The Jesus Inquest

Book excerpt: Most books defending the Resurrection do not give adequate room to the arguments against. Charles Foster presents key points as a heated, no-holds barred debate between barristers. 'There are grounds for Christian confidence,' says the author. 'The best way of demonstrating that is to have a fair fight.' The key arguments against the Resurrection, all of which Foster deals with robustly, include: The evidence is hopelessly fragmentary; Jesus did not die on the Cross; it was highly unlikely the Romans would hand a body over; why should the Romans really bother to guard the tomb of a tin-pot Messiah?; Mark's Gospel is the primary source for both Matthew and Luke, and Mark does not deal at all with post-Resurrection appearances.