If comic books and contemporary sociology/philosphy of religion are your bag... take a look at Douglas Rushkoff's latest project... a series of comics books/graphic novels entitled "Testament" ... interview and tasters here ... from Comic Book Resources.
His exploration of the idea of an open source reality and his Jewish background lead Rushkoff to examine the sacred texts of Judaism. "As I explored the Jewish texts-- Torah, really, and the rest of the Bible-- I saw that it was really saying close to the opposite of what most of us think it's saying," Rushkoff said. "There's a lot of Bible-thumping going on these days-- in Judaism and Christianity alike. And it has left the impression that it's some sort of book of rules to follow, tenets to believe in and historical events to set in stone. Where it's actually the story of a revolution-- both of a bunch of people, and of human consciousness. It's a proposition for an open source reality and a set of guidelines for how to break the news to real people who love to believe in idols."
"Testament" is set in three different times and places. "Most simply stated, it takes place in a near future where things have gone a bit further in the direction they're already going," Rushkoff said. "The Gulf War has expanded, the draft has been implemented, the economy has crashed. We're in the New York area-- mostly Brooklyn to start--- with a group of draft-dodgers who are trying to change things.
"But their adventures have all happened before-- or are happening simultaneously, depending how you look at it-- played out by characters in the Bible. So there's parallel action happening in Bible time, which is kind of like 1100 BC and all, but I don't see bible time as historical, so it's more like myth-time. And, like Torah, time is all screwy in there, anyway. Torah doesn't happen quite in order and events resonate with other ones centuries before or after. Something happening in one century can either trigger or justify things happening in another.
"Then there's a third space, the space of the gods. They exist outside linear time, so they're not allowed into the frames of the comic," Rushkoff continued. "At least not in their embodied form. If they try to stick their hand in a frame, it ends up becoming flame or smoke or whatever element over which they can exert influence."
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