Saintly Spotlight: St. Irenaeus of Lyons

St. Irenaeus was born in the first part of the second century in Asia Minor, had grown up listening to the homilies of St. Polycarp, and emigrated to Lyon in Gaul. Having been “in contact with the Apostolic age,” in the words of Fr. Georges Florovsky, St. Irenaeus is known as the most predominant Christian theologian of the second century; Rt. Rev. Anders Nygren referred to him as the “chief of the anti-Gnostic Fathers,” he was a zealous defender of the truth of Christian orthodoxy against the various heresies of his day, most notably Gnosticism. St. Irenaeus was a priest in the Church of Lyons by the year 177 A.D., under the episcopacy of St. Pothinus, whose throne St. Irenaeus had inherited by 178 after a persecution in that region of Gaul. St. Irenaeus worked in close proximity to the Roman See and communicated with Pope Victor I regarding the controversy of the dates of the Paschal celebration. Florovsky puts forward the idea that “Irenaeus lived up to his name” in this calendar conflict, as he urged Pope Victor not to excommunicate the churches which celebrated the date of Pascha in the custom of Asia Minor, “for he was a real ‘peace’ maker.” The date of St. Irenaeus’ death is unknown, but his prolific extant writings provide a strong foundation for his theological legacy. St. Irenaeus was a learned man, well versed in the writings and philosophies of the Greeks, having a sort of expertise in heresy whereby he sought to counter them. Preserved in the Latin translation along with fragments of the original Greek, St. Irenaeus’ primary composition is The Detection and Overthrow of the Pretended but False Gnosis. His other works include The Demonstration of the Apostolic Teaching, On Knowledge, On the Monarchy or How God is Not the Cause of Evil, On Schism, and his famous Adversus Haereses. Among the main points of his theological legacy, St. Irenaeus held a tremendous Ecclesiology. He defended the integrity of the Apostolic Faith with his every treatise. St. Irenaeus articulates in Adversus Haereses that “the Church…received from the apostles and their disciples its faith in one God, the Father Almighty… and in one Christ Jesus, the Son of God, who was made flesh for our salvation, and in the Holy Spirit… Having received this preaching and this faith…the Church…believes these things everywhere alike.” He emphasizes that we learn of the plan of Salvation through the tradition which is handed down by God’s Holy Church, and that it is essential to defend and preserve the Faith as it was “once delivered to the saints” (Jude 1). St. Irenaeus believes that every Church must remain in communion with one another, and that the testimonies of the Truth are so clearly articulated by the catholicity of the Church as to remain consistent with that very same Church which was “founded and established at Rome by those two most glorious apostles Peter and Paul, received from the apostles.” In fact, echoing the sentiment of Karl Adam early sited by Florovsky regarding the scenario of the Church’s continuation even without the New Testament Scriptures, St. Irenaeus provides an example of the faithful illiterate “who follow the rule of tradition ‘written in their hearts by the Spirit without paper and ink,’” and who have not fallen into heresy but “diligently follow the old tradition.” St. Irenaeus often summarizes the creedal essence of the orthodox Faith, shying away from the
practice of too much speculation. He trusts in the foundation of the faith as a saint among saints.