What is Pastafarianism?

When I think of issues I may encounter while going to any Motor Vehicles, they consist of not looking good in my photo, having to wait in a ridiculously long line, or not having the proper paperwork with me. Being denied the right to get my license renewed because of my religion was not a problem I even knew people had at Motor Vehicles until I read a shocking article in the Huffington Post. In August, Lindsay Miller of Lowell, Massachusetts, was denied a renewed license by the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles for wearing a spaghetti strainer on her head. According to the RMV, head coverings and hats are not allowed in license photos, but exceptions are made for religious reasons. However, Miller was not just wearing a colander on her head as a fashion statement, she was expressing her religion.The people of the RMV did not only deny Miller the right to wear the colander, they laughed at her. Miller believed it was unfair that just because they hadn't heard of this belief system that anyone had the right to deny her a license, she said that wearing the colander on her head allows her to express her devotion to the Spaghetti Monster, the Pastafarian deity. The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster or Pastafarianism, is a social movement that promotes a light hearted view of religion and opposes the teaching of intelligent design and creationism in public schools. It was founded in 2005, the church says is neither anti-religion nor an atheist club, but rather anti-crazy nonsense done in the name of religion, and is accepting of everyone. In the eyes of Miller and many others, by not allowing her to wear the colander in her license photo, the RMV was violating Miller's first Amendment rights which apply to every person and every religion, and before a hearing could take place the RMV changed their mind and allowed her to wear the colander. With all this in mind, do you think Pastafarianism is an authentic religion? What makes a religion authentic or fake? If exceptions are made for religious reasons why was Lindsay Miller denied the right to wear the colander in the first place? Did the RMV have the right to deny Pastafarianism as an authentic religion due to lack of knowledge or lack of shared beliefs?  #Pastafarianism #Religioninthenewmedia #Authenticity #Authenticreligion #ChurchoftheFlyingSpaghettiMonster 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/pastafarian-colander-license-photo_56498e42e4b08cda34897b27

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Spaghetti_Monster