Why can't we accept religion as fictitious stories that express true energies we all feel and share in common?

I believe we all (humans, animals, life of any kind) are subject to the same energies, the same forces of nature on the earth and in the universe. I think religion is nothing more than imaginative tales spun together by man/womankind to help us understand and explain these forces in lieu of scientific understanding. There is obviously something pionate in us as humans that needs to satisfy what we call spiritual needs, but why the fantastic stories? Why follow a bible or koran? With religion comes this certainty that, "we're right and you're wrong." With that comes judgment and persecution. Why can't we acknowledge we all have our creative spin on things we don't understand and that we are all the same fundamentally and love each other unconditionally? We are all brothers and sisters in the eyes of God (whoever that is), right?