The Rule of Faith (Truth) in Irenaeus

The rule of faith is an often quoted but rarely understood concept. It is not a baptismal formula or a specified creedal or baptismal confession, as is commonly  though, but rather an attentiveness to the object of faith. For Irenaeus, when one is directed toward loving God and serving God, it is then that they are held in check by the rule of faith. Since I have devoted this blog to conceiving all things through the rule of faith it seems important to discern what exactly is the rule of faith. For starters we will look at Irenaeus lesser work Demonstration on Apostolic Preaching (I use Behr’s translation, which I have found to be the best both in its translation and discussion)

Dem 3 “Therefore, lest we suffer any such thing, we must keep the rule (κανων) of faith unswervingly, and perform the comandments of God, believeing in God and fearing Him, for He is Lord, and loving Him for he is Father. Action, then, comes by faith, as “if you do not believe”, Isaias says, ‘you will not understand’: and the truth brings about faith, for faith is established upon theins truly real, that we may believe what really is, as it is, ans believing what really is, as it is, we may always keep our conviction of it firm. Since, then, the conserver of our salvation is faith, it is necesary to take great care of it, that we ma have a true comprehension of what is.”

This introduction into the rule of faith describes the relationship between faith, action, and truth. Action comes by faith, while truth brings about faith. Of course Irenaeus equates truth and “reality” by arguing that truth is that which “really is.” So faith is dependent upon that which “really is.” In other words, we must believe in that which is truly real for our faith depends upon it. But Irenaeus (citing Is 7:9) highlights the classic Amselm formula faith seeking understanding. For Irenaeus understanding is action. So faith leads to understanding/action, but that very faith is dependent upon that which is real. Irenaeus concludes that it is necessary to take great care of our faith in order to have a true comprehension of God. Therefore, the rule of faith depends upon the reality of God and any articulation of the rule of faith must be faithful to that reality.

~ by irenology on October 28, 2008.