Paul had been imprisoned in Rome for the
second time, this time by the Emperor Nero. He
writes to Timothy, who is probably in Ephesus at the time, wanting him to come
to Rome to spend time with him. We hear the beginning of this letter in our first reading today. Even
though he is prison, Paul is still able to express his gratitude and is able to
be encouraging and bold in his advice to Timothy. Paul was one of the great evangelizers and
Patriarchs of the Early Church. St
Justin Martyr, the saint whom we celebrate today, must have been recognized in
a special way for his dying for the faith, since the term “martyr” is officially attached to the way he is remembered in the Church as a saint. Justin was born into a pagan family in the year 100. Even though he was initially attracted to
Plato and the Greek philosophers, these philosophies led him to Christ and into
conversion to Christianity. Justin is primarily remembered for his Christian apologetics, for the way he
defended the faith against other religions and philosophies. In a
letter Justin Martyr wrote in 155, we have the first description of a liturgy
in the Early Church. Justin description
is very similar to the flow and elements that we have in mass today. In particular, what strikes me about his
description of mass is his description of the Eucharist: “This
food we call the Eucharist, of which no one is allowed to partake except one
who believes that the things we teach are true, and has received the washing
for forgiveness of sins and for rebirth, and who lives as Christ handed down to
us. For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but as
Jesus Christ our Savior being incarnate by God’s Word took flesh and blood for
our salvation.” Justin Martyr was beheaded in Rome in 165 as a martyr for the faith. Today, we give thanks for Paul, Justin Martyr, and all those Early Church
Fathers and Mothers who boldly lived out their faith and passed down their
faith to us.
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