I plan to read Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection. It appears to be an incredibly well-sourced and thorough analysis of the ancient origins of Christianity. It's essentially the study of the basis of much religion -- the ancient Egyptian sun god, Horus. The ocumentary Zeitgeist also gets into this, and while it's a bit superficial and non-sourced, I think it's a good introduction to some of these concepts.
I find this subject so intriguing, I think, because it gives me a tangible place to put the feelings I have had my whole life: that the universe is bigger and more mysterious than humanity has quite been able to grasp. And that Christianity is a red herring.
I would give just about anything for members of my family to understand this. But they are shackled by their faith. They cannot lend any credence to anything doesn't exalt Christ as the Holy Being. They are so fully engaged in the mythology of their time that they are unable to see very similar mythologies propagated by their (ancient) ancestors.
Don't get me wrong, sometimes I envy them. They have something to hold on to.
It's hard to over-estimate the importance of the Bible. I do understand that as a historical and allegorical document it is extremely valuable. But my instinct is always to look at the big picture -- to pull the lens, as it were, as far back as the instrument of my mind can expand. I wish to look at patterns.But in the end, we are just little, fallible, dopey humans. The Bible is so rich, so full of this incredible mythology, full of fantastical events that took place just long enough ago that they can seem ancient and larger than our current lives. Given this richness, any pastor or priest at any church the world over can derive multiple sermons each week from this one source. And the sermons will be beautiful. A person can bring their family, or just themselves, to a Christian church or Jewish Temple and feel that they've been given a light. Shown a way.
Disregarding politics for a moment -- this is the positive side of what keeps religion going. And if the earth lasts long enough, I suppose there will be another messiah with another mythology built around it. Naturally, we have teachers in the present day to help us understand these things. But somehow, I feel I've come to a much deeper understanding of all this for the first time in my life. And it feels so very good. Because it helps me shed my familial guilt. Guilt for not being a believer. Because I see what I believe to be the truth. I have always known instinctively that God lives in each of us. And that no religious dogma can be anything but a loose guideline. And I know that that in and of itself is faith. And it is mine. It doesn't belong to a doctrine. None of the beautiful things in life really do.
