Source: L’Osservatore Romano
The Vatican stated today through the Reverend Jose Gabriel Funes, the pontiff’s chief astronomer, that it is acceptable for Catholics to believe in alien life outside the planet Earth and that such belief in no way contradicts the Church’s teachings on faith in God.
In his official statement Rev. Funes, the Jesuit director of the Vatican Observatory, said that the vastness of the universe surely can indicate it is possible there could be other forms of intellligent life outside Earth capable of having faith in a god.
Life outside our own understanding of creation “doesn’t contradict our faith,” stated Fune. “Aliens would still be God’s creatures…..[and rejecting such a notion would be] putting limits” on God’s universality.
Pimenta says
So…. believing in aliens isn’t against catholic church?
Who believes those guys anyway???
They are reaching anywhere they can. Desperate. An ending religion.
P.C. Haring says
Finally, the religious right gets something…um…right.
Gebo says
That’s quite a statement from the Church. In 1600, Giordano Bruno – a priest – was burnt at the stake as a heretic by the Roman Inquisition because, amongst other things, Bruno had posed the idea that the stars were all suns, each with their own planets, and some of those planets could be the home of other creatures and intelligent beings!
Chris Lester says
Between this and Pope John Paul II admitting that evolution is a real phenomenon, I think that the Church is starting to catch up with the 21st century. Fune is right, of course: the universe is far too big and our understanding far too little for us to make flat statements about the existence or nonexistence of extraterrestrial life. This is a welcome gesture of humility from a church that has, in the past, tried to use orthodoxy as a substitute for scientific inquiry.
Deven Science says
Chris,
You stole my comment.
Good on you.
Matt says
Chris,
I’d say they’re just starting to catch up with the *20th* century.
There’s a way to go yet to get to the 21st . . . stem cell research and whatnot.
sage says
i don’t have to have a pope or anyone to tell me what is alright to believe in, no wonder this world is in trouble.. you can’t believe in something unless a pope says it is ok!! what a bunch of garbage.
Doug Parnell says
Yes, they have come to there sences. Somewhat. Although i’m a person that believes in god & aliens. More so for the aliens. I’ve seen there ships & them aswell. I know it sounds crazy, but they are real. Most of them are just explorer’s just like SG1. I can only hope that they help us in a positive way. Who knows, they might need us to help them out.
semperskeptic says
SG-1 come through a gate, not in ships. And they do not hide from the locals. Quite the opposite, in fact. And in general their “help” involves blowing things up, shooting at stuff, and getting people killed.
Frankly, I prefer the surreptitious abductors scenario as they only target unstable individuals, and the occasional cow.
Todd says
The Vatican is obviously being controlled by aliens for them to make such a statement, so this must be true! WOW!
But please explain to me how then is it so hard for people to believe in Jesus Christ and that He died on a cross some 2000 years ago and rose from the grave to show us that we too can have eternal life? After all most people that believe in aliens are those that believe we evolved some billions and billions of years ago from an rock! WOW again!
So… Is it OK to believe in aliens but not OK to believe in God?
And people have the nerve to say that Christians are closed minded people! ha.