repoman

I think that in the meme field that the old religious imagery, and folktales and parables just stick so well in our mind and emotions that it would be foolish to avoid using that mode for ourselves. The same people who dislike the bible on whole can get real deep in Tolkien who delves into some of the same fields.
Honestly, just because the Bible has some odd parts doesn't mean the parables and proverbs are useless. This mode of moral instruction must have some use even to people who aren't cristian. I like to read about other religions though, cause they are fresh to me and less spoiled with selfrighteousness.
I think what leaves a bad taste for me is the self righteousness and exclusivity that the Abrahamic religions spread. I can read things just as enlightening in the Tao Te Ching, thank you very much.

My guess is that us picking up allegorical associations and casting life experiences in parables and looking for heros and even saviours is so ingrained in us that that a forceful rejection of this mode of thinking (not just rejecting religion in general) may be harmful to us. It may be that this is currently the default position of those crazy things called emotions lead to.
I mean, if our emotions lead us to have some goofy ideas we need not beat ourselves up about it. We should just laugh and know that we can't be 100% rational all the time. You can see a ghost or have a vision in a dream and then with a sly wink to yourself wake up knowing it's not "real" but it's not meaningless.

It may be that TV and movies give us all the allegory. parable, proverbs heros, and saviours that we need. In fact I think it is mostly the act of SUSPENDING DISBELIEF in a morally driven movie or book (It's a Wonderful Life or The Lord of Rings etc...) is one ofthe only things that brings many people close to a religious experience.
Now if I was around 2-4,000 years ago, I would be suspending my disbelief all the time at the stories told be the rabbi, priest or what have you. These were the top of the line stories at the time. Now of course, they're swiss cheese.

When I occasionally go to church, I try to let the God and Jesus stuff just slide past me and try to absorb some of the flavor of a time when the scientific knowledge was less and there were no psychologists enabling people in their narcissistic agony.

Sorry for the rambling, hope it makes sense...

repoman

I think what i am saying is that reading the texts of religions or myths you can actually get more out of them when you take the message behind them seriously, but not the literal facts laid out. I got a lot out of Tolkien but it is not my religion.

However, the abrahamic religions are harder to use than the earlier myths because the Torah starts out with a sole claim to moral authority that extended to the Jews. And all that shit is worse than useless. Then the Christians and Muslims copped the same attitude. What a fucking waste. But I still think that their is some good fruit on that rotten tree.
Some of Paul's writings are pretty decent, Romans is about the only book in the Bible i can read without reservations, But I think that his ethics there are not purely in the Jewish tradition, or am I wrong?

Speaking of the Torah, when Cain and Abel go out to live in the land of Nod which is already INHABITED, what is the implied meaning of this? Is there no meaning, just a poorly thought out story? Or does it mean that the Jews were saying that they were created seperately from the Gentiles?