June 1 - St. Justin

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June 1

ST. JUSTIN

St. Justin was from Samaria. He lived in the second century. His father brought him up without any belief in God. When he was a boy, Justin read poetry, history and science. As he grew up, he kept on studying. His main purpose for studying was to find the truth about God.


One day as he was walking along the shore of the sea, Justin met an old man. They began to talk together. Since Justin looked troubled, the man asked him what was on his mind. Justin answered that he was unhappy because he had not found anything certain about God in all the books he had read. The old man told him about Jesus, the Savior. He encouraged Justin to pray so that he would be able to understand the truth about God.


St. Justin began to pray and to read the Word of God, the Bible. He grew to love it very much. He was also impressed to see how brave the Christians were who were dying for their belief in and love for Jesus. After learning more about the Christian religion, Justin became a Christian. Then he used his great knowledge to explain and defend the faith with many writings.


It was in Rome that St. Justin was arrested for being a Christian. The judge asked him, "Do you think that by dying you will enter heaven and be rewarded?" "I don't just think so," the saint answered. "I am sure of it!" And he died a martyr around the year 166."