What is cosmic pluralism? How did this concept originate and evolve within the realms of science, philosophy, and religion? Furthermore, what insights does the Bible offer on the matter?
It may seem that the Bible is too ancient a text to address a subject as apparently modern as extraterrestrial life or aliens. After all, what could fishermen and shepherds from ancient Palestine have known about such matters? Today, we use radio telescopes to scan the skies and employ methods for detecting exoplanets and potential biosignatures.1 Modern ufology, which began in 1947, also contributes to the discussion. Popular culture remains fascinated by the idea of life beyond Earth, as shown by classic films such as E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Contact, and Independence Day, as well as the series The X-Files. This interest continues despite the lack of scientific evidence for extraterrestrial life.
Cosmic pluralism in philosophy and science
Not everyone realises that humanity’s fascination with extraterrestrial life predates the 20th and 21st centuries. Even the 19th century is relatively late in this context. As far back as antiquity, Greek philosophers, particularly the atomists, speculated about the existence of other worlds. This idea, known by the somewhat archaic term cosmic pluralism, refers to the belief in a multiplicity of inhabited worlds. For centuries, however, the concept remained on the margins. The Aristotelian Ptolemaic model, which held that Earth was the only world inhabited by rational beings, dominated.
Cosmic pluralism gained momentum with the Copernican Revolution in the 16th century. Nicolaus Copernicus’s heliocentric theory, later confirmed by Galileo Galilei, opened the door to new speculation about the stars and their nature. In 1590, Giordano Bruno, a Dominican friar, published De l’infinito universo e mondi, asserting that stars are distant suns orbited by other worlds. Although he was executed by the Roman Inquisition, his vision proved enduring. By the 18th century, cosmic pluralism had become a dominant view among astronomers, including William Herschel.2
From optimism to pessimism
At the time, it was widely assumed that if extraterrestrial beings existed, they would resemble humans. In the latter half of the 19th century, however, the French astronomer Camille Flammarion proposed that life on other planets could be entirely alien to terrestrial forms.3 H.G. Wells’s novel The War of the Worlds (1898) introduced the idea that extraterrestrials might not be benevolent, opening Western culture to the possibility of hostile alien life.4 Around the same period, the early 20th-century cosmicist philosophy of H.P. Lovecraft presented humanity as insignificant in the face of vast cosmic forces, embodied by his fictional deities.5
It was not until the mid 20th century that serious scientific efforts in the search for extraterrestrial life began to take shape, with the development of SETI and the emergence of astrobiology. The rise of ufology also played a significant role in shaping public perceptions. Nevertheless, proponents of the Rare Earth hypothesis, who remain sceptical about the likelihood or even the existence of extraterrestrial life, continue to hold influence.6
Cosmic pluralism in religion
It is a mistake to assume that the topic of extraterrestrial life is confined to natural philosophy or modern science. The debate between cosmic pluralists and those who argue for a rare or unique Earth also continues within religion. Many religious traditions allow for the possibility that extraterrestrial beings, understood as rational creatures like humans, could exist.7 For example, the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam, states that God created other worlds besides Earth. However, only 44 per cent of Muslims believe in their existence.8
Judaism also appears open to the idea. As David A. Weintraub writes, ‘Extraterrestrial beings are God’s business. If God wants extraterrestrial beings, God will create them. If God wants them to be Jews, they can be Jews’.9 In Hinduism, its cosmology allows for the existence of extraterrestrial beings who, like humans, are caught in the cycle of samsara.10 Buddhists, on the other hand, are certain that the universe is full of intelligent beings.11 Esoteric traditions of the West and East, such as Kabbalah, Theosophy, and the New Age spirituality based on them, also affirm belief in such beings and often associate them with the UFO phenomenon.
Cosmic pluralism in Christianity and its surroundings
What about Christianity? Historically, the adoption of Aristotelian-Ptolemaic cosmology meant that extraterrestrial beings were not a significant focus within Christian thought. This began to shift in the 16th century, as noted earlier. Today, Catholic theologians engage seriously with the possible implications of discovering extraterrestrial life. If such beings were found, could humans share the Good News with them? Or might they have no need of it, being without sin? Alternatively, could it be that we truly are alone? Similar questions are also being explored by some Protestant and Orthodox thinkers today.12
Swedenborgians
Other Christian groups have expressed more defined views on extraterrestrial life. In 1758, Emanuel Swedenborg, a Swedish mystic and founder of the New Church, published several works describing life on other celestial bodies, both within and beyond the solar system.13 He claimed that his spirit had spoken with spirits from other planets and had learned from them how their societies function. He believed they were human-like beings who needed to hear the Good News of Christ’s sacrifice, which, according to him, took place on Earth.14
Mormons
In the early 19th century, Joseph Smith Jr., founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, wrote the Book of Mormon, based on golden plates he claimed to have discovered on a hill in New York, along with several other texts, including the Book of Moses. In the latter, Smith described revelations in which God reportedly told Moses about the existence of many inhabited worlds.15 According to Mormon teaching, these worlds are inhabited by people like us, who go through a process of exaltation or deification. God the Father was said to have once been a man from one of these worlds,16 which is why many consider Mormonism a non-Christian religion.
Seventh-day Adventists
The concept of extraterrestrial beings is not unfamiliar to Seventh-day Adventists. In the 1840s, Ellen White, co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, claimed to have had a vision of sinless worlds. In this vision, God showed her several other planets inhabited by beings similar to humans. According to her account, these beings had never fallen into sin, unlike the people of Earth.17 For this reason, many Adventists believe that the universe is inhabited. However, unlike the views held by Swedenborgians and Mormons, these beings are not believed to interact with humans but instead observe from a distance. Those that do make contact are regarded as fallen angels, or demons.18
Opposition to cosmic pluralism – biblical fundamentalism
At the other end of the spectrum are denominations that follow biblical fundamentalism. One of their key principles is that the Bible should be interpreted primarily in a literal way. As a result, if something about God’s creation is not mentioned in Scripture, it is generally assumed not to exist. According to this view, the idea of extraterrestrial life would go against the message of the Bible. These groups believe that Earth and humanity hold a central place in God’s plan.19 A similar position is taken by the Bible Students, a movement that developed from Adventism but is not part of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.20
The greatest obstacle to the existence of extraterrestrial beings, from this perspective, is the question of salvation. If such beings existed, they would presumably require redemption, just as humans do. However, since Christ died only once to redeem humanity, saving other beings would imply multiple acts of atonement on other worlds. Yet the Bible affirms that Christ died once for all (Hebrews 7:27; 10:12). Even if extraterrestrial beings did not require a Saviour, they could not exist in a universe affected by the curse of sin (Romans 8:22). For this reason, biblical fundamentalists maintain that reported encounters with aliens are, in reality, interactions with fallen angels, or demons.21
Cosmic pluralism in the Bible?
Does the Bible actually deny the existence of extraterrestrial beings? It does not contain a single verse that clearly supports or rejects the idea. In that sense, the Bible appears silent on the matter, at least with regard to beings other than angels. This is why the view held by biblical fundamentalists still seems reasonable to many Christians, although it is unpersuasive to those who support cosmic pluralism.
Is it possible, though, that the Bible does say something about extraterrestrial beings? Some of the most relevant passages include those referring to the sons of God (Job 1:6–7; 2:1–2; cf. Luke 3:38), the firstborn in heaven (Hebrews 12:22–24), and the twenty-four elders (Revelation 4:10–11; 5:5–12). The description of the elders, in particular, does not resemble that of angels. Could they be sinless sons of God—firstborn from other worlds—just as Adam (Luke 3:38) was called the son of God in ours? Several other verses could be understood in a similar way. If this interpretation is correct, it would mean that we are not alone.
If such beings could indeed exist within our universe, how many worlds might God have created for them? There are hundreds of billions of stars in our galaxy alone, and hundreds of billions of galaxies in the observable cosmos. Alternatively, could God have created entirely separate universes for these beings, with our cosmos intended solely for us? The Bible introduces another intriguing question, as it refers several times to inhabitants of heaven (Ephesians 3:10, 15; Revelation 12:12; 13:6). Does this refer to the visible night sky, or to the ‘third heaven’ where God is said to dwell (2 Corinthians 12:2)? At present, we do not possess the means to confirm such possibilities, but it remains important to keep an open mind.
By the way, we recommend reading the articles:
- b Centauri b – The Exoplanet That Shouldn’t Exist
- Is Half of Humanity Right to Believe in Aliens?
- Where Are the Fulgurites from Millions of Years Ago?
- How Did Life Begin?
- Earth – the Only Planet with Fire
Footnotes
- Biosignatures are chemical substances indicating the presence of life in a given location.
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. Religions and Extraterrestrial Life. Nashville: Springer-Praxis, pp. 6–26.
- Scharf, C.A., 2019. The First Alien. Scientific American, 23 November. Available at: https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/life-unbounded/the-first-alien/
- Den of Geek, 2018. The complete history of The War Of The Worlds, 22 November. Available at: https://www.denofgeek.com/books/the-complete-history-of-the-war-of-the-worlds/
- Wiley, R., 2017. Lovecraft’s Cosmicism: What it Is, How It Works, and Why It Fails. Patheos, 24 August. Available at: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/gloryseed/2017/08/lovecrafts-cosmicism-works-fails/
- Adler, D., 2022. Rare Earth hypothesis: Why we might really be alone in the universe. Astronomy, 29 July. Available at: https://www.astronomy.com/science/rare-earth-hypothesis-why-we-might-really-be-alone-in-the-universe/
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. pp. 148–155.
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. p. 3.
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. p. 69.
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. pp. 156–162.
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. pp. 163–171.
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. pp. 84–123.
- Swedenborg, E., 2018. Other Planets. West Chester: Swedenborg Foundation.
- It should be remembered that until the mid-20th century, no one knew that planets in the solar system (except Earth) were unsuitable for life. Many researchers assumed that intelligent beings like us lived on Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and even the Moon.
- The Bible, New King James Version, 1982, Book of Moses 1:33–38.
- Norton, O., 2011. Do Mormons Believe God Was Once a Man? Meet Some Mormons, 23 July. Available at: https://www.meetsomemormons.com/do-mormons-believe-god-was-once-a-man/
- White, E.G., 2005. Early Writings. Herts: The Stanborough Press Ltd., pp. 67–68.
- Rodríguez, A.M., n.d. Are They Real? Biblical Research Institute. Available at: https://www.adventistbiblicalresearch.org/materials/are-they-real/
- Weintraub, D.A., 2014. pp. 128–133.
- Awake!, 1990. Extraterrestrials—Finding the Answer. 8 April, pp. 9–11. Available at: https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/101990244#h=1
- Gitt, W., 1997. God and the Extraterrestrials. Answers in Genesis, 1 September. Available at: https://answersingenesis.org/astronomy/alien-life/god-and-the-extraterrestrials/
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