His death was very tragical. In 1771 the pestilence raged in Moscow with extraordinary fury, and carried off, it is reported, nearly one hundred thousand people. The people, attributing a miraculous healing power to a sacred image of the Virgin (called "the Iberian"), the whole population of the city crowded around the chapel where this image was preserved. Ambrose, who was sufficiently enlightened to see that the con- tagion in this way would spread more rapidly than be- fore, had the miraculous image removed during the night. On the next day the populace, charging at I
once the archbishop with the removal, rushed toward F""WF""" ■—.»""■-_"- " ;'"""""""i'" "" ... m, p. ....... . ?. ' produce increased confidence in the assailed, who, be-
hie hnncn I ho srphliwhnli h'lit 1'i.tircil In n InnlDwrprv f .....
ing the armed, but not disciplined inhabitants of a
strong place, were likely not to be under the control
of much caution. Joshua, encamping within sight, bishop concealed himself in the sanctuarv of the , . ... ,. _ . . '. ,' v.
*; , , . j. ,i . . * , . i but with a vallcv intervening, when he came up to
church, where onlv prie-ts arc a lowed to enter: but , , , .7 ■ -i ■, . ■>■ ,
, V. make a false attack, necessarily appeared to disad- jateof the ., , . , - , . " , , . •
vantage, the enemy being above him, and Ins retreat
, toward his own camp rendered difficult bv its being to receive once more the eucharist ; this was granted ... . . ,. ' ., .. ., . f, ., . ,°
m, , , I, , , ° „ likewise above him on the other side, and both sides
outside of the city. The populace followed him, and broke open the gates of the monastery. The arch-
they found him out, and dragged him to the gat temple. The archbishop begged them for enough time !
to him. The populace remained silent spectators of the ceremony ; the archbishop was then dragged out of the church and strangled. Ambrose published a large number of translations from the Church fathers, some sermons, and a liturgy. — Hoefer, Biog. Generale, ii, 341.
no doubt very steep, as they are in general in the hills of this region. His men therefore fled, as directed, not toward the north, where the camp was, but east- ward, toward the plain and desert; while in the hills, not behind, but on the west side, lay the ambuscade, in sufficient force alone to vanquish the enemy. This body of Israelites had not therefore the objectionable route to take from behind the city, a movement that must have been seen from the walls, and would have given time to close the gates, if not to warn the citi- Ambrosiaster, a Pseudo-Ambrosius, the usual zeng 1>ack. bnt) risinff from the woody hills it ha(1
Ambrosian Chant. Ambrosian Hymn. Ambrosian Music.
See Ambrose. See Te Deum. See Music (Church).
name of the unknown author of the Commentaria in mii Epistolas B. Pauli, which is contained in the second volume of the Benedictine edition of the works of Ambrose. It appears from the book itself that it was compiled while Damasus was bishop of Rome. Au- gustine quotes a passage from this book, but ascribes it to St. Hilary, from which circumstance many have concluded that Hilary, a deacon of the Roman Church under Damasus, who joined the schism caused by Bishop Lucifer of Cagliari, was the author. But against this opinion it may be adduced that Augustine would not have given to a follower of Lucifer the title Of saint. — Herzog, i. 277.
Ambrosius - ad - Nemus (Ambrose- at- the-
N
the shortest distance to pass over to come down di- rectly to the gate ; and, if an accident had caused fail- ure in the army of Joshua, the detachment could not itself be intercepted before reaching the camp of the main body; while the citizens of Ai, pursuing down hill, had little chance of returning up to the gates in time, or of being in a condition to make an effectual onset (see Stanley, Sinai and Palest, p. 198). In the attempt to surprise Shechem (Judg. ix, 30 sq.) the operation, so far as it was a military manoeuvre, was unskilfully laid, although ultimately successful in con- sequence of the party spirit within, and the intelli- gence which Abimeleeh (q. v.) maintained in the for tress. Kitto, s. v. See War.
AMEDIANS
194
AMERICA
Amedians, Amadeists, an order of minor friars, instituted about 1452; so called from their pro- fessing themselves amantes Deum, loving God; cr amati Deo, loved by God. Others derive the name from their founder, Amadeus or Amedeus, a Portu- guese nobleman. They wore a gray habit and wood- en shoes, and girt themselves with a cord. They had twenty-eight convents in Italy, besides others in Spaing and were united by Pope Pius V partly with the Cistercian order, and partly with that of the Soc- colanti, or wooden-shoe wearers.— Helyot, ed. Migne, i, 200.
A'men' (Heb. amen', "jW, «/">). a particle of at- testation adopted into all the languages of Christen- dom.
(I.) This word is strictly an adjective, signifying -•/>/»." and, metaphorically, "faithful." Thus, in Rev. iii, 14, our Lord is called "the amen, the faithful and true witness." In Isa. lxv, 1G, the Heb. has "the God of amen," which our version renders "the God of truth," i. e. of fidelity. In its adverbial sense amen means certainly, truly, surely. It is used in the beginning of a sentence by way of emphasis — rarely in the Old Test. (Jer. xxviii, G), but often by our Sav- iour in the New, where it is commonly translated '• verUy." In John's Gospel alone it is often used by him in this way double, i. e. "verily, verily." In the end of a sentence it often occurs singly or repeat- ed, especially at the end of hymns or prayers, as "amen and amen" (Psa. xli. 14; lxxii, 19; lxxxix, 53). The proper signification of it in this position is to confirm the words which have preceded, and invoke the fulfilment of them: "so be it," fiat, Sept. y'ii'oiro. Hence in oaths, after the priest has repeat- ed the words of the covenant or imprecation, all those who pronounce the amen bind themselves by the oath (Num. v, 22; Deut. xxvii, 15, 17; Neh. v, 13; viii, 6; 1 Chron. xvi, 36; comp. Psa. cvi, 48).— Kit- to, s. v. See Oath.