Leslie Kean, UFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go on the Record (Three Rivers Press, 2011). I read Leslie Kean's book a few months ago but haven't gotten around to a review until now. Readers should not take that delay as a sign of my own reticence or...
extraterrestrial life
Another Scientist Expresses Skepticism Over Cardinal Doctrine of All ET Religions
Astrophysicist John Gribbon's new book Alone in the Universe: Why Our Planet Is Unique was recently reviewed in the Wall Street Journal. The reviewer refers to the book as "grimly plausible" and notes that Gribbon has a firm grasp on something obvious to all those who...
Think You're An Alien?
The idea that there are people out there who think they are "starseeds" with tragic amnesia about their extraterrestrial heritage wasn't new to me. But it may be to readers, who don't have the benefit of having listened to thousands of hours of Coast to Coast AM like...
ET Life and Recent God Talk
[Update / Addendum 10/11/2011 - see the third paragraph.] I'm betting those of you who lurk on this blog have seen the recent spate (or is it semi-mindless repetition) of news stories about the impact an intelligent extraterrestrial reality would have on religion,...
Probability of ET Life Arbitrarily Small
That's the verdict of astrobiologists on the MIT Technology Review. Now, despite the iterative hoopla on the web and in the popular media about how there *must* be ET life out there, this isn't the first time mainstream scientists have argued that the possibility of...
Junk DNA as Evidence of ET Life in our Genes? Try Again.
There have been a number of news items and articles recently (last year - I collect them) on how "junk DNA" is now known to not be junk. Here's an example. As genetic research continues to advance, this previously-assumed junk DNA (called so because it had no...
Could We Tell An Advanced ET from God?
Famous atheist Michael Shermer asks that question here. It's a good overview of things to think about in this regard. I am in basic agreement that the existence of an advanced ET would be embraced as God by many, perhaps most. But despite the article's strengths, it...
Intelligent Panspermia News
Over on Uncommon Descent, there is a short news blurb about scientists who have suggested ETs could be responsible for life on earth. Yeah, it's short, but still worth bookmarking.
Pope Okay with Baptizing Aliens
More clear theological thinking from the catholic church. Honestly, this is muddled in so many ways: from baptismal regeneration to the failure to read the clear words of Romans 5:12, that it is HUMANITY that is morally guilty and in need of atonement for the sin of a...
Seth Shostak’s Statement of ET Faith
Read it here. Really - what's the difference between saying "in 25 years I believe we'll have proof of God's existence" vs. "In 25 years I believe we'll have proof of ETs?" Nothing (although the latter might take *more* faith).
Understanding the Christian Fundamentalist View of UFOs and Aliens, Part 6
We've reached the point now where we can transition from explaining the four pillars of the "fundamentalist" view to offering some points of (friendly) critique. Here they are for sake of review: 1. Abductee testimony of the forcible trauma of their experience. 2....
Understanding the Christian Fundamentalist View of UFOs and Aliens, Part 4
So far we've covered the first three of the four elements to a Christian fundamentalist view of UFOs and aliens (i.e., that UFOs that are not man-made or other natural phenomena are demonic and alleged alien life forms are demonic). The four were: 1. Abductee...
Understanding the Christian Fundamentalist View of UFOs and Aliens, Part 2
To review the purpose of this thread, I suggested at the outset that there were four aspects to the Christian fundamentalist view of UFOs and aliens (i.e., that UFOs that are not man-made or other natural phenomena are demonic and alleged alien life forms are...
Stephen Hawking: Look Out for ET (And the Tooth Fairy)
Because the wish of ET life out there moved to religious trajectory a long time ago. Pardon me for being a curmudgeon, but all this well-circulated story amounts to is a very bright physicist warning us about beings that, with respect to hard scientific evidence,...
Recent Discussion On ET Life and Implications for Christian Theology
I'm swallowing hard in posting this since the conversation includes Paul Davies, whom I have suggested should be kept as far away from theological discussion as possible. But, he's balanced by John Lennox, who should know something about Christianity since the...