With clarity and resolve, can you engage in a public debate with heretics to defend the Christ’s teaching and the Church doctrines and to invalidate their false teachings without becoming fussy and argumentative? It means making an argument without committing non sequitur and ad hominem, of course. If you can, you make a good pastor and even presbyter in the Church with the tradition of St. John the Apostle, St. Polycarp, and St. Irenaeus.
On June 28, the Church honors and memorialize the life
of St. Irenaeus of Lyon, who has been known as a champion of the Church in
fighting against heresies, especially Gnosticism, which claims to possess “higher
knowledge”( ανώτερη γνώση – anoteri gnosi).
Some may say, “What’s the problem with “higher
knowledge?”, “Didn’t Jesus come to teach “higher knowledge” of the Father?”
Then, how would you respond?
First, Gnosticism is rather a blanket term that
encompasses a range of heretic thoughts on seeking and attaining “higher
knowledge” to be “saved”. But knowledge per se cannot save us. What Gnostics
call “higher knowledge” of is not in line with the true higher wisdom and
knowledge of the Father through Christ’s teaching (John 7:16; 8:28), because it
is dualistic. There is no space for dualism in Christ’s teaching and
Christology. And none of the Apostles and the Church Fathers, such as St.
Polycarp, St. Justine and St. Irenaeus, have ever taught such a divisive
thought.
Yes, the incarnated Christ, Jesus, has dual nature:
divine and human. But duality is not to be confused with dualism. Otherwise, we
cannot correctly understand Christology, which leads to Christ’s hypostatic
union with the Father and the Holy Spirit in Trinity.
within the
Church. It was already a threat to the unity of the nascent Church in the Apostolic
age. So, St. John wrote his Gospel and his three epistles to make sure the
faithful believers would not be fooled by this heresy.
St. Polycarp was a student of St. John and inherited John’s
anti-heresy work, defending the authenticity of Christ’s teaching, as passed
through the Apostles, with his eloquent preaching. And ever since his
childhood, St. Irenaeus has been impressed by St. Polycarp, and learned from
this great Church Father to become another excellent preacher and staunch
defender of the Church against heresies, in particular, Valentianism, a very
influential Gnosticism of that time.
St. Iraneaus became the second bishop of Lyon, succeeding St. Pothinus, when the new church in Lyon was facing fierce attacks by pagans and Gnostics migrated from Asia Minor. This reality put the new church in Lyon at risk of collapsing because of divisions. Taking over St. Ponthinus’ efforts, as the second bishop of Lyon, St. Irenaeus was successful in bringing “sheep” scattered by pagans’ persecution and Gnosticism back to the church until his martyrdom.
The Scripture Readings and Responsorial Psalm of the
Memorial Feast of St. Irenaeus (2 Timothy 2:22b-26; Psalm 37:3-4,5-6,30-31; John
17:20-26) reflect the life of St. Irenaeus as pastor of the church in Lyon,
especially bringing those whose faith were distracted by Gnosticism back to the
church through his kind and gentle teaching. Such his teaching is echoed in the
Responsorial Psalm (37:3-4,5-6,30-31), especially in these verses:
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom;
his tongue speaks what is right. God’s teaching is in his heart; his steps do
not falter (vv. 30-31).
In fact, the wisdom out of St. Irenaeus’ mouth when he
preached and out of his writings, “Against Heresies” and “The Demonstration of
the Apostolic Preaching”, helped many convert themselves from heresies of Gnosticism
to the authentic Christianity. His fight against heretical Gnosticism to defend
the Church and her doctrine, which is faithfully built upon Christ’s teaching,
as passed by the Apostles, was also to maintain the unity of the Church. The
unity, indeed, is Christ’s desire, as he expressed in his prayer before he
entered the Passion, as described in the Gospel Reading (John 17:20-26). In
this, we see Jesus willed to send his disciples out to unite those who do not
yet know him to them through their apostolic mission of teaching.
St. Irenaeus was on this line of the apostolic
teaching from St. John through St. Polycarp. And he made a great contribution for
the unity of the church in Lyon and beyond, fighting against heretical and
divisive Gnosticism.
In honoring St. Irenaeus’ contribution to unity, for
the occasion of Christian unity week, on January 21, 2022, Pope Francis
declared St. Irenaeus as the doctor of unity (doctor unitatis):
Saint Irenaeus of Lyon, who came from the
East, exercised his episcopal ministry in the West: he was a spiritual and
theological bridge between Eastern and Western Christians. His name, Irenaeus,
expresses that peace which comes from the Lord and which reconciles, restoring
unity. For these reasons, having obtained the opinion of the Congregation for
the Causes of Saints, with my Apostolic Authority I declare him a Doctor of the
Church with the title of Doctor unitatis.
May
the teaching of this great Master increasingly encourage the journey of all the
Lord's disciples towards full communion.
Pope sees St. Irenaeus as a bridge between the Western
Church and the Eastern Church, as the division between these Churches is not
yet fully closed.
St. Irenaeus wrote:
As I have already observed, the Church,
having received this preaching and this faith, although scattered throughout
the whole world, yet, as if occupying but one house, carefully preserves it.
She also believes these points [of doctrine] just as if she had but one soul,
and one and the same heart, and she proclaims them, and teaches them, and hands
them down, with perfect harmony, as if she possessed only one mouth. For,
although the languages of the world are dissimilar, yet the import of the
tradition is one and the same. For the Churches which have been planted in
Germany do not believe or hand down anything different, nor do those in Spain,
nor those in Gaul, nor those in the East, nor those in Egypt, nor those in
Libya, nor those which have been established in the central regions of the
world. But as the sun, that creature of God, is one and the same throughout the
whole world, so also the preaching of the truth shines everywhere, and
enlightens all men that are willing to come to a knowledge of the truth. Nor
will any one of the rulers in the Churches, however highly gifted he may be in
point of eloquence, teach doctrines different from these (for no one is greater
than the Master); nor, on the other hand, will he who is deficient in power of
expression inflict injury on the tradition. For the faith being ever one and
the same, neither does one who is able at great length to discourse regarding
it, make any addition to it, nor does one, who can say but little diminish it
(Against Heresy, I,10, 2).
And these words of St. Irenaeus reflect these words of
St. Paul:
Now in regard to spiritual gifts,
brothers, I do not want you to be unaware. You know how, when you were pagans,
you were constantly attracted and led away to mute idols. Therefore, I tell you
that nobody speaking by the spirit of God says, “Jesus be accursed.” And no one
can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the holy Spirit.
There are different kinds of spiritual
gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same
Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in
everyone.
To each individual the manifestation of
the Spirit is given for some benefit. To one is given through the Spirit the
expression of wisdom; to another the expression of knowledge according to the
same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another gifts of healing
by the one Spirit; to another mighty deeds; to another prophecy; to another
discernment of spirits; to another varieties of tongues; to another
interpretation of tongues.
But one and the same Spirit produces all
of these, distributing them individually to each person as he wishes. One Body,
Many Parts.
As a body is one though it has many parts,
and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For
in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks,
slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.
Now the body is not a single part, but
many.
If a foot should say, “Because I am not a
hand I do not belong to the body,” it does not for this reason belong any less
to the body. Or if an ear should say, “Because I am not an eye I do not belong
to the body,” it does not for this reason belong any less to the body. If the
whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were
hearing, where would the sense of smell be?
But as it is, God placed the parts, each
one of them, in the body as he intended. If they were all one part, where would
the body be? But as it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot
say to the hand, “I do not need you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I do not
need you.”
Indeed, the parts of the body that seem to
be weaker are all the more necessary, and those parts of the body that we
consider less honorable we surround with greater honor, and our less
presentable parts are treated with greater propriety, whereas our more
presentable parts do not need this. But God has so constructed the body as to
give greater honor to a part that is without it, so that there may be no
division in the body, but that the parts may have the same concern for one
another.
If one part suffers, all the parts suffer
with it; if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy.
Now you are Christ’s body, and
individually parts of it
(1 Corinthians 12:1-27).
Unity, not division, is what characterizes the one
holy catholic (universal) and apostolic Church. This reflect that there is no
space for heretical dualistic teaching, such as Gnosticism. And we are called by
Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, inspired by the Apostles and the Church
Fathers to defend the unity of the Church and her doctrines against all sorts
of heresies, as we speak and write the truth with wisdom, as exemplified by St.
Irenaeus.
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