Blatant religious discrimination


Aaron Williams, a 25-year old resident of New Jersey, tried to get a driver’s license photograph taken while wearing the headgear of his religion but the Bureau of Motor Vehicles refused to allow him to do so and called the police when he insisted on his rights. His argument was that if turbans and headscarves are allowed, then so should his choice of religious headgear.

pastafarian licenseBut the officials and the police said that they would not allow him to wear a strainer on his head, which Williams said was a symbol of his religion of Pastafariansim, since he belongs to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Williams finally consented to removing his headgear when he was told that “Pasta strainers were not covered by the MVC’s religious clothing policy, and he would need to take it up with the state.”

But Austrians seem to be more accommodating.

An Austrian atheist has won the right to be shown on his driving-licence photo wearing a pasta strainer as “religious headgear”.

Niko Alm first applied for the licence three years ago after reading that headgear was allowed in official pictures only for confessional reasons.

Mr Alm said the sieve was a requirement of his religion, pastafarianism.

Later a police spokesman explained that the licence was issued because Mr Alm’s face was fully visible in the photo.

“The photo was not approved on religious grounds. The only criterion for photos in driving licence applications is that the whole face must be visible,” said Manfred Reinthaler, a police spokesman in Vienna.

You can see Alm’s driver’s license photo above. His next goal is to get Pastafarianism be officially recognized as a faith.

Comments

  1. Maurice Smith says

    Excuse me I’ve been trying to get to this part of the comments, Do you believe in The Son of Man?

  2. Maurice Smith says

    If I may Have a moment of your time, and explain my reasoning for just coming up out of the blue and posting this question towards you, I want you to hear what I have to say, rather… To tell you this from my testimony, and I pray that God will touch you through this message. I too couldn’t understand why a loving God would put us down here upon this earth filled with sin and full of sexual immorality of every kind, and so these are things that I learn from the deserts in my life, God gave me this purpose to tell others about Him, and I’m SUPER happy that I found someone who has just recently been on here… you know what I’m saying. Well. My name is Maurice, I’m 16, in school, and wanting to get right back into the presence of God everyday. I too have done things in my life that you would probably say that I was not suppose to do, although we walk by faith and not by sight, we live by grace and not by the law, for with the law: 3,000 were killed, although by grace: 3,000 were saved, I don’t know who you are although I want you to know, just to know that you know that God!!!! GOD!!! Has and does got a P-U-R-P-O-S-E for you life, He didn’t intend for us to live in this world just to be like this no, MAN DOES NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD THAT COMES OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD. (Matthew 4:4) Who is this God in which I speak of, and why do you think this way about Him??? I WILL TELL YOU!!! I WILL BE HAPPY TO TELL YOU!!! He woke me up this morning, and started me on my way. He stood by me and held me up and even cleaned me up and loved me, even when I could from day to day. ALthough There’s nothing like the touch of God to change you where you stand!!! He will take your hand!!! And Guide you to where you are suppose to go and to where you are suppose to be!!! SEE!!! You feeling the presence of God!!! “I know that you have struggled, I haven’t forgotten about you!!! Who are you to question my authority? I’m coming back soon and I want you to be ready, and prepared, soon, soon, soon my son will appear on the earth, and those that were ever before him will scorn Him, Although Every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess, on earth and under the earth that He is MY SON!!!” “”I want you to know that I love you, and you are turning me down. Greater am I because I am He WHO IS, WHO WAS, AND WHO IS TO COME, I AM THE ALMIGHTY, THE ALMIGHTY GOD!!!! WHO CREATED HEAVEN AND EARTH, DON’T JUDGE HIM!!! I SENT HIM TO ANSWER YOU ALL TO TELL YOU ALL THAT I AM HE THAT WAS DEAD AND YET I LIVE FOREVER MORE!!! WHY DO YOU PERSECUTE ME? You RISE UP against me, and say ‘There is no God… Why do you worship yourselves, why are you stunned by what I am saying to you? “I AM…THAT I AM, I can’t be defined, BECAUSE I’M SO MUCH!!!!” ” THAT WHY ALTERS AND RITUALS DO NOT SATISFY ME, YOU CAN’T HOUSE ME IN SOMETHING SO SMALL, I AM HE WHO CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH YOU AND YOUR FATHER, AND YOUR FATHERS, YOUR AUNTS, AND YOUR UNCLES, GRANDPAS AND GRANDMAS, YOUR HUSBAND AND YOUR SPOUSE, I CREATED YOU… I AM THAT I AM, AND I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE, I AM YOUR HEALER, I AM YOUR PROVIDER, I AM YOUR REDEEMER, I AM YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS, I AM YOUR PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE, AND I WANT SOME RESPECT!!!!!!!!! HE IS MY SON!!!! I AM GOD, YOU JUST CAN’T BELIEVE IT!!! IF YOU ARE GOING TO CURSE HIM, YOU ARE CURSING ME, DON’T OPPOSE MY PURPOSE!!!

  3. moarscienceplz says

    This is only the tip of the iceberg. The U.S. government has also failed to make the holiest day of the Pastafarian
    calendar, “Talk Like a Pirate Day” a Federal Holiday! It’s a total outrage!

  4. Maurice Smith says

    “I’M JUST BEGINNING!!!” Thus say the Lord God of Israel. I KNOW THAT GOD IS REAL!!! Each day that you wake up and hear the birds chirping is a testimony, I thank God for taking me off of the medication I was taking, I had been praying to him, for him to take me off and he did he heard my prayers. I KNOW there is a God, I know there is. Thank God for Showing me that Occult doings were wrong, THANK YOU GOD FOR HEARING MY PRAYERS!!!!! If it were not for him I don’t know where I would be but I would not be here. God wants us to reach out to others with our testimonies. I also Saw Jesus in a vision he was standing on a cliff, holding his hands out to the sun. And he was depicted in the grace of God. THere was a valley out in front of him, and there was someone behind him. Somewhere in me believes there is a God. I am a believer. May God bless you all. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to die for our sins, that whosoever shall believe in him WILL not perish but have EVERLASTING LIFE. May God bless you all.
 (JUST BELIEVE IN HIM, ACCEPT HIM INTO YOUR LIFE TO GUIDE YOU, AND TO COVER THOSE WOUNDS THAT YOU MAY HAVE, HE WANTS TO HELP YOU, AND BE THERE FOR YOU… DON’T RUN AWAY FROM HIM, RUN TO HIM, HE IS OuR SALVATION, JAHOVAH JIREH- THE LORD’S OUR PROVIDER, JAHOVAH NISSI- HE IS OUR VICTORY, HE IS JAHOVAH SHALOM- OUR COMPLETENESS, OUR PEACE, JAHOVAH MECKADESH- OUR SANCTIFICATION, HE REIGNS!!! IF YOU WON’t TAKE IT FROM A 16 YEAR OLD CHILD, THEN I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY, YOU’VE HEARD PEOPLe SPEAK IN TONGUES AND THOUGHT THEY WERE PUTTING ON AN ACT, SEE FOR YOURSELF, GET THE SON OF GOD IN YOU, THE HOLY SPIRIT IN YOU aND SEE CONFESS YOUR SINS TO HIM AND HE IS FAITHFUL AND JUST TO FORGIVE YOU, I TOO WAS LOST, BUT NOW I HAVE BEEN FOUND, CONFESS YOUR NEED FOR HIM AND HE WILL COME IN AND HELP YOU!!! THESE ARE SOMETHINGS THAT GOD HAS PLACED UPON MY HEART AND HE WANTS YOU ALL ON THIS BLOG PAGE TO KNOW THE TRUTH, ALTHOUGH TO AS ACCEPT HIM, FEW ENTER IN, I want you to know the father, His amazing and indescribable love for you, you loved one and you family, whether you be pisapalian, white, black, hispanic, New England, It doesn’t matter!!! DON’T BE ATHEIST!!! COME TO CHRIST THE LORD FOR HE HAS NOT FORGOTTEN YOU!!! AND HE WILL NOT EVER LEAVE YOUR SIDE!!!

  5. Maurice Smith says

    Jesus loves you and He wants to have a relationship with you, whether you want Him to or not, although He’s not going to force you, He’s going to let you make your own choices. What will you say to Him?

  6. Frank says

    I would say hat only. I don’t think I want to eat pasta strained through a fencing mask. Although, that would probably be the coolest driving license photo ever!

  7. MNb says

    What I will say to Jesus is simple:
    May You be touched gently by the Noodly Appendages of His Meatiness, enjoy a good Pasta every day plus a glass of delicious Beer. Ramen!

  8. MNb says

    It’s even better -- His Noodly Magnificence will come to Jesus and you, everytime you eat pasta and drink beer (wine is also allowed or some energy drink if you prefer that).

  9. MNb says

    “WHO CREATED HEAVEN AND EARTH”
    No no no.
    No.
    Sure, Jhwh created all the jews and His Son Jesus all the christians, like Allah created the muslims. But who created Jhwh, Allah and the Rest? Plus the entire Universe? The Flying Spaghetti Monster of course! Here is hard evidence:

    http://www.venganza.org/fsmdrawing.jpg

    Ramen! May His Tasty Glory shine upon you.

  10. Frank says

    Maurice,

    I am glad that you have found something to give meaning to your life. For you, it’s a religion. For others, it’s family, or friends, or the vastness of humanity, or the vastness of the universe, or something altogether their own. Most of the people here, irrespective of what else they find meaningful, value factual evidence.

    Quotations from the Bible do not suffice as evidence that the claims in the Bible are true. Using ALL CAPS doesn’t change that. If you want to persuade, provide evidence. It’s that simple.

  11. markr1957 says

    I’m gonna guess Maurice meant Episcopalian, but you know that to qualify as a bored again Christian you have to take your brains out and stomp them to mush. It’s the only explanation I can think of for why Maurice thinks typing in caps impresses anyone.

  12. keresthanatos says

    Something must be done to stop this Pastifarian menace from spreading farther. It is an apostate religion, as opposed to the ONE TRUE PASTA religion……Baked Zetiism . ZETI rules, spaghetti just lays there all squiggly in the plate.

  13. says

    Dear Maurice,

    You are sounding like a crazy person. I’m not saying that because you’re talking about Jesus. I’m saying that because of the rambling, near-incoherent way you’re talking about Jesus. You’re talking about Jesus the same way that some people talk about aliens and mind control rays.
    I think you need help. I think you’re not quite healthy and that people are ignoring your problems because you’ve phrased them in a culturally acceptable way; i.e. religion. I think you should see a doctor. Please do that. If I’m wrong, then the doctor will tell you you’re fine and you’ve lost nothing, but if I’m right, then it’ll be a very good thing for you.

    Best wishes

  14. left0ver1under says

    Too inane, didn’t read.

    Just how dim are the religious to “think” that cutting and pasting large trash…I mean, tracts, will somehow convince educated people?

  15. M, Supreme Anarch of the Queer Illuminati says

    That depends…is he considerate, or will he just spend a few years wandering around with his buddies saying completely mutually exclusive things before going home and leaving me alone with the kids?

  16. Bruce Gorton says

    This Jesus sounds like a creepy stalker if he “loves” me without ever having bothered to introduce himself. He can stay away from me, thanks.

  17. B-Lar says

    You too can have 10 lifetime’s supply of pasta and accompanying sauces IF YOU WOULD ONLY BELIEVE AND SUBMIT TO HIS QUIVERING NOODLEY TOUCH.

    There is a hole within you that can only be filled by a hearty dinner. Do not choose steak, (for that is the way of the bromanites and we all know what happened to them) and do not choose weasels, (for they fidget and disconcert) but instead choose the most pressed and stable staple. RAMEN.

  18. chrisdevries says

    Oh lovely: a proselytizer.

    I can’t tell if he’s trying to prove to us that his religion is true or whether he’s trying to prove it to himself. If it’s the former, Maurice, let me give you a piece of advice: we’ve seen it all before, the stuff you’re writing. So frequent, so ineffective.

    Firstly, most atheists and anti-theists are quite knowledgeable about the teachings of Christianity, and many of us are familiar with a few other religions. I’ve read the Bible. I was, briefly, a Christian in my late teenaged “searching for meaning” phase. We don’t want, or need to be witnessed to.

    Secondly, we know that while it is often set in real historical places, the Bible is by no means an historical document. There is no evidence to suggest that the central claims of Christianity are true and plenty of evidence that the Bible is a work of fiction. The main character of the New Testament, Jesus, *might* have been based on a real person, but even if you stipulate that there was probably a guy named Jesus living within 100 years of the year 0, there is no reason to believe that the accounts given in the Bible are even remotely true. The gospels aren’t based on any reliable source of true information, not to mention that the later books clearly copied from the earlier ones. It’s a storybook set against real historical events, kind of like Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. The only difference between, say, Scientology and Christianity is that Scientology is based on a story written in the 20th century while the Bible was written thousands of years ago.

    Now you can have your faith and practice it in any way you see fit that doesn’t hurt others, but you came here and started this one-sided conversation, so I will give me my true opinion of your faith, and you (hopefully making it a two-sided conversation). You are a victim. You have been sold a lie and it is preventing you from experiencing the truth of our (humanity’s) reality, which is a shame because the truth of our reality is both amazing and awe-inspiring. We are either a) living in a universe where intelligent life is so uncommon that for us to be here at all is a stunning development, or (b) living in a universe that just happens to have been “banged” into existence with properties that make life practically ubiquitous, and intelligent life a common feature on celestial bodies where life has evolved. If (a), the very existence of humans (plus our extinct ancestors and living cousin chimpanzees) is the most awe-inspiring thing any human being can come to recognize: that things happened on Earth in exactly the way they needed to happen to give life a chance to evolve to the point of producing life forms capable of contemplating their place in the universe is wildly improbable. If (b), it is even more intensely amazing to realize that our universe is teeming with intelligent life forms; it didn’t have to be optimized for life to evolve over and over and over. Things could have been much bleaker. Either scenario is absolutely incredible; neither scenario needs a god. Scientists studying the universe have progressively uncovered its secrets; if there is a god hiding somewhere in there, he doesn’t answer prayers, he never talked to any human being directly, and he never appeared on Earth in the form of Jesus, his “son”.

    I’ll leave you with this: even if there is a creator, some intelligence that caused the “bang” (a creator who may or may not directly intervene in its creation, it doesn’t matter), your religion is, simply by statistical probability, almost certainly wrong.

    This is because hundreds, maybe thousands of cultures have developed unique religions; they are all based on stories describing how the god(s) both created humanity (and everything else) and how the god(s) intervene in human affairs. These stories usually contain ideas and metaphors that were relevant to the particular society in which the religion was born. The Bible was written by, and for Middle Eastern agriculturalists and sure enough, we have parables about sowing seeds, about fig trees, about common cultural practices at the time, like slavery. Furthermore, religious stories (especially Biblical stories) often borrow concepts from other religious stories with which much of the populous at the time were already familiar. Important elements of the Christian faith such as the virgin birth of a hero who has come to redeem mankind by dying, on a hill and in an especially brutal manner, are by no means original to Christianity. They were borrowed. Christianity is therefore in no way different from any other religion, and since most, if not all major religions specifically tell their adherents that theirs is the only true path to a good life and pleasant afterlife, they cannot all be true.

    There is a maximum of one, true god (or set of gods and goddesses), and only one set of rules to follow to make this god happy enough to grant you a fantastic afterlife. The only reason you worship the god you’ve come here to tell us about, is because you grew up in a culture where you were exposed to it. That either makes you incredibly lucky (on the VERY TINY chance that Christianity is the one, true religion), very unlucky (because odds are, if there is a true religion, you aren’t following it, and are thus doomed to a permanent death, reincarnation as a sea slug, or an endless afterlife of total suffering), or just a normal, average person who has committed their life to a supernatural belief system when there is actually no god(s), no afterlife, and therefore no reason to waste your time and money on ANY religion.

    Finally, you are wasting your time with posts like the ones you have written: we meet people like you very frequently, we know the tenets of your religion, and we have determined that it is not true in any sense of the word. There are things that would make me a Christian again: actual proof that prayers in Jesus’ name are answered while prayers to other gods remain unanswered, (obtained under rigorous, double-blind conditions) would be a good start. An actual interaction with a supernatural being named Jesus, telling me to become a Christian (say he materialized in front of me when there was nobody around, spoke to me, instantaneously healed an injury of mine simply by touching me) would also go a long way. Without such evidence, there is nothing that would make me change my mind. I don’t do blind faith.

    tl/dr: There is no god(s); we see no evidence for a supernatural power, and have progressed enough in the sciences to discover natural processes that are responsible for the way the universe is today. However, even if there was a god hiding out somewhere (or everywhere) where it cannot be observed, it is almost certainly not Jehovah/Yahweh. You have been deceived, and are trying to spread the lies upon which you have built your faith to others (making new victims if you succeeded). Your proselytism is not going to change anyone’s mind here either. I suggest reading a few atheist blogs here on Freethought Blogs though…once you learn what arguments we make supporting our contention that there is no god(s) or afterlife, you’ll be able to avoid writing posts like those in this thread that won’t convince anyone of anything. Then I won’t have to write long essays on why you are wrong.

  19. says

    Maurice, Maurice….
    Your dead guy died on a cross and came back, right? My gods have died too, and then got up and did nifty things as well. Perhaps I can convert you to neopagan druidry? I’ll even get you your own copies of the Mabinogion and “Sacred Fire, Holy Well”.

  20. DaveL says

    Maurice,

    Jesus wants you to divide your writing into paragraphs, and make use of proper punctuation and capitalization. Open your bible and have a look. Do you see all those neatly divided paragraphs? The way the consistent use of capitalization and punctuation makes it easy to read? Did you think God made it that way by accident?

    Please, this is for the good of your immortal soul.

  21. says

    To be fair, the verse separations of the bible are a later development, as is punctuation and capitalization. Perhaps Maurice is trying for a more original feel, regardless of how incomprehensible that makes his writing.

  22. Maurice Smith says

    NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! I WILL NOT AND CAN NOT ACCEPT THIS LIE!!! CAN’T YOU SEE THE TRUTH!!! JESUS SAID MY SHEEP…know my voice… I refuse to worship something that was created by man. What are these? What are these? My God is greater than those statues. They just stay in one place!!! MY GOD IS OMNISENT, OMNIPOTENT, AND OMNIPRESENT!!! HE KNOWS ALL THINGS, HE CONTROLS ALL THING, AND HE EVERYWHERE!!! AMAZING GRACE!!! HOW SWEET THE SOUND THAT SAVED A WRETCH LIKE ME!!! I ONCE, ONCE WAS LOST ALTHOUGH NOW I AM FOUND, WAS BLIND AND NOW I SEE!!! IT’S NOT ENOUGH TO SAY THAT YOU KNOW THAT THERE IS A GOD, YOU GOT TO GET TO KNOW HIM. ACCEPT YOUR GODS? What can they do? MAY THE LORD GOD OF ISRAEL SHOW YOU THE TRUTH, THAT I AM WHO I AM, AND I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE, I’M TO GREAT TO BE DEFINE!!! YOU CAN’T PUT ME IN A BOX!!! YOU CAN’T PUT ME IN A SHRINE!!! I DON’t DESIRE THE BLOOD OF BULLS AND GOATS ANYMORE!!! I DESIRE OBEDIENCE!!! THOSE STATUES ARE LIFELESS!!! MY GOD IS ALMIGHTY!!! HE’S SOVEREIGN!!! I BEEN THERE AND I’VE TRIED THAT!!! I BEEN CREATED BY SOMEONE GREATER THAN NARUTO, POKEMON, BLEACH, AND ALL THE OTHER ANIMES COMBINE, I BEEN CREATED BY THE MOST HIGH GOD!!! IF YOU DON’T KNOW HIM YOU BETTER GET TO KNOW HIM BECAUSE, HE’S COMING BACK SOon!!! I DON’T WANT YOUR FALSE GODS, YOUR MAGIC, OR YOUR COPIES, I WANT YOU TO KNOW THE TRUTH!!!

  23. Maurice Smith says

    WHat!!! CAN YOUR GODS, OR STATUES DO TO ME??? I WANT YALL TO KNOW THE TRUTH, BECAUSE IT’S THE KNOWING OF THE TRUTH THAT SETS YOU FREE!!! AND THOSE WHO ARE FREE BY THE SON ARE FREE INDEED!!! I CHOOSE TO WORSHIP THE LORD GOD OF ISRAEL, AND I OPEN MY HEART ONLY TO THE KING OF KINGS AND THE LORD OF LORDS WHO’S NAME IS ALSO CALLED: WONDERFUL COUNSELOR, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE, MIGHTY GOD!!! I WAS BLINDED BY SCIENCE, SAYING THAT WE EVOLVED FROM MONKEYS… AND I was BLINDED BY Pride!!! Come to find out that pride was a sin… got involved in Occult… a couple or a few days later after my back was hurting, and my mind was filled with so many thoughts that I went into the bathroom got on the floor and cried out to God: “LORD!!! WHAT ARE THESE THOUGHTS THAT I AM HAVING??? WHAT DO I DO??? I’LL GIVE THEM TO YOU, He spoke to me and told me to TRUST in HIM, RELY ON HIM, PUT MY CONFIDENCE IN HIM!!! OUT of my mouth came these words, “OK.” For I knew that these where not THOUGHTS OF GOD, THAT WANTED TO LIFT HIM UP, NO, THESE WERE THOUGHTS ABOUT LIFE’S SINFUL PLEASURES, CHANGING WHAT GOD INTENDED FOR A WAY FOR GOD TO COMMUNICATE WITH US TO SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE FOR JUST BE FOR SELFISH GAIN!!! I BELIEVED THERE WAS A GOD, ALTHOUGH I WASN’T REALLY SURE… AND OUT OF MY MOUTH I SAID TO MY GRANDMA: “I WANT TO TALK TO THE PREACHER!!!” OCCULT DOINGS IS THE WAY THE DEVIL FOOLS PEOPLE INTO THINKING THAT THEY WERE JUST PUT DOWN HERE TO HELP OTHER PEOPLE AND THROUGH THERE GOOD DEEDS THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO GO TO HEAVEN, BUT THAT’S A LIE!!! DON’T BELIEVE EVERYTHING THAT THE WORLD BELIEVES, DON’T FEAR WHAT THE WORLD FEARS, FEAR NOT THOSE THAT CAN KILL THE BODY, BUT RATHER BE AFRAID OF HIM WHO IS AbLE TO CAST BOTH YOUR BODY AND SOUL IN HELL!!! YOU HAVEN’T HAD ANY FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD UNTIL YOU JUST PRAISE HIM FOR WHAT HE HAS BROUGHT YOU THROUGH!!! GOD WANTS TO SHOW HIS LOVE TO YOU, AND SO THAT YOU CAN SHOW HIS LOVE TO OTHERS!!! GOD IS REAL!!! QUIT DENYING HIM!!! CHOOSE THIS DAY WHO YOU WILL SERVE!!!

  24. Maurice Smith says

    THE reason why The U.S.A is struggling now is because we have wondered away from the Word of God, AND THIS RACISM THING!!!! THE SAME GOD THAT MADE YOU MADE ME, AND MADE ME MADE YOU, THE SAME GOD THAT MADE THE BLACKS, MADE THE WHITES, AND THAT MADE THE WHITES MADE THE BLACKS WE ALL GOT HERE THE SAME WAY AND WHEN WE DIE AND GO UP TO HEAVEN TO BE JUDGED BY THE FATHER!!! It’s crazy because we’re being taught that we were not made from the same God who sits on High, You aren’t of me, and I am not of you, I not like you, I will never be like you, and you are too different to have came from the same God that I came from… And I got to be honest, I’m just being truthful!!! Don’t like the heat don’t go to the desert!!!

  25. Maurice Smith says

    You insult me although That just shows me more of what the Lord Jesus suffer when He was about to be crucified . This peace that I’m talking to you through is not my peace and not my original understanding, this knowledge was what God has shown me!!! I’m no different than you than you are from me, we’re the same in every way!!! Although know this… Those that did not accept Him and rejected Him when they had a chance to change, they are going to be the ones who open there eyes in Hell!!! Hey, I’m just being honest!!! Cause Jesus gave me another assignment and that was to tell others that He’s coming back soon!!!

  26. Jared A says

    Proper self-editing and thoughtful writing would defeat the purpose. The thing to understand is, to the the evangelically bent faithful, a stream of consciousness-style sermon is the religious experience. We aren’t being proselytized to, we are being proselytized at. It’s not about converting the listeners, it’s about getting THAT FEELING.

    It’s a the same idea as speaking in tongues or any of the other ritualized rite. It just doesn’t give you that same “holy” feeling if you have to think about it first. You just let that id vomit out. If others (be they pastafarians, neopagans, atheists, or all of the above) want to join in to make a call-and-response style congregation, that’s cool. It’s consensual. A shared religious experience, though probably each party gets different things out of it.

  27. Jared A says

    The True FSM has many aspects. Ziti is but one of his many forms. This way, all may feel his love, be they squiggly lovers or ridged tube lovers. Ramen.

  28. MNb says

    “MY GOD IS ALMIGHTY!”
    True, but so is the Devil. Fortunately The Flying Spaghetti Monster is the Almighiest. Get yourself a nice pastameal plus a glass of beer tonight and you will have access to this wonderful insight.
    Ramen!

  29. MNb says

    “BECAUSE IT’S THE KNOWING OF THE TRUTH THAT SETS YOU FREE!”
    That’s exactly why you need to eat more pasta and drink more bear. It will bring you closer to the one and only truth, the one of His Holy Pastaness.

  30. MNb says

    “we’re the same in every way!”
    No, I eat enough pasta en drink enough beer. You obviously don’t.

  31. Ravi Venkataraman says

    Maurice,

    Isn’t Pastafarianism the fastest growing religion in the world?

    So come join us, why are you talking about this other guy, this lord of yours. Damn, I can’t ever seem to remember his name. What is his name? Man of son? Rev Sun Moon? Jeblowski? Something starting with a J, I think. I’m sure it will come to me soon. But never mind that, it’s not important.

    Prof. Mano S., don’t you think this person should be banned since he is not contributing anything relevant to the original topic?

  32. Mano Singham says

    I am reluctant to ban people and have never actually done so. If they are merely saying irrelevant or useless things, I ignore them and urge others to do so as well. I have expressed my views on this in earlier posts here and here.

  33. MNb says

    I will ignore him if he shows up in other threads. But the opportunity to joke around a bit was too good to miss. I also promise I won’t promote pastafarianism in serious threads or every time a believer shows up.

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