mental_floss magazine
SUBSCRIBE >
GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS >
DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTIONS >
subscriber services >
We don’t usually cover straight-up news as such here on the floss, but this particular item was so out there — and so geeky at the same time — I just couldn’t let it fall through the cracks. For the first time ever, Vatican astronomers have admitted the possibility — even the probability — of intelligent life on other planets. Vatican official Father Gabriel Funes, a respected astronomer in his own right, released an article titled, literally, Aliens Are My Brother, detailing various extraterrestrial scenarios as they relate to Christian theology. He compares the potential multiplicity of life forms in the universe to that here on Earth, and goes on to speculate that such alien life forms could even be “free from Original Sin … [remaining] in full friendship with their creator.” (In short, expect to hear lots more conspiracy theories about how Jesus and the angels were aliens in the near future.)
But it’s not just the Catholic Church that has aliens on the brain — also this week, the British government released years’ worth of newly-declassified documents pertaining to UFO sightings in British airspace. “The Ministry of Defence does not deny that there are strange things to see in the sky,” one internal memo explains, “but it certainly has no evidence that alien spacecraft have landed on this planet.” (Suuuure, guys.) You can check out the newly-released records here, the most hilarious bits of which, in our opinion, are the vigorous and exceedingly formal tiffs between various dukes, lords and viscounts in the British House of Lords regarding UFOs, like this one:
Viscount Long: My Lords, if the Noble Earl is suspicious that the Ministry of Defence is covering up in any way, I can assure him … the sole interest of the MoD in UFO reports is to establish whether they reveal anything of defence interest.
Lord Wynne-Jones: My Lords, does the Answer given mean that since there has been a Conservative Government the UFOs have done a U-turn and departed?
The Earl of Kimberley: My Lords, as my noble friend said that 600 UFOs had been officially reported or acknowledged by the MoD in 1984, may I ask him how many of those sightings still remain unidentified?
Viscount Long: My Lords, we do not have the figures. They disappeared into the unknown before we got them.
Lord Hill-Norton: My Lords, may I ask the noble Viscount whether or not it is true that all of the sighting reports received by the MoD before 1962 were destroyed because they were deemed “to be of no interest”? And if it is true, who was it who decided that they were of no interest?”
Viscount Long: My Lords, my reply to the noble and gallant Lord — I was wondering whether he was going to say the the Royal Navy had many times seen the Loch Ness monster — is that since 1967 all UFO reports have been preserved.
Conspiracy/comedy gold!
Comments (11)
Comment
amazing!
posted by Mangesh on 5-15-2008 at 9:54 am
This is actual not nearly as big a story as the press seems to be making it. First of all, it’s not the Vatican saying anything–it’s the official astronomer of the Vatican giving his scientific opinion in an interview. No different than a NASA astronomer saying something–doesn’t mean it says anything about what the US government actually thinks or does.
Secondly, even if the Vatican proper–the Pope and Magisterium–did issue such a statement, there would be nothing new or original about it. Far from being “the first time ever,” the Vatican has long had a group talking about the possibility of extraterrestrial intelligence (aside from angels which the Church has known about since the Annunciation) and whether and how it should be evangelized.
And even as far as private opinions of Vatican astronomers go, this is nothing new. Fr. Guy Consolmagno in his book Brother Astronomer: Adventures of a Vatican Scientist dedicates an entire chapter to the possibility of extraterrestrial intelligence.
posted by Bob on 5-15-2008 at 10:41 am
Some members of the House of Lords obviously don’t realize Doctor Who is a work of fiction. Or maybe they’ve been taken over by the Slitheen.
posted by Camille on 5-15-2008 at 11:11 am
Bob’s right and this mistake is made quit often in media. Someone says something, on personal note, and media take it over as if a whole organization are saying it.
posted by Geld Lenen on 5-16-2008 at 10:05 am
I’m not sure how this is a big deal. The Vatican has long recognized the Gelgamek Catholics.
(As documented on the South Park episode, “Red Hot Catholic Love”)
posted by Sharkey on 5-16-2008 at 10:33 am
My Lords, what a ridiculous exchange of verbiage.
posted by eric on 5-16-2008 at 11:10 am
Free from Original Sin? Well, if that were the case, these aliens would be crawling around in mud completely unaware of their own existence.
posted by pablo0713 on 5-16-2008 at 12:57 pm
The statements by the Vatican Astronomer does not constitute an official Vatican statement on the matters. Although, the possibility of life on other planets has been considered many time before by theologians as well as at least one cardinal. Generally regarding aliens as children of God, same as us.
posted by Sean on 5-16-2008 at 3:04 pm
No kidding Vatican. God is alien.
posted by Hershel Majornisral on 5-16-2008 at 3:07 pm
I think the Mormon church has a similar attitude towards aliens. They don’t know for sure that they exist, but if they do, they probably have similar beliefs to ours–and, additionally, God may have made them in his image like he did for us Earthlings.
posted by Sillstaw on 5-22-2008 at 10:56 pm
If its true and said by vatician . We should respect the decision of vatician.
posted by Aliens Quiz on 6-28-2008 at 3:38 am