<p>St. Justin was born in 100, and was an early Christian Apologist.&nbsp; Most of his works are lost, but two Apologies and a Dialogue did survive.&nbsp; The Roman Catholic Church considers him a saint.&nbsp; Most of what we know about him comes from his own writings.&nbsp; He was born in Nablus, Palestine into a pagan family, and defined himself as a Gentile.&nbsp; He tells us that he received a Greek education.&nbsp; He wanted to learn more about philosophical issues, but not one of them could explain God to him.&nbsp; He befriended an old Palestinian or Syrian Christian man, who engaged him in a dialogue about God and spoke of the testimony of the prophets as being more reliable than the reasoning of philosophers.&nbsp; He tells us that this &ldquo;conversation&rdquo; was what kindled in him a love of Christ and led him to embrace Christianity.&nbsp; He was furthered influenced by the fearless way Christians were embracing executions. &nbsp;</p> <p>After his conversion, he adopted the dress of a philosopher and traveled about teaching.&nbsp; During the reign of Antoninus Pius, he arrived in Rome and started his own school.&nbsp; One of his students was Tatian, and in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, he disputed with other philosophers of his time.&nbsp; For this reason, he was denounced and turned into authorities, according to Eusebius and Tatian.&nbsp; He was tried, along with six of his companions.&nbsp; He was beheaded in what is believed to be the year 165.&nbsp; His court record is preserved in the Martyrdom.&nbsp; His relics are held in the Church of St. John the Baptist in Sacrofano, a few miles north of Rome.&nbsp; In 1882, Pope Leo XIII had a Mass and an Office composed for his Feast Day, which was April 14^th.&nbsp; In 1968 his Feast Day was moved to June 1^st, and continues to be venerated then. &nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong>Practical Take Away</strong></span></p> <p>St. Justin was born in 100, and was an early Christian Apologist.&nbsp; Most of his works are lost, but two Apologies and a Dialogue did survive.&nbsp; The Roman Catholic Church considers him a saint.&nbsp; Most of what we know about him comes from his own writings.&nbsp; He was born in Nablus, Palestine into a pagan family, and defined himself as a Gentile.&nbsp; He tells us that he received a Greek education.&nbsp; He wanted to learn more about philosophical issues, but not one of them could explain God to him.&nbsp; He befriended an old Palestinian or Syrian Christian man, who engaged him in a dialogue about God and spoke of the testimony of the prophets as being more reliable than the reasoning of philosophers.&nbsp; He tells us that this &ldquo;conversation&rdquo; was what kindled in him a love of Christ and led him to embrace Christianity.&nbsp; He was furthered influenced by the fearless way Christians were embracing executions.&nbsp; He was martyred for the faith in the year 165. &nbsp;</p>