Flying Spaghetti Monster

"Pastafarianism" redirects here. Not to be confused with Rastafarianism. For the marine organism, see Bathyphysa conifera.

Flying Spaghetti Monster
Pastafarianism
Oil painting in the style of "The Creation of Adam" by Michelangelo (which shows Adam reclining and reaching out to touch God), but instead of God there is the Flying Spaghetti Monster; two large meatballs wrapped in noodles, with eyes on stalks which are also noodles, all floating in mid-air.
Touched by His Noodly Appendage, a parody of Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam, is an iconic image of the Flying Spaghetti Monster[1] by Arne Niklas Jansson.[2]
Abodespaghettimonster.org
Symbol
TextsThe Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, The Loose Canon, the Holy Book of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
Festivals"Holiday"

The Flying Spaghetti Monster (FSM) is the deity of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or Pastafarianism, a parodic new religious movement that promotes a light-hearted view of religion.[3] It originated in opposition to the teaching of intelligent design in public schools in the United States. According to adherents, Pastafarianism (a portmanteau of pasta and Rastafarianism) is a "real, legitimate religion, as much as any other".[4] It has received some limited recognition as such.[5][6][7][8][9]

The "Flying Spaghetti Monster" was first described in a satirical open letter written by Bobby Henderson in 2005 to protest the Kansas State Board of Education decision to permit teaching intelligent design as an alternative to evolution in state school science classes.[10] In the letter, Henderson demanded equal time in science classrooms for "Flying Spaghetti Monsterism", alongside intelligent design and evolution.[11] After Henderson published the letter on his website, the Flying Spaghetti Monster rapidly became an Internet phenomenon and a symbol of opposition to the teaching of intelligent design in state schools.[12]

Pastafarian tenets (generally satires of creationism) are presented on Henderson's Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster website (where he is described as "prophet"), and are also elucidated in The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, written by Henderson in 2006, and in The Loose Canon, the Holy Book of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. The central creation myth is that an invisible and undetectable Flying Spaghetti Monster created the universe after drinking heavily. Pirates are revered as the original Pastafarians.[13] The FSM community congregates at Henderson's website to share ideas about and sightings of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, and display crafts representing images of it.[4]

Because of its popularity and exposure, the Flying Spaghetti Monster is often used as a more modern version of Russell's teapot—an argument that the philosophic burden of proof lies upon those who make unfalsifiable claims, not on those who reject them. Pastafarians have engaged in disputes with creationists, including in Polk County, Florida, where they played a role in dissuading the local school board from adopting new rules on teaching evolution.[14] Pastafarianism has received praise from the scientific community and criticism from proponents of intelligent design.

  1. ^ Jansson, Arne Niklas. "Touched by His Noodly Appendage". Android Arts. Archived from the original on December 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
  2. ^ "Profile of Arne Niklas Jansson". Android Arts. Archived from the original on December 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
  3. ^ "Pastafarian can wear strainer on head in license photo". USA Today. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Henderson, Bobby. "About". The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2012.
  5. ^ Jones, Nicholas (February 26, 2016). "First Pastafarian celebrant can help couples get noodley knotted". New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on August 1, 2018. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
  6. ^ "NZ approves Pastafarian marriages". BBC News. December 16, 2015. Archived from the original on August 18, 2017. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  7. ^ "New Zealand stages first Pastafarian wedding on pirate boat". BBC News. April 16, 2016. Archived from the original on April 17, 2016. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
  8. ^ Wofford, Taylor (April 13, 2016). "Flying Spaghetti Monster Not Divine, Says Court". Newsweek. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  9. ^ Henley, Jon (August 16, 2018). "Spaghetti injunction: Pastafarianism is not a religion, Dutch court rules". The Guardian. Archived from the original on September 19, 2019. Retrieved August 16, 2018.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Telegraph was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Henderson, Bobby (2005). "Open Letter To Kansas School Board". Venganza.org. Archived from the original on April 7, 2007.
  12. ^ Boxer, Sarah (August 29, 2005). "But Is There Intelligent Spaghetti Out There?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 7, 2008. Retrieved February 5, 2007.
  13. ^ "Austrian Pastafarian dons colander as religious headgear for drivers license". Al Arabiya. 2011. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011.
  14. ^ Billy Townsend (March 27, 2013). "Polk Needled, Noodled In Evolution Flap". The Tampa Tribune. Archived from the original on July 4, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2016.