Justin, Martyr

Justin, a layman, lived in the very early years of the Church. He was a great teacher and his writings remain with us today. He was an historian who wrote about the Christian faith. He explained the Eucharist and other celebrations, to help many people come to the faith. He often debated pagan scholars of the day, and was eventually tortured and killed because of that. We honor him today for this great contribution to the Church.

Justin searched for a time before finding God. Once he had found God, he kept the faith even to death. Although martyrdom may not be the fate of any of us, we should be prepared to defend our faith at any given moment.