Vanderbilt University Study: Religions vs Extraterrestrial life

[Ichingcarpenter]

Snip

Over the past 10 years, astronomers' new ability to detect planets orbiting other stars has taken this question out of the realm of philosophy, as it was for Einstein, and transformed it into something that scientists might soon be able to answer.

Realization that the nature of the debate about life on other worlds is about to fundamentally change led Vanderbilt Professor of Astronomy David Weintraub to begin thinking seriously about the question of how people will react to the discovery of life on other planets. He realized, as Einstein had observed, that people's reactions will be heavily influenced by their religious beliefs. So he decided to find out what the world's major religions have to say about the matter. The result is a book titled "Religions and Extraterrestrial Life" (Springer International Publishing) published this month.

As a result, his book describes what religious leaders and theologians have to say about extraterrestrial life in more than two dozen major religions, including Judaism, Roman Catholicism, the Eastern Orthodox churches, the Church of England and the Anglican Communion, several mainline Protestant sects, the Southern Baptist Convention and other evangelical and fundamentalist Christian denominations, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Seventh Day Adventism and Jehovah's Witnesses, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons), Islam and several major Asian religions including Hinduism, Buddhism and the Baha'i Faith.

Public opinion polling indicates that about one fifth to one third of the American public believes that extraterrestrials exist, Weintraub reports. However, this varies considerably with religious affiliation.

BELIEF IN EXTRATERRESTRIALS VARIES BY RELIGION
* 55 percent of Atheists
* 44 percent of Muslims
* 37 percent of Jews
* 36 percent of Hindus
* 32 percent of Christians

snip
Asian religions would have the least difficulty in accepting the discovery of extraterrestrial life

snip


Evangelical and fundamental Christians are most likely to have difficulty accepting the discovery of extraterrestrial life, the astronomer's research indicates. "...most evangelical and fundamentalist Christian leaders argue quite forcefully that the Bible makes clear that extraterrestrial life does not exist. From this perspective, the only living, God-worshipping beings in the entire universe are humans, created by God, who live on Earth." Southern Baptist evangelist Billy Graham was a prominent exception who stated that he firmly believes "there are intelligent beings like us far away in space who worship God."

http://astrobiology.com/2014/10/are-the-worlds-religions-ready-for-et.html

[CaptainTruth]

1. I guess they must be asking only about life on other planets ...

... & not ETs in general. I say that because according to the Bible, Jesus was clearly an ET, yet the survey says only 32% of Christians believe in ETs ... therefore only 32% of Christians believe in Christ. (I know, applying logic to faith is folly.)

I think much of the Christian rejection of ETs correlates to their need to feel "special" & unique, which is ego driven. I have no need to feel special or unique or chosen or blessed, I don't need to feed my ego in that way, I simply am who I am & I enjoy learning about this wonderful universe we live in without preconceived notions or blinders on.

Considering the billions of planets orbiting billions of stars in this universe ... I'll be disappointed if there aren't many, many other planets with life. I would think that even people who believe in an all powerful god creator would feel the same. I mean, if you believe your god created this increadibly vast & complex universe, yet only created life on one planet, ONE, out of billions or trillions of planets ... gosh ... it sounds like that god must take more time off than congress!

[Ichingcarpenter]

2. There have been other studies on this subject

And the findings were not the same as this Vanderbilt findings.



In 1994, researcher Victoria Alexander conducted a survey of clergy from Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish congregations that asked, “Would you agree that ‘official confirmation’ of the discovery of an advanced, technologically superior extraterrestrial civilization would have severe negative effects on the country’s moral, social, and religious foundations?” She concluded that ministers did not feel this would threaten their faith or that of their congregations. Religions would not collapse.3

Eight years later, in 2002, a Roper Poll similarly asked, “Would an announcement of extraterrestrial Intelligence precipitate a religious crisis?” Not only was the answer overwhelmingly “no,” it actually rose with age. Ninety-three percent of respondents over age 65 said it would not be a big deal. Roper concluded that “very few” Americans thought that an official government announcement on extraterrestrials would cause them to question their religious beliefs.4

In early 2010, another survey examined the issue, this time with respondents from around the world. The results put another nail in the coffin of the SETI claims of religious berserkers running amok over Disclosure.
he survey was designed by Ted Peters, a professor at the Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary in Berkeley, California, and was called The Peters ETI Religious Crisis Survey.

And NASA just recently
The space agency and the Library of Congress brought together scientists, historians, philosophers and theologians from around the world for a two-day symposium, "Preparing For Discovery." Their agenda: To explore how we prepare for the inevitable discovery of extraterrestrial life, be it simple microbial organisms or intelligent beings.


http://www.loc.gov/loc/kluge/news/nasa-program-2014.html

[muriel_volestrangler]

3. 'Asian religions' - that would be Muslims, Jews, Hindus and Christians, then?

Plus, of course, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs, Baha'i, Zoroastrians ...

I suppose Mormonism could be described as a non-Asian religion, in a sense. And Scientology, of course. Ironically, those 2 explicitly believe in life on other planets.

[Ichingcarpenter]

4. I think he geographical puts it into

a historic origin of the religion not how much each have spread now.

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. That's my point - everything I listed originated in Asia

If you think of Mormonism as separate from Christianity, then it originated in North America.

[Ichingcarpenter]

6. Social anthropologically speaking I think the 'source' came from

a time much older and wiser than where these late comers came from.

They are like bad clones and mutations of the real ancient spiritual thought of peace, consciousness, knowledge, wisdom and understanding of our common humanity that we must share with each other

Anyway.. I welcome our alien overlords ......

[MisterP]

7. OTOH, Mormons gave us Battlestar Galactica

and the famous "A Case of Conscience" already kicked off such a debate (IIRC, JPII said they're open to conversion *if and only if* they're Fallen--and I'd add keep Spanish, Italian, and Norman mercs away from the contact): Blish of course made the gaping error of assuming Catholicism was against evolution ...

[Ichingcarpenter]

8. Advanced Monkeys

who worship their creator that who says you shall have no other gods before me.

Not that there is no other gods...I'm just the top one.

I really don't think we are advanced or conscious enough for real serious contact if they are watching us

Its 200,000 years in dog years or a flea years compared to the scale of time for the universe.

At least that's what they told me.