VATICAN/JUBILEE AUDIENCE - Leo XIV proposes the “treasures” donated to the Church by Irenaeus of Lyon: “The Gospel comes from outside”

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - The proclamation of the Gospel reaches people by arriving “from outside”. It began with the Apostles, from the lands of Asia Minor, to then reach other lands, such as Europe. And the treasure it proclaims is not a religious teaching or a moral model, but Christ himself, and His flesh. This was recalled today by Pope Leo XIV in his catechesis during the first of his Jubilee Audiences, taking up the series of special Audiences for pilgrims of the Jubilee of Hope that Pope Francis had begun in January, with the intention of proposing each time a particular aspect of the theological virtue of hope and a spiritual figure who bore witness to it.

“What brings us together,” the Pope recalled, “is the hope transmitted by the Apostles from the beginning.” The Apostles saw in Jesus the earth united with heaven: with their eyes, their ears, their hands, they welcomed the Word of life.”

To the multitude of thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Basilica, Pope Prevost recalled in particular the figure and story of Saint Irenaeus of Lyon, the great bishop and martyr of Lyon, born in Smyrna, a disciple of Saint Polycarp, who, in the second century, helped the entire nascent Church escape the danger of the Christian faith being distorted by its interpretations of Gnostic origin.

To hope - Pope Leo said, recalling the aspect of hope at the center of today's catechesis - is also "to connect". Irenaeus, born in Asia Minor, "was formed among those who had known the Apostles directly. He then came to Europe, because a community of Christians from his region had already formed in Lyon" and how good it is to remember this here, in Rome, in Europe - continued the Successor of Peter - that "the Gospel was brought to the continent from outside—and that, “even today, migrant communities are presences that revive the faith in the countries that welcome them”.
The Gospel – emphasized the Bishop of Rome "comes from outside. Irenaeus connects East and West. This is already a sign of hope, because it reminds us that peoples continue to enrich one another.”

Irenaeus, however, - continued the Pontiff - "has an even greater treasure to give us". Faced with the doctrinal divisions that he encountered within the Christian community, internal conflicts and external persecutions, the Holy Bishop of Lyon “focused his attention more deeply on Jesus.” Pope Leo reminded the faithful that “the flesh of Jesus must be welcomed and contemplated in every brother and sister, in every creature” and that we should hear ourselves “called by name by the pain of others.” The pope went on to describe St Irenaeus as a teacher of unity, showing us not how to oppose, but connect, by looking to Jesus, “who brings opposites together and makes communion possible.”
"Jesus", continued Pope Prevost, "is not a wall that separates, but a door that unites us. We must remain in him and distinguish reality from ideologies".
Irenaeus reminded and reminds the entire Church that salvation does not come from theoretical speculations and paths of knowledge, but from the humanity of Christ, and from his flesh.

"Even today", Pope Leo emphasized, "ideas can drive us mad and words can kill. Flesh, on the other hand, is what we are all made of; it is what connects us to the earth and to other creatures. The flesh of Jesus must be welcomed and contemplated in every brother and sister, in every creature and that we should hear ourselves called by name by the pain of others.
The commandment that we have received from the beginning is that of mutual love. It is written in our flesh, before any law".
And "Irenaeus, master of unity," the Pontiff added, "teaches us not to oppose, but to connect." Because "distinguishing is useful, but dividing never is. Jesus is eternal life among us: he brings together opposites and makes communion possible."

After the catechesis, and before greeting the Italian-speaking pilgrims, Pope Leo read an appeal regarding the new conflict that broke out in the Middle East following Israel's attack on Iran. "The situation in Iran and Israel has seriously deteriorated," the Pope said, "and in such a delicate moment, I strongly wish to renew an appeal to responsibility and to reason." The commitment to building a safer world free from the nuclear torea,” added the Successor of Peter, “must be pursued through respectful encounters and sincere dialogue to build a lasting peace, founded on justice, fraternity, and the common good. No one should ever threaten the existence of another.It is the duty of all countries to support the cause of peace, initiating paths of reconciliation and promoting solutions that guarantee security and dignity for all.” (GV) (Agenzia Fides, 14/6/2026)

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