The world's first Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster wedding

The world’s first Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster wedding

The bride and groom don pirate regalia for their big day. Image: Sydney Morning Herald via Nick Perry

The world’s first legally recognised ‘Pastafarian’ marriage has taken place in New Zealand between members of the light-hearted Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

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Pastafarians believe humans are all descendants of pirates and members Toby Ricketts, 35, and Marianna Fenn, 33, married over the weekend in a ceremony which was, of course, pirate-themed.

The ceremony took place on a ‘pirate’ boat and the couple wore complete pirate costumes, as did their celebrant or ‘ministeroni’ and their wedding guests.

Toby, who is a voiceover artist, and Marianna, who is a lawyer, are both members of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, which is legally recognised as a religion in Poland, The Netherlands and New Zealand.

The movement claims the world was created by a giant flying spaghetti monster and there is a beer volcano in heaven. Some members even choose to wear colanders on their head as a symbol of their belief.

Marianna told BBC news, “I would never have agreed to a conventional marriage, but the idea of this was too good to pass up.”

During the ceremony the pair exchanged wedding rings made from pasta, before Marianna wore a colander filled with noodles on her head, and the couple shared their ‘first kiss’ by chowing down on either end of a spaghetti noodle until their lips met.

Wedding officiant and ‘ministeroni’ Karen Martyn told the BBC, “It’s a formal recognition that we are a church and that’s just great.”

Karen, who only a month prior to the pasta-filled affair received approval from the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs to practice as a Pastafarian marriage celebrant, went on to explain that more Pastafarian weddings have been planned in New Zealand, including same-sex ceremonies. “We will marry any consenting legal adults who meet the legal requirement,” she said.