Hi rebel, I'm glad to hear both you and hamas are willing to examine your beliefs. I think looking critically at ALL so called "spiritual" writings and guidance has been every bit as helpful to me as looking critically at JW doctrine.
I do think you overdramatise the situation when you say "It is quite a deep subject and will take months of research, or even years". It isn't that deep, and a cursory understanding of where the bible comes from is not that hard to get. I understand why it feels like that, but then, you've never approached the subject with an open mind previously, have you? Even now, it will be hard for you to approach it honestly, as you are predisposed to think "it came from God, that's where it came from, if anything makes it look like it didn't come from god, there must be some deep mystery or meaning behind". I think you can see why I say give yourself the gift of reality.
When something that has remained so close to you is challenged, you begin defending it at whatever cost.
Well, that may be your tendency, but it is a tendency worth fighting to get rid of. It is afterall, the only reason people remain witnesses. In fact, it might be helpful for you to decide that whenever you feel the need to defend a belief, you instead go off by yourself, and start attacking that belief unmercifully, to yourself. That's honesty, and god, if he/she/it exist, certainly values honesty, don't you think?
Btw, a good book on the subject is appropriately titled : Who wrote the bible? It only looks at the old testament, but it is fascinating to find out what we know, and even more, what we don't know, about the bible writers.
