How does one "practice mythology"? Fairly or not, the word "mythology" has a negative connotation, so its use here seems a judgment of the Yazidis. It is, at best, inexact; at worst, it is a form of editorial comment.
A quick search of Google News led me to an article in the International Herald Tribune which stated that the Yazidis practice "an ancient Persian religion". Zoroastrianism seems a likely candidate; the Wikipedia article on the Yazidis mentions a few other possibilities*.
It immediately occurs to me that people like Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris, or Richard Dawkins might say I "practice mythology" because I am a self-defined Christian. What is more, I practice a type of Christianity which involves a great deal of ritualized activity - e.g., kneeling; this ritualized activity is shared by a number of "liturgical" churches, primarily Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and Episcopal.
As a lay student of Joseph Campbell, I understand that "mythology" is not synonomous with "untruth". My reading of Campbell suggests that mythology is an attempt to express deep truths that cannot be expressed in any other way. These deep truths include questions of ultimate meaning, such as "Why am I here?" or "Why do bad things happen to good people?".
The religious tradition of the Yazidis may seem odd to us, at a distance. According to both NPR and the International Herald Tribune, their beliefs combine elements of "an ancient Persian religion" with Islam and Christianity. This may appear quaint or perverse.
This view ignores the history of Christianity, which has borrowed elements from any number of religious traditions, including the so-called "myths" of ancient Rome. Obvious examples include the celebration of Christmas and Easter, both of which occur near the time of holidays celebrating Roman gods or goddess.
Earlier I mentioned Zorastrianism, which pre-dates Christianity; this religious tradition included a figure named Mithra who died for the sake of humanity and rose again. Sound familiar?
Historically, Christianity has been as "syncretic" as the Yazadi tradition. It seems the worst sort of hubris to call their beliefs "myth" while claiming a special truth for our own.*I'm aware a recent news story calls the reliability of Wikipedia articles into question; unfortunately, this is the best resource I have available at the moment.
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Some will argue that many of the wars fought in the history of homo sapiens involve differences in religion. In my study of this matter I find that a superficial argument.
Clearly, there is frequently a religious component (the Wermacht belt buckles read "Gott mit uns" - "God is with us" for example) but in every instance that I have examined I find that the religious aspect was no more than a means to arose the emotions of the populous to fight and or support the war. A classic case, of course, is found in the Crusades, ostensibly to purge the "holy lands" of the Muslim infidels. However, the economic motive for the Vatican was the far stronger. Or take the more contemporary example of WW I, which was really about who gets to "own" the great states of Europe after the collapse of the monarchies. Propaganda depicting German soldiers bayoneting nuns was part of the US war effort to build domestic support for Wilson's power play.
So today, the corporate dominated media - which includes NPR - beats the drum of religious conflict all the while thinking people around the world clearly understand that the current wars in the middle east, Central Asia and Africa are about control of oil and access to oil as the availability of that critical resource begins to contract.
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