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A pastafarian isn’t someone who likes pasta, unless you are taking about the spiritual form of pasta.  I’m talking about the Flying Spaghetti Monster, noodly appendages and all.

I recently came upon the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. I learned about it 4 months ago as I’ve been making my rounds through the Internet looking for more fodder to defend my position as an Atheist.

The Flying Spaghetti Monster, or FSM for short, was created in response to the Kansas State Board of Education requiring educators to start teaching intelligent design as a scientific theory for the explanation of the universe.

The typical, we can’t explain how something works so let’s chalk it up to God, business.

Except that this time it had been taken too far.  The religious wanted something that had no scientific evidence to be taught as a scientific theory. BULLSHIT!

So a guy named Bobby Henderson, bless his noodly created soul, created Pastafariansim.  He wrote the Kansas State Board of Education that if they included the scientifically unfounded theory of intelligent design in the science education of students, that they would also have to include the Pastafarian theory of creation, as the evidence of a His Noodly Goodness was just as sound as the evidence from any other intelligent creator. Intelligent should be used loosely, it doesn’t mean all-knowing so aware seems a more appropriate term.

A little background on me and why I support Him (FSM):
I live in Modesto, CA, a mid-sized city claimed for God by the majority of it’s inhabitants. We neighbor Turlock, CA, which was once known to have the most churches per-capita according to Ripley’s Believe It or Not.

I grew up in a fairly normal household. We had our share if issues: parents fighting, sibling malcontent and rivalry, but who hasn’t?. It all started really going down hill in my early teens when my parents decided it would be good for the family to start going to church “religiously.” During that period of time, and while serving a 4 years stint in a Catholic preparatory high school, I started to realize what a crock of shit this religion business was.

I started questioning, converted to a psuedo-form of Gnostic Christianity. Soon after I became agnostic, but quickly realized I was being a little bitch and decided to own up to things like mortality and being a man. And here I am, a happy, atheist man, free from the shackles of religion and dogmatic theology.  Still moral, still compassionate, but more rational and free-thinking than ever!

Everyday I run across someone or some group of people or movement that is in direct opposition to progress and rational thinking.  I rarely speak up or say anything, but as I seem to find my atheism as a true passion in my life, I want to be able to speak up and discuss my feelings intelligently and, who knows, make an impact or something noble like that.

A co-worker like’s to spar with me every now and again about the existence of God.  In all reality, I know he is trying to save my soul, which turns my stomach.  He is a born again Christian, fire and brimstone type of guy.  A wife and some kids.  He often comes up with the common Christian apologetics such as “darwin renounced evolution on his death bed” or “taking prayer out of schools is the main cause of the decline of our public school system” etc, etc.

I showed him how Charles Darwin renouncing evolution is rubbish. I discussed with him about the reality of prayer having anything to do with the state of our public schools and about things like budgeting, good teachers, etc.  You know, facts.

Becoming a pastafarian is a one of many steps in being able to defend my position.

So that’s why I’m a pastafarian. Are you? Comment on this article if UR12.

RAmen.