Religious Beliefs

[Myn McGeek, Third Sentinel]

I think that how people respond depends greatly on what religion they follow, and how fundamentalistic they are in their beliefs. If we were to make contact with extraterrestrial life forms with an intelligence equal or greater then our own, i think that fundamentalist believers of the Abrahamic religions will have the most problems accepting them. It seems likely to me that the Christian fundamentalists will claim that these beings are inferior to us, because they were not created by god, and therefore have no soul, and/or that they are not our equals because Jesus was born on Earth and died for the sins of mankind. Of course i could be wrong, i'm not a Christian fundy. My opinion on their reaction is based on my experience growing up amongst them.

More moderate religious people, and atheists/agnostics are unlikely to view these aliens in a negative light because they are from another planet. Also many religious people are capable of interpreting their religious texts in such a way that they are in harmony with scientific discoveries.

I think it is sad that making contact with intelligent life would make some people see these beings as inferior. One thing that has always bothered me about religion is that most, if not all of them claim to have the absolute truth. But lets face it, the existence of the Christian god isn't anymore likely then the existence of the Hindu gods. As long as people can not accept that anothers religion is just as valid as their own, and keep having such dogmatic mindsets, i hope that we do not encounter intelligent aliens. Before we can interact with other intelligent life forms as equals, we first need to learn to treat each other as equals.

I'd just like to ask... how can one believe in their own religion without believing it to be the truth? What's the point? Obviously they'd believe it, or they wouldn't follow it. But believing one is the truth over another does not automatically make one group disrespect the other. I believe my religion is closest to the truth, but there are plenty of religions that I very highly respect that don't believe the same things I do. I respect all life and I respect other religions, as long as their beliefs don't cause them to harm others or themselves. Just because I believe they believe in something that may not be the complete truth, it certainly doesn't mean I don't repect them.

Religion does not equal intolerance, it equals faith in what one group believes to be the truth. Yes, many religions can be intolerant, but religion itself as a broad term is not.

I would also like to point out that no fundamentalist Christan would believe that aliens were not created by God. God created the entire universe and all of existence, so it wouldn't make sense to say He didn't create the alien life as well.

[~Dave]

Because it would upset/scare some people. And that has nothing to do with religion specifically, people can be paranoid without being religious....

OR, the government doesn't want people to know because they want to study it themselves without any complications of media and such. Or they'd just want to feel like they're in control.

OR, there really is nothing to cover up other than military experiments so far and if aliens did come they wouldn't be able to or maybe even not even try to cover it up.

The original question was asking if it would upset people's religious beliefs specifically. And for the most part, I can't see why it should. I'm sure it would effect some people's beliefs, religious or not. But it wouldn't effect everyone's.

When it comes to ET visiting Earth, how can you claim the government is covering anything up? Do you guys have some proof of this that we should know about? If not, then there may be nothing for the government to admit.

~Dave

[Betelgeuze]

I'd just like to ask... how can one believe in their own religion without believing it to be the truth? What's the point? Obviously they'd believe it, or they wouldn't follow it. But believing one is the truth over another does not automatically make one group disrespect the other. I believe my religion is closest to the truth, but there are plenty of religions that I very highly respect that don't believe the same things I do. I respect all life and I respect other religions, as long as their beliefs don't cause them to harm others or themselves. Just because I believe they believe in something that may not be the complete truth, it certainly doesn't mean I don't repect them.

Many of the religious people i have met reject the validity of the beliefs of others. If you claim that your relgion is the only true one, then you need to have evidence to back up your claims. None of them have what they need to prove that their religion is more true then the other religions. People can have a religious belief, because they find that it is most satisfying to them, but they can't claim that their beliefs are somehow more valid then the beliefs of others.

Claims of absolute truth might not automatically lead to disrespect for others, but it does make it more likely. Maybe you don't think that way, but the world is plagued by those who do. If one believes that their religion is the only true religion, it becomes more easy to deny others the right to their beliefs.

I would also like to point out that no fundamentalist Christan would believe that aliens were not created by God. God created the entire universe and all of existence, so it wouldn't make sense to say He didn't create the alien life as well.

Maybe not, or maybe they would claim that the aliens were created by the devil. There really is no limit to the weird things people can belief.

[Myn McGeek, Third Sentinel]

When it comes to ET visiting Earth, how can you claim the government is covering anything up? Do you guys have some proof of this that we should know about? If not, then there may be nothing for the government to admit.

~Dave

That was one of my suggestions. I personally don't believe aliens have visited this planet. I was just giving examples of why the government might try to cover it up if aliens did visit, other than believing people couldn't handle the truth. =)

[~Dave]

There is only one reason I can think of for the government being reluctant to get into the UFO business. National security. The people remain calm and go about their daily lives when they believe their government can protect them. If they should lose faith in their government's ability to protect them, that might be what causes panic. I doubt it has anything to do with religion.

So, if our airspace can be repeatedly violated at will by UFOs which are ET in nature, and we do not know their intentions, then the people might react badly. The government loses face as being in control of what happens.

~Dave

[Myn McGeek, Third Sentinel]

Many of the religious people i have met reject the validity of the beliefs of others. If you claim that your relgion is the only true one, then you need to have evidence to back up your claims. None of them have what they need to prove that their religion is more true then the other religions. People can have a religious belief, because they find that it is most satisfying to them, but they can't claim that their beliefs are somehow more valid then the beliefs of others.

Claims of absolute truth might not automatically lead to disrespect for others, but it does make it more likely. Maybe you don't think that way, but the world is plagued by those who do. If one believes that their religion is the only true religion, it becomes more easy to deny others the right to their beliefs.

I do not need scientific evidence to believe one truth over another. Science is only one way of finding the truth. Science in itself is a form of belief. It isn't spiritual, but physical. Religion works in much the same why as science, only instead of studying the physical nature of our universe, it studies the supernatural and spiritual side. The reason it's hard for people who have no religion or belief in spirituality to understand how and why one would believe one religion's beliefs over another is because they are using only one way of deduction and reasoning. What sets the believers in spirituality apart from non-believers is faith. Faith in the existence of spirituality. Faith in something higher and more out of the reach of our own human minds than what we can see and feel.

So, when one has faith in the existence of something beyond science, they are able to make deductions and conclusions about the spiritual nature of the universe, going by the evidence they see and listening to all points of view on the subject. That is how one can believe one thing over another, without completely disrespecting those whose beliefs differ.

It's like two groups in the scientific community having two different theories on one particular subject. Sometimes neither can be proven or disproven, but they still believe in their own theory over the other, while still respecting the other group and their own theory.

Maybe not, or maybe they would claim that the aliens were created by the devil. There really is no limit to the weird things people can belief.

That is very true, but any Christian who believes that has missed a verse or two in the bible... It clearly states that only God has the power to create.
But you're right, there are people whose beliefs hugely differ from mainstream science and religion.

[Myn McGeek, Third Sentinel]

There is only one reason I can think of for the government being reluctant to get into the UFO business. National security. The people remain calm and go about their daily lives when they believe their government can protect them. If they should lose faith in their government's ability to protect them, that might be what causes panic. I doubt it has anything to do with religion.

So, if our airspace can be repeatedly violated at will by UFOs which are ET in nature, and we do not know their intentions, then the people might react badly. The government loses face as being in control of what happens.

~Dave

Exactly. Very well put.

I do wonder sometimes how much they'd really need to worry... I heard about back when there was no TV a radio program came out (War of the Worlds, I think... although I could be wrong), and in the program they had fictional news announcers warning people that the world was under attack by aliens from outer space. Apparently, people who came in at the wrong time missed that it was just a story (or the program announcers didn't say it was at all), and many panicked. But that was nearly a century ago, one would hope we've gotten less paranoid...

[Betelgeuze]

So, when one has faith in the existence of something beyond science, they are able to make deductions and conclusions about the spiritual nature of the universe, going by the evidence they see and listening to all points of view on the subject. That is how one can believe one thing over another, without completely disrespecting those whose beliefs differ.

It's like two groups in the scientific community having two different theories on one particular subject. Sometimes neither can be proven or disproven, but they still believe in their own theory over the other, while still respecting the other group and their own theory.

Ok, i accept that believers do not determine the truth of things the way non-believers do, and that they therefore come to different conclusions. However i do not think one can compare the acceptance of a scientific theory, or a preference for one of two hypothesis with religious belief. Scientists would never present a theory as the absolute truth. Also science has a universal method with which the validity of a theory can be tested. Religion has no such method. Therefore the truths religious believers find are not universal but individual ones

[GhostPoet]

I believe in God and Christ Jesus.

I believe in partial evolution.

I suspect the presence of life in the universe, other than our own. Either sentient or not.

I believe media has a profound impact on individuals...especially those who believe they are immune.

[Myn McGeek, Third Sentinel]

Ok, i accept that believers do not determine the truth of things the way non-believers do, and that they therefore come to different conclusions. However i do not think one can compare the acceptance of a scientific theory, or a preference for one of two hypothesis with religious belief. Scientists would never present a theory as the absolute truth. Also science has a universal method with which the validity of a theory can be tested. Religion has no such method. Therefore the truths religious believers find are not universal but individual ones

In response to the bolded part: I just did. So I'll assume you mean that the basis for my comparison was flawed... I know that it is not exactly the same, but it can certainly be loosely compared.

I don't really present my religious theory/belief as absolute truth either. I just personally believe it as such. However, if I ever found reason to believe otherwise, then I would certainly take it into consideration. And I have. I've heard many opinions and reasons for why my religion is not the truth and have taken them into consideration. I considered them, then through a process of considering all sides of both arguments concluded that my original belief was the true one.

Science is not quite universal... it's just what most of humanity believes and trusts in. Not all. Science is based on human knowledge and intelligence. As I said before, religion just has a different basis. It's just a different way of looking at existence and has been around since before science. But, I'm not saying this is a reason why religion is more reliable, because I'll freely admit that it isn't. I'm just saying that there is no way to prove that science is the only reasonable way to study existence.

[Myn McGeek, Third Sentinel]

I believe in God and Christ Jesus.

I believe in partial evolution.

I suspect the presence of life in the universe, other than our own. Either sentient or not.

I believe media has a profound impact on individuals...especially those who believe they are immune.

And that mainstream rap is a lie?

And I also believe in most of what you said.

[AvatarIII]

Exactly. Very well put.

I do wonder sometimes how much they'd really need to worry... I heard about back when there was no TV a radio program came out (War of the Worlds, I think... although I could be wrong), and in the program they had fictional news announcers warning people that the world was under attack by aliens from outer space. Apparently, people who came in at the wrong time missed that it was just a story (or the program announcers didn't say it was at all), and many panicked. But that was nearly a century ago, one would hope we've gotten less paranoid...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War...Worlds_(radio)

The War of the Worlds was an episode of the American radio drama anthology series Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was performed as a Halloween episode of the series on October 30, 1938 and aired over the Columbia Broadcasting System radio network. Directed and narrated by Orson Welles, the episode was an adaptation of H. G. Wells' novel The War of the Worlds.

(only 70 years ago)

Some listeners heard only a portion of the broadcast, and in the atmosphere of tension and anxiety leading to World War II, took it to be a news broadcast. Newspapers reported that panic ensued, people fleeing the area, others thinking they could smell poison gas or could see flashes of lightning in the distance.

[dalene]

Maybe not, or maybe they would claim that the aliens were created by the devil. There really is no limit to the weird things people can belief.

Coming from my non-denominational Christian POV, the devil cannot create anything. God is the Creator & created everything (yes, including Lucifer who chose to become the devil) & the devil is just an imitator. He specifically imitates, confuses & deceives.

[dalene]

I'd just like to ask... how can one believe in their own religion without believing it to be the truth? What's the point? Obviously they'd believe it, or they wouldn't follow it. But believing one is the truth over another does not automatically make one group disrespect the other. I believe my religion is closest to the truth, but there are plenty of religions that I very highly respect that don't believe the same things I do. I respect all life and I respect other religions, as long as their beliefs don't cause them to harm others or themselves. Just because I believe they believe in something that may not be the complete truth, it certainly doesn't mean I don't repect them.

Religion does not equal intolerance, it equals faith in what one group believes to be the truth. Yes, many religions can be intolerant, but religion itself as a broad term is not.

I would also like to point out that no fundamentalist Christan would believe that aliens were not created by God. God created the entire universe and all of existence, so it wouldn't make sense to say He didn't create the alien life as well.

I agree

[dalene]

I believe in God and Christ Jesus.

I believe in partial evolution.

I suspect the presence of life in the universe, other than our own. Either sentient or not.

I believe media has a profound impact on individuals...especially those who believe they are immune.

Well said.