How drastic would Christian theology change if aliens arrived at our planet? And I am not talking about those people who claim to have been abducted by aliens during the night and given an anal probe. I mean, an official worldwide type arrival where there can be no question that aliens have arrived (think the opening scene of the pilot episode for the television series “V”).
How would the Church react to this?
I think at first, a lot of Christians would hail these aliens as demons in disguise, making parallels between them and the Nephilim of Genesis 6. In fact, I have heard a couple of relatively popular American Christian authors/teachers say that they believe aliens will indeed come to earth in the future but that they are really part of a diabolical plan of Satan to deceive humans into accepting the Antichrist (who is either going to be an alien or boast of alien connections). These aliens are said to actually be the offspring of demons mating with humans (as per the popular interpretation of Genesis 6).
Then there is the Roman Catholic Church which I think would immediately start proselytizing the aliens to join the church, for “outside the church there is no salvation.” In fact, I read a while ago that the Roman Catholic Church have already planned on what they are going to do if official alien contact ever occurs, which is obviously convert them, although some have speculated that these aliens may be free from original sin so there might not be much of a need of converting them. And apparently the Vatican has plans to send missionaries to other planets should interstellar travel ever become a reality (though the source I read that from isn’t exactly reliable).
Then there would be the Mormon Church who would probably start claiming that this all proves Mormonism is true and that the whole universe is teeming with life and that if you become a Mormon you too can be the god of your own planet and create myriads of offspring with your heavenly wife to inhabit your planet.
But on a more serious note, I wonder how alien contact really would affect Christian theology. What if they too had a religion similar to Christianity which posits that the Creator of all things entered into his creation and showed them, through the life and teachings of the alien’s version of Jesus, what the kingdom of God was like. This would something huge to grapple with. One important theological change I think it would logically lead to would be a shift in how we think Jesus was God, in other words, it would lead to a more functional than ontological Christology. Then there would also be huge implications and questions on all other areas of theology.
Edited to Add: I found this interesting article on this subject. Here is a quote from it:
It would seem that there are six and only six possibilities for Christian salvation to work in the context of sentient life beyond Earth:
1) Jesus’ death and resurrection on Earth covers all beings on all worlds and at all times.
2) Jesus goes through a similar process of life, death, and resurrection on innumerable planets to save innumerable beings and creatures.
3) Human beings, as galactic missionaries, will ultimately colonize the universe and spread the Word of God to heathen ETs.
4) There are other mechanisms to attain salvation on other planets.
5) Salvation is not offered to other beings and creatures on other planets.
6) There are no other sentient beings on other planets anywhere; humans are utterly unique.
Though it is not a direct article of the Christian faith that the planet we inhabit is the only inhabited one in the cosmos, yet it is so worked up from what is called the Mosaic account of creation, the story of Eve and the forbidden fruit, and the counterpart of that story, the death of the Son of God–that to believe otherwise renders the Christian system of faith at once little and ridiculous, and scatters it in the mind like feathers in the air.
Thomas Paine, The Age of Reason
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So long as people believed, as St. Paul himself did, in one week of creation and a past of 4,000 years–so long as people thought the stars were satellites of the earth and that animals were there to serve man–there was no difficulty in believing that a single man could have ruined everything, and that another man had saved everything.
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, “Fall, Redemption, and Geocentrism,”Christianity and Evolution
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Did Jesus die uniquely to save the sins of human beings on planet Earth, or is he being strung up somewhere in the universe on every Friday?
Michael Ruse, “Booknotes,” Biology & Philosophy, Vol. 14, No. 1, Jan. 1999
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“A NEW HEAVEN?” EVEN FOR PEOPLE LIVING IN DISTANT GALAXIES?
According to the book of Revelation a “new earth” and a “new heaven” will be created after Jesus returns. Occupants of other planets throughout the hundred billion galaxies of our present “heaven” will no doubt be surprised to receive such an unearned favor, all because of what happens on our little world. Or is this simply another example of how the Hebrews viewed the earth as the flat firm foundation of creation with the heavens above created simply for the earth below?
E.T.B.
Thanks for the quotes! I have seen that one by Ruse quoted in quite a few places.
I agree that the idea of humans being the only inhabits of this universe is largely worked up from the Mosaic account of creation, even though it is not a necessary doctrine to believe. Though it does avoid numerous tough theological questions that arise if one does believe that aliens exist.
I would not agree that the existence of aliens makes Christianity “at once little and ridiculous, and scatters it in the mind like feathers in the air.” Though no doubt, the arrival of aliens would cause most nominal Christians to lose their faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Reminds me of what I read on Panda’s Thumb about the OEC interpretation of evidence that Neanderthals had some limited interbreeding with modern Homo. Said it would have been depravity. I bet Gen. 6 didn’t even occur to them.
smijer: Funny you should bring that up, because I was just reading earlier today Panda’s Thumb and what the OEC’s were saying about Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens interbreeding. I too thought the OEC’s would have attributed it to the Nephilim and Genesis 6, but they did not go that route.
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“What if they too had a religion similar to Christianity. . .”
I realize, of course, that we are speculating wildly here, but do you really think it possible that a society which has advanced scientifically to the point where they have mastered interstellar travel could possibly have held to superstition and religion?
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In undergrad we read two novels that address this topic. The premise is going to sound far-fetched, but they were entertaining and probed some very deep and fascinating questions much the same as what you are asking. The premise is that a priest goes into outer space and encounters alien life. If I recall correctly he is terribly abused by them. There is a whole extended story and subplots, but the metanarrative was the issue of faith and Christianity given this new discovery.
If you’re curious, they were both by (I believe) Thora Neal Hurston. The first volume was called The Sparrow and the second Children of God.
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John: Thanks for the novels, I may actually try to find a copy of them sometime.
Matt: No, I doubt it they would hold to superstition. Thankfully though, belief in God is not superstitious.
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The novels are very cheap. I sold my copies a while back on amazon used.