to politics. Josephus, who, through his teacher Banou, was
brought into almost direct connection with John, suggests as much by
his ambiguous words,[7] and the catastrophe which put an end to John's
life seems to imply this. His disciples led a very austere life,[8]
fasted often, and affected a sad and anxious demeanor. We have at
times glimpses of communism--the rich man being ordered to share all
that he had with the poor.[9] The poor man appeared as the one who
would be specially benefited by the kingdom of God.

[Footnote 1: Matt. iii. 2.]

[Footnote 2: Matt. iii. 7.]

[Footnote 3: Luke iii. 11-14; Josephus, _Ant._ XVIII. v. 2.]

[Footnote 4: Matt. xxi. 32; Luke iii. 12-14.]

[Footnote 5: Matt. iii. 9.]

[Footnote 6: Matt. iii. 7; Luke iii. 7.]

[Footnote 7: _Ant._ XVIII. v. 2. We must observe that, when Josephus
described the secret and more or less seditious doctrines of his
countrymen, he suppressed everything which had reference to the
Messianic beliefs, and, in order not to give umbrage to the Romans,
spread over these doctrines a vulgar and commonplace air, which made
all the heads of Jewish sects appear as mere professors of morals or
stoics.]

[Footnote 8: Matt. ix. 14.]

[Footnote 9: Luke iii. 11.]

Although the centre of John's action was Judea, his fame quickly
penetrated to Galilee and reached Jesus, who, by his first discourses,
had already gathered around himself a small circle of hearers.
Enjoying as yet little authority, and doubtless impelled by the desire
to see a teacher whose instruction had so much in common with his own,
Jesus quitted Galilee and repaired with his small group of disciples
to John.[1] The newcomers were baptized like every one else. John
welcomed this group of Galilean disciples, and did not object to their
remaining distinct from his own. The two teachers were young; they had
many ideas in common; they loved one another, and publicly vied with
each other in exhibitions of kindly feeling. At the first glance, such
a fact surprises us in John the Baptist, and we are tempted to call it
in question. Humility has never been a feature of strong Jewish minds.
It might have been expected that a character so stubborn, a sort of
Lamennais always irritated, would be very passionate, and suffer
neither rivalry nor half adhesion. But this manner of viewing things
rests upon a false conception of the person of John. We imagine him an
old man; he was, on the contrary, of the sam