But about the middle of the second century Christianity was obliged to change its attitude towards both science and the State. Between 150 and 250 a great change took place among the Christians. The documentary records are full of doctrinal struggles, so that little room was left for recording the struggles for moral purity. Morality became subordinated to belief, and the intellectual side of Christianity was emphasized at the expense of the ethical. The Second Coming of our Lord was less emphasized. This doctrine was either pushed into the background or its realization was looked upon as not immediate. Furthermore, the Christian sect had spread over the empire and had come into positive relations both with circles of culture and with political affairs. Various statistics of the numerical growth of the Christians are given; among them is the following statement: in 30 A. D. they numbered 500, in 100 A. D. 500,000, in 311 A. D. 30,000,000. In the second century the self-justification of Christianity could no longer be put upon the basis of the feelings and inner convictions. It must justify itself to the world without, and to its own cultured communicants as well. It was being attacked by philosophy, and, unless its own further growth were to be thwarted, it found that it must use the weapons of philosophy. Its increase of power antagonized both the Roman state and Hellenistic culture, and from 150 to 300 the fight between Christianity and the old world of things was to the death. Christianity eventually conquered Rome and Hellenism; but this would have been impossible if it had maintained its original attitude of indifference to culture. Its success was due to the wisdom that it has since so often shown. It adapted itself to its new situation by taking over and making its own the culture of the old world, and by fighting the old world with that culture. Christianity thereby shaped its own constitution into such strength that it could obtain possession of the state with Constantine in 300. From this impregnable political position, it was able to deal with its rivals on an entirely different footing. When old Rome fell in 476, the church did not fall with it, but on the contrary it came into possession of the city.