as who wrote the books of the Bible, under what circumstances, with what purposes and, with respect to historical issues, how accurately—invariably works against rigid fundamentalism. My purpose here is not to revisit this larger question, but it is necessary to bring it up because I think it plays a significant role in why some scholars and clergy experience a crisis of faith and make radical shifts. When it comes to evaluating Jesus, popular Christian apologists often appeal to the triad of options