I wrote the Open Letter sometime around January of 2005 and posted it online several months later after receiving no reply from the Kansas School Board. Within days of posting it online, the letter became an internet phenomenon, generating tens of thousands of visits each day, as well as personal responses from the school board members themselves. To date (August 2006), the venganza website has received upwards of 350 million hits, and somewhere in the proximity of 15 million unique visits. This website operates on a dedicated server and uses 600 - 800 GB/month in bandwidth. I’ve received over 15,000 emails in response to the letter.
The letter, after being blogged heavily for months, was printed in several large newspapers, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Chicago Sun Times, and many others. The newspaper articles caught the attention of book publishers, and at one point there were six publishers interested in getting the Word of the Flying Spaghetti Monster out to the public. In the end, the Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster was released by Random House in March of 2006.
It’s now been over a year since the FSM phenomenon started. I hope that a year from now we will be recognized as a legitimate religious organization, with all the same benefits *and tax loopholes* that the mainstream religions enjoy.
Please leave me a comment on the Letter, the FSM movement as a whole, or whatever you like. Thanks,
-Bobby
Hello Etheist #2,939,349,350
As a pastafarian I think that you need to reevaluate your bible. It advocates a false god, and numerous things (sins). The bible is wrong on the date of the universe, if so much science (truth) constantly points towards the earth being 6 billion years old. I think the earth is 3 years old, when the living genius Bobby Henderson told us of FSM. All of our pasts and histories have been fabricated into our minds like the Matrix, because FSM likes to fuck with us. And hell FSM has been awesome so far, what awesome person couldn’t think up sex? And yes as a moderate pastafarian I believe that the U.S. constitution was put in place by FSM for us to respect, and no religion should be taught in schools.
-J.T.S. (atheist)
This satirical approach is funny and makes a couple of valid points, but it is absurd to deny the existential dilemmas that are addressed by a theory of intelligent design. Just because ID has been hijacked by the Christian right in an atrocious manner does not mean we need to fall into making reactionary and altogether unreasonable claims (speaking of the spirit of the meaning behind FSM not its inherent absurdity as a joke) in stead of admitting that the nature of our reality and the strange nature of intelligence and consciousness should prevent us from being overly dogmatic and assertoric on the one hand and overly skeptical on the other. Either of these pitfalls is a result of hasty reasonings and a lack of intellectual conviction when approaching our most challenging philosophical questions. The FSM joke is little more than a vehicle for ferrying contempt towards proponents of ID and theists, and as such it is a cowardly attempt at feigning a sophisticated and forward thinking understanding of the universe. While I do think its funny I still feel compelled to just come out and say it: Fuck your FSM you cowards.
WHAT THE FUCK! How can any sane person believe in this garbage!?! Thats what it is, GARBAGE! It’s just fucking crazy and so is everyone in this religion.
I left Atheism for Lord FSM!
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At first i was an athiest, now i am part of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Add more detail and create religious documents. GREAT IDEA!!
our flour
who art in oven
hallowed be thy name
thy time is done
thou noddles are done, on plate as it is in oven
give us this day our daily bread
and forgive us our sauces
as he forgive those who sauce against us
and lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from hunger
RAmen
While a recent convert of the beautiful facts belonging to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, I spent years in a dark and pirateless existance. But now, the void has been illuminated by understanding, his noodly appendage touches us all we just need the wits to embrace it. Pastafarian Prophet Bobby Henderson is a shimmering example of what simple reason and common sense can accomplish in this world, what can be accomplished when you but reach out… and wrap your hand around his loving, noodly appendage.
To all you bigotted, misognystic people who find nothing better to do with your time then bash our faith I say simply: get a life. There comes a time when you must realize that enforcing morality upon people will only lead to one outcome, an end to your faith. Just as a dictatorship grows bacteria within the pond of the human psyche, you are single handedly sickening yourselves with blindness. We as Pastafarians cannot attack you, that is the one thing our Noodly Magesty asks of us - that we play nice. We don’t want to force you to convert, we don’t want your money, we don’t seek to pressure you in any way. Yet still, even though we are no threat to the sanctity of your people, you feel this omnipresent need to berate us. Even though we have not attacked you in any way, you use facism and a totalitarian thought processes to see yourself as better than us. We have never asked you to do anything other than acknowledge our existance. In the long run, which one of us is truly the monster - we, the heathons; or you, the bigots.
In the end I will leave you with this fact. I started being a Pastafarian as a joke, a way for me to counter the hyper-religiosity of my community. But as I read the gospel, and I research what I got myself into, I found one of the most innocent, noble, and honorable of any religion I have ever belonged to. I am proud to say that I am a Pastafarian! This is a way of stating that I don’t enjoy being controlled by a belief, that I am a man who doesn’t like to be exploited for his intentions, that I am a man who… well, likes to dress like a pirate. And in the end, being happy with who and what I am is enough for me. Shouldn’t it be enough for you?
Simply brilliant! I love the idea of attacking ignorance with inteligent humor. Keep up the good work.
“but it is absurd to deny the existential dilemmas that are addressed by a theory of intelligent design”
That shell of a theory does not address any actual question or issue, no less a dilema. In fact it is not even a theory. Frrom an ID proponent: “‘What’s being pushed is to have Darwinism critiqued, to teach there’s a controversy. Intelligent design itself does not have any content.”George Gilder
”
At least our religon has a scientific chart and a map. ID has a lot of dumb Dembski books… and some internally inconsistent assertions.
“Please tell me that this is a joke. Do NOT tell me that this is some real cult designated to actually convince people that a giant ball of spaghetti created the universe and dresses like a pirate. :)”
I think you are confused. The followers and chosen people of the FSM ARE pirates. The FSM is a ball of noodles and 2 meatballs…
sheesh
This Religion is great, I was a blind computer scientist but now I was touched by the noodly appendage of the FSM and could feel and accept the call to became a Pastafarian.
May the word of the FSM spread all over the world.
RAmen brothers and sisters.
Extracted from the little known apocryphal Book of Apocalypse of Saintly Luigi:
“…The gradual global warming will gently bring the Holy Noodles to the aldente state. When the proper tenderness is reached we will all, good or bad, alive or dead, be irresistibly pulled to eat our saucy god; some with parmegiana, others with garlic phosphora. Once digested the world is re-created with the processed transformed god-matter and the whole circle (circus ?!) of life begins anew in all its varied flavours…”
Be prepared ! It is coming…
ps: If you believe that, i have a very nice bridge to sell. You can visit it in NewYork…
pps: I come and visit this site from time to time since its beginning and I am amazed, though not surprised, to see how the most violent and angry comments always seem to come from the those people that professed being of Christ, whom only taught love and understanding even under the most terrible physical pain and hardship.
ppps: Keep up the good work.
This is pure brilliance.
…
And may the force of the Flying Spaghetti Monster be with you. -____-^^
Oh My God - I mean - Noodley Majesty. I can’t believe that I, as a high school Biology teacher, waited this long to actually read the Spaghetti Letter that I’ve known about for years. I always choked back the urge to vomit at the mention of teaching ID and Creationism, but the graphs that you present…the undeniable logic…I know now, I see now, and I accept now that it is unforigivable to deny my 16 year old students an opportunity to know The Truth. Curriculum shall be modified immediately.
RAmen.
Hey, I know what we need!!! We need someone to have a near death experience and see the Flying Spaghetti monster before going to a heaven that has a beer volcano and a stripper factory!!! It would be all the proof we need!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ZOMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The way you attack the ignorance of religion is comical and brilliant. I love your approach, you use the same , for lack of a better word, ‘logic’ as religion does, and what it proves is that every religion was created by our younger ancestors who knew nothing but superstitious beliefs. We classify Zeus, Apollo, Posiedon, and countless others as myths. They, and every other “mythical” god(s)/godess(es) are just as likely to exist as the other, so why are they considered myths when Jesus, Muahamad, and other modern religious figures are not? In a few thousand years the Bible and Qu’ran will be located under mythology in the library, but the ignorance of humans will never leave, so they will have another idiotic belief that will eventually fade into the past.
Great job on this new god. The best part about this is that people can not disprove it! It’s just brilliant.
@chris Mar 8th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
“existential dilemmas that are addressed by a theory of intelligent design.”
“philosophical questions.”
Yep…philosophy indeed…. no scientific principles or hypotheses to be seen!
.
“The FSM joke is little more than a vehicle for ferrying contempt towards proponents of ID”
.
Ridicule…you forgot ridicule! If the cap fits….
.
“and as such it is a cowardly attempt at feigning a sophisticated and forward thinking understanding of the universe.”
.
Feigning? Sophisticated?
You consider our Creator, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, who created our beginning with a Midgit, a Mountain and a Tree whilst drunk/hungover, sophisticated? Still He didn’t just pretend to do it! And what about the Beer Volcanoes? The Stripper Factory?
His evidence is all around you, if only you would open your eyes chris!
And cowardly? How’s that? Come again??
.
“Fuck your FSM you cowards.”
.
My my…someone’s had too many hate pills and really needs to feel the touch of His Noodly Appendage.
The FSM loves you chris…open yourself up and let Him in. :)
.
@Joe Blow Mar 12th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
“ID has a lot of dumb Dembski books… and some internally inconsistent assertions.”
.
Like ID’s famous Explanatory Filter? Now there’s one that should be bought to the attention of Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! LOL
TD Mar 15th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
“but the graphs that you present…the undeniable logic…I know now, I see now, and I accept now that it is unforigivable to deny my 16 year old students an opportunity to know The Truth. Curriculum shall be modified immediately.”
.
“Academic Freedom!” :p)
RAmen