Having concluded their study of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson look at some other fragments and writings of St. Irenaeus. They focus on St. Irenaeus' role as peacemaker, looking to resolve conflicts in the Church. From his letters and notes, we learn more about the kind of leader St. Irenaeus wa…

In their 50th episode of Deep in History, Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson conclude their discussion of the important early work "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Irenaeus covers a lot of ground in the close of his book: from the authority of the Church, to the necessity of guarding the deposit of faith, to death, judgment, heaven…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies, the important early Christian work by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Among other things, they look at how St. Irenaeus speculated about the identity and plan of the Antichrist. Just as in our present day, there were many differing opinions among the early Christians about how…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue to work their way through Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons, one of the most important witnesses from the earliest days of Christianity. St. Irenaeus reminds us that theological opinions that appeal to our pride put us in the same camp as Lucifer himself, who fell from heaven because he thoug…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their journey through the 2nd century Christian work Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. St. Irenaeus reflects on Original Sin, and its implications for salvation history, all the way up to the temptation of Christ himself. Satan has always sought to disrupt God's plan, and especially to ruin …

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue to unpack Book V of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. St. Irenaeus points out some of the key errors of the popular heresies of his day. Underlying all of them is an ignorance, sometimes unintentional and sometimes willful, of the importance of the deposit of faith passed down by the apost…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies," written by St. Irenaeus of Lyons in the 2nd century. Continuing through Book V, they look at what St. Irenaeus has to say about the necessity of the Church, the nature of the Godhead, and the role of Mary in the plan of salvation. Though St. Irenaeus is writing long…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of “Against Heresies,” the important early Christian work by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. From the beginning, the early Christians carried forth the teaching that Jesus Christ, who is truly God, really did take on flesh and blood, and the apostles who witnessed this testify to that reality. St.…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by early Church father St. Irenaeus of Lyons. St. Irenaeus is firm on the Christian conviction that we do not merely hope for eternal life in a spiritual sense; we believe in the resurrection of the body. God comes to save both our souls and our bodies together, and we…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies," the important early Christian work by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies," the important early Christian work by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. In this episode, they get into a bit of what St. Irenaeus ha…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their series through "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by looking more at Book V of this important Christian work. They talk about how St. Irenaeus discusses the Eucharist as the essential focus of Christian worship, and how Irenaeus asserts that this has been the case from the beginning. M…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by early Church father St. Irenaeus of Lyons. In this episode, they look at the difficulties that St. Irenaeus faced in regard to teaching the Gospel in an era plagued with heresies and confusion about the person of Jesus Christ. St. Irenaeus says that we had to see an…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their exploration of St. Irenaeus of Lyons' classic work Against Heresies, written in the 2nd century AD. They continue to look at what St. Irenaeus has to say about the gift of free will, and the incredible responsibility that comes along with it. We can talk about the way that we are tempted, and w…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by St. Ireneaus of Lyons, looking more into Book IV of this important early Christian work. In his opposition to Gnostics, Marcionites, and other heretical groups, St. Irenaeus mentions a number of reasons why the apostolic deposit of faith should be trusted rather tha…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue through Book IV of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. What does it mean to be a truly spiritual disciple of Jesus Christ? Marcus and Msgr. Steenson explore what St. Irenaeus has to say about conforming our will to Christ, to see as He sees, and to go where He asks us to go, living in commun…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. St. Irenaeus focuses in this section on the importance of trusting the apostolic deposit of faith. He refers to how the interpretation of the Scriptures was passed to him by his own mentors, who themselves learned it at the feet of the apost…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by continuing through Book IV. They look at the way that God speaks to us through His created order, through the lives of our ancestors, and through His gift of the Church. And ultimately, it is through the ministry of the Church that God has…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies" by early Church father St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Christians are called to build a civilization of God's love on the earth. But it is impossible to live this love of God and love of neighbor on our own; we must live it in the unity of the Church that Christ established a…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their series on Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Prior to the coming of Jesus, no one could see the face of God and live. But by taking on human flesh, Jesus shows us who God is in a new and startling way, and what we know about who God is becomes radically expanded by the incarnation. Marc…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue through Book IV of Against Heresies by St. Ireneaus of Lyons with a discussion of the question of sacrifice in Christianity. Some of the interlocutors of St. Irenaeus believed that Christ did away with the very idea of sacrifices. But as St. Irenaeus points out, those sacrifices were not negated by C…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their discussion of "Against Heresies" by St Irenaeus of Lyons, this time digging into chapters 12-16 of Book IV. When it comes to doctrinal disputes among Christian denominations, or even debates within the Catholic Church, it can be tempting to fixate on one passage and isolate it from the whole of…

For last week's special Thanksgiving episode, Marcus Grodi shared a portion of a sermon he gave as part of a Thanksgiving service back when he was a Presbyterian pastor in 1985. That message focused on Philippians 4:4-7, in which St. Paul calls us to present our requests to God with gratitude already in our hearts. Marcus follows up this week by fo…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson resume their discussion of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by continuing through Book 12. They look at what St. Irenaeus had to say about natural law, and the order with which God established His creation. The incarnation of Jesus does not contradict either the natural law that is common to all huma…

In a special Thanksgiving edition of Deep in Scripture, Marcus Grodi shares audio from a sermon he preached on the Sunday before Thanksgiving in 1985, when he was still a Presbyterian pastor in central Ohio. The text for that sermon came from Philippians 4:6, where St. Paul exhorts his readers to "have no anxiety about anything, but in everything, …

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaus of Lyons with a discussion of the true meaning of Christian tradition. Jesus and St. Paul warn against following the empty traditions of man, but they also encourage us to hold fast to the traditions that have been passed on to us. So how are we to dis…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their studies of St. Irenaeus of Lyons by digging into Chapter 9 of Book IV of Against Heresies. St. Irenaeus reminds his readers that the God of faith is also the God of reason, the God who created the dust and the stars is the same God who created humans in His image, and that the God of ancient ti…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of “Against Heresies” by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by looking at the relationship between Jesus and the Father. Jesus does not merely teach us about the Father; He is one with the Father. He does not reveal to us a different God than is testified to by the law and the prophets; He reveals thr…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of "Against Heresies" by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by diving further into Book 4 of this important early Christian work. Christ came to establish a new covenant in His blood, but in doing so, he was not abolishing the law, but fulfilling it. St. Irenaeus reminds us that what Jesus reveals abo…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by beginning Book 4 of one of the most famous and important works of early Christian literature. Here, St. Irenaeus deals with the Marcionite heresy, which pitted the New Testament against the Old Testament, and Jesus against the traditional Je…

Marcus and JonMarc Grodi wrap up their study of St. Cyprian of Carthage's treatise on the Lord's Prayer, specifically looking at the implications of what it means to ask for God's will to be done in our lives. The last points that St. Cyprian makes in this passage have to do with following God's will, even under the threat of persecution. God calls…

Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their series looking at St. Cyprian of Carthage's treatise on the Lord's Prayer, specifically focusing on St. Cyprian's thoughts regarding the will of God. St. Cyprian tells us to "prefer nothing whatever to Christ, because He did not prefer anything to us." Jesus held nothing back in His incarnation, passion, deat…

Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their study of St. Cyprian of Carthage's treatise on the Lord's Prayer by diving even deeper into what it means to ask for God's will to be done in our lives. What exactly does the fear of the Lord mean, properly understood? What are its implications in regard to our humility, our wonder, our worship, and our obedi…

As Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their study of St. Cyprian of Carthage's remarks on the Lord's Prayer, they look at what he has to say about love of God and neighbor. St. Cyprian speaks of the need "to love God with all one's heart; to love Him in that He is a Father; (and) to fear Him in that He is God," but what is that supposed to look like…

Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their series on St. Cyprian of Carthage's treatise on the Lord's Prayer by looking at one of the most difficult aspects of what it means to pray the seemingly simple phrase, "thy will be done." It can be manageable to live that principle when it comes to obeying directives from God, or changing negative behaviors; …

As Marcus and JonMarc make their way through St. Cyprian of Carthage's treatise on the Lord's Prayer, they look at what he has to say about the importance of maintaining control over our bodily passions. As human beings, what we do with our bodies has implications for our souls. St. Cyprian reminds us that our bodies express the disposition of our …

Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their study of St. Cyprian of Carthage’s treatise on the Lord’s Prayer, this time around focusing on what St. Cyprian has to say about the relationship between justice and mercy. To focus on justice to the exclusion of mercy leads to legalism; to focus on mercy to the exclusion of justice leads to license. St. Cypr…

Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their study of St. Cyprian of Carthage’s treatise on the Lord’s Prayer, they look at the way St. Cyprian talks about moderation and self control in the spiritual life. What is the relationship between our will and our passions? How do we avoid the complacency that leads us to let our guard down in regard to sin? Ho…

In this episode of Deep in Scripture, Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue to look at St. Cyprian of Carthage's treatise on the Lord's Prayer. This time around, they look at the way that the "Our Father" calls us to have the humility to conform our will to the will of God, and Marcus specifically discusses how he understands this concept differently n…

Taking a slightly different approach to Scripture study, Marcus and JonMarc Grodi look at the Lord's Prayer through the eyes of St. Cyprian of Carthage, a 3rd century bishop and martyr. Focusing specifically on the phrase "Thy will be done," Marcus and JonMarc unpack St. Cyprian's wisdom when it comes to understanding how to live in the will of God…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Book 3 of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. In part two of their conversation, they look at how...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Book 3 of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by looking at the meaning and effect of the work of Jesus Christ. St. Irenaeus looks at the effects of the sin of Adam and Eve, and what Christ accomplishes in his passion and resurrection to break the power of death. St. Irenaeus wan…

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue to make their way through Book 3 of Against Heresies by the 2nd century Christian writer St. Irenaeus of Lyons. They look at...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons looking at the legitimacy of the Gospel accounts that appear in all Christian versions of...By Coming Home Network International

As Marcus and JonMarc Grodi continue their study of St. Cyprian of Carthage’s remarks on the Lord’s Prayer, they look at what he has to say about clinging to God’s...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of “Against Heresies” by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by looking at what kind of knowledge the Christian is called to have...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue through Book 3 of Against Heresies by discussing what St. Irenaeus of Lyons had to say about the importance of preserving the deposit...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of St. Irenaeus of Lyons by looking at how St. Irenaeus was impacted by the witness of his mentor, St. Polycarp...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue on to Book 3, Section 3 of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons, and talk more about the importance of listening to...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons by diving deeper into Book 3 of this early Christian work. They look at how...By Coming Home Network International

Marcus Grodi and Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson continue their study of Against Heresies by St. Irenaeus of Lyons. In this episode, they look at a number of fascinating arguments from St....By Coming Home Network International