St. Irenaeus of Lyons
Source: Catholicsaints.info
• Also known as
• Ireneo
• Memorial
• 28 June (Western Church)
• 23 August (Eastern Church)
• Profile
• Disciple of Saint Polycarp of Smyrna. Ordained in 177. Bishop of Lugdunum, Gaul (modern Lyons, France). Worked and wrote against Gnosticism, basing his arguments on the works of Saint John the Apostle, whose Gospel is often cited by Gnostics. Dispatched evangelists, including Saint Ferreolus of Besançon and Saint Ferrutio of Besançon. Considered the first great Western ecclesiastical writer and theologian, he emphasized the unity of the Old and New Testaments, and of Christ’s simultaneous human and divine nature, and the value of tradition. A Father of the Church. Martyr.
• Born
• c.130 in Smyrna, Asia Minor (modern Izmir, Turkey)
• Died
• martyred in 202 in Lyons, France
• tomb and relics were destroyed by Calvinists in 1562
• head in Saint John’s church, Lyons, France
• Canonized
• Pre-Congregation