But further: The Church, within a short number of years from the date of its birth, must have had all the consciousness that it was a young society. It was engaged in a constant struggle for existence, and had before it the alternative of enlarging its numbers, or perishing. A new society constantly struggling for existence could not fail within this interval of time to have the most lively consciousness of what it was to which it owed its origin, and which formed the bond of union among its members. It must have been to them a constantly recurring thought. Every one must have known that it was an alleged miraculous fact, a supposed Resurrection of one who had been crucified. Was it possible for the members of such a society to avoid looking back with anxiety on the alleged ground of its existence? It was no dogma capable of endless discussion, but a fact. The bond of union was allegiance to a living person. Is it conceivable that this person was not the object of daily interest to its members, or that they did not make His history the subject of earnest inquiry? Can we suppose for one moment that any of them were ignorant of or had forgotten the grounds on which they had joined the new community, or which formed the basis of its life? The recollections of the members of a society which is only between twenty and thirty years old must be fresh. But it may be said, these people were very credulous. Be it so. Credulous people placed in the circumstances of the Christian Church are never deficient in curiosity. Even if the belief in the Resurrection of Jesus had originated in credulity, the first principles of human nature would have urged them to get all the information which they could respecting it. They were in the exact position to enable them to do this. Within ten, twenty, thirty, or forty years, there must have been plenty of information at hand to enable them to ascertain whether the society to which they belonged did or did not owe its existence to this belief, and to get full information as to the general outline of the story on which it was founded. It is impossible for members of a society whose origin was so recent to have remained ignorant of the circumstances which gave it birth. They must have been handed down by a lively tradition. I conclude therefore, that it would have been simply impossible for the members of the Church, within this short time, to be mistaken as to whether its existence and continued life was due to the belief that its founder had risen from the dead, or whether He was supposed to have worked miracles during His life; and that its belief could not have been due to mythic or legendary causes.