Given to Love: St. Ambrose on the Pursuit of Chastity

At the end of three centuries of persecution in the Roman Empire, Christianity inspired many young people to devote their lives entirely to God's service. Although the Lord himself suggested and supported the road of celibacy, its qualities became apparent via the writings of St. Ambrose, one of the Church's first Fathers.

In answer to a letter from his sister, Marcellina, who had chosen this road and requested help on how to live it, Ambrose released many homilies and letters in 377 AD that emphasised celibacy as a more noble and greater vocation than marriage.

In the translator's introduction to these homilies, James Shiel gives light on Roman society's culture, customs, and mores at the period, demonstrating how people who chose the road of celibacy would live among their contemporaries. St. Ambrose outlined a way to be in the world but not of the world, as Jesus had instructed his Apostles and disciples. That framework would lead to a person focusing on God and souls with the same passion and determination as those seeking the world's riches and glory. A new route to holiness was pioneered, one that would revolutionise the culture of the late Roman Empire, and one that continues to confront civilization today.

Paperback. 128 pages.

Size: 8.5 x 5.5"