St. Irenaeus of Lyons

On the life, writings and spirituality of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, bishop and martyr

St. Irenaeus of Lyons, c. 130-202 A.D.: considered the 1st great theologian of the Church

Biographical sketch

The name of Irenaeus means in Greek "peace lover" or "peacemaker". He was born probably in Asia Minor about the year 130 A.D. He became a priest in early adulthood in the year 177 A.D. at Lyons in France and afterwards was made bishop of that city. Known as a disciple of St. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, he was sent to work under Pothinus, the bishop of Lyons, to evangelize the Gauls. It was at this time that Montanus spread erroneous interpretations of Sacred Scripture. Pothinus thus sent Irenaeus to Rome to plead with the Pope for leniency to Montanus and followers. But persecutions of Christians had begun in Gaul. During the absence of St. Irenaeus, Pothinus and others were martyred, and when Irenaeus returned, it was to replace Pothinus as bishop.

St. Irenaeus of Lyons proved himself an excellent pastor, and he was indeed true to his name because he served as moderator of many disputes. In 190 A.D., he restored peace between Pope Victor III and the Christians in Asia Minor, who were excommunicated for observing Easter on the date of Jewish Passover.

St. Irenaeus defended the Catholic faith in his books and soon died a martyr in 202 A.D. during the persecution of Christians under Septimus Severus.

Teaching and spirituality

St. Irenaeus wrote to defend the Catholic faith against the errors of the Gnostics, particularly Valentinian Gnosticism. Valentinian Gnosticism was a popular 2nd century movement which sees God as unknowable and totally remote from matter. However, St. Irenaeus rejects the Gnostic claim that this unknowable God is hostile to the material world. He defended the Catholic faith from this wrong teaching by showing that God is like a loving parent from whom all humanity receives the breath of life. St. Irenaeus teaches that although God may be transcendent and unknowable, God is also immanent - He can be known in love. His basic principle: God cannot be comprehended according to greatness, but only according to love. And according to St. Irenaeus, God's glory is the human person fully alive. The glory of God's divine presence can thus be seen in the dynamism of our human life.

Books and writings

St. Irenaeus wrote the books, "Against Heresies" and "The Proof of the Apostolic Preaching"


Listed below are excerpts from his writings. We can learn about the teaching of St. Irenaeus through what he wrote to defend the Catholic faith.


God shaped the first human; it was God - and no lesser being - who breathed the breath of life into the face of that first human being and imprinted the divine image in its very flesh (Against Heresies 5,6,1)

The glory of God is the living human person, and the life of the human person is the vision of God (Against Heresies 4,20,7)


The joining of the flesh made in the image of God and the soul forms the whole person made into the likeness by the Spirit (Against Heresies 5,6,1)

St. Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer

St. Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer was born on January 9, 1902 A.D., in Barbastro, Spain. By divine inspiration, he founded Opus Dei. This prelature has grown to more than 50,000 members and has spread to five continents. The spirit that led Opus Dei is a spirit of holy involvement in the world: one in which all peoples of various walks of life can contribute to the sanctification of the world. For more detailed information about St. Josemaria Escriva and Opus Dei, you may visit:

• 
  www.escrivaworks.org

"The Forge"

This is a book written by St. Josemaria Escriva that has the same writing style and manner as "The Way" and "Furrow". Inspiring and encouraging, the book is divided into short paragraphs of about three to six sentences each - marked and identified by numbers in bold typeface. At the back, there is an index for reference to search for specific subjects of interest.

Titles in the book

To get an idea what St. Josemaria Escriva writes about in "The Forge", the following are titles of chapters in the book:

• Dazzled
• Struggle
• Defeat
• Pessimism
• You can!
• To fight once more
• Recovery
• Victory
• Work
• Crucible
• Selection
• Fruitfulness
• Eternity

"Loyalty to the Church"

This work by St. Josemaria Escriva is a booklet that contains homilies written by him from another writing: "In God's Household". He speaks in this booklet with great love for the Catholic Church and calls her "Mother" in his writing. He develops well why the Church as "Mother" is a mystery: how She is the One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church. Knowing that She is assailed by many in the world, he defends the Church well by his teachings. Below is an excerpt about the Church being attacked by many in the world and how he goes to Her side in defense:

"If by chance you hear words or shouts of offense to the Church, show these loveless individuals, with humanity and with charity, that one cannot mistreat a Mother in that way. They attack her now with impunity, because her kingdom, which is that of her Master and Founder, is not of this world."