Justin Martyr: Theological Philosophy - Christian Biographies
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- Опубліковано 13 лип 2024
- Justin Martyr has been remembered throughout history for his final sacrifice, Justin's role in Christian history is much greater than his final act. Justin was able to combine the philosophical teachings of his day in a way that helped spread and explain Christian theology. His work is valuable to modern readers because it offers an insight into the development of early Church theology and practice.
Outline:
0:00 Intro
1:04 Early Life
2:06 4 Philosophical Studies
4:40 Meeting of the Old Man
6:28 Dialogue with Trypho
7:20 In Rome
7:57 Writings
8:50 Debate with Crescens
10:31 Legacy
Overview of Justin Martyr's Life:
Justin Martyr was born around 100AD to Greek parents who gave him a Greek name, education and did not circumcise him. During his Greek education, he fell in love with philosophy. Because of this in 130AD he left for a more metropolitan area in search of a philosophical education.
Justin spent his time learning under four philosophical movements: Stocisim, Aristotle, Pythagoreanism, and Platonism. Although Plato's movement got him closest to his final goal, it wouldn't be until he met an Old Man that explained to him the prophets and Jesus that he would finally find what he was looking for. After this conversation, he became a Christian and dedicated his life to the study of Christianity.
Sometime after this conversion, he made his way to Rome where he began teaching something similar to theological philosophy. He attempted to bridge the gap between modern philosophy and Christian theology. He engaged in apologetics with pagans, heretics, and Jewish scholars. During this time he wrote his First and Second Apologies and his Dialogue with Trypho.
Although he continually defended the practices of Christians to the wider Church, it was a man by a cynic by the name of Crescens that convinced the urban prefect Junius Rusticus to bring Justin and his followers to trial. Rusticus demanded Justin to sacrifice to the gods, and after they refused he sentenced them to death. Justin passed away roughly 165AD.
Sources/ Further Research:
www.gutenberg.org/files/15877... (The Thoughts of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antonius) 9-15.
www.newadvent.org/cathen/0858... (Catholic Encyclopedia)
www.newworldencyclopedia.org/... (New World Encyclopedia)
Getting to Know the Church Fathers: Bryan Liftin (p53-74) 9781587431963
UA-cam Recording of the First and Second Apologies: • The First And Second A...
This saint will be my family's patron saint. My sons Justin and Justus will learn about this great saint's life and teachings 🙂
That is really cool to hear! I hope they come to understand the life and works of Justin and can impact the world today the way that Justin did way back then. Thanks for the comment!
my name as well... "justin" my mom, may God bless her soul had told me that she wanted to name me "justus" ... i would say coincidence but they do not exist.. what does exist is MISSinterpretations, MISStransalations and MISSunderstandings...theyre all "AMISS"...
may God bless you all as He has and does bless me every single day
when you say patron saints what does that mean and what does that entail?
Awesome apostle of Christ,wonderful video man,we can all learn from courage and determination from him to follow God till the end.
The video is great and super helpful! I shared the content (in Chinese) with my small group and they loved it as well!! Thank you and God bless :)))
I am honored to be a part of your small group and I’m blessed you found this video helpful!! Thank you for your kind comment.
God bless you for all that you do for him. Amen
Thank you I very much appreciate the comment!
Awesome content, thank you very much
This is a really helpful and informative video. Thank you for taking the time and effort to make it.
It is my pleasure. I am glad that you found this video helpful and informative; it really means a lot to me.
I enjoy this biography
Thank you sir for this video you have made. I'm a little puzzled to see no comments, maybe they have been removed, but if that's not the case then they have all sorely missed a wonderful biography. Justin is one of my favorite Christian apologist. Thank you again sir.
I'm very glad you enjoyed the video! Unfortunately, the video didn't do that great that's why there aren't any comments lol! But I very much enjoyed reading the works of Justin, his works are fascinating to read within the context of the early Church.
@@ChristianBiographies yeah some people are looking for the wrong things in a Christian biography. What I look for is a brother or sister in Christ standing strong by faith for our Lord and Savior. When I see this it raises my faith and courage to be even more for my Lord than I already am. Your ministry is a good ministry, we must never forget the faith and courage of our fellow brethren. God bless you.
Yes, it is always so encouraging when you are able to see the life and works of people who have impacted Christian history with their lives. Even if it is over 1800 years later like in the example of Justin, seeing how they walked through life can be very uplifting and encouraging and even challenging to us today.
Well done. Good presentation
Thank you very much I appreciate the comment!
Thank you.
You're welcome!
❤ I listened to some of his writings what an amazing testimony to Christ.
His life is such an amazing story of God using his people to help spread His word in many different ways
Learning about early church fathers and teachers. I always knew that Justin existed and his apologetics are famous. I never went into any detail though.
I hope that this video helped introduce you to all of the great teachings of Justin Martyr and can give you some groundwork to study his life and works at a deeper level!
Justin and other Christians were not asked to deny Christ. They were asked to make sacrifices to the gods of Rome. This meant participation in a ritual, but did not necessarily signify a belief. Not doing so was considered treason. Those who made such a sacrifice were free to continue with Christian worship. It was those who saw this sacrifice to the national gods of Rome as a violation of their Christianity and refused who were punished.
The picture used above is quite interesting! It shows Justin wearing his 'philosopher's cloak which he did after he became a 'Christian' in his later years. As you read his 'Apologia' e.t.c you cant help notice the greek philosophy influencing his teachings and ideas. However he did stick to the bible's relationship between God the Father & Christ who was not equel to the Father. This soon changed as these learned 'church Fathers' moved further & further away from the true teachings of Christianity!
Where does he say Christ is not equal to the Father? Christ is distinct in person but equal in essence, and worthy of worship and glory. This is what the Bible teaches and this is always what Christians have believed. Also, just because an apologist uses philosophical language as a tool to deliver a point, doesn’t mean his faith is tainted by pagan philosophy
@@kaden7374 Sorry, but | have studied the way the church Fathers used specific greek philosophy in their conclusions and writings. Three examples; HADES, LOGOS, AND PHSYKE. Can I elaborate for you? I can show you that what the NT says these three important words mean in sharp contrast to what the Church philosophers said which moulded the future doctrines that are now accepted as 'orthodox christianity'. As for Christ not being equal to the Father, please read; John 14:28. 1 Cor 11:3. 1 Cor 8:6. Eph 4:6. John 17:3. John 20:17. 1 Cor 15:24-28. Rev 1:1. If you would like more I am happy to oblige!
@@kiwihans100 cool verses, but you have to read them in a manner that doesn’t contradict other verses, otherwise you’re cherry picking. See Phi 2:5-6, John 1:1-2, John 14:8-11, John 17:5, Colossians 2:9, John 10:30-33. Do you not know the entire reason Jesus was crucified is that he claimed equality with God? I haven’t even touched on all the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah.
I wonder, what do you think about Christ’s promise for the Church, that the gates of hell would not prevail against it? What about where Paul declares it as the pillar and foundation of truth? Where is this Church for the first 1500 years, if not the Orthodox Church?
@@kaden7374 True 'cherry picking' is not helpful! (Are you not doing the same thing here?) Anyway, maybe not and that you sincerely believe these bible texts prove the trinity! Firstly NONE of them mention THREE persons in One God! secondly, les take Phil 2:5-6. If you check 'bible hub' or similar you will see verse 6 is translated in DIFFERENT ways in so many translations! May I quote the 'revised new english bible' ( sanctioned by both the catholic & most protestant churches) " He was in the form of God, yet he laid no claim to EQUALITY with God". I know some read "Though he WAS equal with God". Which is right? I find the answer in verse 10,11 "And so in honour of the name of Jesus, all beings in heaven and and on earth and in the world below will fall on their knees and all will openly proclaim that Jesus is Lord ...TO THE GLORY OF GOD THE FATHER". So by not 'cherry picking' verse 6 ( in some bibles) we conclude that The Father is Supreme and that is why the Son would never try & usurp the Father's supremacy! ( As for the other texts I am repling in seperate comments. Please view this exchange as not a 'point scoring' but a friendly exchange of two Christian brothers in Christ!
¡Viva Cristo Rey!
Father of apologetics?
Dude sounds familiar lol
His name kind of gives away one of his most-known facts about him, lol
Jusrtin Martyr must have been the type of person that the Apostle warned us against when he said "Let no man carry you away with the philosophies ..after the rudiments of the world". ( Colosians 2:8) . Justin Martyr surported the philosophies of Soractes & Hereaclitus for example ( see Apologia x1vi). I listen to Paul, who was chosen & inspired to write By Jesus, not human non Christian philosophers!
I would not agree with your assessment that this is the type of people Paul warned about. Paul literally quoted Menander in 1 Cor 15:33, Aratus in Acts 17:28, Epimendies the Cretan in Titus 1:12. The whole point that Just Martyr makes is that he found nothing of value in the teachings of these worldly philosophers until he found the prophets of Old (OT) and the testimony of Jesus. I think Justin Martyr was acting the same way Paul was, not bowing to the teachings of these philosophers, but showing that these teachers did not have the true understanding that comes when you follow Christ and his teachings. I think that teaching can be very helpful for us today.
@@ChristianBiographies Justin Martyr only converted to 'christianity' in later life. He wanted it appears to even then be recognised as a 'philosopher'. He would wear, whereaver he went his 'philosophers cloak'! Being unlike the 'unlettered & ordinary men' like the apostles he was well educated ( as were the 'church fathers' generally ). To illustrate the influence of greek philosophy in his thinking and writing, the following comments he made are pertinent; From the 'Apologia' x1vi "We are taught that Christ is the first born son of God, and we have explained above that he is the Word ( reason) of whom all mankind have a share, and those WHO LIVED ACCORDING TO REASON ARE CHRISTIANS, even though thy we classed as athiests. For example amoung GREEKS, SOCRATES, and HERACLITUS......and many others. Did you notice how Justin refers the Word to REASON? This is a common idea of the greek school. Thus for centuries, greek philosophers interpreted LOGOS as REASON! ( This led to the assumption that since God the Father has always possessed 'reason' The 'Word' has also always existed! However the BIBLICAL use of the word 'LOGOS' as applying to the Lord Jesus is NOT the same as the greek one! Remember John, and only John of the four gospel writers was one of the 'unlettered & ordinary men' who would not have incorperated greek philosophy in his gospel would he?. To him Jesus was fittingly called the 'Word' because as John goes on in many of Jesus statements, to record jesus saying "I do nothing of my own authority BUT IN ALL I SAY I HAVE BEEN TAUGHT BY MY FATHER" (John 8:28 ). Thus John presented God's Son as His 'spokesman', his 'representative' he 'voice' ( Like John 1: 23 where John the baptist says of himself, "I am a VOICE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS". Thus logic dictates that one can always posess 'reason' but to 'speak' or to give voice' will of necessity involve TIME. So Though the Father has always had 'reason' it was not till 'the appointed time' that He sent his dear Son into the world to 'speak words' as Jesus testified himself. Thus he BECAME to word, which gives him the title 'begotten' NOT 'unbegotten'!. So My friend I am not in any way denying the sincerity of Justin who even, apparently died for his faith. However the facts prove that most of these men, more those who lived from the 2nd century onwards, introduced greek philosophy into christoan thinking which ultimately led to the doctrine of the 'trinity', the immortality of the soul e.t.c. Thus Paul's warning at Col 2:8 are totally relevent.
@@ChristianBiographies You are right about bible writers who quoted secular sources! The point is though, they only did so to BACK UP and ENHANCE the point they were making! . Jude quoted from the book of Enoch to back up what he was saying at Jude 14 about those men who were infulltrating the Christian congregation e.t.c. You wont find though bible writers relying on human wisdom to teach us God's commandments and ways. Otherwise what would have been the point about the bible 'cannon' being determined as the 'inspired Holy Scriptures' if we could just accept & be guided by any educated and clever men of religion & philosophy. In fact Paul, Peter & John warned us AGAINST such snares!
@@kiwihans100what are you yammering on about? The Word is eternally begotten before all ages. He always has been. There is not a time when He was not. The incarnation is not the beginning of His existence, merely the beginning of, well, His incarnation
@@kaden7374 'Eternally begotten' is a total contradiction of 'terms'! Please listen to Jesus himself and not the teachings of church fathers & philosophers of the 2nd century onwards that you are quoting! Jesus said "I live because of the Father" He also said "As the Father has life in himself ( immortality) SO HE HAS GRANTED that the Son should have life in himself" Please read your bible at; John 6:57. John 5:26. That Jesus owed his life completely to his Father he indicated at his death; "Into YOURHANDS I entrust my spirit" Yes, Jesus had Faith that his Father could raise him from the dead and restore the life he had originally given him! Thus he said while on earth "I do NOTHING of mine own" ( John 8:28). You cannot assume that all these statements apply 'only during theincarnation' ( a NON biblical term!). Would you like several bible texts that show both BEFORE and AFTERWARDS The Son is always SUBORDINATE to the Father's will? I am happy to show you!
Nothing about him being a gnostic Christian and how he opposed the god of the Bible Yahweh?
How?
I'm glad that this saints were not Catholics , but the real christians like our church.
He was catholic
@@NevetsWC1134 don't believe the Catholic church
@Horaō show me a verse that mentioned Catholic, Jesus came to make a christian church without a title of division, the Catholic sect is not biblical, all the disciples were called christians in Antioch, the Romans pagan religions was catholicism. The first church was The WAY. Stop the nonsense, we christians want to make Catholics christian something biblical, but catholicism refuse, and want to make christians Catholic something not biblical but pagan.
@@juliorivera870 Mate, I used to be alot like you. Afew things I want you to know are:
- Catholics are our Brothers and Sisters in Christ
- All Roman Catholics are Christians but not all Christians are Roman Catholic
- Research Church History and Read The Church Fathers
- Protestantism isn't anywhere as Biblical as you think it is
- Work towards Church unity, not division
- Protestantism split off from Catholicism
- Every Christian considered themselves "catholic" until the 16th century
- The first time Christians where called catholic was by St Ignatius of *Antioch* in the 2nd Century
@@mrmcface713 everything you wrote is wrong, I never said protestism is biblical, but that catholicism isnt biblical, the Romans invented catholicism and is not what Christ taught, the Catholics invented protestism when the Catholics divided, iam a christian , never was catholic, Christ came to make everyone christian, and that's what the holy scriptures teach us, nothing about catholicism dogma, I never use to be like you, and I never will be like you, because you are catholicism brain washed, I'm Christian with the mind of Christ.
Sorry to say that there were a number of religious fanatics in the early history of the church! monks who beat themselves. stayed awake for days with ropes preventing them from falling over! men living up trees! Paul spoke about this behaviour which was not true Christianity at Col 2:23 counselled "Such conduct may have an air of wisdom, with its forced piety, its self mortification! and its severity to the body; but it is of no use at all in combating sensuality". Sadly Justin had a 'preoccupation' with 'martyrdom'!
Here it talks about Saints
Revelation 12:17
17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
he said nothing interesting, wise or valuable. Like most catholic / orthodox theologians.