Justyn Męczennik – koncepcja przyczyn świata i jej medioplatońskie wątki
Justin Martyr – Concept of the Causes of the World and the Middle Platonists Threads

Summary/Abstract: The article attempts to indicate the influence of the Middle Platonist thought on Justin Martyr’s cosmological views. Therefore, the concept of the first causes of the world according to this Apologist was reconstructed and confronted with the Middle Platonist views. This allowed to show which views Justin shared with his Platonist contemporaries and what original issues he added to them, creating one of the first Christian cosmologies. Justin, like the Middle Platonists, points out the transcendence, causality and goodness of God. He also develops the concept of the Logos which at some points coincides with the Middle Platonists. Basing on extracts taken from the Apologies, one can assume that this Christian thinker, following the Middle Platonists, considers the matter the second, uncreated cause of the world, while in the Dialogue with Trypho, he claims that only God is the uncaused cause of everything. Therefore, the article presents a hypothesis about an evolution of Justin’s thought. The main difference between Justin’s concept and the Middle Platonists’ thought is a different understanding of God’s goodness. This difference leads to different conclusions about the causes of the world.

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