The topic of extraterrestrial life is often used to justify atheism or attack Christianity. But I believe this is a false equivalence. Aliens existing is NOT a threat to Christianity, nor does it prove atheism.



Science fiction and conspiracy theories have created a mythology surrounding aliens that people can't seem to get out of their minds. Some common assumptions include:

\- They're supernatural

\- They're superior intelligent beings

\- They're capable of interstellar travel



And some Christians claim:

\- They're just demonic illusions

\- They don't exist because Jesus didn't become one and forgive their sins

\- Cults really like them, so the very idea of aliens is evil

\- Earth is the only planet with life because the Bible doesn't mention other planets



But all of these claims are loaded assumptions. For the sake of my argument, let's say that squirrels are aliens. Squirrels are not supernatural, they're not supreme beings, and they don't travel through space. Squirrels are not demonic illusions, Jesus didn't need to die for their sins because they didn't sin, cults could very easily include them in their practices but squirrels are not inherently anti-Christian, and Genesis does not explicitly mention squirrels being created. Properly defined, an alien would literally just be an organism trying to survive in its not-Earth environment, whatever form that takes. Nothing supernatural about that. They may not even be "intelligent" life, they could be surprisingly simple. And how exactly would being "intelligent" be a threat to Christianity? Termites in Africa build mounds that are essentially skyscrapers, are they "intelligent"?



If I had to guess, there are probably trillions of inhabited planets in the universe, with a tremendous amount of biodiversity, and most of them are incapable of visiting us in our lifetimes. We will most likely never see them, because space is overwhelmingly enormous. And nothing in the Bible is contradicted by their mere existence.



(Side note: I just saw the movie Disclosure Day, and the topic came to mind)

I hate when aliens are used against Christianity