@ReaverFlash I'm not trying to say he is being in any way deceitful - indeed, the eye he turns on the apologists is a scholarly one. I believe Dickson correctly portrays the stances of all the people he quotes, pro and con.  But of course he did not pick the people he quoted out by sticking a pin in a list of everyone who has written on the subject. To support his contention that the 'factual' components of the Gospels are indeed factual, he quoted scholars who believe this is the case. This is not improper, but we have to recognise that sources can have a POV (ask anyone trying to write articles on the history of the old Soviet bloc!!!) and we have to factor that in. To be honest, I wouldn't accept a vague "most scholars believe..." statement from anyone on this subject.