Editing Ambrose (section)

=== Arianism ===
[[Arius]] (died 336) was a Christian priest who around the year 300 asserted that [[God the Father]] must have created [[God the Son|the Son]], indicating that the Son was a lesser being who was not eternal and of a different "essence" from God the Father. This [[Christology]], though contrary to tradition, quickly spread through Egypt, Libya and other Roman provinces.{{sfn|Kaye|1853|p=33}} Bishops engaged in the dispute, and the people divided into parties, sometimes demonstrating in the streets in support of one side or the other.{{sfn|Kaye|1853|p=5}}

Arianism appealed to many high-level leaders and clergy in both the [[Western Roman Empire|Western]] and [[Eastern Roman Empire|Eastern]] empires. Although the western Emperor [[Gratian]] ({{reign | 367 | 383}}) supported orthodoxy, his younger half brother [[Valentinian II]], who became his colleague in the empire in 375, adhered to the Arian creed.{{Sfn | Butler | 1991 | p = 408}} Ambrose sought to refute Arian propositions theologically, but Ambrose did not sway the young prince's position.{{Sfn | Butler | 1991 | p = 408}} In the East, Emperor [[Theodosius I]] ({{reign | 379 | 395|show=none}}) likewise professed the Nicene creed; but there were many adherents of Arianism throughout his dominions,{{sfn|Grieve|1911|p=798}} especially among the higher clergy.

In this state of religious ferment, two leaders of the Arians, bishops [[Palladius of Ratiaria]] and Secundianus of [[Singidunum]], confident of numbers, prevailed upon Gratian to call a general council from all parts of the empire. This request appeared so equitable that Gratian complied without hesitation. However, Ambrose feared the consequences and prevailed upon the emperor to have the matter determined by a council of the Western bishops. Accordingly, a [[Council of Aquileia, 381|synod]] composed of thirty-two bishops was held at [[Aquileia]] in the year 381. Ambrose was elected president and Palladius, being called upon to defend his opinions, declined. A vote was then taken and Palladius and his associate Secundianus were deposed from their episcopal offices.{{sfn|Grieve|1911|p=798}}

Ambrose struggled with Arianism for over half of his term in the episcopate.{{sfn|Ramsey|2002|pp=6–7|ps=: "By Ambrose's day [Arianism] was in slow decline but far from having breathed its last: Ambrose's struggles with it occupied his energies for more than half of his term as bishop."}} Ecclesiastical unity was important to the church, but it was no less important to the state, and as a Roman, Ambrose felt strongly about that.{{sfn|Lietzmann|1951|p=37}} Conflict over heresies loomed large in an age of religious ferment comparable to the Reformation of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.<ref>{{harvnb|Ramsey|2002|p=6}}: "[...] the history of the early Church [...] was [...] a golden age of religious ferment and controversy such as - it could well be argued - would not be seen again until the Reformation, more than a millennium later.</ref> Orthodox Christianity was determining how to define itself as it faced multiple challenges on both a theological and a practical level,{{sfn|Ramsey|2002|pp=7–8|ps=: "In the face of all these rivals orthodox Christianity was not an impassive object. In reacting to them it defined itself and assumed more and more of the contours that we recognize today."}} and Ambrose exercised crucial influence at a crucial time.{{sfn|Ramsey|2002|p=5|ps=: "The task that lay before the Christian leadership was [...] to replace one form of the sacred with another. The fourth century was above all the moment when this replacement was being orchestrated, and the role that Ambrose played in the process was crucial.}}