Among the thousands of religions across the globe, some are popular, while others are observed by a handful of adherents. But what accounts for this diversity in faith?

With Nepal declared a secular state, many ethic communities are now digging into their past to determine their true cultural and religious identities. It is likely that many of these indigenous communities will shun Hinduism, which, they maintain, was foisted on them, in favour of their traditional beliefs.

When a country the size of Nepal is home to so many creeds, it is no surprise that there are a multitude of religions in the world; a few of them a tad outlandish. Take the adherents of The First Presleyterian Church of Elvis (Presley) the Divine, for example, who believe Elvis was resurrected after his death a la Jesus. They point to the continued sightings of Elvis as the proof of his divinity.

The North American Mormons claim to be descendents of a lost Jewish tribe that arrived on American shores circa 600 BC. Even in the face of evidence to the contrary, indicating that they are the descendants of the lot that migrated to North America from Asia around 10,000 years ago, these people refuse to budge from their conviction. But the strangest of deities may be — John Frum!

Frum is a wraithlike American messiah worshipped by one of the cargo cults — the sects that sprang up during World War II when US troops descended on South Pacific Islands — in the tiny country of Vanuatu. The only problem is: no one has seen Frum while free from influence of alcohol or barbiturates.

Locals still await Frum’s return to the island, expecting him to bring in shiploads of cargo from America. They pray that Frum will haul in, among other accessories, radios, TVs, watches, iceboxes, medicine and — Coca-Cola!

The impoverished Vanuatu residents perhaps can imagine no greater luxury than unwinding on a plush couch while enjoying evening TV, sipping on the light beverages hawked by their favourite stars. Religious affiliations may have as much to do with getting close to one’s spiritual side as with the lust for a material utopia replete with every kind of new-age amenity.