IRENAEUS (c. 130–c. 200) was a bishop of Lyons (177/78–c. 200), theologian, and antiheretical writer. Claimed by both Roman Catholics and Protestants as their progenitor, Irenaeus framed the catholic concept of authority that helped to...

Saint Irenaeus (Greek: Ειρηναίος), (b. 2nd century; d. end of 2nd/beginning of 3rd century) was bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, which is now Lyons, France. His writings were formative in the early development of Christian theology, and he is...

[Editor's Note: Irenaeus understood Jesus' baptism as both soteriologically necessary, in as much as the descent of the Spirit equipped Jesus with divine gifts for his messianic ministry, and christologically effective, inasmuch as this equipping brought about a real development in the divine-human relationship....

By Eric Francis Osborn. New York: Cambridge University, 2001. Pp. xv + 307. $64.95. Irenaeus's Adversus Haereses is a rich melange of bishops' lists, gnostic heresiarchs, and doctrines. A catechetical text defending God's oneness, the world's goodness, Christ's divinity, it is one...

For years, Lent meant huge chunks of fried fish on Fridays for George Ehrman, a longtime parishioner at Our Lady of Guadalupe in this northeast Ohio town.But the dinner plate was decidedly lighter for Ehrman at a recent Friday fish fry in the bustling parish...

For years, Lent meant huge chunks of fried fish on Fridays for George Ehrman, a longtime parishioner at Our Lady of Guadalupe in this northeast Ohio town.But the dinner plate was decidedly lighter for Ehrman at a recent Friday fish fry in the bustling parish...

In the essay below, Smith examines the history, form, style, and structure of Irenaeus's Proof of the Apostolic Preaching. Smith states that Irenaeus's motivation for writing the treatise was to prove that what the apostles preached was true, and that his intention was not to provide an exposition on apostolic preaching.

In the following essay, Wingren studies the significance of God's absolute power as Creator and of the relationship between Christ and man in Irenaeus's theology.

In the following essay, Lawson contends that in Irenaeus's writings on both the Old and the New Testament, exegesis is subjective and allegorical. Superscript numbers next to biblical references throughout this essay refer to verse numbers.