Logo for the church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
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A parody religion or mock religion is a belief system that challenges the spiritual convictions of others, often through humor, satire, or burlesque (literary ridicule). Often constructed to achieve a specific purpose related to another belief system, a parody religion can be a parody of several religions, sects, gurus, cults, or new religious movements at the same time, or even a parody of no particular religion – instead parodying the concept of religious belief itself. Some parody religions emphasise having fun; the new faith may serve as a convenient excuse for pleasant social interaction among the like-minded.
One approach of parody religions aims to highlight deficiencies in particular pro-religious arguments – following the logic that if a given argument can also be used to support a clear parody, then the original argument is clearly flawed. This can be done through fictional religions found in many works of fiction - one example of this can be the Bokononism from the novel Cat’s Cradle (1963) by Kurt Vonnegut.[1] Another example of this is the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, which parodies the demand for equal time employed by intelligent design and creationism.[2]
Occasionally, a parody religion may offer ordination by mail or on-line at a nominal fee, seeking equal recognition for its clergy/officiants – under freedom of religion provisions, including the 1st and 14th amendments to the United States Constitution[3] – to legally solemnise marriages. Parody religions also have sought the same reasonable accommodation legally afforded to mainstream religions, including religious-specific garb or headgear.[4] A U.S. federal court ruled in 2016 that the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster ("Pastafarianism") is not a religion,[5] but Pastafarianism or "The Church of the Latter-Day Dude" (Dudeism) have been accommodated to some extent by a few U.S. states and by some other countries.[6][7]
Several religions that are considered as parody religions have a number of relatively serious followers who embrace the perceived absurdity of these religions as spiritually significant, a decidedly post-modern approach to religion. Since 2005,[8] scholars of new religious movements have come to consider Discordianism as having a "complex and subtle religious system",[9] concluding that "Discordianism can no longer be considered a purely parodic religion."[10]
^Cusack, Carole M. (2018), "Mock Religions", in Gooren, Henri (ed.), Encyclopedia of Latin American Religions, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 1–5, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-08956-0_559-1, ISBN 978-3-319-08956-0, retrieved 2023-05-31
^Dan Vergano (26 March 2006). "'Spaghetti Monster' is noodling around with faith". USA Today. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
^"Atheists sue Washington County over denial to perform marriages". Star-Tribune.
^Cite error: The named reference FSM_official was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Federal Court Rules Church of Flying Spaghetti Monster Not a Religion". Harvard Divinity School. April 19, 2016. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
^"David Kantor, Michael Hampton". The New York Times. June 29, 2014 – via NYTimes.com.
^"Australia Officially Recognizes the Church of FSM". venganza.org. May 22, 2017.
A parodyreligion or mock religion is a belief system that challenges the spiritual convictions of others, often through humor, satire, or burlesque (literary...
Literary technique Metaparody Parody advertisement Parody in popular music Parody film Parody music ParodyreligionParody science Persiflage P. D. Q. Bach...
Spaghetti Monster, or Pastafarianism, a parodic new religious movement that promotes a light-hearted view of religion. It originated in opposition to the...
followers of another religion based on cultural identification with that religion, without believing in the teachings of that particular religion. The name derives...
Jediism or Matrixism); others have been intended from the beginning as parodyreligions (for example, Discordianism and the Church of the Flying Spaghetti...
as a religion, new religious movement, virtual religion, or act of social commentary; though prior to 2005, some sources categorized it as a parody religion...
Rabbinic Judaism. Some forms of parodyreligion or fiction-based religion like Jediism, Pastafarianism, Dudeism, "Tolkien religion", and others often develop...
Dinkoism (/ˈdɪnkɔɪzəm/), the Dinkoist religion, or Dinkamatham is a parodyreligion and social movement that emerged and evolved on social networks organized...
number of adults who are not affiliated with a religion also sense that there is a conflict between religion and modern society – except for them the conflict...
The Church of the SubGenius is a parodyreligion that satirizes better-known belief systems. It teaches a complex philosophy that focuses on J. R. "Bob"...
Nontheistic religions (not to be confused with atheism) are traditions of thought within a religious context—some otherwise aligned with theism, others...
practices of their ancestors despite influences of mainstream religions. Dinkoism in a parodyreligion created by atheist communities in the state, centred around...
dedicated to his legacy. In Rosario, Argentina, locals organised the parodyreligion of the "Church of Maradona". The organization reformulates many elements...
The Invisible Pink Unicorn (IPU) is the goddess of a parodyreligion used to satirize theistic beliefs, taking the form of a unicorn that is paradoxically...
While the word religion is difficult to define, one standard model of religion used in religious studies courses defines it as [a] system of symbols which...
Church of the SubGenius has been known as a "parodyreligion" due to its extensive use of comedy and parody. In spite of this, the organization claims over...
Parody science, sometimes called spoof science, is the act of mocking science in a satirical way. Science can be parodied for a purpose, ranging from...
and 21st centuries. New Atheism advocates the view that superstition, religion, and irrationalism should not simply be tolerated. Instead, they advocate...
Maradoniana (literally Church of Maradona or Maradonian Church) is a parodyreligion, created by fans of the late Argentine footballer Diego Maradona, whom...
is sport themed self-subscribed Parodyreligion founded by three fans at Christmas party for creating a new religion based around their favorite football...
supremacists version of McDonald's advertising mascot "Mac Tonight" ParodyreligionReligion and the Internet Religious satire Toad worship Priscilla, Frank...
it), solely based on rational thought without any reliance on revealed religions or religious authority. Deism emphasizes the concept of natural theology—that...
Hedberg has called apatheism "uncharted territory in the philosophy of religion". Political theorist and constitutional law scholar, Adam Scott Kunz, has...
Antireligion is opposition to religion or traditional religious beliefs and practices. It involves opposition to organized religion, religious practices or...
Paul; Horace L. Friess (1962). "The Nature of Religion". Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. 2 (1). Blackwell Publishing: 3–17. doi:10.2307/1384088...
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