> I've come to believe that everything wrong with religion comes from taking it literally
I don't disagree, but would only refine your point.
I think the pathology of religions come from several places: the inevitable divide between the environment in which they were written and the current world and not refreshing that original view quickly enough with enough wisdom, the projection of one's ethics on to other people, and, like you said, mistaking the metaphorical for the literal when it is not adaptive (which is difficult as sometimes feedback can take decades if not generations to hit).
IMHO religions are like Swiss army knives. They've got a huge number of blades and tools. Idiots use Swiss army knives like a hammer and bang away and their problems. People that have only seen it used as a hammer miss out on its finer wisdom. And if one gets stabbed with it they're less likely to look openly upon the tool or kindly upon the user.
I don't disagree, but would only refine your point.
I think the pathology of religions come from several places: the inevitable divide between the environment in which they were written and the current world and not refreshing that original view quickly enough with enough wisdom, the projection of one's ethics on to other people, and, like you said, mistaking the metaphorical for the literal when it is not adaptive (which is difficult as sometimes feedback can take decades if not generations to hit).
IMHO religions are like Swiss army knives. They've got a huge number of blades and tools. Idiots use Swiss army knives like a hammer and bang away and their problems. People that have only seen it used as a hammer miss out on its finer wisdom. And if one gets stabbed with it they're less likely to look openly upon the tool or kindly upon the user.