Today, June 28, is the memorial of Saint Irenaeus.
Irinaeus was born around 130 AD to Christian parents. In life he became a disciple of Saint Polycarp of Smyrna.
He was ordained in 177 and became Bishop of Lugdunum, Gaul (modern Lyons, France). He is best known for countering and writing against gnosticism, which emphasized personal spiritual knowledge over orthodox teachings, traditions, and authority of the Church. Out of this came his most famous work “Adversus Haereses” (Against Heresies). He based his arguments on the works of Saint John the Apostle, whose Gospel is often cited by gnostics.
He is considered the first great Western ecclesiastical writer and theologian. He stressed on the unity of the Old and New Testaments, and of Christ’s simultaneous human and divine nature, and the value of tradition.
His martyrdom happened 202 AD . He was buried in the Church of St. John in France, later renamed in honor of the holy bishop. However, in 1562, his tomb and earthly body were dishonored and ruined by the Huguenots.