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***Yeah, I read that quote. I assume this is some sort of joke post.***

Why would you think it is a joke? St. Irenaeus lived in the last part of the second century. We have his writings as well as writings of all the other Church fathers. We know how the early Church thought because of these writings - in fact, they were all circulated among the churches and until the Church decided the Canon at the Council of Hippo in 393 AD, the First Council of Carthage in 397 AD, and the Second Council of Carthage in 419 AD, many Christians thought they were inspired. For example, according to Eusebius in 325 AD, many thought the letters of Paul’s friend, Clement of Rome (4th Pope), should be included in the Canon and that St. John’s Revelation should not. But the Holy Spirit instructed the Council on which books should be included in the list of writings approved for reading at Mass. In other words, which were divinely inspired.

Here is an example of writings of the Early Fathers. These are quotes from St. Ignatius of Antioch’s “Letter to the Smyrnaeans” which he wrote on the way to being martyred in Rome, AD 107:

“You must follow the bishop as Jesus Christ follows the Father, and the presbytery as you would the Apostles. Reverence the deacons as you would the command of God. Let no one do anything of concern to the Church without the bishop. Let that be considered a valid Eucharist which is celebrated by the bishop, or by one whom he appoints. Wherever the bishop appears, let the people be there, just as wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.”

“They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they confess not the Eucharist to be the flesh of our Saviour Jesus Christ, which suffered for our sins, and which the Father, of His goodness, raised up again. Those, therefore, who speak against this gift of God, incur death in the midst of their disputes.”