The church of the flying spaghetti monster and Spanish law on religious organizations. Notes from a constitutional case-law perspective

Abstract

In October 2020, the Spanish «Audiencia Nacional», a centralised court in Spain with jurisdiction over all the territory, ruled on the registration of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster in the Registry of Religious Entities of Spain. On the occasion of that decision, this article studies the system of recognition of religious entities in Spanish law, in relation to the guidelines provided by the Spanish Constitutional Court, and the subsequent normative and jurisprudential evolution of the system. Considering all the elements analysed, the article provides arguments regarding the inscription of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, in accordance with the religious neutrality of the State and the principle of non-discrimination.