page_title: Catholic theology of the body
section_title: Irenaeus
hierarchical_section_title: Catholic theology of the body / History / Church fathers / Irenaeus
caption_attribution_description: Saint Irenaeus (c. 130-202), bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul (now Lyon, France).
context_page_description: The theology of the body is a broad term for Catholic teachings on the human body. The dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, defined in Pope Pius XII's 1950 apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus, is one of the most recent developments in the Catholic theology of the body.
context_section_description: The body, formed in the image of God, and the soul, which has adopted the Spirit of the Father, in harmony, make up the perfect human being, according to Irenaeus (died around 202). The Greek Gnosis and some Christians had looked down on the human body as inferior. Irenaeus defends the body  because it is the creation of God and a negative view would cast shadows both over God and his creation. The story of creation in the book Genesis (later quoted by Pope John Paul in his lectures on the body)  shows, that the first human being, Adam, was indeed an image of God.  Adam had supernatural life, immortality, super-natural sanctity and a closeness to God. Since he was free of the human need to sleep, he could see God without interruption. By giving in to temptation, he lost all these attributes.
  The importance of Christ for the human body is the restoration of the original status before the fall. Those who accept Christ are redeemed  and become children of God, regaining eternal life.  However those who live only by their body and its needs, will not share eternal life. The resurrected bodies will show  beauty beyond human  imagination. To show the way to this destination, the Son of God became human, and accepted the human body,  thus helping human beings to recognize their destination in God. Only by subjugating one’s will to the will of God, can this destination be reached, according to Irenaeus.
  Irenaeus believed that the first humans, Adam and Eve had a childlike relation to their body. They had no idea of evil, concupiscence and lust. They enjoyed a balanced sexuality, not ashamed as they kissed  or hugged each other. According to Irenaeus, the fall was a result of a childish lack of discretion, which made Adam susceptible to the devil and led him into disobedience to God. The fall was a result of naïveté, not of bad intention, according to Irenaeus.
caption: Irenaeus The body, formed in the image of God, and the soul, which has adopted the Spirit of the Father, in harmony, make up the perfect human being
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