Irenaeus' greatest contribution to theology was his theory of recapitulation. The Greek word that Irenaeus used to describe his theory was anakephalaiosis, which comes from the root word kephale, which means "head." Thus, anakephelaiosis means "reheading." The Latin term that was eventually used is recapitulatio, from the root word capitus (head), thus meaning "reheading" or "providing a new head." The idea here is not a physical head, but head as the source of something, such as a river. What this all means for Irenaeus is that Christ's work of redemption provided a new "head" for humanity- thus the idea of recapitulation, or "reheading." This theology is laid out at length in his Against Heresies and Proof of Apostolic Preaching.
Irenaeus' theology is best understood against the backdrop of Gnosticism, which is why we talked about it in our previous post. If you remeber, the Gnostics thought the flesh was bad. Because if this, Christ's work was purely spiritual. This entailed that they also denied the incarnation. Rather, Christ just "appeared" to be human. As a matter of fact, according the the Gnostics, Christ work didn't even require an incarnation. This is because they understood His mission to be one of simply revealing a message to spirits, in which the physical world had nothing to do with. When Jesus was crucified, Christ was not on him or with him in any way. Therefore, the human life and death of Jesus played no role in redemption.
Through his intelligence, wit, and sarcasm, Irenaeus set out to demolish this system of thought. His first line of attack was to show the necessity of the incarnation.
He argued that the gospel, as passed down by the apostles, was centered upon the incarnation. Irenaeus taught that every point of Jesus' life was necessary for salvation. His work on our behalf hinges upon the incarnation itself being redemptive in nature. By becoming human, the Word is able to redeem every aspect of human nature. It is the Word who experiences intimate human existence that redeems fallen humanity. This idea has been labeled as "saving incarnation," and will play a crucial part in patristic theology from here on out. This is why whenever a theology arose that seemed to threaten the nature of the incarnation, the church fathers reacted with vehemence. A threat to the incarnation was a threat to salvation.
Even more so, for Irenaeus, the incarnation was the very key to the entire history of redemption and salvation. The incarnation was what began the process of reversing the alienation from God that sin causes. Recapitulation was how Irenaeus thought of the incarnation, and how the Word incarnated in Jesus works to transform lost and sinful humanity.
The implication? The human race is "born again" in the incarnation. Humanity now receives a new head, or source, that is pure, holy, unpolluted by sin, immortal, and unfallen. Humanity can now be fully alive both physically and spiritually. Because Christ fused divinity and humanity together in one person, He is now the transformer of all of humanity.
But how does all this work? How does it play out? What is the application?
To begin with, we must first underatn that Irenaeus beleived in the solidarity of humanity in both sin and redemption. Like the apostle Paul before him, Irenaeus belived that the sin of Adam in the garden and the redemption of Christ on the cross, affected other human beings automatically. This is because Adam and Jesus (the "second Adam") are not merely individuals, but the fountainheads of all humanity.
Based on his understanding of Romans 5, Jesus is literally the second Adam of the human race. Irenaeus said that,
Irenaeus' theology is best understood against the backdrop of Gnosticism, which is why we talked about it in our previous post. If you remeber, the Gnostics thought the flesh was bad. Because if this, Christ's work was purely spiritual. This entailed that they also denied the incarnation. Rather, Christ just "appeared" to be human. As a matter of fact, according the the Gnostics, Christ work didn't even require an incarnation. This is because they understood His mission to be one of simply revealing a message to spirits, in which the physical world had nothing to do with. When Jesus was crucified, Christ was not on him or with him in any way. Therefore, the human life and death of Jesus played no role in redemption.
Through his intelligence, wit, and sarcasm, Irenaeus set out to demolish this system of thought. His first line of attack was to show the necessity of the incarnation.
He argued that the gospel, as passed down by the apostles, was centered upon the incarnation. Irenaeus taught that every point of Jesus' life was necessary for salvation. His work on our behalf hinges upon the incarnation itself being redemptive in nature. By becoming human, the Word is able to redeem every aspect of human nature. It is the Word who experiences intimate human existence that redeems fallen humanity. This idea has been labeled as "saving incarnation," and will play a crucial part in patristic theology from here on out. This is why whenever a theology arose that seemed to threaten the nature of the incarnation, the church fathers reacted with vehemence. A threat to the incarnation was a threat to salvation.
Even more so, for Irenaeus, the incarnation was the very key to the entire history of redemption and salvation. The incarnation was what began the process of reversing the alienation from God that sin causes. Recapitulation was how Irenaeus thought of the incarnation, and how the Word incarnated in Jesus works to transform lost and sinful humanity.
The implication? The human race is "born again" in the incarnation. Humanity now receives a new head, or source, that is pure, holy, unpolluted by sin, immortal, and unfallen. Humanity can now be fully alive both physically and spiritually. Because Christ fused divinity and humanity together in one person, He is now the transformer of all of humanity.
But how does all this work? How does it play out? What is the application?
To begin with, we must first underatn that Irenaeus beleived in the solidarity of humanity in both sin and redemption. Like the apostle Paul before him, Irenaeus belived that the sin of Adam in the garden and the redemption of Christ on the cross, affected other human beings automatically. This is because Adam and Jesus (the "second Adam") are not merely individuals, but the fountainheads of all humanity.
Based on his understanding of Romans 5, Jesus is literally the second Adam of the human race. Irenaeus said that,
God recapitulated Himself the ancient formation of man [Adam], that he might kill sin, deprive death of its power, and vivify man and therefore His works are true." Against Heresies, 3.17.7
What he means by this is that in the incarnation, the Word took on the very physical source of humanity, or in other words, the very body of Adam, and by His perfect life, reversed the corruption that resulted in Adam.
Since all of humanity descended from the first Adam, in order to reverse the fall, the Word had to live through this same "protoplast" or source, in order to completely and fully transform humanity. Therefore, through Mary, the Word took on the very same form as Adam. In some explainable way, Adam was reborn of Mary as the humanity of Jesus. Gustaff Wingran, a scholar on Irenaeus, states that for Irenaeus,
Since all of humanity descended from the first Adam, in order to reverse the fall, the Word had to live through this same "protoplast" or source, in order to completely and fully transform humanity. Therefore, through Mary, the Word took on the very same form as Adam. In some explainable way, Adam was reborn of Mary as the humanity of Jesus. Gustaff Wingran, a scholar on Irenaeus, states that for Irenaeus,
"...if man is to be saved, it is necessary that the first man, Adam, be brought back to life, and not simply that a new and perfect man who bears no relation to Adam should appear on earth. God, who has life, must permit His life to enter into "Adam" the man who truly hungers and thirst, eats and drinks, is wearied and needs rest, who knows anxiety, sorrow and joy, and who suffers pain when confronted with the fact of death." Man and the Incarnation: A Study in the Biblical Theology of Irenaeus, pgs 95-96.
Next, we must understand that for Irenaeus, the crux of Christ's accomplishment for redemption was the temptation in the wilderness. When Satan tempted Adam and Eve in the garden, they succumbed to the temptation and fell. However, when Satan came to Adam again in Christ, he was defeated. Now, because of the connection in Christ, humanity achieved victory over the evil one and regained eternal life.
The death and resurrection of Jesus we obviously the culminating event of recapitulation. Jesus provided the only sufficient sacrifice and conquered death. Those who, by faith, participate in Christ, now receive the transformation that is made possible by the incarnation of the Word.
Finally, for Irenaeus, redemption was a process of restoring creation. Unlike the Gnostics who wanted to escape creation, Irenaeus saw it as being a process in which the corruption of the fall is reversed. The end of the process is man's entrance to life, which is no longer subject to any limitations. It is a life in which all the weakness of humanity are overcome. Recapitulation leads to a life in which one can both see God and mirror God. Salvation thus makes humanity partakers in the divine nature (2 Peter 1;4). This idea of redemption was eventually labeled "deification," and is the backdrop for Irenaeus' theory of recapitulation.
The death and resurrection of Jesus we obviously the culminating event of recapitulation. Jesus provided the only sufficient sacrifice and conquered death. Those who, by faith, participate in Christ, now receive the transformation that is made possible by the incarnation of the Word.
Finally, for Irenaeus, redemption was a process of restoring creation. Unlike the Gnostics who wanted to escape creation, Irenaeus saw it as being a process in which the corruption of the fall is reversed. The end of the process is man's entrance to life, which is no longer subject to any limitations. It is a life in which all the weakness of humanity are overcome. Recapitulation leads to a life in which one can both see God and mirror God. Salvation thus makes humanity partakers in the divine nature (2 Peter 1;4). This idea of redemption was eventually labeled "deification," and is the backdrop for Irenaeus' theory of recapitulation.