Will religion end on Mars?

economic times (India) ^ | 6/28/2008 | Mukul Sharma,

[Soliton]

For example, some people are already writing off most major religions which are based essentially on an Earth-centric model, as never being able to recover from such a crippling body blow. (The Bible makes no mention of other planets or life on other planets.)

[John Leland 1789]

Actually, “In the beginning God created the heaven (singular) and the earth.” Within the seven days, He created two more.

[Soliton]

Noah’s son, Shem, was probably still living in Abraham’s day.

Do you agree that the "wandering jew" is living in Miami too?

The Wandering Jew is a figure from medieval Christian folklore whose legend began to spread in Europe in the thirteenth century and became a fixture of Christian mythology, and, later, of Romanticism. The original legend concerns a Jew who taunted Jesus on the way to the Crucifixion and was then cursed to walk the earth until the Second Coming. The exact nature of the wanderer's indiscretion varies in different versions of the tale, as do aspects of his character; sometimes he is said to be a shoemaker or other tradesman, sometimes he is the doorman at Pontius Pilate's estate, and sometimes the myth is transferred to a Roman rather than a Jew.

[dragnet2]

The brownish gray sky at sunset as it would be seen by an observer on Mars - true color mosaic taken by Mars Pathfinder on sol 24 (June 22, 1996) The sky near the sun is a pale blue color. (NASA/JPL)

[sasportas]

All that money, and the only purpose is to see if there is life there? Unreal!

It almost sounds as if this Mars mission is, at least partly, religious motivated. The religion of Humanism, that is. God is the enemy of Humanists.

[onewhowatches]

There’s a good deal of evidence indicating that Mars was inhabited before the flood. That causes considerably more angst amongst evolutionites than it does amongst Christians.

Why, pray tell, would life on Mars, cause any problems with "evolutionites"?

[dragnet2]

On May 19th, 2005, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit captured this stunning view as the Sun sank below the rim of Gusev crater on Mars. This Panoramic Camera mosaic was taken around 6:07 in the evening of the rover's 489th martian day, or sol. Spirit was commanded to stay awake briefly after sending that sol's data to the Mars Odyssey orbiter just before sunset. The image is a false color composite, showing the sky similar to what a human would see, but with the colors slightly exaggerated.

[messierhunter]

But this would make us second class galactic citizens rather than them. Why should you and I need salvation from something someone else did?

So you've never committed a moral faux pas? We are sinful by our nature, we need salvation because of our own transgresions regardless of the debate over whether we're guilty because of original sin or not. It may not seem "fair" to you that we are flawed because of what someone else did, but that's how the cookie crumbled and it's off-topic to this discussion.

I see no Biblical contradiction if it turns out that there is an alien living on another planet that doesn't need salvation for one reason or another, regardless of one's take on original sin. You yourself stated that you don't find it fair that we need salvation because of something someone else did, yet you hypocritically imply that aliens should need salvation because of something someone in a different solar system did.

[ravingnutter]

First of all, if you are discussing when the Bible was written, we are talking about ancient times, so in order to keep the discussion in historical context, the following applies...

The word "planet" is from ancient Greek "aster planetes" meaning wandering star. For the Greeks, there were seven wanderers:

Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. (of course, they used their Greek names: Helios, Selene, Hermes, Aphrodite, Ares, Zeus, Chronos).

So yes, they were considered "planets" in the era when the Bible was written and therefore would technically be part of the "heavens" discussed in the Bible.

But even if you want to frame it in today's terms, due to its size and composition, the Moon is sometimes classified as a terrestrial "planet" along with Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. The Earth/Moon and Pluto/Charon systems are also sometimes considered "double planets".

[dread78645]

... but that other stars had other planets with life and that God would have to send an ‘alien Jesus’ to those planets for their spiritual redemption.

But what really got the Church knickers into a twist was that Bruno thought some worlds would fail to disobey God and not be expelled from the garden, precluding the need for an ‘alien Jesus’.

No sin == No Jesus.

[wendy1946]

Because it blows their entire paradigm wrt the history of our solar system. Given standard theories, there is no way to picture Mars ever having been habitable, always too far from the sun and too small to hold a breathable atmosphere by gravity.

[Cymbaline]

The whole question of life on other planets is irrelevant to religion, and completely misses the point. Religion is between Man and God, as a way of bringing Man closer to God. I don’t know if there’s any religion that requires belief in life on other planets.

[js1138]

Evolutionites were the unknown lost tribe.

[Coyoteman]

There’s a good deal of evidence indicating that Mars was inhabited before the flood. That causes considerably more angst amongst evolutionites than it does amongst Christians.

Considering the the biblical flood is entirely a myth, with no tangible evidence, why should "evolutionites" be upset at all?

[js1138]

Because it blows their entire paradigm wrt the history of our solar system. Given standard theories, there is no way to picture Mars ever having been habitable, always too far from the sun and too small to hold a breathable atmosphere by gravity.

Perhaps gravity was much stronger then.

[John Leland 1789]

You haven’t looked seriously at Bible chronologies.

Shem was born about 2446 B.C.

Noah died about 1998 B.C., at 950 (!) years of age.

Abraham was born about 1996 B.C.

Shem died about 1844 B.C. at 600 (!) years of age. Abraham was then about 150 years old, and he married Keturah that year.

Abraham died about 1821 B.C. at 175 years of age.

[onewhowatches]

It might be a large surprise and would lead to reevaluation of the history of the solar system. That wouldn't have anything to do with evolution, however.

But the main reaction, from scientists, of such a discovery would be excitement. Heck, scientists who study evolution would be excited to find how evolution worked out on another planet. Likely parallel development of life on Mars would be another, huge, confirmation of evolution.

[onewhowatches]

I don’t know if there’s any religion that requires belief in life on other planets.

Raelian.

[fso301]

The Bible makes no mention of other planets or life on other planets.

What a crock. The bible is full of references to extraterrestrials and even correctly predicts the end of the Earth by fire and that humans will leave the planet for some other place.

[dread78645]

> I don’t know if there’s any religion that requires belief in life on other planets.

Raelian.

And Scientology

[Calvin Locke]

How soon (6 weeks ago) people forget: Vatican: Okay to Believe in Aliens

ETs aside, there are those that consider Mulder's "I Want To Believe" poster the antithesis of "I Don't Want To Believe (and you can't either)" school.