By Fr. George Dorbarakis
1. Saint Justin was from Flavia Neapolis in Syria, the son of Priscus, son of Bacchius. He came to Rome during the reign of Emperor Antoninus. Opposing the error of idolatry, he presented written defenses on behalf of the faith and confession in Christ, by which he demonstrated the truth and power of this faith, while overthrowing the errors of paganism on the basis of Holy Scripture. Because he was envied by the philosopher Crescens, he was put to death, though only after first enduring many tortures. Saint Justin, because of the purity and holiness of his life, and having reached the highest summit of virtue and become completely filled with every kind of divine and human wisdom, left behind writings for all the faithful that are full of every wisdom and benefit. For they offer the knowledge of God to all who study them.
2. The Service of the day does not focus only on Saint Justin the Philosopher and Martyr. Since other martyrs also suffered together with him — such as Saints Justin (another martyr of the same name), Chariton, Charito, Evelpistus, Hierax, Peon, and Valerian — the hymns refer generally to all of them, and only to a small extent to Saint Justin the Philosopher alone. Yet Justin holds a unique place among them all, since he is "the founder of the first Christian theological school and a new and striking presence in the Church." This is because, although "part of his theological thought did not become part of the Tradition of the Church, the Church had no difficulty understanding and honoring him, since Justin the teacher, though only a layman, became a martyr of her faith, and because he was the first who, even without complete success, seriously attempted, with boldness and prudence, to set Christian truth in dialogue with philosophical thought, especially Platonism" (Stylianos Papadopoulos).
Certainly, when our Church calls him a Philosopher, it does not have in mind an external philosopher who creates his own philosophical system independently of faith in Christ. Such a person may be honored by the history of philosophy, but not by the Christian faith, which rests exclusively upon the revelation of God — first in the Old Testament, and then perfectly in the New Testament through the coming of the incarnate God, Jesus Christ. He is called a philosopher because, on the one hand, he possessed philosophical training — for before arriving at Christianity he passed through various philosophical schools, all of which left him dissatisfied — and, on the other hand, because he used philosophy as an instrument for expressing evangelical truth. This means that what ultimately inflamed the Saint's heart was the wisdom of God and not its human counterpart. Our hymnography emphasizes this:
"The wise Justin, adorned with the wisdom of God, made foolish the philosophy of the Greeks through grace, persuading men to worship the Trinity and to cry out in an Orthodox manner: Blessed are You, O God of our Fathers." (Ode 7)
We have said that Saint Justin passed through various philosophies before arriving at the faith of Christ. Yet this faith was not the result of his philosophical investigations. No one becomes a Christian by himself unless he is called and drawn by the living God Himself. The Lord Himself revealed this: "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him." Saint Justin was called by God Himself because he was sincerely seeking the truth. What happened to him was similar to what happened to the Apostle Paul and to other saints: the truth was revealed to him in a unique way. In one of his important works, the Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, he describes in literary form his calling to Christ. "Wearied by his searches and sincerely longing for the truth, he wandered sorrowfully and thoughtfully along a seashore (probably near Ephesus), where he encountered a mysterious and venerable old man. The old man emphasized to him that philosophy cannot heal man's deepest longing concerning God and pointed him to the unique significance of the prophets, who 'alone both saw and proclaimed the truth to men'" (Stylianos Papadopoulos).
The Hymnographer of his Service draws a parallel between him and the Apostle Paul, although without specifying exactly what happened in the Saint's calling:
"Having received your calling from heaven, like the divinely inspired Paul, O wise in divine things, and having run straight upon the path most excellently, you completed the contest of martyrdom." (Ode 6)
The case of Saint Justin is truly admirable because it confirms once again that wherever there is a genuine search for truth, there the revelation of God is found, and there man discovers the unique and sure foundation of his life. Just as happened with the Saint: "Holding Christ as the firm foundation in your heart, O Justin..." (Ode 3).
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
2. The Service of the day does not focus only on Saint Justin the Philosopher and Martyr. Since other martyrs also suffered together with him — such as Saints Justin (another martyr of the same name), Chariton, Charito, Evelpistus, Hierax, Peon, and Valerian — the hymns refer generally to all of them, and only to a small extent to Saint Justin the Philosopher alone. Yet Justin holds a unique place among them all, since he is "the founder of the first Christian theological school and a new and striking presence in the Church." This is because, although "part of his theological thought did not become part of the Tradition of the Church, the Church had no difficulty understanding and honoring him, since Justin the teacher, though only a layman, became a martyr of her faith, and because he was the first who, even without complete success, seriously attempted, with boldness and prudence, to set Christian truth in dialogue with philosophical thought, especially Platonism" (Stylianos Papadopoulos).
Certainly, when our Church calls him a Philosopher, it does not have in mind an external philosopher who creates his own philosophical system independently of faith in Christ. Such a person may be honored by the history of philosophy, but not by the Christian faith, which rests exclusively upon the revelation of God — first in the Old Testament, and then perfectly in the New Testament through the coming of the incarnate God, Jesus Christ. He is called a philosopher because, on the one hand, he possessed philosophical training — for before arriving at Christianity he passed through various philosophical schools, all of which left him dissatisfied — and, on the other hand, because he used philosophy as an instrument for expressing evangelical truth. This means that what ultimately inflamed the Saint's heart was the wisdom of God and not its human counterpart. Our hymnography emphasizes this:
"The wise Justin, adorned with the wisdom of God, made foolish the philosophy of the Greeks through grace, persuading men to worship the Trinity and to cry out in an Orthodox manner: Blessed are You, O God of our Fathers." (Ode 7)
We have said that Saint Justin passed through various philosophies before arriving at the faith of Christ. Yet this faith was not the result of his philosophical investigations. No one becomes a Christian by himself unless he is called and drawn by the living God Himself. The Lord Himself revealed this: "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him." Saint Justin was called by God Himself because he was sincerely seeking the truth. What happened to him was similar to what happened to the Apostle Paul and to other saints: the truth was revealed to him in a unique way. In one of his important works, the Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, he describes in literary form his calling to Christ. "Wearied by his searches and sincerely longing for the truth, he wandered sorrowfully and thoughtfully along a seashore (probably near Ephesus), where he encountered a mysterious and venerable old man. The old man emphasized to him that philosophy cannot heal man's deepest longing concerning God and pointed him to the unique significance of the prophets, who 'alone both saw and proclaimed the truth to men'" (Stylianos Papadopoulos).
The Hymnographer of his Service draws a parallel between him and the Apostle Paul, although without specifying exactly what happened in the Saint's calling:
"Having received your calling from heaven, like the divinely inspired Paul, O wise in divine things, and having run straight upon the path most excellently, you completed the contest of martyrdom." (Ode 6)
The case of Saint Justin is truly admirable because it confirms once again that wherever there is a genuine search for truth, there the revelation of God is found, and there man discovers the unique and sure foundation of his life. Just as happened with the Saint: "Holding Christ as the firm foundation in your heart, O Justin..." (Ode 3).
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
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