Our alphabetical march through the saintly alphabet continues as Irenaeus of Lyons squares off against James the Just. The winner will face Athanasius of Alexandria, thereby setting up the first set battle of the Saintly Sixteen.
Yesterday, Gregory the Great swam past Hugh of Lincoln 62% to 38% to advance to the next round.
And if, for some reason, you missed yesterday's episode of Monday Madness -- complete with actual Breaming News -- you can repent and watch it here.
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Irenaeus of Lyons
Irenaeus was a Greek, a bishop, an unwavering supporter of the faith, and, of great significance, one of only thirty-seven Doctors of the Church!
Born in Smyrna, Turkey, in 130—although various reports note his birthdate as sometime between 97 and 160—Irenaeus spent the majority of his ministry based in Lugdunum, now known as Lyon, in southern Gaul, today’s France. A theologian and a prolific writer, Irenaeus was a stalwart defender of the faith and was considered the greatest theologian of his time. His writings ranged from insightful treatises to letters addressing key issues.
His training and education were simply unmatched. He was a student who believed in deep research and profound thinking. Irenaeus learned firsthand from the martyr Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna and a theologian in his own right. Growing up, Polycarp was taught by none other than the Apostle John. As a result, Irenaeus’ foundations of faith were the teachings directly imparted from the Apostles.
At that time, Lugdunum was a major crossroads of civilization. Thanks to its location situated at the confluence of the Rhône and Saône rivers, Lugdunum was founded by the Romans and quickly grew to be an important trading center, attracting merchants, sailors, and scholars from all points of the known world. Irenaeus’ broad learning helped him connect with the many peoples who traveled through the major city.
While living in Lugdunum, Irenaeus witnessed the persecutions of Christians by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, wretched experiences that were lasting on his soul.
At the core of Irenaeus’ numerous contributions was his challenging of the Gnostics, who claimed to have access to secret knowledge. The name Gnostics came from the Greek word for “knowledge.”
Irenaeus considered Gnostics and their beliefs a direct attack on the Christian faith. His most enduring impact was the staunch repudiation of the Gnostics and their thinking. Irenaeus’ groundbreaking treatise, a five-volume “Against Heresies” (“Adversus Haereses”), was the total rejection of Gnosticism. In his writings, Irenaeus focused on his belief of three articles of faith—God the Creator, Jesus Christ his Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Irenaeus lived out his life in Lugdunum, where he died sometime in the latter end of the second century, but no exact date has been confirmed. It is also not clear if he was martyred.
In acknowledgement of his crucial contributions to the faith, in 2022 Pope Francis named Irenaeus a Doctor of the Church, elevating him to the same category as other Christian notables such as Gregory the Great, Ambrose, Augustine of Hippo, Hildegard von Bingen, John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, and Thomas Aquinas. Irenaeus’ feast day is June 28; it is August 23 in the Byzantine tradition.
Collect for Irenaeus of Lyons
Almighty God, who strengthened servant Irenaeus to defend thy truth against every blast of vain doctrine: Keep us, we pray, steadfast in your true religion, that in constancy and peace we may walk in the way that leads to eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
James the Just
There are a lot of people named James in the Bible! Hegesippus called this James “the Just” because of his “outstanding virtue” to help distinguish him from others with the same name. The Catholic Church identifies James the Just as the same person as James the Less or James, son of Alphaeus. Since James, son of Alphaeus, is named in the list of disciples in the Gospels, this means that James the Just is also commonly accepted as one of the disciples. Most often, this James is identified as the brother of Jesus and the first bishop of the church in Jerusalem. It is generally assumed that James the Just is the author of the Epistle of James, but there is some disagreement about its authorship. James the Just presided at the Council of Jerusalem and was the one who insisted that Paul ritually cleanse himself at Herod’s Temple to prove his faith and deny rumors of teaching rebellion against the Torah. First Corinthians mentions that James is one to whom Jesus showed his resurrected self.
James is sometimes referred to as James Adelphotheos, which translates to “brother of God” in Greek, but the word may not have been intended in a biological sense. Besides, to be the brother of Jesus, whom we believe was the son of God and the Virgin Mary, should raise questions about James’s parents’ identities. Some scholars say that James, Joses, Jude, and Simon were also Mary and Joseph’s sons, making them Jesus’s half-brothers, James being the eldest since he was listed first. However, the apocryphal Gospel of James indicates that Joseph had children before he was married to Mary, which would make James Jesus’s stepbrother. A third group suggests that perhaps James was a cousin of Jesus, because the Aramaic word used meant both cousin and brothers or sisters. One final possibility about the parentage of James is that he could have been a younger half-brother of Jesus, the son of Mary and Clopas (Joseph’s younger brother whom Mary could have married after Joseph’s death).
James died by being thrown from the pinnacle of the temple and being stoned and clubbed to death in either 62 or 69. James the Just has a handful of feast days depending on denomination. The Roman Catholic calendar commemorates him on May 3. He is remembered on October 23 on the Lutheran and Episcopal calendars. The Eastern Orthodox celebrates his feast day on multiple dates, including on October 23, December 26, and January 4. As an interesting final note, in 2002, an ossuary that was on display at the Royal Ontario Museum was thought to contain James’s bones because of an inscription, but that inscription was found to be a forgery.
Collect for James the Just
Grant, O God, that, following the example of your servant James the Just, brother of our Lord, your church may give itself continually to prayer and to the reconciliation of all who are at variance and enmity; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
66 comments on “Irenaeus of Lyons vs. James the Just”
I’m sure that that I don’t have to mention
That Iraneus merits attention;
His arguments caustic
Made short work of the Gnostic.
No more secrets: vote for his ascension.
Voting for James the Just, brother/cousin/relative of Jesus, for four reasons. First, because it's got to be hard being the Lord's brother. Second, because herding the cats of first century Christianity must have been nigh-on impossible. Third, because the competition so far seems to have been heavy on theologians.
And finally, because the first person listed in each pairing has won each of the first four saint-offs, and I'm concerned that some of the premature "Thank you for your vote" glitches have been recorded for the first of each pair.
Irenaeus of Lyon gave us the quote that so inspires my faith:
"The glory of God is the human being fully alive." Imagine how Christianity would be perceived by others if each one of us lived fully alive!
Irenaeus of Lyons has my vote, even though I have to copy/paste his name in order to have it spelled correctly.
What is correct, however, is his opposition to the Gnostics. Feeling superior because you have secret knowledge is not good for your soul. Life is difficult enough without that foolishness.
Two men of the times it is amazing they are both so important. Helps me remember there have been followers of Jesus so long ago that we should follow in their footsteps.
“While living in Lugdunum, Irenaeus witnessed the persecutions of Christians by Romans and was then inspired to attack the religious beliefs of a group who weren’t Christians. This continuation of prejudice and condemnation of religious freedom is why we think Irenaeus is a good contender for the Golden Halo!”
AM I READING THIS RIGHT?! Come on, “Supreme Executive Committee.” Do better.
I went for James, because as the 1st bishop of the Jerusalem followers his assent was needed to the idea that circumcision, kosher dietary laws, etc, need not apply to gentile converts. Which played a big part in bringing gentiles, and ultimately me, into the faith and the church.
I can't help but wonder what Irenaeus with his commitment to deep research and profound thinking would make of the speculation about the identity of James. My vote goes to the theologian who has made such a lasting contribution to the Church.
UGGGH!! I have problems with both of these descriptions . . . and am considering starting a group: "Gnostic-Loving Heretics Opposed to Biological Definitions of 'Family'" . . . . So I voted for James.
Love makes a family. Everytime I read one of these arguments about whether Jesus could possibly have siblings I have to ask, have you read the Bible? Jesus is pretty clear about who His brothers and sisters are . . . and it has nothing to do with blood or genetics!!
Sorry for the admin rant - but what's with the multiple stages of Verify? At least 6 this morning. I'm over here in Britain, maybe your system no longer trusts Europeans .... ?
But that aside, I'm learning lots and enjoying Lent Madness, as usual.
Lenten blessings to all
Down with Gnostics! (if there are any reading this, I apologize). Go Irenaeus!
He wrote a treatise about those who had a differing opinion than himself? Sounds like what we are experiencing in today's world. I'm with James the Just. He was just out there being a Christian in a difficult time.
I voted for James the Just, because I didn’t know as much about him. Irenaeus was well known, and his theological writings too. So I voted for the underdog, James the just, brother of Jesus.
But it took three times to navigate voting so that it got counted…
My first inclination was to vote for Irenaeus - I do love words and clearly he said some very important ones.
But then I read the collect for James the Just, brother of our Lord. Brother. All that business about how he could possibly have been a true brother took me back to the pre-Vatican II Roman Catholic upbringing which I experienced. Oh, the contortions to deny Mary’s full humanity - which begs the question of Jesus’s full humanity.
So in honor of James as part of our Lord’s family in every sense, and in honor of James’ foundational place in the development of the community that follows The Way - he gets my vote.
I am still having issues getting the proper emails. Today at 2am I received the saints for the day before and have not received today’s saints. I cheated and looked at the list at bottom of page to select today’s saints. The page let me vote so that part is working. Typically I either don’t get the email or it arrived at night and I couldn’t vote. Help! And thanks!
So enjoyed Monday night madness (which I received on time) and looking forward to what the new guys will bring to entertain us! They look like fun guys. And welcome to Lent Madness Fr. Chris and Fr. Michael.
Irenaeus was also a master satirist. I remember reading "The Refutation and Overthrow of the Knowledge Falsely So Called" at 3 o'clock in the morning, and laughing out loud. I had happened on the part of the book in which Irenaeus writes about "The dancing melons of Valentinus." He was defending the historicity of Christianity, the idea that God had revealed Godself in nature and history in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, not simply as a concept that anyone could dream up. I still cannot see a cucumber in the grocery store without thinking about St. Irenaeus.
I voted for James the Just because the collect for him spoke to me.
Boy this was a tough one! Went with James, but both are incredibly important to Christianity.
Would not allow me to vote today.
Never mind, just tried it again and I was able to vote.
So far I am on the losing side of all votes except one. I had to vote for James for many reasons that are the same as several of you who voted for James.
I voted for James the Just. The letter of James says that faith without works is dead- actually sharing what we have with the needy is step one. Irenaeus' othering and persecution of those who believe differently started with On Heresy, and his followers continued with the crusade against the Albigensians, whose beliefs were more gnostic- "Kill them all, God will recognize his own." Thousands of people were exterminated as a result. That is not the sort of faith we should embrace.
Love both saints and both writeups.
Special shout-out to Kathryn for the careful path she wove through the theogical minefield of Jesus' family relationships.
So today...
"Just James!" [jazz hands]
Hard to make a decision between these two, but James weights more.
I disagree with Irenaeus about the Gnostics. As readings from the Nag Hammadi Library (discovered 1949) are revealing, the Gnostics and early Christian texts are closely linked. The Gnostic Texts significantly impacted our understanding of ancient religious history, and since history is so heavily impacted by the writer's perspective, I don't think quashing the opinions by ancient clergy was helpful in our spiritual understandings.
Irenaeus is a saint who deserves great honors. He successfully coped with persecution and false teachings. However I can better relate to the wider perspective of James and the gospel of faith without works is dead.
My vote goes to Irenaeus, because only a God with skin in the game, as opposed to a woo-woo purely "spiritual" Gnostic God, can be a redeeming God; and because secret knowledge only leads to castes and hierarchies and sinful holier-than-thou behavior and attitudes.
Note to E (why can we still not reply directly to specific comments?):
Disagreeing with a group's beliefs is not persecution. Oppressing and killing people for their beliefs is persecution. Important distinction.
"'While living in Lugdunum, Irenaeus witnessed the persecutions of Christians by Romans and was then inspired to attack the religious beliefs of a group who weren’t Christians. This continuation of prejudice and condemnation of religious freedom is why we think Irenaeus is a good contender for the Golden Halo!'"
I know, really? (Quoting because I can't reply directly to other people's comments.)
I'm not crazy about either of the choices today. Other than being a step-brother of Jesus, James doesn't seem to be that special to me. I guess I'll vote for Iranaeus. I'm not necessarily that impressed with his Doctor of the Church title but I am a big fan of education.
Just reading the comments. James herded cats???!! If I had known that I might have voted differently.