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The Might and Glory of Fasting

By St. Ambrose of Milan (c. 340 - 397)

Introduction

Aurelius Ambrosius was born and raised in Gallia Belgica (modern Triery, Germany). After his father's death, he followed his career, studying law, literature, and rhetoric. He was successful in this role, becoming Governor of Liguria and Aemilia in 372, where he remained until his ordination as Bishop of Milan in 374. Throughout his tenure as bishop, he strove against Arianism, even refusing to let Emperor Valentinian II enter a basilica in Milan because of his support for Arianism. He is also well-known for baptizing St. Augustine. St. Ambrose died in the town he had shepherded for over two decades.

St. Ambrose's writings were so great that he was declared a Doctor of the Church. Among these writings are works on ethics, homilies, biblical commentaries, and a handbook on ecclesiastical offices. Particularly well-known are the works based on homilies given to new Christians, the De Mysteriis (On the Mysteries) and De Sacramentis (On the Sacraments). An interesting genre are his homiletic commentaries, where a Biblical figure is explained via homilies; what is special is that these often include more general topics as well. Thus St. Ambrose has works such as On Jacob and the Blessed Life or On Isaac or the Soul. (It should be remembered that Ambrose, like many Church Fathers, did not shy away from allegory.) The selection below is from one of these works, De Helia et Ieiunio (On Elijah and Fasting), Chapters III (§§4-5) and IV (§§6-9). The section numbers are as in Migne's edition; they continue throughout the work, without restarting in each chapter.

The Might and Glory of Fasting

  1. For what is fasting, but the celestial substance and image? Fasting is the refection of the soul, the food of the mind is fasting, the life of angels is fasting, it is fault’s death, the excision of offenses, the remedy of salvation, the root of grace, it is the foundation of chastity. By this ladder one more quickly attains to God: by this ladder Elijah ascended, before he ascended in the chariot. He left this inheritance of sobriety and abstention to his disciple, departing to heaven. In this virtue and spirit of Elijah came John. Therefore, in the desert, he also spent his time in fasting. [1] But his food was locusts, and wild honey. And, therefore, since he was bypassing the possibility of human life through continence, he was esteemed, not a man, but an angel. Of him we read: Indeed, more than a prophet. He is the one of whom it is written: Behold, I send My angel before your face, who will prepare your way before you (Mt 11:9-10). Who, by human virtue, could ascend with fiery horses, in fiery chariots, guiding bronze chariots, except he who change the nature of the human body into incorruptible through the virtue of fasting?
  2. But, of Elijah's deeds, we have now gone through many, through the frequent reading of diverse books; and I think we should avoid running through them again, especially when he is praised for his works. Therefore, let us imitate him, and lest us seek that food, by whose virtue, days and nights, we can progress to the thought of supernal things. For not all food is material, nor is all food corporal; there is mental food, as we said, on which souls dine, of which the Lord says: My food is to that I do the will of My Father Who is in the heavens (Jn 4:34). This is the food of angels, so that they serve the divine empire. None of this is the care of tables, none the manner of gatherings, none the spread of dishes, none the drink of wine or cider, none the swelling of body, none the offense of the belly.
  3. Therefore, lest one think fasting to be earthly or novel, the first use of the world began with fasting, when the clear light was resplendent (cf. Gen 1:3). The second day was in fasting, when the firmament of heaven was made. On the second day, the earthly fodder germinated, nature showed compliance, yet the celestial discipline served fasting. On the fourth day, the luminaries of sun and moon were created, and thus far [there was] fasting. On the fifth day, the waters produced reptiles of living souls, and flying things flying over the earth following the firmament of heaven: and God saw that it was good, and blessed them, saying: Grow and multiply, and fill the waters which are in the sea: and let flying things multiply over earth (Gen 1:22). And thus far there was fasting. Therefore, He blessed them, as it is written, and said: Grow, and He did not say: "Eat and chew." On the sixth day, the beasts were created, and with the beasts there arose the power of eating, and the use of foods. Where food began, there the end of the world came to be. Where it began to not know its own growths, there the divine works began to rest around it. By which indication it was declared that, through foods, the world had to diminish, through them it ceased to spread. No one knew offense, no one feared penalty, no one knew death.
  4. The Lord planted paradise for the grace of the blessed, He placed man there to work and to guard it. And so that we know fasting was not novel, there the first law He constituted was of fasting. For He knew that, through food, fault had to enter. The first penalty intervenes through the transgression of the law of fasting, the command of God saying: Of the tree which is of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat: but on the day you will eat from it, by death you will die (Gen 2:17). But thus far, no one knew how to transgress, so that, thus far, it had not arisen, since the decree of abstention was the first to be transgressed. The law is from the Lord God, the transgression of the law from the devil: fault through food, hiding after food. The knowledge of infirmity in food, the virtue of firmness in fasting. Therefore, as long as they abstained from the things interdicted, they did not know themselves to be nude: after they ate of the interdicted tree, they knew themselves to be nude. For this reason, therefore, when the woman knew the author of the fault, being interrogated, she responded: The serpent persuaded me, and I ate (Gen 3:13). The serpent persuaded gluttony, the Lord declared fasting. Therefore, He said: Fast and pray, that you not enter into temptation (Mt 26:41). Therefore, gluttony expelled the reigning one from paradise, abstinence recalled the erring one to paradise.
  5. And God said: Behold, Adam has become like one of Us (Gen 3:22). Therefore, God, laughing, not approving, said, that is: “You will think yourself to be similar to Us: but since you willed to be that which you were not, you ceased to be what you were: you were within yourself, and, when you affected to be above yourself, you began to be outside yourself.” Therefore, He vested him with a tunic of skin first, and thus said: Behold Adam, as if He said: “Behold your garment, behold, your worthy clothing, this dress befits you.” Who affected to be divine had to be dressed with such dignity. Behold, that from which your fault has led you, behold, now, in this tunic of skin, you have opened your eyes like one of Us. Look around diligently, see yourself nude, who thought yourself dressed.”
  6. Therefore, gluttony makes them nude, fasting covers even the undressed. Whence David said: I covered my soul in fasting (Ps 68:11). The good covering, which covers the soul, is not snatched away by the tempter, is not denuded by the tempter. The good garment which covers fault, covers by abstinence, covers by grace. For blessed are those whose iniquities are remitted, and whose sins are covered (cf. Ps 32:1; Rom 4:7). It covers by grace, while it remits, and abolishes every error: it covers by abstinence, while it overshadows vice, and hides through sorrowful face, and reduces through penitence. For fasting and almsgiving liberate from sin. Adam was covered with the garment of virtues before he transgressed, but as soon as it was thrown off through the transgression, he saw himself to be nude; since the clothes which we had, he dismissed. For in the days of your fasting, there will arise, it says, to you your morning light, and your mature health will arise, and justice will precede before you, and the majesty of the Lord will surround you (Is 58:8). A good vestment is light. For it is written: Surrounded in light like a vestment (Ps 103:2). The good vestment, when the Lord surrounds and works in those fasting.

Footnote: [1] The word here translated “spent his time” (vacabat) is notoriously difficult to translate. In its root meaning, it means to be empty, to be vacant, to be free, to be at leisure. In this context, it means to be free of other responsibilities, burdens, and hindrances, but the point is that the leisure gained from this freedom is to be spent for a higher purpose, in this case, fasting. One could also say, with a bit of a stretch, “he devoted himself to fasting.” On this understanding of vacancy and leisure, see in Josef Pieper, Leisure: The Basis of Culture / The Philosophical Act, trans. Alexander Dru (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2009), or the more recent translation by Gerald Malsbary (South Bend, IN: St. Augustine’s Press, 1998); Dru’s translation was originally published in 1952.

Source: Patralogiae Cursus Completus, Series Latina, ed. J.-P. Migne, Tomus XIV (Paris: J.-P. Migne, 1845), 699A-701C. [PL 14: 699A-701C]


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