De Sacramentis, de Mysteriis. ber die Sakramente, berdie Mysterien (review)Knute Anderson

Journal of Early Christian Studies, Volume 1, Number 1, Spring 1993,pp. 98-99 (Article)

Published by The Johns Hopkins University PressDOI: 10.1353/earl.0.0094

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98 JOURNAL OF EARLY CHRISTIAN STUDIES

Josef Schmitz, ed. and trans.AmbrosiusDe Sacramentis, de Mysteriis. ber dieSakramente, ber die MysterienFontes Christiani, 3.Freiburg: Herder, 1990.Pp. 279 44 DM

Josef Schmitz, professor of liturgical studies at the Seminary of the Redemptorists atHennef, near Bonn, and author of a full-scale historical study of the rites of initia-tion and of the Eucharistie liturgy in Milan at the time of St. Ambrose, entitledGottesdienst im Altchristlichen Mailand (Cologne, 1975), has now produced ahandy, portable edition of St. Ambrose's works On the Sacraments and On theMysteries, comparable to that by Bernard Botte (Paris, 1961; SC 25 bis). Studentsand scholars alike will welcome this useful aid to interpreting these classical Patris-tic catchses, a task which also offers its own share of crosses for interpreters.

The volume includes the editor's new introduction (pp. 768) based on his largerwork. The Latin text edited by Otto Faller in the Corpus Scriptorum Eccle-siasticorum Latinorum, Volume 73 (Vienna, 1955) is reproduced with its criticalapparatus. That gives this edition a notable advantage over Botte's, which includedFaller's Latin text (except for a few cases where Botte preferred other readings,which he justified by critical notes at the end), but without its apparatus of variants.The Latin text is accompanied by a facing German translation (pp. 69255). Thebibliography proper (pp. 260268) cites editions and translations of Ambrose'sother works as well as of related works of other Church Fathers (under "A. Quel-len"); then contemporary scholarly literature ("B. Literatur"). The index lists Biblepassages, persons, concepts (Latin words), and subjects treated (pp. 269-279).

The first part of the introduction (pp. 714) treats of the authorship, form andcontent of the two works, their relationship, and dates of writing. The authenticityof The Mysteries (59 paragraphs long) has always generally been accepted. How-ever, since the 16th century The Sacraments (six sermons), which had been held tobe authentic from antiquity, was increasingly denied Ambrosian authorship. Thestudies published by Otto Faller since 1929 and Hugh Connolly since 1941-1942have brought about a gradual change of opinion, so that now the only scholarwriting against the authenticity of The Sacraments is Klaus Gamber, whose faultymethodology, Schmitz remarks, forfeits his reader's assent to his argument.

Concerning the form of the two works, the editor states that for a very long timereference was repeatedly made to the differences between them, without sufficientattention to their extensive correspondences. So, when both of these are taken intoaccount, one may say that The Sacraments is an unrevised transcript of baptismalcatchses which Ambrose delivered to the newly baptized during six successivedays of an Easter Week which cannot be assigned a more specific data. The Myste-ries on the other hand is a writer's product, which does indeed appear in the form ofa spoken catechesis, but is actually a literary composition.

The author of the introduction is suitably frank about the gaps in our informa-tion, and appropriately cautious about not going beyond the evidence. Concerning

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dating, Schmitz writes that an exact date either for The Sacraments or for TheMysteries cannot be given; both works presumably come from the later years of thebishop, who died in 397.

The major part of the introduction comprises a description of Christian initia-tion according to Ambrose. This consists of a survey of the preparation for thecelebration of incorporating new members and of the celebration itself. Preliminar-ies included the catechumenate, a remote preparation, and the time as competentes,that is, a candidacy, the proximate preparation. This latter took place during theLenten season, beginning on the sixth Sunday before Easter. Its elements were:enrollment (nomendatio), confession of sin, penance, catechesis, scrutinies, oralpresentation of the Apostle's creed (traditio symboli), and recitation of this profes-sion of faith (redditio symboli).

The celebration of initiation in Milan at Ambrose's time took place during theEaster night; it consisted of baptism followed by the baptismal Eucharist. Baptis-mal ritual meant these ceremonies: opening of eyes and ears by the bishop's touch-ing them; blessing of the water; prebaptismal anointing of the whole body; renun-ciation of the devil with his deeds and the world with its pleasures; baptismal actionby triple immersion into the pool coinciding with profession of faith in each of thepersons of the Trinity; passage through the baptismal pool recalling the march ofthe Israelites through the Red Sea; anointing of the head with ointment; reading ofJohn 13:411; washing of the feet; reception of the white baptismal robe; andsealing with the Holy Spirit.

The Eucharist of Baptism included: bringing the gifts to the altar; preparation ofthe chalice by pouring in wine and water; Eucharistie prayer; Our Father anddoxology; communion; and communion song (Ps 22 [23]). The third part of theintroduction treats of the mystagogical catchses as the completion of initiation.

The translation is faithful and clear. Where some German words have beensupplied that are not found literally in the Latin, these are indicated in parentheses.Biblical quotations and allusions are also indicated within parentheses and withinthe German text. The critical apparatus of the Latin text often runs over onto theGerman side, so that there is no space for editorial annotation. It would have been agreat help to understanding and to consultation of the volume if references hadbeen made from Ambrose's text back to the introduction, as has been done in recentvolumes of the Sources chrtiennes series.

Schmitz's valuable contribution points up the need of a similar volume for theEnglish-speaking world, particularly for theology students. The comparable vol-ume in English with the translation by T. Thompson edited with introduction andnotes by J. H. Srawley (London, 1950) lacks the Latin, appeared before the Falleredition, and uses an antiquated English. These catechetical writings of Ambrose areof such importance that a larger, full-length commentary, such as we have for theclassics of Latin literature and for the Bible, is likewise needed to present informa-tion pertinent to these texts for the use of scholars.

Knute Anderson, O.S.B., St. John's Abbey, Collegeville, Minnesota