Wasn’t sure whether this belonged here or in the Open Forum, but what the heck. It does have political ramifications…
[quote]A student has been suspended from school in America for coming to class dressed as a pirate.
But the disciplinary action has provoked controversy – because the student says that the ban violates his rights, as the pirate costume is part of his religion.
Bryan Killian says that he follows the Pastafarian religion, and that as a crucial part of his faith, he must wear ‘full pirate regalia’ as prescribed in the holy texts of Pastafarianism.
The school, however, say that his pirate garb was disruptive. [/quote]
I’m surprised something like this didn’t come up sooner… It’s an interesting case, because any rational person knows the kid doesn’t actually believe in the FSM, and in fact FSM-ism probably can’t even be considered a genuine religion. Then again, how does one prove either point? Is it even possible to prove what constitutes a genuine religion, and is it legally valid to question the integrity of something so subjective as faith?
PS: In case you’ve been on another planet lately, here’s the official website of FSM-ism They actually have a FSM computer game you can DL for free!
No drama, just thought it would be a lark. The day they (my feet) got covered in cow shit was the final straw for my head-of-year, I think. Some argument about not being allowed to wear purple shoes with my red uniform. I am a bit stubborn.
I had waist length henna-orange curls. The henna thing was solely so that I looked outrageously ugly in my pillar box red uniform. Also made me look decidely non-Swan Lake-like at ballet class.
I don’t know what the legal tests are, but in the public mindset I think it is a question of how many people believe in it. Take the kid in the article you posted. No doubt he’s just trying to rile up religious people, just as the atheist founder of FSMism did when he started the whole thing. But for the sake of argument say that the kid didn’t get the joke and really believes in the FSM. Most people would just think he’s crazy. If somebody else did the same thing, we’d probably say he (or she) is crazy too. But imagine that thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of people profess their sincere belief in the FSM, start building permanent meeting halls (churches), debate the fine points of the theology, etc. Well now it’s a “faith.” Once something is classified as “faith”, no matter how idiotic or insane, no matter how unscientific and unbelievable, it is sacred in the public view. Muhammad flies to some place called “heaven” on a winged horse? No problem! What’s that? Not sure where heaven is? No problem, it’s faith! There’s no such thing as flying horses you say? No problem, it’s faith! It would not matter that FSMism began as a joke, or that when only a few people believed we all just thought they were crazy, once enough people believe in it then it becomes a “faith” and anything goes then.
The best real life example of this is Scientology. What might have started as a bet between two science fiction writers has become a legally recognized religion with tax benefits. Just think about it. If someone idiot were wandering down the street babbling on how about eons ago a galactic dictator gathered up a bunch aliens, froze them, placed them around Earth’s volcanoes and blew them up, we’d say he was crazy. If he then told us that the souls of these dead aliens now inhabit our bodies and are the source of our lives’ woes, we’d have him committed. But once enough people started believing in it, it became a faith, and it is a powerful social taboo in the US to question anything bearing the title “faith”.
