IRENAEUS OF LYONS, Bishop, Martyr

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June 28, 2023

IRENAEUS OF LYONS, Bishop, Martyr

Introduction

St. Irenaeus of Lyons is perhaps the most lovable and human of the early Church Fathers. A strong defender of the faith against heresies, he was at the same time a peacemaker among Christians of East and West (born in Asia Minor, yet bishop of Lyons, France) and full of love for those who erred, while firm in doctrinal matters and faithful to true tradition. In this he was true to his name (irene = peace).

Opening Prayer

Lord our God,
we are divided in camps and factions,
because we make our opinions into absolutes
or consider ourselves
the sole proprietors of the complete truth.
Give us the insight and the humility
always to accept and esteem
other people as brothers and sisters
and to respect their ideas or their faith,
without being ashamed of our faith
founded on the one Lord of all,
Jesus Christ, our Savior and our Lord.

Reading 1: Gn 15:1-12, 17-18

The word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision:

"Fear not, Abram!
I am your shield;
I will make your reward very great."

But Abram said,
"O Lord GOD, what good will your gifts be,
if I keep on being childless
and have as my heir the steward of my house, Eliezer?"
Abram continued,
"See, you have given me no offspring,
and so one of my servants will be my heir."
Then the word of the LORD came to him:
"No, that one shall not be your heir;
your own issue shall be your heir."
He took him outside and said:
"Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can.
Just so," he added, "shall your descendants be."
Abram put his faith in the LORD,
who credited it to him as an act of righteousness.

He then said to him,
"I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans
to give you this land as a possession."
"O Lord GOD," he asked,
"how am I to know that I shall possess it?"
He answered him,
"Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat,
a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."
Abram brought him all these, split them in two,
and placed each half opposite the other;
but the birds he did not cut up.
Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses,
but Abram stayed with them.
As the sun was about to set, a trance fell upon Abram,
and a deep, terrifying darkness enveloped him.

When the sun had set and it was dark,
there appeared a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch,
which passed between those pieces.
It was on that occasion that the LORD made a covenant with Abram,
saying: "To your descendants I give this land,
from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River the Euphrates."

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 105:1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8-9

R. (8a) The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Give thanks to the LORD, invoke his name;
make known among the nations his deeds.
Sing to him, sing his praise,
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
Look to the LORD in his strength;
seek to serve him constantly.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He remembers forever his covenant
which he made binding for a thousand generations—
Which he entered into with Abraham
and by his oath to Isaac.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Alleluia: Jn 15:4a, 5b

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain in me, as I remain in you, says the Lord;
whoever remains in me will bear much fruit.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel: Mt 7:15-20

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing,
but underneath are ravenous wolves.
By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
So by their fruits you will know them."

Intentions

– That we may not be afraid when we meet difficulties, but keep always trusting in God who loves us and wants us to be happy, we pray:

– That the Gospel and the life of Christ may be our guide in all the choices we face, we pray:

– That with all our heart and soul, we may love the Lord, who has made with us a covenant uniting us with himself and with one another, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Lord our God,
we bring this bread and this wine before you
as our gifts of peace and reconciliation.
Unite us in your Son, we pray you,
and make us into peacemakers, like St. Irenaeus.
By our unity
in the message and life of your Son,
make us into signs of peace to all.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

Lord our God,
you have made yourself known to us
through your Son Jesus Christ
and you want us to live his message
in all its consequences.

Give us the strength of St. Irenaeus
to make this faith
the heart of all we do
and may this faith express itself
in loyalty, peace and service.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.

Blessing

A tree that bears good fruit is a good tree. Let the sap of Jesus’ Gospel and his union with us and our closeness to him flow in us, and we shall bear fruits of justice, mercy and love, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Reflection:

28 June 2023

Matthew 7:15-20

Anything without love is not from God

St. Irenaeus of Lyons is one of the early Church Fathers who defended the faith against heresies. He mediated as a peacemaker among Christians of East and West. “Irene” means peace. Irenaeus was known for his love for those who went wrong while being firm in doctrinal matters and faithful to true tradition. In this way, he lived up to his name as a peacemaker.

We are reaching the final recommendations of the sermon on the Mount. The worst struggles of the early Church perhaps did not come from the emperors’ persecutions or the Jewish leadership’s opposition but from divisions within. Not everyone who claimed themselves to be Christians preached the true Gospel. We see references to such false preachers in the Acts of the Apostles and the Letters of St. Paul. The presence and teachings of such leaders prompted Matthew to address the issue of false prophets in the community through the words of Jesus.

The warning is clear: the disciples would experience problems not only from outside but even within the community. They must discern the true Gospel. Identifying the true Gospel from false messages and messengers requires returning to the beginning of the sermon on Mount: The Beatitudes.

As Jesus explained, the way to blessedness is honesty, truth, integrity, forgiveness, rejecting violence, and moving away from temptations to accumulate material wealth. But all of these are converged on the rule of love. Any teaching or act that opposes the love of God and the love of others can’t be from God.

Reflecting on this Gospel, we shouldn’t be wasting time looking around for false prophets and pointing our fingers at others. By doing so, we would fall into the sin of judging others. Instead, the Gospel wants us to look at ourselves today. If our actions, behaviour, and lifestyle do not conform to the values of the Gospel, we give the wrong witness and become false prophets. As faithful Christians, we should bear the fruits of love, patience, compassion, forgiveness, and empathy.

Action, not words, would count and actions can express varied motivations. Jesus had dwelt at length on the dangers associated with the pious practices of almsgiving, fasting and praying if our motivations behind the actions are not pure. Let our motivation be to bear good fruits.

Anything without love is not from God - Youtube

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