Christopher Schaeffer, a Pastafarian minister, was sworn into the Pomfret, N.Y. Town Council last week wearing a colander, the Observer reported on Friday.
Schaeffer is a member of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, a group founded by an atheist in 2005 that has adopted the spaghetti strainer as its symbol.
"It's just a statement about religious freedom," Schaeffer told the Observer. "It's a religion without any dogma."
20 Years OfFreeJournalism
Your Support Fuels Our Mission
Your Support Fuels Our Mission
For two decades, HuffPost has been fearless, unflinching, and relentless in pursuit of the truth. Support our mission to keep us around for the next 20 — we can't do this without you.
We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.
Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.
We remain committed to providing you with the unflinching, fact-based journalism everyone deserves.
Thank you again for your support along the way. We’re truly grateful for readers like you! Your initial support helped get us here and bolstered our newsroom, which kept us strong during uncertain times. Now as we continue, we need your help more than ever. We hope you will join us once again.
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.
Bobby Henderson, founder of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, blogged about Schaeffer's swearing-in on Monday, saying Schaeffer "may be the first openly Pastafarian sworn into office."
"Some people will see it as obnoxious or a sign that he’s not taking the oath of office seriously," Henderson said of Schaeffer's decision to wear a colander. "But I am completely confident that Schaeffer will distinguish himself as a Council member of the highest caliber."
