What if we find intelligent life on another planet?

  • Thread starter Thread starter AlaJack
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
A

AlaJack

Guest
What does it do to our Catholic faith if and when scientists find intelligent life on another planet? Recent discoveries suggest thousands, even millions of planets exist which may be capable of harboring life, and it would be extremely naieve to think we’re the only intelligent beings in our universe. They say it’s only a matter of time before we discover such life using extremely powerful telescopic lens currently being made.

I ask this, because the current secularist movement may hit critical mass when we do discover other life. After all, what else would negate and belittle our little earthly Jesus if we find thousands of other civilizations whom may or may not worship other deities.

I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts on this. I believe it’s very likely we’ll discover intelligent life in my lifetime, and I’m wondering, and concerned, that it’ll be the proverbial straw which breaks the camels back in favor of the secularist movement.

Thanks
 
AlaJack said:
What does it do to our Catholic faith if and when scientists find intelligent life on another planet? Recent discoveries suggest thousands, even millions of planets exist which may be capable of harboring life, and it would be extremely naieve to think we’re the only intelligent beings in our universe. They say it’s only a matter of time before we discover such life using extremely powerful telescopic lens currently being made.

I ask this, because the current secularist movement may hit critical mass when we do discover other life. After all, what else would negate and belittle our little earthly Jesus if we find thousands of other civilizations whom may or may not worship other deities.

I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts on this. I believe it’s very likely we’ll discover intelligent life in my lifetime, and I’m wondering, and concerned, that it’ll be the proverbial straw which breaks the camels back in favor of the secularist movement.

Thanks
Click to expand...
I don’t think the existence of extraterrestrial life would favor the secularist movement.

For one thing, every example of life, or of anything for that matter, is more evidence of God. Show me an alien and I’ll show you a proof for God’s existence. As long as we keep teaching people why it is true that literally nothing can exist unless God exists, then the existence of aliens won’t prove anything.

Also, I think the idea that people will convert en masse to secularism just because aliens are discovered kind of assumes that a mass of people are teetering on a decision of whether to adopt secularism or not. Most people honestly don’t even think about stuff like that most of the time. They just think about the stuff they do all day, work, family stuff, sports, and errands. If they hear a radio announcement that aliens have been discovered, it won’t register as evidence for secularism or for Christianity because they aren’t even thinking about evidence for those things.

If they hear a TV commentator say that this proves secularism is true, which I doubt, they would probably furrow their brow and think, “Whaa? I don’t get it.” If it was further spelled out to them that this means humans aren’t special, a major Christian doctrine, I think very few people would believe that argument. The existence of other cultures doesn’t mean humans aren’t special. Christian teaching says that we are special because we are made in the image of God, and the image of God consists in our intelligence and free will. As long as aliens have those, it means they are made in the image of God too, and are like Indian cultures before America was discovered: the message of the Gospel needs to be brought to them. (Unless God has already raised up among them some prophets who told them the Christian message, which is possible.)
 
I have developed many scenarios regarding this and they have become more and more complex over the years.
  1. Will this intelligent life be capable of communicating with human beings? Will it be some jelly-like blob that can form appendages to do work and gather food and that’s it?
  2. Will it view these weird and frightening beings - meaning us - as enemies to be wiped out? As soon as possible?
  3. Will it view human beings as inferior beings to be enslaved for work or to be eaten?
  4. Will it communicate to us that “you’re welcome to stay, but stay away from us, and no, we have nothing to discuss. AND if you harm one of us, ALL of you will be punished” either with death or injured and kicked off the planet.
Ed
 
I wouldn’t assume we can expect intelligent life on other planets. This is to provide a theory about a thing we don’t know about, without any real basis.
If there is intelligent life on other planets, different possibilities exist as to what this could mean to Catholicism. Perhaps, this race never fell. Perhaps God provided another means to salvation. Perhaps Christ’s redemption applies to them, just as it does to pagans who don’t know Christ, through baptism of desire. Perhaps after human contact, they will start joining the Catholic Church. I am sure there are other possibilities. I don’t see how the discovery of intelligent life on other planets need be a problem for Catholicism.
Do we live on one, insignificant planet? But the best things can come in small packages. Ancient Athens, one city with perhaps only about 30 or 40 thousand people, has made immense contributions to the world.
 
I have argued with people about this topic before. It seems I am nearly alone in the belief that our faith would really have the wind knocked out of it if intelligent life was discovered elsewhere in the universe. I think it would be devastating and give atheists a field day. It’s bad enough to know that the earth is not the center of the solar system. Although, some fairly intelligent people will argue about that also. I don’t have a clue about such things. But I don’t want to find out about life on other planets at all. Nope. Especially if they are coming here and sticking probes up our you-know-whatsies. :eek:
 
boomerang said:
I have argued with people about this topic before. It seems I am nearly alone in the belief that our faith would really have the wind knocked out of it if intelligent life was discovered elsewhere in the universe. I think it would be devastating and give atheists a field day. It’s bad enough to know that the earth is not the center of the solar system. Although, some fairly intelligent people will argue about that also. I don’t have a clue about such things. But I don’t want to find out about life on other planets at all. Nope. Especially if they are coming here and sticking probes up our you-know-whatsies. :eek:
Click to expand...
Same here. I totally think it would be a devastating blow for Christianity, and even all religions. If this telescope reveals intelligent life and civilizations elsewhere, it could very well be the death blow the atheist seculars want.
 
AlaJack said:
Same here. I totally think it would be a devastating blow for Christianity, and even all religions. If this telescope reveals intelligent life and civilizations elsewhere, it could very well be the death blow the atheist seculars want.
Click to expand...
Is there an article about this telescope?
 
=AlaJack;12372358]What does it do to our Catholic faith if and when scientists find intelligent life on another planet? Recent discoveries suggest thousands, even millions of planets exist which may be capable of harboring life, and it would be extremely naieve to think we’re the only intelligent beings in our universe. They say it’s only a matter of time before we discover such life using extremely powerful telescopic lens currently being made.
Click to expand...
Most of those assumptions are based on probability calcuations, not actual observations of Earth-like planets, and it is my understanding is that they haven’t really found one yet. 🤷
I ask this, because the current secularist movement may hit critical mass when we do discover other life. After all, what else would negate and belittle our little earthly Jesus if we find thousands of other civilizations whom may or may not worship other deities.
Click to expand...
Well, that’s more or less the narrative Hollywood implies or puts forth, but the idea of extraterresital life was first put forth in the 13th Century, I think. And the Catholic Church already has the directive in the Bible: “Go forth and preach the Gospel to every creature”.

So the notion that alien life would shock people out of their faith to the point of organized religion shutting down is absurd to say the least.
I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts on this. I believe it’s very likely we’ll discover intelligent life in my lifetime, and I’m wondering, and concerned, that it’ll be the proverbial straw which breaks the camels back in favor of the secularist movement.
Click to expand...
The secular movement is a lot weaker than what you’ve probably seen on TV or heard about in general. A society that bases itself on the culture of death cannot sustain itself. Ask yourself how mankind can flourish all over the galaxy if most of the First World nations here on earth cannot even replace their own population without immigration.

As Rush Limbaugh once joked “Why do most UFO sightings happen in places like Montana? Why aren’t they ever seen hovering over DC or at the UN?”
 
edwest2 said:
I have developed many scenarios regarding this and they have become more and more complex over the years.
  1. Will this intelligent life be capable of communicating with human beings? Will it be some jelly-like blob that can form appendages to do work and gather food and that’s it?
  2. Will it view these weird and frightening beings - meaning us - as enemies to be wiped out? As soon as possible?
  3. Will it view human beings as inferior beings to be enslaved for work or to be eaten?
  4. Will it communicate to us that “you’re welcome to stay, but stay away from us, and no, we have nothing to discuss. AND if you harm one of us, ALL of you will be punished” either with death or injured and kicked off the planet.
Ed
Click to expand...
Respectfully Ed, I think there’s too much Hollywood in there. No, I don’t think there will be giant blobs or angry military forces on some far off planet waiting to destroy us.

I think the universe is perhaps more empty than some people think. 🤷
 
If we discover ETs, I don’t think it will harm the Catholic Faith. It might harm some fundamentalists who preach that ETs are demons, and might cause those crazies to do something crazy.

But for the Catholic Faith, we will see it as more evidence for God’s existence and the Holy Father, the Bishops and priests will keep preaching the Gospel.
 
edwest2 said:
I have developed many scenarios regarding this and they have become more and more complex over the years.
  1. Will this intelligent life be capable of communicating with human beings? Will it be some jelly-like blob that can form appendages to do work and gather food and that’s it?
  2. Will it view these weird and frightening beings - meaning us - as enemies to be wiped out? As soon as possible?
  3. Will it view human beings as inferior beings to be enslaved for work or to be eaten?
  4. Will it communicate to us that “you’re welcome to stay, but stay away from us, and no, we have nothing to discuss. AND if you harm one of us, ALL of you will be punished” either with death or injured and kicked off the planet.
Ed
Click to expand...
If there is intelligent life on other planets within this physical universe, than these lifeforms will most likely not be more powerful than us human beings, who are made in God’s image and likeness.

I’m open to the possibility of intelligent life living and thriving and other worlds, but I don’t think these lifeforms will be powerful enough to surpass us human beings in terms of science and technology, nothing like Alien VS Predator. Some of them might be as dangerous as sharks and lions, but not dangerous enough to cause our extinction and threaten our daily lives.

We human beings are the second/third most powerful creatures in existence, and so we should always be at the top of the food chain.

Maybe there are shape shifting water cats out there, and we may enjoy exploring the countless planets when we’re glorifying God in Heaven. Maybe the whole universe is a part of Heaven: maybe we are destined to enjoy other worlds after we die. 😃
 
DaddyGirl said:
First, I’m curious why “intelligent life” elsewhere in the universe would be a blow to the Catholic faith.
Second…are you saying that if there is, indeed, intelligent life out there with their unique worlds and beliefs and languages and Gods and powers…*you would not want to know about it? *
You would want to ignore it and pretend it’s not there?

How is the secular “movement” or “society” basing itself on “the culture of death”?
What do you mean by that?

.
Click to expand...
:knight1:

According to Catholic Answers Apologetics Speaker Christopher Kaczor, The Culture of Death is: catholic.com/magazine/articles/build-the-culture-of-life

Snippets

Your Brother’s Blood Cries to Me

All human beings descend from Adam and Eve, so all people—regardless of race, creed, or nationality—are *ultimately *brothers and sisters. Man’s inhumanity to man constitutes a revolt against God, who is disrespected whenever the image of God—another human person—is disrespected.

When confronted by God, Cain lies to try to cover up his crime. Similarly, the Pope says, “all kinds of **ideologies **try to justify and disguise the most atrocious crimes against human beings.” They ask the same question that Cain did: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Just as Cain refuses to accept responsibility for his brother, so today people have a tendency to refuse to accept responsibility for their brothers and sisters. Disrespect for the human person continues to be built on lies, euphemism, anger, envy, and, especially, lack of love.

Any threats to the human person constitute the “culture of death.” John Paul focused on human life in its most vulnerable stages—at its very earliest and in its final stages—but Cain’s murder of his brother continues to be replicated in many forms, including wars, class conflict, civil unrest, ecological recklessness, and sexual irresponsibility. :slapfight:

This culture of death arises in part from a faulty understanding of human freedom.

Having lost the knowledge that humans are the image of God, the culture of death reduces the value of the human person to functionality, efficiency, and usefulness, to transient human desires and the vagaries of economic productivity. In this culture, pleasure and lack of pain are the most valuable commodities, and the powerful can exploit and even kill—legally—those who are weak, poor, elderly, sick, or immature. :crutches:

Conclusion

The culture of Life is taught by Jesus Christ, while the culture of Death is taught by the World.

Which one will you chose???
:highprayer:

or…

:tanning:
 
I personally don’t believe that there is “life out there”, and I find the eagerness of secularist atheists to believe that the universe is teeming with life to be very laughable given how often they insist that there is “no evidence” for God. Check out the Drake Equation and get back to me when you have some actual evidence of life on other planets, let alone intelligent life. As someone who took a course in astronomy in college and vaguely remembered how it is that astronomers discover planets outside of the solar system, the mere existence of other planets doesn’t exactly constitute any shred of evidence for extra-terrestrial life any more than our solar system’s planets do. I don’t think they’re going to make a telescope anytime soon that’s going to be able to detect life like that.

I also think that the idea that undergirds this idea of intelligent life out there is a commitment to materialism and the belief that the mind/consciousness is simply a physical and material phenomenon, and so it could arise on some other planet due to mindless physical processes.

Of course materialism is on the ropes currently even with advances in neuroscience when it comes to philosophy of the mind and this is becoming more and more clear even among atheist philosophers of mind (Thomas Nagel made quite a stir recently with his book Mind and Cosmos), although their dogmatic commitment to materialism is going to be a huge block to get over, and given the historical pedigree of materialism (it goes back to ancient greece) means that it will always be here.

But even if there was intelligent life on another planet, I fail to see how this could matter. Perhaps they didn’t sin again God? Why should we think that this race was fallen like ours? Perhaps God could offer a path to salvation to another fallen race as well? Oh you think this is silly? Lots of people say that Adam and Eve story in the first place is silly, does that make it so?

Just because the earth is not the center of the universe doesn’t really constitute a blow to Christianity (in fact if people understood what the ancients meant by putting the earth at the center of the cosmos, they would see that it actually wasn’t a point of pride for them, rather it was like being proud of living in the garbage dump of the cosmos). The fact that God Incarnate walked on our earth is more than enough to sanctify our little pale blue dot.
 
This article simply says this device may discover intelligent life if it exists. It provides no proof that intelligent life exists elsewhere. I think it important to realize what we know or don’t know.
I think it possible that there is intelligent alien life though. However, I don’t see any evidence that it does exist.
AlaJack said:
mobile.news.com.au/technology/science/within-20-years-nasa-expects-to-confirm-we-are-not-alone-and-find-the-first-traces-of-alien-life/story-fnjwlcze-1226989404690
Click to expand...
 
SuperLuigi said:
Most of those assumptions are based on probability calcuations, not actual observations of Earth-like planets, and it is my understanding is that they haven’t really found one yet. 🤷

Well, that’s more or less the narrative Hollywood implies or puts forth, but the idea of extraterresital life was first put forth in the 13th Century, I think. And the Catholic Church already has the directive in the Bible: “Go forth and preach the Gospel to every creature”.

So the notion that alien life would shock people out of their faith to the point of organized religion shutting down is absurd to say the least.

The secular movement is a lot weaker than what you’ve probably seen on TV or heard about in general. A society that bases itself on the culture of death cannot sustain itself. Ask yourself how mankind can flourish all over the galaxy if most of the First World nations here on earth cannot even replace their own population without immigration.

As Rush Limbaugh once joked “Why do most UFO sightings happen in places like Montana? Why aren’t they ever seen hovering over DC or at the UN?”
Click to expand...
I agree, Lots of huge imaginations at work here. I am having enough wonder learning more about my Catholic Faith, I don’t have time for such nonsense. God Bless, Memaw
 
We have the intellect to perceive.

And I think if there were such life out there, we would have known what it is by now. ‘They’ have not found us and they are not communicating anything either into space.

There are discoveries of water and rocks on the planets near us, but there is no life on them.

And let’s say there is life out there…of personhood?..values and morals…

We are then projecting who we are onto the ‘aliens’.

And I doubt very much nothing would change in Catholic theology either. To clarify, it is Catholic doctrine to respect all life.
 
There are several ways of finding life elsewhere in the universe. The life we find may be behind us on the evolutionary grid, or it may be ahead of us. If behind us, it proves nothing except that God has been generous is distributing the gift of life throughout the universe. If ahead of us, it proves nothing except again that God has been distributing life generously throughout the universe. If the life we discover is ahead of us, it can teach us what it has learned ahead of us. What I think it will teach us most of all is that it too is thankful to God for distributing life throughout the universe. The secularist needn’t think that life elsewhere in the universe is going to prove there is no God.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top