Biography of Justin Martyr

Justin Martyr (100-165 AD) was an ancient father of the Church who began his career as a philosopher but discovered that secular theories of life made no sense. When he discovered Christianity, he pursued it so zealously that it led to its execution.

Fast facts: Justin Martyr
Also known as: Flavio Giustino
Profession: philosopher, theologian, apologist
Born: c. 100 AD
Deceased: 165 AD
Education: classical education in Greek and Roman philosophy
Published works: dialogue with Trypho, apologies
Famous quote: "We expect to receive our bodies again, although they are dead and thrown into the earth, since we claim that with God nothing is impossible."
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Born in the Roman city of Flavia Neapolis, near the ancient Samaritan city of Shechem, Justin was the son of pagan parents. His exact birth date is unknown, but it was probably in the early second century.

Although some modern scholars attacked Justin's intellect, he had a curious mind and received a solid basic education in rhetoric, poetry and history. As a young man, Justin studied various philosophy schools, looking for answers to life's most puzzling questions.

His first pursuit was stoicism, initiated by the Greeks and developed by the Romans, which promoted rationalism and logic. The Stoics taught self-control and indifference to things beyond our power. Justin found this philosophy lacking.

Subsequently, he studied with a peripatetic or Aristotelian philosopher. However, Justin soon realized that the man was more interested in collecting his taxes than in finding the truth. His next teacher was a Pythagorean, who insisted that Justin also studied geometry, music and astronomy, too demanding a requirement. The last school, Platonism, was more complex from an intellectual point of view, but did not address the human issues that Justin cared about.

The mysterious man
One day, when Justin was about 30 years old, he met an old man while walking along the seashore. Man spoke to him about Jesus Christ and how Christ was the fulfillment promised by the ancient Jewish prophets.

As they spoke, the old man made a hole in the philosophy of Plato and Aristotle, saying that reason was not the way to discover God. Instead, man pointed to the prophets who had had personal encounters with God and predicted his plan of salvation.

"A fire was suddenly kindled in my soul," said Justin later. “I fell in love with the prophets and these men who had loved Christ; I reflected on all their words and found that only this philosophy was true and profitable. Here's how and why I became a philosopher. And I wish everyone felt the same way as me. "

After his conversion, Justin still considered himself a philosopher rather than a theologian or missionary. He believed that Plato and other Greek philosophers stole many of their theories from the Bible, but since the Bible came from God, Christianity was "true philosophy" and became a belief worth dying for.

Great works by Justin
Around 132 AD Justin went to Ephesus, a city where the apostle Paul had founded a church. There, Justin had a debate with a Jew named Trifo on the interpretation of the Bible.

Giustino's next stop was Rome, where he founded a Christian school. Due to the persecution of Christians, Justin did most of his teaching in private homes. He lived above a man named Martinus, near the Timiotinian thermal baths.

Many of Justin's treatises are mentioned in the writings of the early Church Fathers, but only three authentic works survive. Below are summaries of their key points.

Dialogue with Trypho
Taking the form of a debate with a Jew in Ephesus, this book is anti-Semitic by today's standards. However, it has served as a basic defense of Christianity for many years. Scholars believe it was actually written after the apology, which he quotes. It is an incomplete investigation of Christian doctrine:

The Old Testament is giving way to the New Covenant;
Jesus Christ fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies;
Nations will be converted, with Christians as the new chosen people.
excuse
The apologies of Justin, a reference work of Christian apologetics, or defense, was written in about 153 AD and was addressed to the emperor Antoninus Pius. Justin tried to demonstrate that Christianity was not a threat to the Roman empire but rather an ethical system based on faith that descended from God. Justin stressed these important points:

Christians are not criminals;
They would rather die than deny their God or worship idols;
Christians worshiped the crucified Christ and God;
Christ is the incarnate Word, or Logos;
Christianity is superior to other beliefs;
Justin described Christian worship, baptism and the Eucharist.
Second "apology"
The modern scholarship considers the Second Apology only an appendix to the first and states that the Church, Father Eusebio, made a mistake when he judged it a second independent document. It is also debatable whether it was dedicated to Emperor Marcus Aurelius, a famous stoic philosopher. It covers two main points:

It describes in detail the injustices of Urbino towards Christians;
God permits evil because of Providence, human freedom and the last judgment.
At least ten ancient documents are attributed to Justin Martyr, but the proofs of their authenticity are doubtful. Many were written by other men under the name of Justin, a fairly common practice in the ancient world.

Killed for Christ
Justin engaged in public debate in Rome with two philosophers: Marcion, a heretic, and Crescens, a cynic. Legend has it that Justin defeated Crescens in their race and, wounded by his loss, Crescens reported Justin and six of his students at Rustico, the prefect of Rome.

In a 165 AD account of the trial, Rusticus asked Justin and the others questions about their beliefs. Justin made a brief summary of the Christian doctrine and all the others confessed to being Christians. Rusticus then ordered them to offer sacrifices to the Roman gods and they refused.

Rusticus ordered them to be scourged and beheaded. Justin said: "Through prayer we can be saved because of our Lord Jesus Christ, even when we have been punished, because this will become for us salvation and trust in the seat of the most frightening and universal judgment of our Lord and Savior".

Justin's legacy
Justin Martyr, in the second century, tried to bridge the gap between philosophy and religion. In the time following his death, however, he was attacked because he was neither a true philosopher nor a true Christian. In fact, he decided to find true or better philosophy and embraced Christianity because of his prophetic inheritance and moral purity.

His writing left a detailed description of the first mass, as well as a suggestion of the three Persons in one God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - years before Tertullian introduced the concept of Trinity. Justin's defense from Christianity emphasized morality and ethics superior to Platonism.

It would have taken more than 150 years after Justin's execution before Christianity was accepted and even promoted in the Roman empire. However, he gave the example of a man who trusted in the promises of Jesus Christ and even bet his life on it.