Of course, this simply begs the question. Why is the presumption of atheism any less inviolable than belief in Jesus Christ as Lord? In its own way, the same argument holds true for assertions of agnosticism, since the true agnostic argues that the question of God's existence simply cannot be answered. That is about as inviolable an axiom as one is likely to encounter.

Give Fox his due, he attempts to exclude believers from the academy with fair warning. "Faith-based Bible study is not part of scholarship even if some of its postulates turn out to be true." Thus, even if the believing scholar makes a scholarly argument that non-believers find convincing, that work is still to be denied the status of scholarship, simply because the person is neither agnostic nor atheist.

Fox does attempt to distinguish between "faith-based Bible study" and "the scholarship of persons who hold a personal faith." He explains, "there are many religious individuals whose scholarship is secular and who introduce their faith only in distinctly religious forums." Nevertheless, Fox never really explains how these persons are anything other than secular in their scholarly conclusions. Does he believe that persons live in separate intellectual spheres and can operate as authentic believers in one sphere but not in any other?

Fox's frustration is clear: "There is an atmosphere abroad in academia (loosely associated with postmodernism) that tolerates and even encourages ideological scholarship and advocacy instruction. Some conservative religionists have picked this up. I have heard students, and read authors, who justify their biases by the rhetoric of postmodern self-indulgence. Since no one is viewpoint neutral and everyone has presuppositions, why exclude Christian presuppositions? Why allow the premise of errancy but not of inerrancy? Such sophistry can be picked apart, but the climate does favor it."

Fox may dismiss these arguments as "sophistry," but he never answers his own questions. Why should the premise of biblical errancy be considered ideologically neutral, but the assertion of biblical inerrancy is considered to be evidence of distorting bias?

"The claim of faith-based Bible study to a place at the academic table takes a toll on the entire field of Bible scholarship," Fox laments. "The reader or student of Bible scholarship is likely to suspect (or hope) that the author or teacher is moving toward a predetermined conclusion. Those who choose a faith-based approach should realize that they cannot expect the attention of those who don't share their postulates. The reverse is not true."

Get it? In Fox's scheme, the secularist wins the coin toss whichever side turns up. "The best thing for Bible appreciation is secular, academic, religiously-neutral hermeneutic." That is an astounding claim, and one that demands a far more developed argument and series of definitions. Does Fox actually believe in the myth of a "secular, academic, religiously-neutral hermeneutic?" Does he believe in the Easter Bunny?