Becker Bible Teacher Resources

A late second-century Christian from Anatolia who encountered Gnosticism in AD 180. He hated Gnosticism and the way it denigrated the material world; he believed that the LORD God took an active interest; so he wrote a scathing book to describe and attack its existence. He disagreed with the way it split Christ, refusing to recognize his humanity, and the way the belief distinguished the differences between the Old and New Testament Gods. Irenaeus insisted that Christianity must be rooted in Old Testament times and its Jewish past, and was not part of a "mystery" or secretively handed-down tradition of faith. His stance led to the setting of standards that would become orthodoxy of the Church. In his book, "Against heresies", Irenaeus identified certain churches as bearing apostolic tradition, and he declared the church of Rome should be the primary authority. (Hill, 65-68)

Reference:

Hill, Jonathan. "Early Christianity: A World Religion." Handbook to the History of Christianity. Zondervan, 2006.