that the Christian is to hate the material world or its inhabitants, or that he should refrain from contact with them. This would, of course, be an absurdity. Even if man cannot live on bread alone, he cannot live without bread—and without the structures of society that make it possible to grow crops, bake bread, and distribute it. It would be equally absurd to deny the pleasure given by the world. One may cite the extreme attitude of the Essenes, who were said to refrain from intercourse with their