In ancient mystery religions, a mystagogue would be responsible
for leading an initiate into the secret teachings and rituals of
the cultus. The initiate would often be blindfolded, and the
mystagogue would literally "guide" him into the sacred space. In
the early church, this same concept was used to describe the
bishop, who was responsible for seeing to it that the
catechumens were properly prepared for baptism. Homilies given
to those in the last stages of preparation, and which deal with
the Sacraments are called "Mystagogical Homilies." Sometimes
these mystagogical instructions were not given until after the
catechumen had been baptized. The most famous of these
mystagogical works are the "Mystagogical Homilies" of St. Cyril
of Jerusalem and the work, "On the Mysteries" by St. Ambrose of
Milan. In various organizations, it is the role of the
mystagogue to "mystify" pledges. The term is sometimes used to
refer to a person who guides people through religious sites,
such as churches, and explains the variou