Irenaeus

Also known as Irenaeus of Lyon, Irenæus

Irenaeus ( or ; ; ) 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 opposing Gnostic interpretations of Christian Scripture and defending orthodoxy. Originating from Smyrna, he had seen and heard the preaching of Polycarp, who in turn was said to have heard John the Evangelist.

OverviewAI-generated

Irenaeus was a male theologian, presbyter, philosopher, and bishop who lived from 130 until his death in 0202 at Lugdunum. Born in İzmir, he held the position of bishop and was a citizen of Asia. His canonization status is that of a hieromartyr, and he is observed on the feast day of June 28. He is referred to by the nickname "Apostle of the Gauls" and is identified in his native language as Εἰρηναῖος Λουγδούνου.

As a student of Polycarp, Irenaeus wrote in Ancient Greek and spoke both Ancient Greek and Latin. His notable work is *On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis*. He is described in sources including *De viris illustribus*, *Pauly–Wissowa*, the *Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary*, and *The Nuttall Encyclopædia*. A quote attributed to him states, "It is not necessary to seek truth among others which it is easy to obtain from the Church."

Synthesized by Vinony from 32 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, Last.fm, Crossref, Wikiquote, MusicBrainz, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Key facts

Christian leader.honorific_prefix: Saint
Christian leader.name: Irenaeus of Lyon
Christian leader.title: Doctor of the Church
Christian leader.death_date: (aged 77)
Christian leader.image: Saint irenee saint irenee.jpg
Christian leader.predecessor: Pothinus
Christian leader.successor: Zechariah
Christian leader.diocese: Lyon
Christian leader.see: Lyon
Christian leader.caption: Stained-glass portrait by Lucien Bégule, 1901
Christian leader.birth_place: Smyrna, Asia, Roman Empire
Christian leader.death_place: Lugdunum, Gallia Lugdunensis, Roman Empire
Christian leader.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)
Christian leader.venerated: Catholic ChurchEastern Orthodox ChurchOriental Orthodox ChurchAssyrian Church of the East LutheranismAnglicanism
Christian leader.saint_title: Bishop of Lyon, Venerable, Hieromartyr, Church Father, Doctor of the Church
Theologian.embed: yes
Theologian.notable_works: Against Heresies
Theologian.era: Patristic Age

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of: human
Gender: male
Citizenship: Asia
Place of birth: İzmir
Place of death: Lugdunum
Occupation: philosopher
Position held: bishop
Languages spoken: Latin
Notable work: On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis
Student of: Polycarp
Image: San Ireneo, vitral (cropped).jpg

Show 10 more facts

Commons category: Irenaeus
date of death: 0202-01-01
canonization status: hieromartyr
date of birth: 0130-00-00
described by source: Wikitólica
name in native language: Εἰρηναῖος Λουγδούνου
feast day: June 28
nickname: Apostle of the Gauls
writing language: Ancient Greek
on focus list of Wikimedia project: Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/4

Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~31 min read

Encyclopedic overview

19 sections

Contents

Biography
Veneration
Writings
Scripture
Apostolic authority
Theology and contrast with Gnosticism
Unity of salvation history
Christ's life
Use of Paul's Epistles
Christ as the New Adam
Valentinian Gnosticism
Quartodeciman Controversy
See also
Notes
References
Citations
Sources
Further reading
External links

Chosen as Bishop of Lugdunum, now Lyon, Irenaeus wrote his best-known work Against Heresies around 180 as a refutation of gnosticism, in particular that of Valentinus. 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. He is the earliest surviving witness to regard all four of the now-canonical gospels as essential.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Irenaeus” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.