CHRISTIANITY AND AGNOSTICISM. 339 



of a far more momentous nature than he recognizes ; but it is by 

 no means the most important. It is beyond question that the 

 Christian society, from the earliest moment of its existence, be- 

 lieved in our Lord's resurrection. Baur frankly says that there 

 is no doubt about the church having been founded on this belief, 

 though he can not explain how the belief arose. If the resurrec- 

 tion be a fact, the belief is explained ; but it is certainly not ex- 

 plained by the supposition of a fraud on the part of Joseph of Ari- 

 mathea. As to Prof. Huxley's assertion that the accounts in the 

 three Gospels are "hopelessly discrepant," it is easily made and as 

 easily denied ; but it is out of all reason that Prof. Huxley's bare 

 assertion on such a point should outweigh the opinions of some 

 of the most learned judges of evidence, who have thought no such 

 thing. It would be absurd to attempt to discuss that momentous 

 story as a side issue in a review. It is enough to have pointed out 

 that Prof. Huxley discusses it without even taking into account 

 the statements of the very narrative on which he relies. The man- 

 ner in which he sets aside St. Paul is equally reckless : 



According to his own showing, Paul, in the vigor of his manhood, with every 

 means of becoming acquainted, at first hand, with the evidence of eye-witnesses, 

 not merely refused to credit them, but "persecuted, the Church of God and. made 

 havoc of it." . . . Yet this strange man, because he has a vision one day, at once, 

 and with equally headlong zeal, flies to the opppsite pole of opinion. 



" A vision ! " The whole question is, what vision ? How can 

 Prof. Huxley be sure that no vision could be of such a nature as 

 to justify a man in acting on it ? If, as we are told, our Lord 

 personally appeared to St. Paul, spoke to him, and gave him spe- 

 cific commands, was he to disbelieve his own eyes and ears, as 

 well as his own conscience, and go up to Jerusalem to cross- 

 examine Peter and John and James ? If the vision was a real 

 one he was at once under orders, and had to obey our Lord's 

 injunctions. It is, to say the least, rash, if not presumptuous, 

 for Prof. Huxley to declare that such a vision as St. Paul had 

 would not have convinced him ; and, at all events, the question is 

 not disposed of by calling the manisfestation "a vision." Two 

 things are certain about St. Paul. One is that he was in the con- 

 fidence of the Pharisees, and was their trusted agent in persecut- 

 ing the Christians ; and the other is that he was afterward in the 

 confidence of the apostles, and knew all their side of the case. He 

 holds; therefore, the unique position of having had equal access 

 to all that would be alleged on both sides ; and the result is that, 

 being fully acquainted with all that the Pharisees could urge 

 against the resurrection, he nevertheless gave up his whole life to 

 attesting its truth, and threw in his lot, at the cost of martyrdom, 

 with those whom he had formerly persecuted. Prof. Huxley re- 

 minds us that he did all this in the full vigor of manhood, and in 



