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Alien life and religion

I've always thought that the definitive finding of life on other planets would increase the number of atheists. At the least it would have many people questioning their religious texts. Do others think this would make a difference to current believers?

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Permalink Reply by Richard ∑wald on April 4, 2012 at 1:24am

Not to fundies, no.

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Permalink Reply by booklover on April 4, 2012 at 9:56am

Years ago a kid in my then 'kid's homeschool science class at a local Childrens Museum said there is no life on other planets. We're it. I thought how sad it was that his Fundie mother (I knew her) had brainwashed this kid at such a young age that he didn't even think of the possibilities. I hope now that he is older (and I know he's not homeschooled anymore) that maybe he opens his mind a little. My son was OBVIOUSLY not homeschooled for religious reasons, lol.

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Permalink Reply by Jason Fleming on April 4, 2012 at 6:09pm

No. Even when you can manage to shake their faith in a prescribed religion, they often just become universalist or deists. Sometimes the path to atheism, but not always.

And you will always those of blind faith that will make every excuse imaginable, regardless of evidence or contradiction. Facts and reason mean nothing to this type.

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Permalink Reply by Jessica Berman on April 4, 2012 at 7:02pm

I agree the fundamentalists are not going to change, but I guess I hope that at least some would begin questioning. I wonder, if sometime in the future, intelligent alien life is discovered how religions of all types would respond. If humanity became just one of many beings it would be interesting to see how creationists would explain it. :-)

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Permalink Reply by Jason Fleming on April 4, 2012 at 7:12pm

I suppose they would try to incorporate it into their belief system as a means of certifying it. Like Joseph Smith claiming Jesus went to America after he died and appeared to one of the lost tribes of Israel.

The new sect will say Jesus went to Sirius and encountered the Zenoobs.

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Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on April 4, 2012 at 11:34pm

That will be interesting. I always thought the Zenoobs were Hindu. As for Joseph Smith, don't the Mormons believe they each get their own planet?

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Permalink Reply by Tony Carroll on April 5, 2012 at 8:45am

No. Only if you are a temple mormon, which last I heard makes up less than 20% of all active mormons. Then you will (hopefully) make the celestial kingdom, and only by continued work and study (not immediately upon arrival) can you progress to godhood and THEN you can organize a planet. And with your eternally pregnant goddess wives, start to populate it with humans. Just a brief synopsis, mind you. It does get very detailed. As they say, the devil is in the details. lol. Be well.

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Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on April 5, 2012 at 9:34am

Thanks for the insight.

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Permalink Reply by Idaho Spud on April 5, 2012 at 4:58pm

What I think is interesting, is that Joseph Smith said there were men living on the moon, but the fact that it's been proven false doesn't seem to bother most mormons.

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Permalink Reply by Tony Carroll on April 5, 2012 at 5:06pm

Yeah, and that they were app. all 6 ft. tall, and dressed in the "Quaker style", whatever that means. And Brigham Young said there were inhabitants on the sun.

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Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on April 4, 2012 at 11:43pm

Interesting thought. A number of sci fi stories include either religious themes or touch on religion - V, Battlestar Galactica is infused with religious wuwu, I think several species on Star Trek were religious. So at least in the minds of the fiction writers, religion and extraterrestrial life are not incompatible ideas. The Cylons on BG annoyed the hell out of be with their religious wuwu. Then the extracognitive route to finding earth.... that annoyed me too. Oh well.

Maybe, given how almost all societies have religions on earth, maybe something about becoming sentient has a religious stage. Maybe human brains are hard-wired for religion, and the relatively few atheists are mutants.