Did St. Ambrose believe that bishops should control the Roman government?

St. Ambrose did not believe that bishops should control the Roman government. While he was a powerful figure who frequently intervened in political affairs and imposed his will on emperors—such as rebuking Emperor Theodosius and imposing public penance on him—he did not view himself as a precursor to a political system where the church dominated the state.1

Instead, Ambrose’s actions were driven by a traditional fear that Christianity might be eclipsed by pagan nobility or that Catholicism could be uprooted by Arian courtiers. He established the concept of a Christian emperor as a "dutiful son of the church," who, while "serving under orders from Christ," remained subject to the spiritual advice and strictures of his bishop. Ultimately, Ambrose viewed the church as an institution that would rise "like a growing moon" above the ruins of the Roman Empire, rather than as a governing body meant to replace or directly control the imperial administration.1