The Bible and the Paranormal Part 2: UFOs

This entry is by no means going to be a verse by verse explanation of Possible UFO sightings from the Bible.

That would take an entire year worth of entries to cover.

And to find that all you have to do is Google UFO and Bible and you will get a hory host of sites that address these verses. Some are very good reads with great points to make.


I’ve been paying attention to this area of Fortean studies for about 25 years now, and while the topics expand in the details, the basics have not changed much. It seems that the majority of opinions on this subject break off into two divergent paths of speculation in the area of UFOs and Biblical accounts.

1) All Biblical accounts of angels, giants and visionary phenomena can be explained by extraterrestrial alien activity.

Or

2) All UFOs are demonic entities that are here to deceive mankind.

Now both of these theories have their pluses and minuses. Both are equally valid, because frankly we really do not know what the UFO phenomenon truly is.

Let’s take a close and critical look at both of these views.

(Please note: these are broad generalizations and are by no means an assault on the beliefs of others or an attempt at stereotyping those who believe in such theories. I am looking at the broad themes here, not the individual beliefs.)

1) Biblical Accounts Describe Extraterrestrial Alien Encounters

In this thesis aliens have been visiting Earth for countless millennium. Primitive civilizations were amazed by these visitors with what seemed to be supernatural power and described them in their preconceived world view of gods and spirits. Biblical descriptions of angels are really aliens who are trying to enlighten primitive mankind and bring them along on the evolutionary ladder. The Chariot of fire that takes up Elijah to heaven and the wheel within the wheel of Ezekiel’s vision are merely crude descriptions of alien spacecraft. The Nephalim of Genesis 6 are crossbred human alien hybrids or depending on the author they are the breed aliens themselves. In some extreme views along this line God Himself is really an alien who seeded our race upon this planet and the Garden of Eden is a genetic laboratory that existed either on earth, in a UFO or on another planet. Some would even claim that Jesus was an extraterrestrial who just went back to the Mothership when He ascended to heaven.

Critique: To me the main problem with this argument is that it seems to be based on what a former professor of mine called the “Ignorance of the Ancients” theory. Mankind was just so darn ignorant in the past that they just couldn’t conceive of the technology that they encountered with these extraterrestrial visitors. In line with this theory is the belief that ancient man was too primitive to construct the Pyramids of Egypt and other monuments of the past. They even needed alien help to move from a nomadic hunter gatherer society to an agricultural one. Eric Von Daniken along with a host of others popularized this theory in the late 60s and early 70s till it has become a dominant theme of many paranormal writers when they look into the mysteries of the past. But its flaw is it lessens the infinite possibilities of man’s imagination in whatever age he existed. Given enough time and human effort man can complete incredible tasks, and it truly has been a long time since anyone has had a truly uniquely original idea. From building enormous monoliths to inventing small volt batteries, ancient man was just as persistent and inventive then as he is now. To look at the legacy of ancient mankind and to simply proclaim ‘aliens did it’ does not do justice to the fortitude of our ancestors. Discoveries are lost and rediscovered throughout time. And ancient man was neither ignorant nor stupid.

Nevertheless there are a lot of interesting hypothesis that originate from this view of prehistory. To me the notion that the Ancient Babylonian Anunnaki were reptilian aliens is both intriguing and very Lovecraftian. And many ancient artifacts do look like they are attempting to describe aspects of the modern phenomena of UFOs as we encounter them today.

However in the end this argument just lacks soul. When you strip it down to the basics the basis of this worldview is that there is no God and the supernatural can be easily explained by science. It is basically Darwinist humanism with a touch of conspiracy theory. To me at least, it seems with the great sweeping creative and unrestrained panorama of myth from all cultures and all ages, if ancient man had been visited by extraterrestrials then he would have reported it as such. Perhaps not explicitly so, but the descriptions would not be directly ‘religious’ in theme unless these aliens posed as gods to deceive mankind. But if the alien visitors wanted to evolve mankind and knew there were no such things as gods, why would they pretend to be gods themselves? In the worldview of secular humanism religion is a step backwards in the evolutionary process of mankind, not a step forward. Why would they try to introduce a system of misinformation that is counterproductive to the evolution of humanity? Were the aliens trying to scam us? And why are they not still doing so today? They certainly have a fertile field to work with. The only explanation is the same one theorized by many proponents of a global government conspiracy to cover up the alien presence: someone has deemed that we are not ready to know the truth.

2) All UFOs are demonic entities that are here to deceive mankind.

The basic supposition of this thesis is that Satan is described in the Bible as the prince and power of the air ( Ephesians 2:2) and since UFOs are primarily an atmospheric phenomena the devil is suspect prime in these delusions to make man focus on the possibility that he is not the primary focus of the creation of the universe. If there are other worlds then that raises a whole unwanted rhetoric that has the potential to rock the Christian faith to its core. Other worlds might mean other gods or no God at all. What is our cosmological foundation if there are intelligent beings from other worlds interacting with our own? To make matters worse for those who hold these views, the themes and principles set forth by those who have had contact with these ‘visitors’ and the ‘aliens’ themselves are very humanistic and “New Age”. The ‘aliens’ teach humans the universalism of religion and secular humanist ideology. These other worldly beings exhibit strange powers over the humans they interact with and therefore they must be demonic beings who have been sent by Satan to deceive mankind from the truth. They work in ways similar to medieval demonic infestations, where the person is visited at night by evil spirits and either possessed, molested sexually/physically or initiated into a series of oppression actions that lead to the destruction of their free will. This is all a plot by Satan to stage the End Times. Once mankind reaches a certain stage of total iniquity and they en masse abandon the faith and the Antichrist can rise to power. The message of the ‘visitors’ is just one piece of the puzzle that will doom the majority of mankind and lead to Armageddon.

This video is LONG.....just a warning...

Critique: To me it seems much of the logic of this argument hinges on certain scriptural passages. Namely the one I have previously cited which calls Satan the prince and power of the air (Ephesians 2:1-3) and the passages which calls him the deceiver of mankind. First and foremost is the interpretation of this scripture itself. What does it say? Is Satan a powerful being who rules the air?

Then God help the Internet.

Seriously.

Shut off your computer.

Half the time it is being carried by airwaves and you can’t risk the satanic influence.

But does this verse instead reference the unseen mindset at the time of the writing? That is, the predominant urge for sin within humanity and the rationalization of sinful behavior? This verse is akin to the phrase “There is something in the air”. A force that is both present and real but intangible.

The author intends a reference to the “world system” of greed and immorality that dominates the thoughts and motivations of the general populace. This system is the antithesis of the views of Christ.

Let me put it this way:

So just because the flying saucer is up in the air spinning don’t make it the devil’s dradeil.

God’s universe is bigger than the fragile human mind.

If you believe in the Biblical God then you better believe He is in control, or you better just check yourself into a sanitarium. ‘Cause if you give the Devil the same power as God then you are a Dualist.

Not a Christian.

Not a Monotheist.

Just join a Rosocurian sect and get done with it.

Ahem.

Anyway.

Not to insult any Rosocurians out there, just making a point.

And with the issue of the message of the ‘aliens’; if you think it is real then try to mesh it with your world view.

If you do not then it is the messenger and not the message you have a problem with.

Try to reach out in love and understanding.

Like Jesus would.

How novel, huh?

So what does the Bible say about UFOs?

Not a lot, in my view. But I am a guy who goes to a birthday party and likes to keep the Cake and Ice Cream separate from one another.

They are great individually, but when they merge it is an ooey gooey mess that has no real taste on its own.

Not repulsive, but not that great.

Such is my view on UFOs and the Bible.

I am sure I have met angels. I am truly blessed.

I am sure I have seen UFOs in the Hudson river flap of the 80’s. I am again truly blessed.

I think they are two different phenomenon, just because there is no overwhelming evidence to merge the two world view.

But that is just me.

I hate mixing cake and ice cream.

But I love cake flavored ice cream.

Yes, I am a weirdo, thanks.

Until next time,

Pastor Swope