I have seen the point you raise discussed by others (think I saw Ricky Gervais bring this up on Colbert's show) and it's certainly an interesting thought. I am no theologian and have challenged my own religious beliefs at times, but I think it would be a mistake to read religious texts purely as a form of understanding literal history. Religion, to me anyways, is less about understanding the cold, hard truths of our universe (like science does with physics, relativity, etc.) and more about understanding the truths of our spirit; how do we or should we live our lives and how do we find meaning in our lives? Whether the religion is Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism or the sacred text is the Torah, Bible, Quran, etc., many of the stories are symbolic and metaphorical in nature and can be just as powerful as any scientific discovery.
