"But I think that the ancient religious writings generally came from people of wisdom."

I agree with this, although it's worth making the point that secular culture also contains vast repositories of wisdom. Being of atheist ilk I can pick and choose which bits I take on board, without concern for my immortal soul. This isn't as arbitrary a series of choices as it sounds, as the central tenets of many religions are very similar: compassion for others, selflessness, truthfulness and non-violence. These ideals are then wrapped up in all sorts of cultural baggage that makes it seem irrelevant, or is tied to belief in some supernatural being that turns many away. The reason religion is rife with contradictions is because many of the texts were written by different people, from cultures vastly different to the ones we live in and often over an extended period of time.

The thing is, these ideals are common to the entire human race regardless of creed or colour; they are universal and whoever wrote them in whatever religious texts you base your faith on were not the first person to think of them. They are the basis for secular and religious morality and have been with us for as long as people have been committing their beliefs to some form of written text.

I was thinking about this earlier as I walked into town. We went to a village gathering where we all took our own food. As we all sat down to eat together the vicar hushed the throng so he could say grace. Being the secular oichs we are we'd already started eating, and got some disapproving stares from some of the more religious souls at our table, which we of course ignored. On reflection though, there's a fair degree of merit to the idea of stopping for a moment to contemplate where our food comes from. Of course I won't be thanking God for it, but I will consider how it got there, and if that is sustainable and ethically sound.