Some aspects of the christianization of ancient heritage in the Hexamera of St. Basil the Great and St. Ambrose of Milan

This article aims to show the process of releasing some terms, metaphors, and images of antique culture from their pagan connotations, and giving them a new Christian meaning. Two exegetical works are compared: the Hexameron of St. Basil the Great and the Hexameron of St. Ambrose of Milan. The following images from these works are evaluated: commentary on the words “the Heaven and the Earth” from Gen 1:1, images of the rain, images of the state of bees, the term “birds of the heaven”, and the interpretation of the words “in the beginning” in Gen 1:1, as well as the etymology of the word “heaven”.