Jesus the Hero

These quotes are from One Jesus, Many Christs by Gregory J. Riley. According to the Library Journal, "Riley explicates the notion of Jesus as hero on the basis of literary analogies drawn from the role of other heroes in different stories of (mainly Greek) antiquity. This well-argued work is richly illustrated with literary connections between biblical and Greek portrayals of heroic traits."  http://www.amazon.com/One-Jesus-Many-Christs-Christianity/dp/0800632427

quotes:
"The universe had a dark side. Fate, the jealousy of the gods, and the devil and the dark powers all conspired against the innocent and brought them to ruin. Those who were in such difficulties could be seen as having in some way been especially notable.... Job after the exile, one may recall, 'deserved' the loss of his children, wife, property and health because he caught the attention of God and the devil as the most righteous man of his generation."
One Jesus, Many Christs by Gregory J. Riley, page 29

"Jesus died a death that defined his life.... If he had not been killed like one of the heroes, it would only have meant that he was not worthy of that status, that he was not a son of God, that he was not valuable enough to draw down on himself the jealousies of the gods or fate or the wrath of the powers and their religious authorities. The fact of his unjust death not only proved the real value of his life, it authenticated his right to complete the creedal journey to ascend into heaven and someday stand as judge."
One Jesus, Many Christs by Gregory J. Riley, page 91

Personally, I think God is who God is, regardless of what we understand or think about what God should be. :-)

Exodus 3:14a  ^ESV  God said to Moses, I AM Who I AM.