Justin Martyr closes this section of The First Apology by arguing that the Christian message rests on something the pagan myths never possessed: prophecy fulfilled in history. The prophets foretold both the suffering of Christ and the worldwide spread of His message, and Justin points to the visible evidence around him—the destruction of Jerusalem and the growing number of Gentile believers—as confirmation that these prophecies were not empty claims. He also argues that many pagan myths arose as distorted imitations of prophetic truth, introduced to confuse people about the real Christ. In contrast, the symbol of the cross itself quietly appears throughout human life—in sails, tools, and even the human form—pointing, Justin says, to the power and rule of the crucified Christ. Augustine then gives us a very different window into the Chris ...