What I Learned from the Early Christians about Spiritual Growth, Part 6: We need the Truth

Human beings all have differing intellectual capabilities. Some excel at book learning, some learn by observing nature, and still others learn by doing. Some learn new ideas and come to new thoughts quickly. Others, who are just as intelligent, process information at a slower pace. These differences are given to us by God. Saint Catherine of Siena assures us that we have all been given different gifts so that we will learn to depend upon and love one another.[1] Therefore, we should not envy one another, but seek to learn from each other, because everyone has something to offer to the People of God.

Despite these differing gifts, there are also important ways in which we are all the same. There are certain basic needs which we all have. In the physical realm we all need food, oxygen, sleep, shelter, and a host of other things that will help us grow. Just as it is in the material world, so it is in the spiritual world. There are certain non-negotiables that we all need in order to grow spiritually. The first, and perhaps foremost of these spiritual needs is the need for the truth that comes from Jesus, who proclaimed to the world that He is “the way, the truth and the life.”

But how do we discern the truth, in a world with a million voices, each proclaiming a different version? One of the earliest Christian Philosophers, Justin Martyr, wrestled with this very question, and the conclusion to which he came, which he set forth in his Dialogue with Trypho, is stunning in both its simplicity and its power.

In this dialogue, Justin begins by recounting a conversation he had with an old man by the seashore. Justin tells us that as a young man he had been passionately searching for the truth, exploring all the different philosophical systems popular in the ancient world, only to reject them one by one. In the midst of this process, Justin encountered the old man, who revealed to him in a short conversation the inability of human philosophy to arrive at the truth about God without divine revelation. The old man spoke to Justin about the prophets, who pointed the way to Christ, and about Christ Himself, the author of all truth. Justin records in his Dialogue that “straightway a flame was kindled in my soul; and a love of the prophets, and of those men who are friends of Christ, possessed me; and while revolving his words in my mind, I found this philosophy alone to be safe and profitable.”[2]

What an astonishing transformation! In one conversation, a worldly, learned philosopher is transformed into an eager believer in Christ, renouncing all other philosophies for the sake of Christ. Modern scholars tend to doubt that events occurred exactly the way Justin presented them, but I believe one would be rash to come to such a conclusion without careful study.

Justin’s transformation, which he presents as having occurred in a single instance, has occurred to other people throughout history, and will happen again and again in the future. The conditions under which this kind of sudden intellectual conversion can occur seem to me to be twofold:

1. A deep study of worldly philosophy must have left the person confused and uncertain, but not cynical.
2. There must still be a conviction in the person’s heart that truth actually exists and can be discovered.

If these two conditions are met, and the Holy Spirit sends the right witness to the person at the right moment, this kind of sudden conversion can occur. And this, it would seem, is what happened in the life of Justin Martyr.

What happens, though, when this kind of conversion to the truth occurs? How can a person who has devoted his whole life to the use of the intellect surrender to Christ in this way? Does not his own prior knowledge, his use of logic and reason, interfere with the process? Why did not Justin’s own great learning interfere with his conversion?

Perhaps the best way to understand what happened to Justin, and what has happened to other great Catholic thinkers down through the ages, is that when he heard the Gospel presented it resonated with something deep in his soul, something that transcends the power of human language to describe, and he knew that Christianity is true, and the Christ is indeed the way, the truth and the life,

Such a means of discovering the truth is deeply contrary to the way in which the world operates today, and many prominent secular thinkers openly ridicule such experiences. But in order to understand the things of God we must open our souls to experience His truth in a deeper way. In this process, the Intellect is the partner, not the master, of the soul. The intellect detects fallacies and rejects falsehood, but it is the soul that guides us in understanding the deeper truths.

An example of this process can be found in the New Testament. When Peter became convinced that Jesus was the Messiah, a conviction he expressed out loud in Matthew 16:16, Jesus responded. “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17.) In this particular case, Peter had spent a great deal of time in the presence of Jesus, but it was not his intellect that brought him to the conclusion that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, but divine revelation that Peter was open enough to receive.

How can we open ourselves to the conversion of our mind as well as our hearts? Prayerful study of God’s Word and the writings of the great spiritual teachers of the Church combined with a prayerful reception of the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Communion can open our souls to the reception of spiritual truths. But we must also be careful to keep our own egos in check. We must desire only to listen to God and not mistake our own thoughts for the truths of God. That’s why, as in the case of Justin Martyr, the guidance of a wise spiritual director is essential in this process.

Justin Martyr was blessed in that even though he was thoroughly trained in a logical mode of thinking he was able to experience an intuitive knowledge of a much deeper truth, the truth that is Christ. Justin eventually settled in Rome, where he operated a catechetical school for about twenty years and wrote two important apologies. He was martyred most likely on April 13, 165. His feast is celebrated on June 1 in the modern Roman calendar.

[1] See Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 1937.

[2] Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, 8.