“One of the worst books ever.”

That is actor Brian Cox‘s verdict on the Bible, as the controversy-prone actor also called the Jewish and Christian scriptures patriarchal and a tool of control.

The actor, a self-proclaimed socialist, said on “The Starting Line Podcast” with Rich Leigh that religion holds humanity back.

“Oh considerably, yes – I think religion does hold us back because it’s belief systems which are outside ourselves,” he said, according to an account of the program in the webzine Salon.

“We’re dealing with, ‘Oh if God says this and God does that,’ and you go, ‘Well, what is God?’ We’ve created that idea of God, and we’ve created it as a control issue,” Mr. Cox said. “It’s essentially patriarchal; we haven’t given enough scope to the matriarchy.”

The 77-year-old “Succession” star called the books propaganda and lies.

“I mean the propaganda goes [a] right way back. The Bible is one of the worst books ever, for me, from my point of view,” Mr. Cox said.

People “don’t need to be told lies, they need some kind of truth, and that is not the truth. It is not the truth, it’s a mythology you know.”

• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.