The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster First edition cover – designed to look like a hardback
The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is a satirical book written by Bobby Henderson that embodies the main beliefs of the parody religion the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster or Pastafarianism.[1][2]
The Flying Spaghetti Monster was created by Bobby Henderson in an open letter to the Kansas State Board of Education in which he parodied the concept of intelligent design. After Henderson posted the letter on his website, it became an internet phenomenon and was featured in many large newspapers, which caught the attention of book publishers. Released in March 2006 by Villard Books, The Gospel elaborates on Pastafarian beliefs established in the open letter.
The Gospel includes a creation myth, set of commandments, and guide to evangelizing, and discusses history and lifestyle from a Pastafarian perspective. Henderson uses satire to show flaws with creationism and prove the Flying Spaghetti Monster, lampooning the intelligent design movement in the process. The book, which has sold more than 100,000 copies, was generally well-received.
Amazon.com: The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (9780812976564): Bobby Henderson: Books
5.0 out of 5 stars RAmen, January 1, 2007
By
This review is from: The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (Paperback)
"The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is one of the funniest things I have come across in a while. Bobby Henderson, a physics grad student, has ingeniously crafted a mock religion that effectively parodies the fundamentalist aspects of western religions (especially Christianity) that mainstream Christians and non-Christians find groan-worthy.
Henderson created the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, also known as Pastafarianism, in response to the recent trials over Intelligent Design and whether or not it belongs in a school's curriculum (or whether evolution has no place there). FSM claims that the world was created by a Flying Spaghetti Monster, that pirates are His chosen people, and that Earthly problems, such as global warming are a direct result of the shrinking numbers of (actual) pirates in the world (Henderson has a graph that shows there is a direct correlation between the number of pirates and average global temperatures).
Using "facts" and "science", Henderson shows how evolution is wrong and that life can only have been created by the FSM, who obviously has a sense of humor due to certain things that happen in life. He also talks about how FSM heaven is so much better than Christian heaven due to the presence of a beer volcano and a stripper factory.
Other great aspects are the twists on biblical stories and places (such as why the great flood occurred or the Olive Garden of Eden) as well as the 8 Commandments (or is it Condiments) or FSM, commonly known as the "8 I'd Really Rather You Didn'ts", due to the fact that each one starts off with, "I'd really rather you didn't...".
Obviously, this book requires a sense of humor to be enjoyed, because it pokes fun at religion. But if you can see this book for what it is, a great parody of some of the stranger aspects of religion, you will definitely enjoy it. "
