Back Irenaeus van Lyon AF إيرينيئوس Arabic ايريناوس ARZ San Irenéu AST Lionlu İriney AZ Ириней Лионски Bulgarian Ireneu de Lió Catalan Irenej z Lyonu Czech Irenæus Danish Irenäus von Lyon German
Irenaeus of Lyon | |
|---|---|
| Doctor of the Church | |
 20th-century Greek icon depicting Saint Irenaeus | |
| Diocese | Lyon |
| See | Lyon |
| Predecessor | Pothinus |
| Successor | Zechariah |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | by Polycarp |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 130 AD |
| Died | c. 202 AD (aged c. 72) Lugdunum, Gallia Lugdunensis, Roman Empire |
| Sainthood | |
| Feast day | June 28 (Latin Catholic Church, Orthodox Church, Lutheranism, Anglicanism); August 23 (Eastern Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches); Monday after fourth Sunday of the Exaltation of the Cross (Armenian Apostolic Church)[1] |
| Venerated in | Latin Catholic Church and Eastern Catholicism Eastern Orthodox Church Oriental Orthodox Church Assyrian Church of the East Lutheranism Anglicanism |
| Title as Saint | Bishop, Martyr, Bishop of Lyons, Doctor of the Church. |
Theology career | |
| Notable work | Against Heresies |
| Theological work | |
| Era | Patristic Age |
| Language | Greek |
| Tradition or movement | Trinitarianism |
| Main interests | Theodicy, millennialism |
| Notable ideas | Irenaean theodicy Recapitulation theory of atonement |
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| Catholic philosophy |
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Irenaeus | |
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| Influences | Clement, Ignatius,[2] Justin Martyr, Papias, Polycarp, The Shepherd of Hermas |
| Influenced | Agapius, Augustine,[3] Basil the Great, Epiphanius, Hippolytus, Tertullian |
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| Theodicy |
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Irenaeus (/ɪrɪˈneɪəs/ or /ˌaɪrɪˈniːəs/; Ancient Greek: Εἰρηναῖος, romanized: Eirēnaîos; c. 130 – c. 202 AD)[4] was a Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the development of Christian theology by combating heterodox or Gnostic interpretations of Scripture as heresy and defining proto-orthodoxy. Originating from Smyrna, he had seen and heard the preaching of Polycarp,[5] who in turn was said to have heard John the Evangelist.[6]
Chosen as bishop of Lugdunum, now Lyon, his best-known work is Against Heresies, often cited as Adversus Haereses, a refutation of gnosticism, in particular that of Valentinus.[7] To counter the doctrines of the gnostic sects claiming secret wisdom, he offered three pillars of orthodoxy: the scriptures, the tradition said to be handed down from the apostles, and the teaching of the apostles' successors.[7][8][9] He is the earliest surviving witness to regard all four of the now-canonical gospels as essential.[10]
Irenaeus is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church, Anglican Church, Lutheran Churches, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, and the Assyrian Church of the East.
- ^ Domar: the calendrical and liturgical cycle of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church Armenian Orthodox Theological Research Institute, 2002, p. 513-14
- ^ Against Heresies 5.28.4
- ^ Altaner, Bertold (1949), “Augustinus und Irenäus”. Theologische Quartalschrift, 129: 162–172.
- ^ Jurgens 1970, p. 84.
- ^ Eusebius 1890, Book V Chapter 5.
- ^ Poncelet 1910.
- ^ a b Cross & Livingstone 2005, p. 852.
- ^ Durant 1972.
- ^ Wingren n.d.
- ^ Brown 1997, p. 14.