I have read Tom Harpur's The Pagan Christ together with other writings on the same theme and it does seem that no matter how controversial this may become it promises to be a primary influence for the future of Christianity.
In fact I would go further in saying that interpreting Scripture as a symbol or metaphor for reality is the correct psychological attitude to adopt towards mankind's evolutionary development in Christ.
The historical Jesus should be seen as a convenience, an introduction to what we mean by God and the wondrous truth revealed by His Grace.
Those early sages, attempting to understand the meaning of our existence, were struggling with the limitations of language to convey a message so simple yet so profound that we of the 21st century can scarce believe it.
For all the distortion, error, ridicule, condemnation and hypocrisy over the centuries, the truth, although not understood except through faith, lies in our hearts and minds.
The future of Christianity is assured. Its meaning will never die but its form will forever change. The distortion of truth which occurred in our past will be finally understood and in consequence our relationship to what we call God will become clear. The lost light will have been rediscovered.
