Michael Arnheim is listed in the credits to his books as "Jan Hofmeyer Professor of Classical Civilization" and author of books on the Greek and Roman aristocracy. But you wouldn't know it from this book written by him, which is little more than a plethora of the standard arguments combined with vague generalizations and untutored sociology.
There are a few major errors in this text. For example, John the Baptist is identified as a "Messianic contender," with the assertion that "by no means can we be sure that he did disclaim any such role" [!]), and one instance of rank dishonesty as we are told in one place that the Slaughter of the Innocents is not mentioned in the works of a contemporary historian, Nicholas of Damascus. The dishonesty: We are not told until the bibliography that we do not have his works extant except in fragments related by Josephus. So we can hardly know that it was not mentioned (or that it ought to have been).
And speaking of that bibliography, it is full of outdated sources, and internal footnotes number less than half a dozen. Very odd for a professor of classical civilization. And very odd that anyone could think to determine the truth of Christianity in a scant 150 pages coupled with about 50 more pages of concerning Christian "intolerance".
I was very disappointed with this book. Where I was hoping to find new challenges, I did not.
-JPH