September 18, Anchorage Daily News

“I’m called to invoke the power of the true inebriated creator of the universe, the drunken tolerator of the all lesser and more recent gods, and maintainer of gravity here on earth. May the great Flying Spaghetti Monster rouse himself from his stupor and let his noodly appendages ground each assembly member in their seats.” — Fletcher

Concerned citizen Barrett Fletcher gave an invocation before the Borough Assembly meeting at Kenai Peninsula, representing the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. The Anchorage Daily News suggests the invocation was so powerful that onlookers were stunned into a stupor, unable to stand:

“The only people who stood for the invocation were those without seats in the standing-room-only assembly hall in Homer, which is about 125 miles south of Anchorage. One man turned his back to face the wall during the invocation, and other men did not remove their hats.”

You can read more about it here at the Achorage Daily News. There’s a video also.

Big thanks to Mr. Fletcher for representing the Pastafarians in their turn giving the before-meeting invocation. It is unclear why the Assembly members felt the need to invite religion into government affairs, but we appreciate the opportunity to share our faith with the unenlightened.

I was pleased to receive this postcard from the Trinidad and Tobago Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Wonderful.

Hey everyone, we need your help to get the word out about I, Pastafari: A Flying Spaghetti Monster Story.

Filmmaker Mike Arthur did a great job – he captured the true spirit of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Pastafarian heroes Bruder Spaghettus and Niko Alm are both featured, making the case for freedom of religion and equal treatment under the law. The documentary also shows some of the ongoing court battles we’re involved in. I was impressed with the scope of it, and I want to help Mike get this film seen by the world.

Specifically we need help with two things:

2) Finding a distributor

What we need you to do is:

Make a post/tweet on May 2 (International Scurvy Awareness Day) sharing the trailer of the film, with the tags of the film festival’s social media.

That’s the idea. We help get the word out on May 2, the film gets admitted into festivals, it finds a distributor, and the world is able to see what Pastafarianism is all about.

Below is Mike’s detailed instructions / explanation. Please let me or Mike know if you have questions and so forth. Thanks everyone. – bobby

Calling all Pastafarians!

Our God doesn’t require sacrifices, but will you sacrifice 1 minute of your time for an indie Pastafarian filmmaker on the holiest of Pastafarian holidays – International Scurvy Awareness Day?

On May 2nd, 2019 (no need to share anything before that specific date), help the trailer of I, PASTAFARI get in front of a few key documentary film festivals (IDFA, DOK Leipzig, & DOC NYC) by sharing it on Facebook & Twitter (links below) and tagging the festivals social media handle, to show these festival directors that there IS a hunger for this real life pasta story. The more posts/tweets they see, the more likely they will give this film serious consideration to screen at their festival. If hundreds of pastafarians do it together on the same day (May 2nd, anytime), it will be hard for any festival director to ignore.

For example….

*FACEBOOK*

Step 1) First go to the FACEBOOK Trailer here: bit.ly/2I7Npsq

Step 2) Click “SHARE”

Step 3) Add this message…

@DOCNYCfest @idfa.nl @DOKLeipzig please select @ipastafaridoc for your 2019 festival! #FSM #FlyingSpaghettiMonster #Pastafarian

*TWITTER*

Step 1) First go to the TWITTER Trailer here: twitter.com/ipastafaridoc/status/1094578270471966720

Step 2) Retweet it with the below message…

@DOCNYCfest @idfa @DOK_Leipzig please select @ipastafaridoc for your 2019 festival! #FSM #FlyingSpaghettiMonster #Pastafarian

If sharing/retweeting is giving you issues, you can always just compose your own post/tweet and add the Vimeo trailer here:

vimeo.com/279827959
Just be sure to tag the festival’s social media handle!

R’Amen
Mike
Filmmaker
I, Pastafari Documentary
www.ipastafaridoc.com

Halloween is one of the few days Pastafarians can walk around in traditional dress (pirate regalia) free from judgement and persecution. People on this blessed day also seem generally open-minded / perhaps drunk, so may be more open to hearing about the virtues of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and our religion. All in all, it is a prime evangelism opportunity — I hope that everyone makes the best of it and enjoys the day.

Special thanks to all of the Pastafarian Missionaries spreading the Word.

A few people have asked what’s the latest with wearing religious headgear (a Colander) at school, work, in identification photos, and so forth — is it allowed?

It’s my understanding that, with a few exceptions, the wearing of religious clothing is a protected right that has been repeatedly upheld by the courts.

But that doesn’t mean that the person you’re dealing with – like, say, the person taking your ID photo will respect that right.

If you’re trying to wear official headgear in a public setting, my advice is to take yourself as seriously as you expect others to take you. A photographer may not allow you to wear the colander if you’ve just pulled it out while giggling. But if you walk in wearing it – if it is clear that this headgear is truly a serious part of your traditional Pastafarian beliefs, as you are claiming – then they are less likely to make trouble.

I’ve also written a letter below, that you can show any interested parties if necessary, that explains that Colanders are indeed a traditional part of our belief structure, and a few notes about how this is a legally protected right, and so on.

If you run into troubles, please let me know, and I will try to help.

Download the letter:

Statement regarding Traditional Pastafarian Headgear (PDF)

Content of letter:

Statement regarding Traditional Pastafarian Headgear:

Allow me to confirm that the wearing of a Colander is a tradition in the Pastafarian faith. Not all followers dress so formally, but it is a common practice for us to do so while making official identification documents.
As you know, religion plays a serious part in many people’s lives, including the wearing of specific clothing. Believers over the years have sometimes unfortunately experienced resistance, mockery, or even discrimination for simply following the guidelines of their religion.

Thankfully case law has repeatedly affirmed that believers have a constitutionally-protected right to wear such clothing in nearly all public situations including: work, school, while taking identification photos, even in the courtroom — provided that the clothing does not cause undo harm. That is to say, that religious clothing is with very few exceptions a protected right.

We, the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, are not a litigious group but of course we, along with the ACLU and others, have an interest in defending the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and the laws of the United States.

Thank you for your cooperation and May You Be Touched by His Noodly Appendage.

Sincerely,

Bobby Henderson, Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster