--- description: A Dutch court has denied followers of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster the right to wear colanders as hats in official ID photos title: Dutch Court: Pastafarians Can't Wear Colanders in ID Photos image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7730069b399d8706/698937f486f68e84076e9eb1/gettyimages-1017058950.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Netherlands](/tag/netherlands/) ## Netherlands Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # A Dutch Court Has Ruled 'Pastafarians' Cannot Wear Colanders in ID Photos by [Eli Meixler](/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 17, 2018 5:38 AM CUT  Mienke de Wilde, a member of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster movement, poses with a colander on her head in Nijmegen, Netherlands on August 15, 2018. Mienke de Wilde, a member of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster movement, poses with a colander on her head in Nijmegen, Netherlands on August 15, 2018.Piroschka Van De Wouw—AFP/Getty Images by [Eli Meixler](/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 17, 2018 5:38 AM CUT Farfalle fanatics lament: A Dutch court has ruled that followers of the farcical Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster cannot [wear colanders on their heads](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/aug/16/pastafarianism-is-not-a-religion-dutch-court-rules "undefined") in official identification photos. The Dutch council of state, the Netherlands’ highest court, has refused the right of Dutch law student Mienke de Wilde to [don her pasta strainer](http://time.com/4114369/pastafarian-colander-license-photo/ "undefined") in passport and driver’s license photos, _the Guardian_ reports. The court ruled that de Wilde’s claim did not qualify for a religious exemption against headwear in official ID photos, because Pastafarianism lacked the “seriousness and coherence” of a legitimate religious faith. De Wilde, undeterred, is now mulling an appeal to the European court of human rights, according to _the Guardian_. Pastafarianism was founded in 2005 in response to efforts by Christian groups to introduce the Creationist [Intelligent Design](http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1111626,00.html "undefined") theory in American school curricula. In an [open letter](https://www.venganza.org/about/open-letter/ "undefined"), founder Bobby Henderson insisted that equal instruction also be devoted to his creed. On its website, the group now [claims](https://www.venganza.org/about/ "undefined") “millions, if not thousands, of devout worshipers,” who honor their deity by dressing as pirates, wearing strainers on their heads, and, of course, consuming large quantities of pasta. It is a recognized faith in the [Netherlands](https://metro.co.uk/2016/01/28/the-netherlands-has-recognised-the-church-of-the-flying-spaghetti-monster-as-a-religion-5649017/ "undefined") and [New Zealand](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/99910254/church-of-the-flying-spaghetti-monster-breaks-another-milestone-in-new-zealand "undefined"), where followers are [permitted to officiate weddings](http://time.com/4239219/pastafarian-marriage-celebrant-approved-new-zealand-flying-spaghetti-monster/ "undefined"), but not in the U.S. Other members have previously [sought to wear colanders](http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/07/14/atheist-wins-right-to-wear-pastafarian-headgear-in-license-photo/ "undefined") in official ID photos. While de Wilde conceded that the group is satirical, she said that does not discount that it is “very serious in what it stands for.” “I can imagine that it all looks very odd if you don’t believe,” she told the _Algemeen Dagblad_ newspaper, according to the _Guardian_. “But that’s the case with many faiths if you don’t believe in them – people who walk on water or divide themselves in two, for example. I find other religions unbelievable.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5370043/pastafarian-religion-netherlands/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5370043/pastafarian-religion-netherlands/"},"headline":"A Dutch Court Has Ruled 'Pastafarians' Cannot Wear Colanders in ID Photos","datePublished":"2018-08-17T05:38:47.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T21:10:27.450Z","description":"The satirical religion lacks the \"seriousness\" of a legitimate faith, it ruled","url":"https://time.com/5370043/pastafarian-religion-netherlands/","keywords":["Netherlands","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7730069b399d8706/698937f486f68e84076e9eb1/gettyimages-1017058950.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eli Meixler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eli/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7730069b399d8706/698937f486f68e84076e9eb1/gettyimages-1017058950.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"NETHERLANDS-RELIGION-SOCIAL-OFFBEAT","caption":"NETHERLANDS-RELIGION-SOCIAL-OFFBEAT","creditText":"Piroschka Van De Wouw—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/netherlands/","name":"Netherlands"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5370043/pastafarian-religion-netherlands/","name":"A Dutch Court Has Ruled 'Pastafarians' Cannot Wear Colanders in ID Photos"}}]}] ```