Die Kardinaltugenden bei Cicero und Ambrosius: De officiis

The treatment of the three Ciceronian books De officiis by the Church Father Ambrose is a prime example of the Christian appropriation of ancient intellectual heritage. The fundamental features of the method can be studied in the bishop's work as a model: The comparative interpretation of the presentation of the four cardinal virtues in the first book, as well as a section from the third book De officiis, shows that St. Ambrose utilized Cicero's text in the critical, vigorous, and purposeful manner that the Church Fathers demanded for engaging with pre-Christian culture. The relationship of Ambrose's work on duties to Cicero's, which has been controversially assessed in previous research, can therefore be redefined: From the superior standpoint of revealed truth, the Church Father employs Cicero's doctrine of duties to develop Christian moral teaching. His adaptation bears the character of a spiritual conquest.