While two gods skip court, another faces imminent execution

In a move somewhat reminiscent of the goats ritually sacrificed to fix a Nepalese jet, but with far greater implications for the modern validity and legality of myth, an Indian judge has summoned two Hindu gods to court to help resolve a 20-year-old property dispute [via Technoccult]. While they are still waiting for Ram and Hanuman to show up so they can decide who owns the land adjacent to temples dedicated to the two gods, this raises a host of serious question for the modern world.

Can mythic beings own property? What is the legal status of godhood? Where do the gods actually live so they can be contacted? Will the mothers of all the heroic demigods finally file paternity lawsuits? How intricately is human life still wrapped up in the stories of religion?

Earlier I came across an the first two essays on Shadow Democracy of a planned ten part series titled: "Does God Have a Future?" The second article had some interesting points about the rise of spirituality versus the decline of religious participation, a suggestion that modern man (I can only assume the article refers to Americans in particular) is moving towards a view of spirituality that does not necessarily include the worship of distinct deities. While organized religious participation may be down, it is also worth noting that ritual behavior is up, and hundreds of new religious movements have been created in the last few decades. However, I was a bit disappointed with a few perspectives from the first article, not the least of which was that it only focuses on the Christian God, as if He were the only deity active in the world right now. Furthermore, the article suggested that God has mainly been a means for explaining natural phenomena, a point that I recently tried to address my problems with, and suggests that God and religion are inseparable, which also makes me wince. While I generally appreciate any current discussion on the subjects I fear that perspectives like this only add fervor to the "new atheist" movement. Not that it's necessary, or possible, to prove whether or not gods actually exist, but it is certainly disheartening to know that a lot of bright minds, and a lot of everyday yahoos, are belittling religious feelings and practices as nothing more than a quirk of human consciousness that should play no part in the modern, rational world. It makes me feel that, among all the otherwise interesting projects I have planned for my life, I will have to spend an inordinate time defending the validity and efficacy of myth, ritual, and spiritual experiences, both in their historical contexts and as a real, lived existential condition that still pertains to the modern world.