the authenticity of his De Sacramentis and it indicates how profoundly intertwined his exegetical and mystagogical method are.

Keywords: Latin Patristics; Ambrose of Milan; Mystagogy; Patristic Exegesis; Invisible Realities; Homiletics; Nicene Faith; De sacramentis; Psalms