The Christian apologist Justin Martyr (c. 100–c. 164) faced a dilemma. He entrusted his soul to a humble Jewish rabbi who lived and died only a century before him. Such a short time span, a mere one hundred years, would pose no problem today. We despise what is old and treasure what is new. But the ancients, with their respect for hoary traditions, felt suspicion toward any prophet so recent as that. To meet an objection that emerged from his particular culture, Justin