Introduction
I invite you to consider the life of an interesting human being with me in this paper. Let us investigate together the man known as Irenaeus of Lyons. We will endeavor to gain an overall verbal portrait of the man who is considered the most significant ecclesiastical witness before Eusebius and the leading theologian in the second century A. D. The Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church both consider Irenaeus to be one of their “holy saints“. The name Irenaeus means a “‘man of peace,’ and the early Christian historian Eusebius honored Irenaeus as a peacemaker in keeping with his name.”
Irenaeus of Lyons
We do not know for certain when Irenaeus was born, but his birth probably came around 120/140 A.D. His birthplace was Smyrna in Asia Minor and his parents were Greek by nationality. He studied as a child under Polycarp from about 129 until Polycarp died in 155. Polycarp had been a student of the Apostle John. Therefore, there was only a one-generation gap between the apostles of our Lord and Irenaeus. In around 177, he was chosen by the imprisoned Christians in Lugdunum, to take a letter concerning the Montanist heresy to Eleutherus of Rome. While in Rome, he studied in Justin Martyr’s school about the year 178. Yet, unlike Just Martyr, Irenaeus did not appreciate the philosophical approach to Christianity and the Bible, but he still used philosophy in some of his writings. In addition, Irenaeus did seem to take some of his material from Ignatius and Theophilus.
Historically, there was a close cultural link between southern France and Asia Minor. It appears that Iren...
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“The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas” is a document written in ancient Roman times that exhibits the role religion plays in the forming of a culture and the lives of individuals in the ancient world. For her belief in Christianity, they throw Perpetua into jail. Her execution is fighting animals in an arena. She does not renounce her faith in the face of persecution and thus becomes a martyr. This text is a unique key into the past in many ways. Part of it is written by a woman, it gives a detailed account of her martyrdom and gives us some insight into the culture of ancient Rome. For these reasons, this document provides us with valuable knowledge, specifically concerning the purpose for the composing and preservation of this document.
This narratives follows the life of Guglielmo Embriaco, the patriarch of a well-respected Genoese family, and his journey to the Holy Land during the First Crusade—where he emerges not only as a fearless leader but also as an innovative engineer, instrumental in the successful but challenging siege of Jerusalem and also the siege of Antioch (Bent, 1881).
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Examining the problems facing Father Rodrigues from a Christian perspective, then, is critical to the endeavor of understanding their significance to him and the Church at the time, and also to passing an ultimate judgment on the validity and worth of the decisions he makes, as many of us seem overeager to do. To that end, this paper will consider, in a Catholic frame of mind, and with attention to the opinions some noted Christian/Catholic thinkers would have held, the difficulties surrounding Rodrigues' apostasy, and his solutions to them. As all of the thinkers are themselves from the medieval era, it is not unlikely that Father Rodrigues, living in the 17th century, would have studied their works.
Born in the year 330 AD in the northern Asian minor, Basil the Great's Family reconized their ansestors as martyrs. Basil grew up with four brothers and five sisters. Gregory of Nyssa and Peter of Sebaste were among his brothers. He began his learning from his grandmother, who lectured him on the work and teachings of Gregory the Wonderworker, Bishop of Neocaesarea Basil's Family distinguished themselves as martyrs. (Schaff, History of the Early Christian Church., 1910). Soon after, Basil began to learn rhetoric from his father. (Schaff, History of the Early Christian Church., 1910) Basil then moved on to Caesarea, Cappadocia to continue his studies. Later, Basil journeyed to Athens to continue rhetoric and philosophy (Schaff, History of the Early Christian Church., 1910). Notably, he studied for five years with his lifetime friend, Gregory of Nazianzus who became a theologian and Cappadocia father (Rousseau, 1998). Before Basil returned to Caesarea, he journeyed to countries such as Palestine, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Syria, where he studied the rise of ascetics, or the practice of severe self-discipline and abstention (Rousseau, 1998). Basil, fond of the aesthetics, gave away...
Howe, Helen, and Robert T. Howe. A World History: Ancient and Medieval Worlds. Volume 1. White Plains, NY: Longman, 1992. 533.
Eusebius’ account of Constantine’s conversion is comparable to Gregory of Tours’ accounts of Clovis’ and Gundobad’s conversions to Christianity, in the sense that they all initially called upon the “Christ-God” (albeit Gundobad perhaps indirectly) to come to their aid, which he did, during periods of military crisis. The si...
The first part of this paper will explore the mystery-religions, the reasons behind their popularity, and the Hellenistic world in which they grew that began with Alexander the Great. Next, their characteristics and connections first with Judaism and later with Christianity will be more deeply discussed. In the second part it will be shown that the mystery-religions helped to clear the pathway for the Christianization of the Greco-Roman world by men such as Paul the Apostle. Finally, the Emperor Constantine’s role in this story will be mentioned, during whose reign the mystery-religions declined and Christianity became the major religion of Europe and the near east. The paper will conclude with a brief speculation about the significance of these ideas to modern Christianity.
The life of Jesus is one that is often discussed and debated among scholars and authors since the time Jesus walked this earth. Gerd Theissen’ s work, Shadow of the Galilean, takes the unique perspective of a grain merchant who has been enlisted by Pilate to find out information on various religious sects and report back to him. After Andreas, the grain merchant’s, first report he is given the task of finding out more about this Jesus who is gaining quite a following. Pilate and the Romans want to know if he is a threat to them. This book follows Andreas as he goes on a journey to find out more about Jesus from various sources for his report to the Romans.
Throughout the first 400 years that Christianity was present in the world it changed dramatically. It started small in an area near the eastern Mediterranean area but within these 400 years, it grew to encompass the whole of the Mediterranean and its surrounding. Throughout this time of growth, there was also much change within the beliefs of Christianity with the main belief centering around Jesus Christ. While Christianity grew and made it to new areas it was introduced to new people that interpreted the different scriptures and preaching of what it meant to be a Christian. Some of the most influential writings in these years came from Irenaeus of Lyons, a second-century writer, Christian, theologian, and bishop. He expressed his beliefs of what made a Christian a Christian within his writing. One of his most famous writings, The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, highlights the idea of the Holy Trinity and the Rule of Faith in the interpretation of the bible. Irenaeus believed that the Rule of Faith was ultimately necessary and required when reading and interpreting the word of Christianity saying, in the words of Isaiah, “If ye believe not, neither shall ye understand” (paragraph 3). In the eyes of Irenaeus, the Rule of Faith is one of the main things that makes a Christian a Christian.
In this paper, there will be a discussion about the canonization of the New Testament. Along with an investigation of who was involved in this process. The people and institution looked at will include the following: Marcion, Irenaeus, Origen, Synod of Hippo, and God.
Marcus Aurelius was a famous philosopher in 121 through 180 C.E. He lived a hard life and even though he was surrounded by crowds he was considered a recluse. He was known for his kindness and mercy. The last years of his life were spent on a military campaign. It is said that these years were the hardest and loneliest. However, instead of becoming bitter and angry Aurelius wrote The Meditations. This was a diary or journal of his personal thoughts. He believed that by writing this it was his duty to his soul. The Meditations, is a popular piece of stoic literature. In this paper I will be describing how Aurelius used stoicism in book two of The Meditations and what I liked and did not like about what he said.
In Irenaeus’ Against the Heresies his principal attack is against the Valentinian Gnostics, whose myths shifted away from “creation” to Epist...
Bainvel, Jean. The New Catholic Encyclopedia. New York City: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15006b.htm (accessed September 23, 2011).