n, having but one heart and one mind. No one possessed anything
which was his own. On becoming a disciple of Jesus, one sold one's goods
and made a gift of the proceeds to the society. The chiefs of the
society then distributed the common possessions to each, according to
his needs. They lived in the same quarter. They took their meals
together, and continued to attach to them the mystic sense that Jesus
had prescribed. They passed long hours in prayers. Their prayers were
sometimes improvised aloud, but more often meditated in silence. The
concord was perfect; no dogmatic quarrels, no disputes in regard to
precedence. The tender recollection of Jesus effaced all dissensions.
Joy, lively and deep-seated, was in every heart. Their morals were
austere, but pervaded by a soft and tender sentiment. They assembled in
houses to pray and to devote themselves to ecstatic exercises. The
recollection of these two or three first years remained and seemed to
them like a terrestrial paradise, which Christianity will pursue
henceforth in all its dreams and to which it will vainly endeavor to
return. Such an organization could only be applicable to a very small
church.

The apostles chosen by Jesus, and who were supposed to have received
from him a special mandate to announce to the world the kingdom of God,
had, in the little community, an incontestable superiority. One of the
first cares, as soon as they saw the sect settle quietly down at
Jerusalem, was to fill the vacancy that Judas of Kerioth had left in its
ranks. The opinion that the latter had betrayed his master, and had been
the cause of his death, became more and more general. The legend was
mixed up with him, and every day one heard of some new circumstance
which enhanced the black-heartedness of his deed. In order to replace
him, it was resolved to have recourse to a vote of some sort. The sole
condition was that the candidate should be chosen from the groups of the
oldest disciples, who had been witnesses of the whole series of events,
from the time of the baptism of John. This reduced considerably the
number of those eligible. Two only were found in the ranks, Joseph
Bar-Saba, who bore the name of Justus, and Matthias. The lot fell upon
Matthias, who was accounted as one of the Twelve. But this was the sole
instance of such a replacing.

The body of Twelve lived, generally, permanently at Jerusalem. Till
about the year 60 the apostles did not leave the holy city except