The latest Jesus and Mo strip, called “bloke2” is a cartoon from 2009; the author says it’s is “the last in this series of resurrections”. This is of course ironic because Jesus’s own scriptures, the New Testament also evince no knowledge beyond that possessed by non-divine people when the book was written.
I wasn’t raised in any religion but was drawn in to the cultural assumption that the Bible was an amazing, astonishing book of great wisdom and beauty. Those who read it were always struck by the depth of the characters and the complexity of the stories, with God’s presence and love shining through sweeping historical sagas. This was a great book, a book for the ages. God, speaking to His creations. It was every bit as useful and relevant today as then.
After graduating with a degree in literature, I decided it was time and I was ready. I read through the whole thing.
It was only then that I appreciated how much people under psychological pressure will import what they need to see into a text. Had I approached the Bible as an interesting ancient document, I might have been impressed. As it was, it was oversold. Most overrated book, ever.
Some books of the bible — I’m thinking here particularly of Ecclesiastes, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Proverbs, and Psalms — provide rich sources of idiom and allusion (though even these books, like the rest of the bible, are marred by their abundant longueurs).
Most of the credit due here, though, goes, I think, to the 17th century translation done by King James’s committeemen, rather than to the ancient texts themselves. The Hitch nailed this aspect in his piece “When the King Saved God.”
Note that, in England the KJV is still under copyright. Whilst an American can freely publish it, in England, you need permission of one o several crown appointed bodies.
Mr. Deity has many funny and pointed takes on the Bronze Age ignoramuses who wrote the Bible: https://www.youtube.com/c/misterdeity/featured