I agree totally with what Blazh says above. I see the story of Jesus both largely literal and metaphorical. We often find that literal events carry powerful mythical, metaphorical messages. Often I have seen the relationship between Jesus and shamanism. Indeed, among other things, he was a shaman, in my view. Perhaps the greatest of all shaman. I said “was”. Should be IS, for he is more alive now than when on earth he became master of the material universe.