I think researching the origins of the Bible and the belief systems that existed pre-Bible, as well as researching the information in the Bible against current Scientific, Medical, Geological, Archealogical etc information is an excellent way for a believer to begin sifting through the doctrine and dogma that has been heaped upon many of us to determine just exactly what is real and what is pure fantasy
Remnants of older belief systems run through present day faiths. The Egyptian 'Book of the Dead', as an example, is an interesting study showing that pre-Bible belief included an afterlife where a type of testing occurred in the subterrane, a judgment of the heart, and either paradise or unpleasant destruction. There are other similarities as well.
