Credit: CC0 Public Domain
If intelligent aliens visit the Earth, it would be one of the most profound events in human history.
Surveys show that nearly half of Americans believe that aliens have visited the Earth, either in the ancient past or recently. The median age of conspiracy believers is 43, and 27 percent claim to have seen aliens on special occasions. And while these events are highly believable in the minds of many, they don't make for a very compelling story of UFOs.
The Fantastic Story of UFOs… and Counting
The story of extraterrestrial visitors differs dramatically in the Bible from the one we're familiar with in popular lore. In 2 Corinthians 8:9, Paul discusses heavenly visitors and — though he doesn't mention them by name — offers a very different description of aliens. Paul writes:
Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the rebellion comes, the man of lawlessness, the man driving out the law, the man defrauding farmers out of their crops , and robbing them and changing the judgment in the land.
Elsewhere in the Bible, Moses is described as arguing with God:
God said to him, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." And he said, "How do you know me?" And God said to him, "I know that you are a prophet."
Granted, this story is told of a last-minute decision by Moses that he was mistaken about God. In a sense, that's a bit surprising — here was a man who had dedicated his whole life to service to a single omnipotent deity, yet supported an individual asserting his independence from him. But why the change of stance?
"The original story comes from Jewish mysticism," explains Cathrine Schnelink, an associate professor of graphics design at the Rochester Institute of Technology who studies religious iconography. "The idea that a rabbi would disagree with the ultimate authority of a god is weird in the same breath as an aspiring political dictator who manages to get a reputation for standing up against the king. But this sort of dialogue between the King and the prophet is fairly common amongst the Jewish mystical traditions, and has become a key part of the psychological story of the Abrahamic faiths."
Perhaps this disagreement didn't come out on foot. Surely a certain level of respect and appreciation would have been forthcoming for someone who denied the existence of a power greater than itself?
"Well… that's how it began, but it didn't last," says Schnelink. "Moses only decided to turn down the very first minister who approached him ... It wasn't quite a joint conversation, so much as
If intelligent aliens visit the Earth, it would be one of the most profound events in human history.
Surveys show that nearly half of Americans believe that aliens have visited the Earth, either in the ancient past or recently. The median age of conspiracy believers is 43, and 27 percent claim to have seen aliens on special occasions. And while these events are highly believable in the minds of many, they don't make for a very compelling story of UFOs.
The Fantastic Story of UFOs… and Counting
The story of extraterrestrial visitors differs dramatically in the Bible from the one we're familiar with in popular lore. In 2 Corinthians 8:9, Paul discusses heavenly visitors and — though he doesn't mention them by name — offers a very different description of aliens. Paul writes:
Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the rebellion comes, the man of lawlessness, the man driving out the law, the man defrauding farmers out of their crops , and robbing them and changing the judgment in the land.
Elsewhere in the Bible, Moses is described as arguing with God:
God said to him, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." And he said, "How do you know me?" And God said to him, "I know that you are a prophet."
Granted, this story is told of a last-minute decision by Moses that he was mistaken about God. In a sense, that's a bit surprising — here was a man who had dedicated his whole life to service to a single omnipotent deity, yet supported an individual asserting his independence from him. But why the change of stance?
"The original story comes from Jewish mysticism," explains Cathrine Schnelink, an associate professor of graphics design at the Rochester Institute of Technology who studies religious iconography. "The idea that a rabbi would disagree with the ultimate authority of a god is weird in the same breath as an aspiring political dictator who manages to get a reputation for standing up against the king. But this sort of dialogue between the King and the prophet is fairly common amongst the Jewish mystical traditions, and has become a key part of the psychological story of the Abrahamic faiths."
Perhaps this disagreement didn't come out on foot. Surely a certain level of respect and appreciation would have been forthcoming for someone who denied the existence of a power greater than itself?
"Well… that's how it began, but it didn't last," says Schnelink. "Moses only decided to turn down the very first minister who approached him ... It wasn't quite a joint conversation, so much as
g
