Hindu gods get court summons

[aged hippy]

In England, a lightning strike or any other totally unexpected occurrence often used to be called an "Act of God", so that the insurance company involved didn't have to pay out any money. I don't think it's allowed now.... but it is worth noting that He was never, ever called to Court in order to explain His actions.

In India, they have a much more realistic attitude:

Hindu gods get court summons

By Rahul Bedi in New Delhi
Last Updated: 3:01am GMT 08/12/2007
An Indian judge has summoned two Hindu gods to help resolve a 20-year-old property dispute.

Sunil Kumar Singh has placed notices in newspapers in the coal mining town of Dhanbad, in the eastern state of Jharkhand, asking gods Ram and Hanuman to appear in his court next week to present their arguments.

"You failed to appear in court despite notices sent by a messenger and later through registered post. You are hereby directed to appear before the court personally," Judge Singh's notice stated.

The newspaper notices were published, in keeping with accepted Indian legal practice, after two summons dispatched to the plaintiff deities were returned because their addresses were "incomplete".

The dispute is over ownership of a 1.4-acre plot in Dhanbad which adjoins a temple dedicated to Ram and another one dedicated to the monkey god Hanuman. Worshippers claim the land belongs to the gods but the priest, Manmohan Patnaik, insists that it is his.

Both sides went to court in 1987 and several years later the dispute was settled in the locals' favour. But Mr Patnaik challenged the verdict in a "fast-track court" set up to cut the backlog of millions of property cases.

Bijan Rawani, a lawyer, said: "Since the land has been donated to the gods, it is necessary to make them a party to the case."

Mr Patnaik's plea is that the land was given to his grandfather by a local king.

Property disputes in which Hindu gods are deemed "legal entities" are not uncommon in India.

One of India's most contentious disputes in nearby Ayodhya also involves a Ram temple, which was built over the god's reputed birthplace before a Mughal emperor demolished it in the 16th century and replaced it with a mosque. In the early 1990s, Hindu zealots razed the mosque, triggering clashes in which more than 1,200 people, mostly Muslims, died.

The ownership dispute is still unresolved and the judge in the case is awaiting the deity's attendance in court.

Hindu gods get court summons

Peace, Love, & Light

[evangelicalhumanist]

I rest my case!

[vivamis123]

If you can take Santa to court (I think it was Miracle on 34th street) why not Gods?

[evangelicalhumanist]

Originally Posted by vivamis123

If you can take Santa to court (I think it was Miracle on 34th street) why not Gods?

If I recall correctly, Miracle on 34th Street was a movie, under the heading of fiction.

But the interesting thing is to me (and the reason for my comment about resting my case), is that from the point of view of one who does not believe in gods, there is no qualitative difference between summoning them to court and asking them to intervene in our lives and, like Benny Hinn does, getting them to heal people on demand.

These things are identical in their very essence.

[vivamis123]

Yes, E.H. I do believe it is fiction to believe that Gods (or a God) could show up in a physical form, since I believe God is a spirit....all possibilities, not just one possibilty. That is also why I believe that Jesus was not God, but a man that realized his spiritual oneness with God.

In my opinion Benny Hann does not heal. People believe Benny Hann can heal and it is as they believe that it is done. There is no power outside of God. Since we are one with God already our beliefs can move mountains in the physical realm.