If you want to really start thinking outside the box, Michael Hudson's latest book would be a good place to start;
One of the primary points he makes is that Jesus's actual, original message; "Forgive them their debts." really was about economics, as the practice of debt jubilees had been ignored for some centuries and the gap between rich and poor had grown wide. It was only as Christianty became the official religion of the Roman Empire, that it became; "Forgive them their sins." as a way to guilt trip people into compliance with top down authority.
Another good author on the origins of Western civilization is Gilbert Murray;
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/30250/30250-h/30250-h.htm
One of his many interesting points is that the Ancients were not entirely ignorant of monotheism, but as there was no distinction between culture and civics, it equated with authoritarianism. As in one God, one ruler. Thus monarchy and the "divine right of kings," as the default political assumption of the medieval period.
Remember that democracy and republicanism originted in pantheistic cultures, which was the original version of multiculturalism, as tribal cultures settled into nationist city states. Many gods, many voices. The Trinity was an acknowledgement of these deeper complexities.
It was when the West went back to populist forms of government that separation of church and state, culture and civics, became necessary.
The logical fallacy of monotheism is that a spiritual absolute would be that essence of sentience, from which life rises, not an ideal of wisdom and judgement, from which it fell. More the raw consciousness seeking knowledge, than any form or brand of it. The light shining through the film, than the images and storyline on it.
While the father figure lawgiver is a useful device for instilling respect for culture and authority into an ever regenerating population, conflating the ideal with the absolute is socially and politically incendiary, as one is aspirational, while the other is elemental. Consider that all the political movements which have tried to replace monarchy have all tried making the same assumption; That their ideals are absolute. From the Terrors of the French Revolution, to the purges of Stalinism, to even the worship of the bottomline in late stage capitalist materialism, no debate or nuance is allowed, when ideals are at stake.
The fact is that good and bad are not some cosmic duel between the forces of righteousness and evil, but the basic biological binary of beneficial and detrimental. The 1/0 of sentient life. Even bacteria sense that polarity. It is from this elemental push and pull that all the higher order social impulses and standards emerge; Love, honor, trust, respect, responsibility, etc.
So when we good as aspirational, rather than elemental, conflicts tend to become a race to the bottom, of us versus them, good versus bad. Rather than each being able to expect the other to hold to higher standards and using such obstacles to further evolve.
A few lessons from my 60 years. Good luck on your travels.
