Reddit mentions of The Story of Civilization, Vol. 1: Our Oriental Heritage

I think you can see a lot of religions in light of the relationship between a "prophet" from a more sophisticated or exotic culture having outsized influence on a group that they are in some ways not really a part of. Freud had an interesting theory about Moses. He believed Moses was an Egyptian Priest that felt a duty to lead the more primitive Hebrews when they were cast out of Egypt due to an epidemic in that community. Priests having sophisticated techniques in leading/manipulating groups of people Moses created a backstory for himself and insinuated himself into the Hebrews. Knowing that their only chance at survival lie in his leadership he would run up a mountain occasionally to claim divine guidance.

I read about this in Will Durant's Story of Civilization - Our Oriental Heritage.. I would recommend the book because it takes a real structural look at why our religions are the way they are. He delves into the relationships between Middle Eastern, South Asian and East Asian cosmologies and how they are as much an interwoven fabric of beliefs as they are unique to their individual societies. This is not a feel good tome made to soothe feelings of interrelatedness but a real breakdown of how you wind up with a faith that tells you things are going to be better in the afterlife vs. one that rewards aggressiveness.

He does this while looking at shared beliefs and even objects and how they wound up that way. Prayer beads for instance find their way to Christianity through the influence of Buddhist Missionaries that were in Greece just a few generations before the birth of Christ. The book was written in 1933 so I'm sure aspects are outdated but the ideas behind the conclusions are fresh and compelling and will challenge faith, if you have it, in interesting and very practical ways.