We Have Never Been Alone

Given our current cultural “disclosure” moment, the 1997 film Contact, based on Carl Sagan’s 1985 novel, has taken on a strangely prophetic quality. Nearly thirty years later, its themes are no longer confined to science fiction. Congressional hearings on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs, or UFOs), testimonies from military officials, and the Department of War’s release of UAP files in May 2026 have transformed speculation into serious cultural fascination. “Disclosure,” which refers to the anticipated unveiling of hidden truths about alien life and UFO phenomena, has crept out of the fringes and increasingly into the mainstream conversation.

Indeed, this is no longer a phenomenon confined to obscure internet forums. Military footage is aired on major networks, and prime-time hosts such as Jesse Watters openly discuss extraterrestrials and “disclosure,” even referencing alleged categories of beings ranging from “Greys” and “Nordics” to reptilian and insect-like “mantis” entities. What is striking is not merely the persistence of such ideas but the increasingly spiritual and mythological tone surrounding them.

Unlike my recent essay for Crisis on the broader cultural and political dimensions of “disclosure,” this reflection focuses more on the theological, spiritual, and philosophical implications of humanity’s ever-growing fascination with extraterrestrial intelligence.

Longtime extraterrestrial skeptic Neil deGrasse Tyson has suggested that the question is no longer merely whether humanity is alone but whether humanity is “ready,” reflecting the growing mainstream fascination with the possibility of extraterrestrial intelligence and in light of his recently released Take Me to Your Leader.

Catholic polymath Blaise Pascal, in his posthumously titled Pensées, warned that the vastness of the cosmos consumes humans with dread. He wrote, “The eternal silence of these infinite spaces terrifies me.” He also viewed humanity’s fascination with other worlds as a form of divertissement: a way to avoid confronting our own spiritual emptiness and need for God, the only one who can fill that vacuum.

The modern framing of the question “Are we alone?” often assumes a purely material universe. Yet from a Christian perspective, humanity has never been alone in creation, for God remains immanent in His creation. Holy Scripture and Catholic Tradition have always affirmed the existence of angels and demons, beings of pure intellect. However, there have never been any direct, concrete pronouncements on the existence and nature of extraterrestrial beings. There is no Church dogma on the issue. What it comes down to is an issue of hermeneutics, a broader interpretational framework, metaphysical reasoning, and evidence—not any settled doctrine.

For instance, St. Thomas Aquinas, although he never directly addressed the question of extraterrestrial life, contemplated the possibility of other worlds; and there he was careful not to place any limitations on God’s creative powers. Others, like Catholic theologian Karl Rahner, entertained the possibility of the existence of intelligent conscious beings aside from humans in the universe and how this would look in terms of salvation history.

By contrast, the physicist and priest-theologian Stanley Jaki cautioned that an obsession with extraterrestrials might serve as a substitute mythology for a secular culture that has become estranged from revelation and transcendence. As Jaki remarked, many “dream about extraterrestrials, because they are afraid to be alone.”

Lutheran theologian Ted Peters, a specialist in the science and theology interaction who serves on the Advisory Council of METI and authored UFOs: God’s Chariots?, has argued that discovering intelligent life elsewhere would not undermine Christianity but could deepen our wonder and amazement of God’s creation.

While such openness is perfectly reasonable, it does invite some difficult Christological questions. For example, if intelligent extraterrestrial beings exist, would Christ’s Incarnation, death, and Resurrection apply universally across creation? In response, I believe there are three broad possibilities that emerge: extraterrestrial beings may never have fallen into sin; Christ’s earthly incarnation and sacrifice may possess universal cosmic significance; or God may relate salvifically to rational creatures elsewhere in ways not yet understood.

Jesuit astronomer José Funes, former director of the Vatican Observatory, has suggested that extraterrestrial intelligences may have never fallen and therefore may be exempt from redemption. Many Catholic theologians, including my former theology professor James Pambrun, maintain that Christ’s sacrifice was cosmic, definitive, and once-for-all. St. Thomas Aquinas entertained the metaphysical possibility that the divine Word could assume more than one created nature, insisting that “the power of a divine person is infinite and cannot be limited to anything created” (ST 3, q. 7, a. 3). Karl Rahner likewise entertained the possibility of multiple incarnations, even while affirming the finality of Christ’s redemptive work.

Some contemporary Catholic thinkers are quite cautious about extraterrestrials and UFO phenomena. Catholic author Daniel O’Connor has warned that UFOs and aliens function as a form of deception, not unlike the serpent’s deception in Genesis.

We cannot underestimate the role that Hollywood has played in shaping our views about extraterrestrials and UFOs. These phenomena can be seen in countless movies, including Steven Spielberg’s E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, or darker depictions such as Robert Lieberman’s Fire in the Sky, which is allegedly based on real testimony. On June 12, 2026, Spielberg’s new film, Disclosure Day, will be released. It continues this cultural trajectory but brings it closer to reality, especially as mainstream television increasingly treats discussions of multiple alleged extraterrestrial species as serious possibilities rather than fringe speculation.

In Contact, astronomer Ellie Arroway encounters an intelligence that assumes the form of her deceased father, blurring the line between technological contact, spiritual experience, memory, and longing. One cannot help but recall Scripture’s warning that “even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14). Similar concerns have been raised by exorcists such as Fr. Carlos Martins and Fr. Chad Ripperger, who suggest that at least some alleged alien encounters may be better understood through the lens of spiritual deception rather than extraterrestrial visitation. One wonders what Sagan intended for this portion of Contact.

Catholics are not the only ones expressing such concerns. Fr. Seraphim Rose, a Russian Orthodox monk, in his 1975 book Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future, argued that UFO phenomena increasingly function as a spiritual deception.

It is not difficult to see that for a culture that no longer believes in divine revelation, angels and demons, or even a transcendent Creator, this would be the case. Whether or not this may be a spiritual deception, it points to a fundamental human reality: namely, that human beings long for transcendence, ultimate meaning, and communion beyond themselves.

I believe this is part of the reason why the question continues to captivate many. For a culture devoid of a personal God who grounds objective moral order, aliens can easily function as substitute mythology—promising revelation, enlightenment, and salvation from above.

Whether intelligent beings exist elsewhere in creation or not, Christians are called above all to humility. In the Book of Job, God answers humanity’s demand for certainty not by revealing every mystery but by asking: “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?” God is under no obligation to disclose every act of creation or providence.

Christians, therefore, must resist two temptations: 1.) the assumption that every extraordinary claim must conform to our expectations and 2.) the naïveté that uncritically embraces every extraordinary claim as genuine. Scripture commands us to “test the spirits” (1 John 4:1). Whatever may or may not exist elsewhere in creation, authentic truth will never lead away from Christ; it will always lead toward Him. And as such, we have never been truly alone, for we are infinitely loved by Christ.