The lessons can be misinterpreted, abused, and used to manipulate others, but there’s a reason why those stories in particular persisted.
This is even more amazing when you consider that these stories had to be passed down every generation for thousands of years through word of mouth. It’s a tenuous process. Only the most truthful stories will last through the ages.
Therefore, there is value in telling yourself fairy tales because you might learn something. Even if you’re not religious, you’ve heard many of the stories already through pop culture. It isn’t clear that blinding yourself from reality necessarily follows from being religious.
Yes. Nostalgia and profit. Pre-copyright works are in the public domain. And people will pay for familiar things, especially those that remind them of their youth.
> ...there’s a reason why those stories in particular persisted.
See above and also survivorship bias