Holy Martyr Justin the Philosopher in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

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).

June: Day 1: Teaching 2: Holy Martyr Justin the Philosopher

June: Day 1: Teaching 2:
Holy Martyr Justin the Philosopher

(True Enlightenment is Possible Only in Christianity)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. Saint Justin, whose memory we now celebrate, one of the most learned philosophers of the second century A.D., was born in the Samaritan city of Shechem; his parents were rich and noble people, and took care of his education. Justin from his earliest years was passionately fond of learning; he attended the best schools, studied with the most famous philosophers, and finally came to the conviction that only in the word of God is truth contained, that only by faith can the soul of man find peace, true enlightenment, and salvation.

Even at the time when the Apostles preached the gospel, the most intelligent and educated pagans had little faith in the gods. Convinced of the falsity of pagan worship, they sought the truth in the teachings of ancient philosophers or sages: Plato, Pythagoras, Zeno, Epicurus and others. Justin searched for the truth for a long time and conscientiously, and stuck to one teaching, then to another, but none satisfied him, because his soul dimly felt the need to recognize a higher and eternal being. More than other teachings, he was attracted by the teaching of Plato, which was distinguished by the loftiness of its aspirations and some concepts about the Deity and the immortality of the soul. Justin passionately devoted himself to the study of Plato's books: he often sought solitude in order to freely think about the subject that so strongly occupied his soul. At one of these moments he happened to hear about the teachings of Christ from an elder who pointed him to the books of Holy Scripture, in which alone the truth could be found.