UFOs are in the news a lot lately. Congress seeks answers about what confirmable evidence exists. Stephen Spielberg’s recent Disclosure Day movie portrays a government UFO cover-up. Public curiosity is high. UFOs and God interviews experiencers, scientists, faith leaders, and other experts to stimulate public conversations.
Have visitors from other planets come to earth? How should we consider the various reports?
The U.S. government now uses the term “unidentified anomalous phenomena” (UAP) in place of the more familiar “unidentified flying objects” (UFOs). In June, the Pentagon released newly declassified reports and videos going back to the 1940s, including material from members of the public, plus the FBI, CIA, NASA, and Department of Defense.
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Many especially wonder how all this relates to faith: “If extraterrestrials exist, does it mean God does not?” asked a headline in the Baltimore Sun. If both exist, how do extraterrestrials relate to God? Are they his earthly representatives? Can they live eternally? Can I?
Controversy exists in faith circles. For example, a Catholic priest recently found himself demoted after speculating on his Facebook page that UAP sightings could be demonically influenced.
UFOs and God is a documentary. Experiencers participating include film co-director Amanda Llewellyn, who claims encounters with strange beings as a young girl. Her husband, co-director Wes Llewellyn, hosts the documentary and includes in the film many skeptical questions that have guided his research since his wife first told him her story shortly before they married.
Producer Bill Myers, a professional acquaintance who brought the film to my attention, told me he initially thought the topic was “merely for the tin foil hat crowd.” But “four years of research, interviewing substantial voices of various disciplines” convinced him the film was a wise move.
I confessed to sharing his “tin foil hat crowd” skepticism and watched the movie as such. The list of the film’s experiencers and experts (science, anthropology, astrophysics, astronomy, political science, religion, theology) is significant. Skillful cinematography, variety in action, careful questions, numerous short interview clips, and humor keep the lively production from resembling a hard-to-follow academic lecture.
And the film includes conflicting views: That UFOs are real and that they are imagined; antispiritualism and spiritualism; New Age and Christian.
Scientists featured use colorful illustrations. For instance, regarding life beyond earth, Canadian astrophysicist Hugh Ross, whose work I have long respected, explained that the probability of finding a simple bacterium on just one other planet in the universe is astronomically slim. He says it’s identical to the probability of someone winning the California lottery 60 consecutive times without ever buying any tickets.
Ross expresses concerns about believing the alleged UFOs are physical entities. “When they go through the atmosphere at thousands of miles per hour,” he notes, “the observers hear no sonic booms.” The G-forces would be so great at such speeds, he reasons, that the UFOs would be “completely shattered.” Whatever they are, Ross says, they are “not subject to the laws of physics.”
The film notes that faith perspectives on non-natural visions include the experience of the biblical Paul: “I was caught up to the third heaven 14 years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don’t know — only God knows. … But I do know that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words….”
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Are UFOs real? You can examine the film’s — or others’ — evidence and decide. Is God real? As a skeptical university student, I studied historical evidences for Jesus’ resurrection and concluded that he was real.
UFOs and God is a welcome addition to the plethora of UFO information available. It encourages viewers to consider the evidence themselves and discuss these matters with others. “We need to talk,” is the closing line. Wise counsel.
Rusty Wright is an author and lecturer who has spoken on six continents. He holds Bachelor of Science (psychology) and Master of Theology degrees from Duke and Oxford universities, respectively. www.RustyWright.com