Work of Christian theology written in Greek by Irenaeus
For other early Christian works with similar names, see
Adversus Haereses.
Against Heresies (
Ancient Greek: Ἔλεγχος καὶ ἀνατροπὴ τῆς ψευδωνύμου γνώσεως, Elenchos kai anatropē tēs pseudōnymou gnōseōs, "On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis"), sometimes referred to by its Latin title Adversus Haereses, is a work of
Christian theology written in
Greek about the year 180 by
Irenaeus, the
bishop of Lugdunum (now
Lyon in
France).[1][2][3][4][5]
In it, Irenaeus identifies and describes several schools of
Gnosticism, as well as other schools of Christian thought, and contrasts their beliefs with
orthodoxChristianity.[6]
Until the discovery of the
Library of Nag Hammadi in 1945, Against Heresies was the best surviving contemporary description of
Gnosticism. Today, the treatise remains historically important as one of the first unambiguous attestations of the canonical gospel texts and some of the
Pauline epistles. Irenaeus cites from most of the
New Testamentcanon, as well as the noncanonical works
1 Clement and
The Shepherd of Hermas; however, he makes no references to
Philemon,
2 Peter,
3 John or
Jude – four of the shortest epistles.[7]
Only fragments of the original text in ancient Greek remain today, but many complete copies in Latin, the dates of writing of which remain unknown, still survive. Books IV and V exist in their entirety in a literal version in Armenian.
Purpose
Against Heresies can be dated to sometime between 174 and 189 AD, as the list of the Bishops of Rome includes
Eleutherius, but not his successor
Victor.[8] The earliest manuscript fragment of Against Heresies,
P. Oxy. 405, dates to around 200
AD.[9]
Irenaeus' primary goal in writing Against Heresies was to attack cults that fell away from orthodox Christianity, mainly the
Gnostics and
Marcionites.[10][11][12] In particular, he sought to disprove what he saw as incorrect interpretations of scripture on the part of Gnostics such as
Valentinus.[13] Irenaeus sought to present "what was understood as an authentic form of century-old Christian tradition against various forms of Gnosticism."[14] As James VanderKam notes, elements of this early Christian tradition drawn upon by Irenaeus include apocalyptic traditions such as
1 Enoch.[15]
As bishop, Irenaeus felt compelled to keep a close eye on the Valentinians and to safeguard the church from them. In order to fulfill this duty, Irenaeus became well informed of Gnostic doctrines and traditions.[16] His studies of Gnosticism eventually led to the compilation of this treatise.
Main ideas
Irenaeus argued that orthodox Christianity was passed down to him from the apostles who knew Jesus personally, while the
Gnostics and
Marcionites were distorting this apostolic tradition.[8]
While the Gnostics offered salvation through secret knowledge available only to a few, Irenaeus contended that the true doctrines of the Christian faith are the same taught by bishops in different areas.[17]
While many of the Gnostics viewed the material world as flawed and from which believers sought to escape to an eternal realm of spirit, Irenaeus saw creation as good and ultimately destined for glorification.[18] As Mark Jeffrey Olson points out,
1 Corinthians 15:50 is quoted more than any other verse from the letters of Paul in Against Heresies:
I tell you this, brethren: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
— 1 Corinthians 15:50, RSV
Both Irenaeus and the Valentinians use this verse to argue for their own understandings of the resurrection of the dead. The Valentinians believed that resurrection was a purely spiritual phenomenon, while Irenaeus insisted that Christians would be raised from the dead in fleshly bodies. According to Irenaeus, this verse was used by the Gnostics to argue that "the handiwork of God is not saved."[19]
Irenaeus also polemicized against
Marcion of Sinope, who preached that the creator God of the
Hebrew Bible and the Father of Jesus Christ were two different gods. Irenaeus argues that the same god who sent Jesus to the Earth also led man through history by way of the Jewish law and prophets.[8]
Book 2: A rebuttal of the Gnostic systems employing philosophical arguments primarily rather than employing Scripture.
Book 3: Rebuttal based on apostolic succession and tradition passed down of the faith; defense of the incarnation of Jesus; defense of the virgin birth.
Book 4: Demonstration that the God of the Old Testament is the God of the New Testament.
Book 5: A defense of the physical resurrection and eternal judgement.
^Also called On the Detection and Overthrow of Knowledge Falsely So Called e.g. Peter Drilling Premodern faith in a postmodern culture 2006 p 73 "But eventually The Detection and Overthrow of Knowledge Falsely So-Called (the actual title of what is commonly known as Against Heresies) expanded from two volumes to five."
^Robert Lee Williams Bishop lists 2005 p 123 "Irenaeus recorded the bishops of the Roman church in the third of his five books entitled Detection and Overthrow of Knowledge Falsely So-Called" (
Greek: Ἔλεγχος καὶ ἀνατροπὴ τῆς ψευδωνύμου γνώσεως, lit. "
Elenchus and Overturning of the Pseudonymous
Knowledge"), commonly called Against Heresies (Latin: Adversus haereses,
Greek: Κατὰ αἱρέσεων).
^Unger, Dominic J., Dillon, John J., St. Irenaeus of Lyons Against the heresies, Vol.1, p.3, 1992 "the final phrase of the title "knowledge falsely so-called" is found in 1 Timothy 6:20”.
^Only fragments of the original
Greek text exist, but a complete copy exists in a wooden Latin translation, made shortly after its publication in Greek, and Books IV and V are also present in a literal
Armenian translation.Poncelet, Albert (1910).
"St. Irenaeus". Catholic Encyclopedia.
New York City: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
^Davis, Glenn (2008).
"Irenaeus of Lyons". The Development of the Canon of the New Testament. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
^Egypt Exploration Fund (1903). Grenfell, Bernard P.; Hunt, Arthur S. (eds.). The Oxyrhynchus Papyri. Vol. 3. Oxford. p. 10. 405 consists of seven fragments written in a small neat uncial hand, which is not later than the first half of the third century, and might be as old as the later part of the second.{{
cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
link)