There has always been a huge debate regarding who and what created the universe. The scientists believe it was the Big Bang while different religions swear by the fact that it was God.
And in a world where there are 4200 religions, it’s hard to know and believe which God created the universe exactly.
But would you believe me if I tell you an invisible spaghetti look-alike deity was behind the creation of the universe?
Sounds crazy, doesn’t it?
Well, if you think so you’d be judging the belief of a legitimate religion known as Pastafarianism.
You’re not allowed to judge the religious belief of anyone, are you?
So, let’s shine the light on this new cultural phenomenon that is stirring quite a buzz lately.
Who created Pastafarianism?
Like any other religion that exists in this world, Pastafarianism is also a religious belief with thousands of followers worldwide.
It is actually a portmanteau of “pasta” and “Rastafarianism”. More than a religion, it is a social movement that opposes the teaching of creationism in high-schools.
I wouldn’t call it mockery but Pastafarianism promotes a light-hearted view of religion.
It all started in 2005 when Bobby Henderson, a physics graduate of Oregon State University had enough of the education system of high schools.
He sent a letter to the Kansas Board of Education debating the inclusion of intelligent design theories in classes on evolution.
He mocked the system by demanding the schools to include the alternative theory that the universe was a creation of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
And as he received no response, he decided to post it online where it spread far and wide. Far enough to actually start a social movement and garner thousands of believers.
The Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Henderson never hated any religion or anyone’s religious beliefs. But what’s problematic for him was religion posing as science.
And if the school curriculum is allowed to include Intelligent Design and creationism, they’re bound to mention the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster as well.
What is this Flying Spaghetti Monster you ask? Well, this is a deity, like any other religious deities, that the Pastafarians worship.
Flying Spaghetti Monster was initially created as a satire for the teaching of creationism and intelligent design in schools.
Henderson mentioned that since the ID uses ambiguous references to a designer, any conceivable entity may fulfill that role, including Flying Spaghetti Monster.
But over the years, FSM has become a real internet phenomenon lately. And people have come up with their own concepts and perceptions of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
And with growing popularity and followers, Bobby Henderson came up with the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. It is an online church for all the Pastafarians.
Apart from that he also wrote the Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, the official text of the Pastafarians.
Their holy book is named “The Loose Cannon,” which is a satire of the Holy Bible but is still comparable.
Creation of the Universe.
We all have heard and believe the different versions of how the universe was created. And for the Pastafarians, it was the deed of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
According to the believers, the invisible and undetectable deity created the universe after a round of heavy drinking.
And due to his intoxication, we’re living in a flawed Earth.
In addition, Flying Spaghetti Monster planted all the evidence for evolution to test the faith of Pastafarians.
And every time a scientist carbon dates an object, Flying Spaghetti Monster is present “changing the results with His Noodly Appendage”.
Pastafarian Culture.
Despite the constant mockery and denial, Pastafarians have been able to come up with their own culture and cultural beliefs.
Countries like Australia, New Zealand, Netherland, and most of the North American countries and Western Europe have made Pastafarianism legal.
Russia became the first country to have a physical church dedicated to the Pastafarians.
They have their own text called the Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. And their holy book The Loose Canon.
Many Pastafarians have battled long and hard to be able to wear colanders (their official headgear) in I.D. cards, driver’s license, and passports.
Another long battle Pastafarians have to fight is marrying legally. A Pastafarian wedding is like any other wedding.
However, instead of a priest, anyone who the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster recognizes can officiate the wedding.
Pastafarians don’t necessarily have a specific holiday because according to their creator, Pastafarians “reject dogma and formalism”.
However, they celebrate the “International talk like a pirate day” on September 19.
Also, for Pastafarians, every Friday is a “Holy Day”. And as for their prayers, every time they conclude it, they end it with a final declaration of affirmation. “R’amen”.
This is a parodic portmanteau of “Amen” and “Ramen,” referring to the “noodly appendages” of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
The Belief System.
Though it started out as a satire, Pastafarianism is now a legitimate religion with thousands of followers worldwide.
And like every other religion they also have a set of beliefs they’d like to think is true. For example, the creation of the universe which I’ve already mentioned above.
They describe Bobby Henderson, the creator of religion as the “prophet”. And according to the prophet himself, “the only dogma allowed in the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is the rejection of dogma”.
Be that as it may, Pastafarians still believe in a lot of things like the afterlife, pirate, and global warming.
According to the Pastafarians, there exists heaven and hell. Heaven is filled with beer volcanoes and stripper factories.
The concept of hell in Pastafarianism is similar to heaven. However, in hell’s case, the beer is stale and all the strippers have sexually transmitted diseases.
Pirates for Pastafarians are the original Pastafarians and the “absolute divine beings”.
They believe that they were actually “peace-loving explorers and spreaders of good will”. They went around distributing candies to children.
The concept that they were thieves and outcasts was misinformation spread by Christian theologians and “Hare Krishnas”.
Furthermore, they believe that things like global warming, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters are a direct effect of the decreasing number of pirates since the 1800s.
It was an argument Henderson included in his original open letter in an effort to show that correlation does not imply causation.
So, it’s safe to say that people are smart and brave enough to question religious traditions that don’t necessarily make sense.
But a question I have about Pastafarianism is will it continue to spread a light-hearted view of religion? Or, will people take it too far and start a whole different cult? Only time will tell.
