2011 11 01 Religion Compass - Vol 5 No 11 - Zeller

Magazine Overview

This article, "At the Nexus of Science and Religion: UFO Religions" by Benjamin E. Zeller, published in Religion Compass, Volume 5, Issue 11 in 2011, explores the emergence and development of religious movements that incorporate beliefs in UFOs and extraterrestrial visitations. It positions these movements at the intersection of science and religion, examining their definitional questions, historical origins, and contemporary manifestations.

Definitional Questions and Origins

The article begins by defining religions as systems that ask and answer questions about humanity, Earth, and the universe. It notes that non-religious belief systems centered on UFOs and extraterrestrials (ETs) often ask similar questions and arrive at analogous conclusions, positing life in the heavens and a cosmos filled with powerful beings. UFO religions merge these beliefs into religious frameworks, addressing questions of myth, ritual, purpose, and salvation, while also integrating ideas about alien visitations. Zeller highlights that these religions operate at a boundary between religion, science, pseudoscience, and science fiction, a concept he terms the 'nexus of science and religion.' He references Carl Jung's idea of UFOs as 'technological angels' and John A. Saliba's observation that UFO religions synthesize religious and scientific views.

Christopher Partridge is cited for pointing out that while many UFO religion beliefs are 'physicalist,' the conventional meaning of 'science' is often absent. Zeller argues that while UFO religions are not purely scientific, science is integral to their adherents' self-understanding, though their definitions of science are fluid and may incorporate science fiction and pseudoscience.

The concept of the UFO, or 'flying saucer,' emerged in the United States during the Cold War, popularized by pilot Kenneth Arnold's 1947 sighting. The term 'UFO' was later adopted by the U.S. Air Force in 1952 to encompass any unusual flying object. Arnold's sighting, followed by the Roswell incident in July 1947, led to widespread reports of UFO sightings and alleged crashes. Despite government and academic findings of no credible scientific evidence, belief in UFOs and ETs became a form of 'stigmatized knowledge,' fostering alternative subcultures and leading some believers to form UFO religions. Michael Barkun's work is referenced, noting that these new religions built upon earlier religious thought concerning extraterrestrial life.

Prehistory of UFO Religions

Ideas about extraterrestrial life have existed long before the modern UFO phenomenon. Debates in the 17th and 18th centuries concerning the 'plurality of worlds' and their theological implications, fueled by astronomical developments, laid groundwork for later UFO religions. Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) established one of the first religious movements to center its theology on extraterrestrial life, describing his visits to other planets and their inhabitants as exemplars of utopian social, scientific, and religious systems. His work influenced later UFO religious thought through Spiritualism and the New Age movement.

Another significant precursor is Theosophy, founded by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott in 1875. Theosophy aimed to integrate science, esotericism, and world religions. It introduced the concept of 'masters,' including ETs like Venusians, who were seen as elite spiritual instructors offering a path to peace and enlightenment. Offshoot movements like the 'I AM' religious movement and the Church Universal and Triumphant continued this Theosophical heritage, focusing on contact with ETs.

UFO Religions in the Post-Arnold Era

The post-Arnold era saw the birth of several notable UFO religions that responded directly to the UFO sightings and the emerging subculture. George Adamski (1891-1965) is presented as an early founder, whose 1953 book recounted encounters with 'Space Brothers' from Venus who delivered messages of occult wisdom and spiritual self-development. Adamski proposed a fusion of religion and science, where technology required spiritual awareness. While his followers formed short-lived movements, scientific probes disproved some of his claims.

The Aetherius Society, founded in 1954 by George King (1919-1997), focused on messages from advanced Venusians and Martians. King claimed psychic visits to UFOs, receiving messages of peace and spiritual awareness. The society's theology addressed the Cold War context, warning against nuclear destruction and emphasizing spiritual development to control technology. They taught that the planet Maldek was destroyed by nuclear war due to a lack of spiritual development, a fate they warned could befall Earth.

The Unarius Academy of Science, founded by Ernest L. Norman and Ruth E. Norman, also claimed contact with benevolent space aliens ('Space Brothers') who offered spiritual teachings for human rebirth on utopian planets. Unarius viewed the atomic age as a period of change and potential, with ETs enabling a new age of science, spirituality, and tranquility. The Normans, previously psychics, channeled figures like Michael Faraday and Nikola Tesla, and Ruth Norman authored 'Interdimensional Physics,' which used scientific-sounding terms for religious concepts. Unarius embraced science and technology as the basis for knowledge and progress, but its 'science' was non-empirical, encompassing psychic phenomena.

Other UFO religions emerged in the 1950s, some ephemeral, and later Theosophical movements like I AM and the Church Universal and Triumphant updated their approach to include contemporary UFO visitations. A quasi-religious subculture of UFO contactees also developed, individuals who claimed direct experiences but did not form formal religious movements.

UFO Religions in the Late 20th Century and Beyond

Recent UFO religions have shifted focus from atomic threats to broader cultural concerns, including ecological issues. Two prominent examples are the Raelian movement and Heaven's Gate, both emerging in the 1970s and combining UFO beliefs with Christian teachings through an 'extraterrestrial biblical hermeneutic.'

The Raelian movement, founded by Claude Raël (born 1946), stems from his 1973 UFO encounter and subsequent visit to the extraterrestrial planet of the Elohim. Raël learned that the Elohim, corporeal biological ETs, created life on Earth and are returning when humanity proves its scientific and technological adeptness. Science is central to the Raelian movement's self-understanding, aiming to make religion more scientific and science more religious.

Heaven's Gate, founded by Marshall Herff Applewhite and Bonnie Lu Nettles, became famous due to its 1997 mass suicide. Unlike Raël, they claimed to be space aliens themselves, benevolent ETs on Earth for individual salvation and self-transformation. They believed humans could journey to the 'Next Level' (outer space or heaven) via UFOs, which served as the technological means of salvation. Adherents lived monastic lives, abstaining from worldly pleasures, and ultimately committed suicide to shed their earthly bodies for the journey.

Both the Raelian movement and Heaven's Gate operated at the nexus of science and religion, with Heaven's Gate even declaring itself a science. They stripped the Bible of supernaturalism, focusing on the salvific role of extraterrestrial technology and viewing themselves as scientific.

Recent Scholarship and Research Issues Involving UFO Religions

Several recent books and anthologies on UFO religions have appeared, including works by Dianna G. Tumminia, Christopher Partridge, and Brenda Denzler. Scholars generally agree that UFO religions respond to modernity and its emphasis on science, technology, and rationalism. Recent studies move beyond viewing UFOs as mere 'technological angels' to demonstrating how religion, science, technology, pseudoscience, and quasi-religion blend. Zeller argues that UFO religions operate at the nexus of these social forces, playing with the sympathies between religious and ufological beliefs to address fundamental questions about human life and the universe.

Short Biography

Benjamin E. Zeller researches religion in America, focusing on new or alternative religious currents, the religious engagement with science, and the quasi-religious relationship people have with food. His book, 'Prophets and Protons: New Religious Movements and Science in Late Twentieth-Century America,' examines how three new religious movements engaged science. Zeller is an Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Brevard College.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The article consistently emphasizes the theme of UFO religions operating at the 'nexus of science and religion.' This nexus is characterized by the blending of scientific concepts, technological aspirations, and religious frameworks to address existential questions. The article highlights how these movements often reinterpret existing religious texts or create new mythologies that incorporate extraterrestrial beings and advanced technology as central to salvation and human destiny. The editorial stance appears to be one of academic inquiry, presenting a historical and sociological analysis of these phenomena without endorsing or dismissing their beliefs, focusing instead on their cultural and religious significance in the context of modernity and the perceived advancements in science and technology.