Easter and Aliens

He is Risen! (He is Risen Indeed!)

Today is Easter Sunday, arguably the most important Christian Holiday on the liturgical calendar. Though Christmas may have captured our hearts and minds here in the West, Easter is the seminal day in the Christian calendar. Without Easter and Jesus’s resurrection from the dead, our hope is in vain. The central focus of our faith should be on the conquest of Jesus over the forces of sin and death, culminating in his resurrection on Easter Sunday two thousand years ago. Unfortunately, for most of us, other things often take up our mind when we think about essential Christian doctrines, and we can become easily distracted by non-essential issues that take away from the true salvific work of Christ.

One important thing we can, and should, do as theologians is Theological Triage. Triage is a medical term, and it is the process by which medical personnel determine which patients have the highest priority and which have lower priority. Essentially, it asks who needs treatment first. Theological Triage functions much in the same way. We ask ourselves, which doctrines or beliefs are central to salvation, and which ones are opinions we can have that don’t affect salvation? The virgin birth, resurrection, and several other doctrines would be first-tier doctrines, things we must believe to be Christian. Other things, such as what music to play in church or views on the rapture, would be third-tier doctrines, things we can disagree about without affecting salvation or even splitting up as a church. For more information regarding Theological Triage, I refer you to Dr. Gavin Ortlund’s book Theological Triage.

Now, I’m sure by now you’re asking, what does any of this have to do with aliens? That’s a fair question, and I’m getting to it. We just had to lay a little groundwork first.

At work, my coworkers and I talk about aliens at least once a week. Our associate director is a big believer in the idea that the government is hiding proof of alien contact, and it is a belief he will ardently defend. Everyone else has a wide range of opinions, from agreement to total skepticism and everything in between. Because we work in a Christian institution, it has been brought up by several people wondering what the ramifications are for Christians if alien life exists. Are they saved? Are they made in God’s image? Do they even have souls? Would the fall of man have affected them? What does it mean for the Biblical creation account? All of these are great questions, but at the end of the day, they are irrelevant.

Aliens, if they exist, do not pose any imposition to Christian beliefs whatsoever. At most, they pose a challenge to our interpretation of certain Biblical passages. We must remember one thing about the Bible: it was written for our salvation, not to satisfy our curiosity. The Bible contains all that is needed for the salvation of mankind, and it applies to mankind only. If there are aliens, they may have their own scripture that God revealed to them for their salvation. Maybe they didn’t fall at all, which was an idea posed by both C. S. Lewis and St. Padre Pio. Maybe Christ’s atoning sacrifice applies to them as well, as posited by Dr. Paul Thigpen.

All of these conjectures are, at present, highly speculative, and we have no real answers. But the core of the issue rests in one question. When you are presented with something from the natural world (aliens, evolution, suffering, other religious ideas) that challenges your faith, ask yourself: Does this idea negate the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ? If all life evolved, does that change Jesus’ resurrection? No, it does not. If aliens are real, does that change the fact that Jesus became an incarnate man, died, and rose for us? No, it does not.

Easter is the time of year to focus on what matters most in our faith, the atoning work of Christ and his triumph over death. It is the core of our faith and our measuring stick against distracting ideas that try to turn us away from what Christ has accomplished. As Paul says, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” (1 Cor. 15:17).

Focus on essential doctrines, remember what is at the heart of our faith, and be loving and charitable to those with whom you disagree over trivial matters. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ. Siblings fight over things; that’s just how family works. But we must remember who and what is at the core of our family.

I wish you all a happy Easter. He is Risen! (He is Risen Indeed!!)

Note: This Sunday is a special edition. Moving forward, I will be publishing “Spiritual Warfare Sundays,” where we will take a more in-depth look at all things spiritual warfare. What demons are, how discernment works, what exorcisms entail, and all sorts of other truly exciting topics. I look forward to seeing you guys next Sunday for the first post in the series. If anyone has anything they’d like me to address, or if you have questions about any of the posts, reach out to the main email address for Sky Creative Industry, and they can pass it along to me.