Theodosius is probably better known because of his place in religious history than for his success as a ruler, great as that was. The most memorable incident of his reign is his accept ance of a severe public penance from Saint Ambrose, who refused to allow him to enter the church at Milan because of his having or dered a massacre of some seven thousand citi zens of Thessalonica in pnnishment for a tu mult in the city (April 390). He continued dur ing all his life to be on terms of the most in timate relationship with Saint Ambrose, and it is not surprising to find that his laws put an end to the old Olympian religion, so far at least as any open practice of it was concerned. His persecution of it was justified, for it was now being used as a rallying point for the dis affected against his government and by those who hoped to continue to their own advantage the disturbances which had marked preceding reigns. His last victory over paganism organ ized against him was at Aquilea in September 394. Theodosius entered Rome after this de cree, sole master of what had now become a Christian Empire.
The greatest spiritual force of the century was Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, who so deeply influenced the Emperor Theodosius. Through his personality in his immediate en vironment and through the emperor for the civilized world of the time he helped more than any other factor to give Christianity the supreme place it now came to occupy. With Saint Augustine, Saint John Chrysostom and Saint Athanasius, Ambrose makes the four great Fathers of the Church. Ambrose's life is a touchstone of the social and educational in fluences of the century. He was born about 340; whether at Treves, Arles or Rheims is not quite sure. His father was Prefect of Gaul, moving from place to place, but died when Am brose was a boy, so that the future Father of the Church, like Saint Augustine, felt that he owed much to his mother. He was brought up in Rome, studied law and was appointed governor of Liguria and Aemilia with a residence at Milan. He came to be so much for his unswerving justice as an official on the death of the Bishop, much against his own will, he was called by popular acclamation to the episcopal dignity. Only after his election did he receive baptism, and at the age of 35 began his ecclesiastical career. He fulfilled his epis copal duties with fine administrative ability which meant much for the Church and was noted for his tact, yet consistent firmness as is illustrated by his treatment of the Emperor Theodosius. His writings are only his Homilies or sermons as delivered to his people. For them, he has received the title of Father of the Church and they remain a recognized source of the traditional teachings of Christianity.
Another great Churchman of the century, whose name and fame are enduring, was Atha nasius (296-373), Bishop of Alexandria. His writings on the Incarnation earned him the title of °Father of Orthodoxy,' and he con tinues to be the special source of argument and tradition with regard to the divine character of Christ. His relations with Constantine have made him a great historical figure at the time when Christianity. was becoming the religion of the Roman Empire, while his persecution by Julian the Apostate and his years of exile give his life a romantic interest. He spent some time at Rome in the house of Marcella and he seems to have had a deep influence on the Roman society of the period. He was the long
suffering witness to the Trinitarian formulas which had been defined at Nicea, and which contain the substance of the Faith of the Chris tian churches. The Athanasian Creed has con tinned to be ever since this time the symbol of his teaching. It has been the subject of as much contention as Athanasius himself met with during his lifetime. It may not have been writ ten by him, but came to be accepted as the sum mary of his position.
This century saw a climax of that form of monasticism in which men live in solitude and usually in some desert spot that secures them from intrusion. The greatest of the Fathers of the Desert, as they are called, was Saint An thony, who died about the middle of the 4th century and whose life has been preserved for us by Saint Athanasius. There is scarcely a dis tinguished Christian writer and thinker of this and the next century who did not spend some time at least in solitude. Jerome, Basil, Greg ory Nazianzen, Augustine are examples. Be sides Anthony, the names of Paul the first her mit, Pacohmeus and Macharius are very well known in Christian literature. Some women are counted among these solitaries, though they are usually penitents, imitating Mary Mag dalene's life of penance. Their stories have often been the subject of dramatic and fictional treatment so that their names are not unfamil iar. Thais, Pelagia and Mary of Eupt are the best known. All these solitary lives had a strong influence on their own time and on many subsequent generations.
The rival of Saint Ambrose in religious in fluence in this century (for though he lived on until 420, 60 years of his life are in the 4th century), is Saint Jerome. His long journeys undertaken for his own education throw an in teresting sidelight on the intellectual life of the time) Born in Dalmatia, he went to Rome for his early education, and becoming deeply inter ested in religious studies, proceeded to Treves, then famous for its theological school. Later, he journeyed to Aquilea because of the educa tional repute of the city, and then to Antioch to attend the lectures of Appollinaris of Lao dicea who had the fame of being the finest exe getical scholar of his time. Then, Jerome, like Basil, seems to have learned the lesson that all is vanity, and went to live as a hermit in the desert not far from Antioch. He was attracted there by the reputation of Saint Gregory Na zianzen, whose intimate friendship he gained in Constantinople. His reputation as a scholar led to his invitation to Rome to act as the coun sellor of Pope Damasus. At the death of the Pope wearied by the bitter discussions and personal enmities of the time, Jerome made his way to Bethlehem where he lived for nearly 40 years as a hermit doing the writing that has made him famous ever since. His version of the Scripture into Latin, known as the Vulgate, is still the basis of most Biblical translations. His philological inquiries regarding the text of Hebraicir in Genesim show very what he might have accomplished in what was then an absolutely new field of study, only that he was much more interested in finding the meaning of the Scriptures rather than writing treatises in textual criticism.