12/21/12: What would YOU do....

Originally posted by phantomjack
Here is a very serious question I would like to pose to my friends here on ATS.

Keep an open mind. I am not pushing for one specific answer or another. I am curious only.

Hypothetically, on the morning of 12/21/12, we make first contact with an alien species, who, descended to earth in a fantastic space ship.

The aliens communicate somehow GLOBALLY, in a language understood by all, and state, "We come in peace..."

What would you do?

If you were strongly religious (ANY religion)?

If you were agnostic?

If you were an atheist?

I would tell them to get rid of all skeptics or repogram them to not be certain about denying things leading to being true.

Originally posted by phantomjack

Originally posted by Argyll
reply to post by phantomjack

 

I think if the scenario you described happened....the last thing on anyone's mind would be....."How would my religion want me to act "?

I am not so sure that is the case with most in the world. I think your statement is a result of the way you personally feel about religion? Instead, think of the masses who depend on religion in their daily lives...

Yes...but who are these people?

Most of the industrialized world has wised up and realized that religion is nonsense and don't let it guide their public policies. The US being the most notable exception.

However....religious people will do what religious people have always done. Blindly accept and follow the word of their priest/cleric/rabbi/minister/reverend/pastor/shaman/swami/guru without question or thought because they think that those are the individuals who have got God on their own personal VPN.

Seriously...what better system to get people used to accepting the UNIMAGINABLE as the system(s) of religion which ALREADY have been getting people to accept the UNPROVABLE for thousands of years.

If the Pope gets on TV and says that Jesus thinks the aliens are the "good guys"...Rick Santorum will be looking to give an alien a bj at the earliest opportunity. If the Muslims claim that Muhammad "foretold" it...they will be praying towards the spaceship 5x per day instead of Mecca. The Buddhists would only be concerned about their desires to satisfy their curiosity and if it's interfering with achieving Nirvana....etc. etc.

Humanity is general is very sheep-like. RELIGIOUS humanity makes sheep look like free-thinking radicals. They will do what they are told to do.

Originally posted by phantomjack
But, as a Christian, wouldn't this type of event totally collapse everything you have been lead to believe about creation? About us being alone in the universe, created by God in HIS image?

That is specifically the point of my OP. Perhaps I may have worded it awkwardly.

So as a Christian, this really changes nothing?

With respect...

No, not at all. I get where you and others with a similar opinion about Christians come from. There are a great many who blindly follow and believe what their pastor, preacher, the pope or whoever tells them to believe. I on the other hand look at the Bible a little differently. I look more to the original words in their original language and context and what they truly mean - as well as the beliefs that were common at the time. My faith is almost constantly evolving as I learn more. The creation story, in my opinion, is more of a parable than a literal translation. And this anger-ball God in the Old Testament - I think that the ancient Jews simply believed that everything was God's doing. If they lost a war or died of some horrible disease, they assumed it meant that God was pissed off. Conversely, if they won the battle or fell into a string of good luck, they assumed God was blessing them. And as I mentioned previously, I do not believe in the catholic invention of hell. The early church leaders were a little "creative" in their interpretations and stretched the truth a little in order to scare people and their money into the church.

Anyhoo, I believe that there must be life out there somewhere. I don't think any of that life is visiting Earth, but if it did I think it would be pretty cool. Unless they were here for less than friendly reasons. Just because God didn't let us know that there is life scattered throughout the universe doesn't mean life is not out there. After all, He didn't tell us about the dinosaurs and they most certainly existed.

Also, I would like to thank you for replying to me in a respectful tone. I would assume that your beliefs are different than mine, but that doesn't mean we can't be civil to one another and I really respect and appreciate that.

Incidentally, I believe we will all be in Heaven or Paradise or whatever you want to call it one day - whether you believe in it or not. That is everyone's inheritance once you get through this human experience.

Originally posted by milominderbinder

Originally posted by phantomjack

Originally posted by Argyll
reply to post by phantomjack

 

I think if the scenario you described happened....the last thing on anyone's mind would be....."How would my religion want me to act "?

I am not so sure that is the case with most in the world. I think your statement is a result of the way you personally feel about religion? Instead, think of the masses who depend on religion in their daily lives...

Yes...but who are these people?

Most of the industrialized world has wised up and realized that religion is nonsense and don't let it guide their public policies. The US being the most notable exception.

However....religious people will do what religious people have always done. Blindly accept and follow the word of their priest/cleric/rabbi/minister/reverend/pastor/shaman/swami/guru without question or thought because they think that those are the individuals who have got God on their own personal VPN.

Seriously...what better system to get people used to accepting the UNIMAGINABLE as the system(s) of religion which ALREADY have been getting people to accept the UNPROVABLE for thousands of years.

If the Pope gets on TV and says that Jesus thinks the aliens are the "good guys"...Rick Santorum will be looking to give an alien a bj at the earliest opportunity. If the Muslims claim that Muhammad "foretold" it...they will be praying towards the spaceship 5x per day instead of Mecca. The Buddhists would only be concerned about their desires to satisfy their curiosity and if it's interfering with achieving Nirvana....etc. etc.

Humanity is general is very sheep-like. RELIGIOUS humanity makes sheep look like free-thinking radicals. They will do what they are told to do.

Actually, I believe there are more people in the world who follow some form of religion than there are atheists. But you are correct about a great many of them. They are sheep that blindly follow and believe in religious dogma that has no place in true faith. Jesus Himself railed against the religious leaders and their "sheep" and hung out with the "sinners". I would say a great many Christians have completely missed His message of love and peace, but as I said above, there are more and more of us waking up to His true message and we are dropping the shackles of organized religion and it's intolerance.

However, I do feel the need to respectfully point out your hypocrisy in the political comment you made about Rick Santorum. Not that I am a supporter of his (or any other candidate for that matter), it's just that if you believe that one side of the political spectrum is better than the other side, then who truly is the sheep? The republicans and the democrats are pretty much exactly the same now. All you have to do is look at Obama and all his "hope and change" crap. The only change he provided is continuing the policies of "W", only much quicker and more expensive to the citizens. I think that the political sheep look a little more foolish than the religious sheep.

As long as they dont take all ur jooooobs.. or get on welfare its all good.

Seriously though, I guess as everyone.. amazement and fear first. Curiosity. Then wondering what the heck they want while holding a loaded gun. I believe in a God and rather than jumping to conclusions, Id wait and see what the deal was before I went shooting them up, declaring theyre demons, or jumping on the ship and giving them a hug. Id assume that if it was a public landing and communication to everyone they wouldnt be pandering to governments.. so thats point in their favor in the first place! As long as they are not forcing any religious belief or demanding an absence of it, I dont see why religion or belief should interfere at all in first contact.

Originally posted by tallcool1

Originally posted by milominderbinder

Originally posted by phantomjack

Originally posted by Argyll
reply to post by phantomjack

 

I think if the scenario you described happened....the last thing on anyone's mind would be....."How would my religion want me to act "?

I am not so sure that is the case with most in the world. I think your statement is a result of the way you personally feel about religion? Instead, think of the masses who depend on religion in their daily lives...

Yes...but who are these people?

Most of the industrialized world has wised up and realized that religion is nonsense and don't let it guide their public policies. The US being the most notable exception.

However....religious people will do what religious people have always done. Blindly accept and follow the word of their priest/cleric/rabbi/minister/reverend/pastor/shaman/swami/guru without question or thought because they think that those are the individuals who have got God on their own personal VPN.

Seriously...what better system to get people used to accepting the UNIMAGINABLE as the system(s) of religion which ALREADY have been getting people to accept the UNPROVABLE for thousands of years.

If the Pope gets on TV and says that Jesus thinks the aliens are the "good guys"...Rick Santorum will be looking to give an alien a bj at the earliest opportunity. If the Muslims claim that Muhammad "foretold" it...they will be praying towards the spaceship 5x per day instead of Mecca. The Buddhists would only be concerned about their desires to satisfy their curiosity and if it's interfering with achieving Nirvana....etc. etc.

Humanity is general is very sheep-like. RELIGIOUS humanity makes sheep look like free-thinking radicals. They will do what they are told to do.

Actually, I believe there are more people in the world who follow some form of religion than there are atheists. But you are correct about a great many of them. They are sheep that blindly follow and believe in religious dogma that has no place in true faith. Jesus Himself railed against the religious leaders and their "sheep" and hung out with the "sinners". I would say a great many Christians have completely missed His message of love and peace, but as I said above, there are more and more of us waking up to His true message and we are dropping the shackles of organized religion and it's intolerance.

However, I do feel the need to respectfully point out your hypocrisy in the political comment you made about Rick Santorum. Not that I am a supporter of his (or any other candidate for that matter), it's just that if you believe that one side of the political spectrum is better than the other side, then who truly is the sheep? The republicans and the democrats are pretty much exactly the same now. All you have to do is look at Obama and all his "hope and change" crap. The only change he provided is continuing the policies of "W", only much quicker and more expensive to the citizens. I think that the political sheep look a little more foolish than the religious sheep.

Ahhhh...but read the post again.

I never said anything AGAINST Republicans or FOR Democrats. You came up with that all on your own. I simply made reference to Rick Santorum's religious kookery. Granted...Mormonism probably takes the cake for being the most insane belief-system of all the current candidates...but I don't think Romney believes in that nonsense for a second. What makes Santorum different is that he actually BELIEVES the nonsense he spouts....at least I THINK he does. Hell of an actor if he doesn't believe it. Likewise...I never said I wasn't a sheep. In fact, I tossed all of humanity into sheepdom. If you go to work at a job you dislike in exchange for little green slips of paper which entitle to redeem them for food, shelter and clothing...you are a sheep. This very much includes myself. Quite frankly...I don't know how to escape the shepard. If I did...I wouldn't be doing it. In fact, what I said is that RELIGIOUS humanity makes the ACTUAL sheep look like "free thinking radicals".

For the record...Democrats and Republicans don't exist anymore, just like the old paradigm of "Big Government vs. Big Corporations" doesn't exist anymore. It's now just Dem-licans & Republ-ocrats who are running one big Corp-ament.

I'm voting Ron Paul this time around. He's not perfect, and we disagree on much...but we agree on the most important things. Nothing ever can or will get better until we address the issue of the Federal Reserve. The U.S. Government has basically become just a money laundering operation for the Fed...and it shows.

reply to post by phantomjack


I'd greet them, in peace... Any species that has mastered FTL travel is probably not an invasion force. They would only react with violence if we were violent in return.

reply to post by phantomjack


The idea of hiding out for some time would be a good one.
Wait to see if some of our peaceful reps. are sent to meet with them....OR... The guys who shoot first and ask questions later get there first.The later which would be my concern, and could be very bad for us.

Once things settle and it doesnt appear all hell is going to break loose..I would bring myself and family out.

watch the movie 'the mist' and the way they acted seemed pretty realistic, thats the reason i liked it so much.

Originally posted by tallcool1

Originally posted by phantomjack
But, as a Christian, wouldn't this type of event totally collapse everything you have been lead to believe about creation? About us being alone in the universe, created by God in HIS image?

That is specifically the point of my OP. Perhaps I may have worded it awkwardly.

So as a Christian, this really changes nothing?

With respect...

No, not at all. I get where you and others with a similar opinion about Christians come from. There are a great many who blindly follow and believe what their pastor, preacher, the pope or whoever tells them to believe. I on the other hand look at the Bible a little differently. I look more to the original words in their original language and context and what they truly mean - as well as the beliefs that were common at the time. My faith is almost constantly evolving as I learn more. The creation story, in my opinion, is more of a parable than a literal translation. And this anger-ball God in the Old Testament - I think that the ancient Jews simply believed that everything was God's doing. If they lost a war or died of some horrible disease, they assumed it meant that God was pissed off. Conversely, if they won the battle or fell into a string of good luck, they assumed God was blessing them. And as I mentioned previously, I do not believe in the catholic invention of hell. The early church leaders were a little "creative" in their interpretations and stretched the truth a little in order to scare people and their money into the church.

Anyhoo, I believe that there must be life out there somewhere. I don't think any of that life is visiting Earth, but if it did I think it would be pretty cool. Unless they were here for less than friendly reasons. Just because God didn't let us know that there is life scattered throughout the universe doesn't mean life is not out there. After all, He didn't tell us about the dinosaurs and they most certainly existed.

Also, I would like to thank you for replying to me in a respectful tone. I would assume that your beliefs are different than mine, but that doesn't mean we can't be civil to one another and I really respect and appreciate that.

Incidentally, I believe we will all be in Heaven or Paradise or whatever you want to call it one day - whether you believe in it or not. That is everyone's inheritance once you get through this human experience.

Thanks. I try to be as respectful as I can when posting on ATS. A good discussion can easily get railroaded when we inject emotion into the equation.

I actually do try to practice tolerance. I was raised a Christian, but have gone through Atheism, Agnosticism, and have finally come to the conclusion that I must believe in a power greater than me, though, his name not necessarily be "GOD".

Now, when it comes to politics, LOL, I do have a hard time holding back my belief structure!