... that there, Vince, is definitely worth much hmm-ing.
[Such also scratches a nagging itch I've had in my mind of late regarding the sometimes humorous flight paths thoughts can take when one is at rest, but all of that is another story for another time, I suppose.]
May I ask you a rather "point blank" question? For those having eyes that see and ears that hear, it is clear that the initial "Jesus Movement" seems to have as its root some kind of Natural Philosophy which, sadly, instead of being more generally or universally socialized to improve living conditions here on Earth, was politicized by a small group of self-aggrandized, wanna-be gods (i.e., "mighty ones" or "powers that be", the ruling class or social elite, etc.) ... as has been done among humans (regardless of ethnic or "tribal" affiliation) seemingly from time immemorial with nearly every genre of "social reform". [Whew! Sorry for that, uh, tad lengthy of an "introductory" sentence there.]
Anyway, disregarding designations of a "Jewish" or "Gentile" nature, as such truly seem to not apply to the contents of the Bible's "New Testament" (or even its Old Testament, for that matter), do you see any hope of recovering the true message contained therein? Or do you think the "Light of the World" has been, as the story of Jesus seems to paint it, snuffed out and forever lost to Humanity, being so badly abused and damaged ("raped and pillaged" as it were) by the dirty dancing that Government and Religion ("kings and priests") have continued to engage in over the millennia?
Oh, and have you ever noticed the difference a lone comma can make in how something can be read? For example, look at what happens when that itty-bitty punctuation mark comes between a certain Son that ... well, here, read it for yourself: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes ... " (John 3:16).
God so loved ... what? That which He bestowed upon or gifted to His only begotten Son? The "celestial body" and not "me and my family and friends", its parasitic inhabitants?
Quite a difference, huh? Especially for those heaven-bound "spirits" who so arrogantly ignore Earthly matters and those diamond-studded "souls" who so greedily trash Her true riches ... seemingly one and the same really, for the one forms for the "self" a golden halo and the other a golden crown ... to reflect the wearers' "godliness" to lowly folk apparently. (Okay, I've drifted off topic, but given your "theory" of somebody being a victim of deification, I couldn't help but think of how super easy it can be to misread what someone says, even when what he or she says happens to be spelled out in writing.)
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"But, but ... [burrrrp] ... I didn't know, ociffer, I swear it on my, no, your ... hey, look, nobuh-uhddy tol' me I wuz s'posed tuh be one of them ... [burp] ... s'cuz me, one of those uh ... whatcha-callits ... one uhv'em Groundskeeper 'Sociation of the Universe freaks, um, people. Hah! And you prolly thought I couldn't say it."
"Mm-hmm. Okay, buddy, let's go; time to step off the chariot and onto the real world."
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Don (wanders about some mound of dirt and an "un-tooled" house of adoration and prayer)