UFO religion
AUFO religion is anyreligion in which the existence ofextraterrestrial (ET) entities operatingunidentified flying objects (UFOs) is an element of belief. Typically, adherents of such religions believe the ETs to be interested in the welfare of humanity which either already is, or eventually will become, part of a pre-existing ETcivilization. Other religions predate the UFO era of the mid 20th century, but incorporate ETs into a moresupernaturalworldview in which the UFO occupants are more akin toangels than physical aliens, but this distinction may be blurred within the overallsubculture. These religions have their roots in the tropes of earlyscience fiction (especiallyspace opera) andweird fiction writings, inufology, and in the subculture ofUFO sightings andalien abduction stories. Historians have considered theAetherius Society, founded by George King, to be the first UFO religion.
Summary
Some adherents of UFO religions believe that the arrival or rediscovery of alien civilizations, technologies, and spirituality will enable humans to overcome current ecological, spiritual, and social problems. Issues such as hatred, war, bigotry, poverty and so on are said to be resolvable through the use of superior alien technology and spiritual abilities. Such belief systems are also described asmillenarian in their outlook.[1][2]
UFO religions developed first in such countries as theUnited States,Canada,France, theUnited Kingdom, andJapan as the concept presumes the cultural context of a society technologically advanced enough to conceive of ET as such and one in which religion of any kind is not discouraged or suppressed. The term "flying saucers" and the popular notion of the UFO originated in 1947.[3] The study of UFO religions amongsociologists,historians,theologians, scholars ofreligious studies andnew religious movements began during the 1950s.[4]
Notable UFO religions
UFO religions generally deal with belief in communication with extraterrestrial beings.[6][7] Stephen Hunt writes inAlternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction, "One form of quasi-religion that perhaps borders on a more orthodox form of religiosity is that of the flying saucer cults".[6] In these groups, individuals believe that communication between aliens and humans can take the form of physical contact,telepathy, andastral projection.[6] Typically the groups believe that humanity will be saved by these aliens when humans are educated as to a better way to live life.[6] Some of the groups believe that aliens will come to take those that believe to a more positive location.[6] Often the extraterrestrial beings are seen to plead with humanity to improve itself and to move away from a society of greed and violence.[6] UFO religions place an emphasis on spiritual growth and the evolution of humanity.[6] A UFO religion can be formed before or after an individual claims to have experienced analien abduction and been taken aboard a spacecraft.[8]
Christopher Hugh Partridge writes inUFO Religions thatJ. Gordon Melton identifies the first UFO religion as the group"I AM" Activity, founded byGuy Ballard.[5] Partridge says it "can be seen as the obvious theosophical forerunner to UFO religions such as theAetherius Society, and to the thought of UFO religionists such asGeorge Adamski" but views it not as a UFO religion but as a theosophical religion.[9] Partridge notes that within UFO religions, there is a belief that the supreme being or "evolved entity" did not ascend from Earth, but instead came from anotherplane or another planet and descended to Earth.[10] Partridge describes the 1947Roswell incident as a key point in time within UFO spirituality, commenting: "Roswell is now firmly established as what might be described as a keyufological 'spiritual site'";[11] andJames R. Lewis also calls attention to this event in his bookThe Gods Have Landed, noting that it is seen by Ufologists as the date of the "emergence of UFOs into the public consciousness".[12] Partridge places UFO religion within the context oftheosophicalesotericism, and asserts that it began to be associated as "UFO religion" after the 1947 incident atRoswell, New Mexico.[10] According to Partridge, most UFO religions still have many of the key points associated with Theosophy, such as belief in the sameSpiritual Hierarchy, and he also draws parallels toNew Age thought.[10] He notes that within the thought processes of UFO religions after 1947, many of these groups maintained beliefs that extraterrestrial beings were "heralds of a new era".[10]
Hunt describes theAetherius Society founded byGeorge King in 1955 as "probably the first and certainly the most enduring UFOcult".[13] He places the Aetherius Society andRaëlism among the "most renowned" of the "flying saucer cults".[6] Writing in theEncyclopedia of Religion and Society, contributors Melodie Campbell andStephen A. Kent place the Aetherius Society andUnarius as among the "oldest and most studied" of the flying saucer cults.[14] They describe groupsHeaven's Gate andOrder of the Solar Temple as the "most controversial groups combining UFO belief with variations ofcontactee assertions".[14] Gregory L. Reece classesScientology as a "UFO group" in his bookUFO Religion: Inside Flying Saucer Cults and Culture, and discusses elements of theXenucosmogony andSpace opera in Scientology doctrine.[15] He compares Scientology to the Aetherius Society and toAshtar Command, writing: "While it bears strong similarities to the Ashtar Command or the Aetherius Society, its emphasis upon the Xenu event as the central message of the group seems to place them within the ancient astronaut tradition. Either way, Scientology is perhaps most different from other UFO groups in their attempt to keep all of the space opera stuff under wraps."[15] A similar comparison is made inNew Religions: A Guide, which describes the Xenu mythology as "a basicancient astronaut myth".[16] Author Victoria Nelson writes inThe Secret Life of Puppets that "[t]he most prominent current UFO religion is probably the science fiction writerL. Ron Hubbard'sChurch of Scientology".[17]
See also
References
- ^(Partridge 2003, p. 274)
- ^Grünschloß, Andreas (December 1998)."«When we enter into my Father's spacecraft». Cargoistic hopes and millenarian cosmologies in new religious UFO movements".Marburg Journal of Religion.3 (2).University of Marburg:1–24.doi:10.17192/mjr.1998.3.3771.ISSN 1612-2941. RetrievedOctober 6, 2024.
- ^(Partridge 2003, pp. 7f)
- ^Ashcraft, W. Michael (2021)."Scholarship on UFOs and Religion: The First Seventy-five Years". In Zeller, Ben (ed.).Handbook of UFO Religions. Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion. Vol. 20.Leiden andBoston:Brill Publishers. pp. 16–35.doi:10.1163/9789004435537_003.ISBN 978-90-04-43437-0.ISSN 1874-6691.S2CID 234904304.
- ^abPartridge 2003, p. 7.
- ^abcdefghHunt 2003, p. 226.
- ^Partridge 2005, pp. 444–445.
- ^Hexham 2002, p. 11.
- ^Partridge 2003, p. 8.
- ^abcdPartridge 2003, p. 36.
- ^Partridge 2003, p. 6.
- ^Lewis 1995, p. xiii.
- ^Hunt 2003, p. 227.
- ^abSwatos 1998, pp. 531–532.
- ^abReece 2007, pp. 182–186.
- ^Partridge 2004, p. 374.
- ^Nelson 2002, pp. 178–179.
Bibliography
- Lewis, James R. (1995).The Gods have landed: new religions from other worlds. SUNY Press.ISBN 978-0-7914-2329-5.
- Partridge, Christopher Hugh (2003).UFO religions. Routledge.ISBN 978-0-415-26323-8.
- Hexham, Irving (2002).Pocket Dictionary of New Religious Movements. InterVarsity Press.ISBN 0-8308-1466-3.
- Hunt, Stephen (2003).Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction. Ashgate Publishing.ISBN 0-7546-3410-8.
- Nelson, Victoria (2002).The Secret Life of Puppets.Harvard University Press.ISBN 0-674-00630-5.
- Partridge, Christopher Hugh (2005).Introduction To World Religions. Fortress Press.ISBN 0-8006-3714-3.
- Partridge, Christopher Hugh (2004).New Religions: A Guide: New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities. Oxford University Press, USA.ISBN 0-19-522042-0.
- Reece, Gregory L. (2007).UFO Religion: Inside Flying Saucer Cults and Culture. I. B. Tauris.ISBN 978-1-84511-451-0.
- Swatos, William H.; Peter Kivisto (1998).Encyclopedia of Religion and Society. AltaMira Press.ISBN 0-7619-8956-0.
