the soul expatiate; O it is worthy, blessed, soul-ravishing subject to think upon: and
the rather if we consider that conformity which we beleeve.”^113 An affective
dominant usage of ravishment focuses upon the beauty of Christ’s holiness, “holyness
gives the soul a dear communion with God and Christ, ... holyness admits the soul
into the most intimate conferences with Jesus Christ in his bed-chamber, in his
galleries of love; ... holyness attracts the eye, and heart, and longings, and
ravishments, the tender compassions, and everlasting delights of the Lord Jesus.”^114
Significantly this pattern of combining and integrating the intellectual and affective
dimensions is reminiscent of the Spiritual Movement Matrix employed in chapter 3 in
developing the contemplative biography of Isaac Ambrose. While there are no
exceptions to this pattern there are modified variations, for example, when the angels
or saints of heaven are ravished they do not require the same sort of knowledge as
those do on earth. However, their experiences still include a content or awareness
that creates their ravishment.
For the most part Ambrose uses ravishment mentally rather than physically.
However, on a few occasions there are bodily reactions to ravishment. On Easter
morning Jesus reveals himself to Mary, “this one word Mary, lightens her eyes, dryes
up her teares, cheares her heart, revives her spirits that were as good as dead.... And
hence it is that being ravished with his voyce, and impatient of delayes; she takes his
talke out of his mouth, and to his first and other word Mary, she answers, Rabboni.”^115
(^113) Ambrose, Looking Unto Jesus (^) , 762. According to my reading Ambrose uses the
intellect dominantly and the af 114 fective dominantly both nine times.
115 Ambrose, Looking Unto Jesus, 881.^
tears as the response to ravishment. Ambrose, Looking Unto Jesus, 764. cf. Media (1657), 451 for another example of