UFO religion

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

A UFO religion is any

UFO sightings and alien abduction stories. Historians have considered the Aetherius Society, founded by George King, to be the first UFO religion.[1]

Summary

Some adherents of UFO religions believe that the arrival or rediscovery of alien civilizations, technologies, and spirituality will enable humans to overcome current ecological, spiritual, and social problems. Issues such as hatred, war, bigotry, poverty and so on are said to be resolvable through the use of superior alien technology and spiritual abilities. Such belief systems are also described as millenarian in their outlook.[2][3]

UFO religions developed first in such countries as the

flying saucers" and the popular notion of the UFO originated in 1947.[4] The study of UFO religions among sociologists, historians, theologians, scholars of religious studies and new religious movements began during the 1950s.[5]

Notable UFO religions

Aetherius Society

The

spiritual healing, Eastern mantra and "dynamic prayer"—tools for spiritual self-advancement and service to the world—which the Aetherius Society is principally based upon.[citation needed
]

Church of the SubGenius

Founded in 1979 with the publication of SubGenius Pamphlet #1 by

J.R. "Bob" Dobbs, was in contact with an exterrestrial race called the Xists ("X-ists"), and these Xists were scheduled to launch a worldwide invasion of Earth on July 5, 1998. (See also: X-Day (Church of the SubGenius)) The day of the scheduled invasion came and went without an appearance by the Xists, but church members remain unconvinced. The church now holds annual "X-Day" celebrations on July 5 of every year. The church also claims that its members are not entirely human, having descended from the Yeti.[citation needed
]

Heaven's Gate

The

Comet Hale-Bopp. The suicide was undertaken in the apparent belief that their souls would be transported onto the spaceship, which they thought was hiding behind the comet. They underwent elaborate preparations for their trip, including purchasing and wearing matching shoes and living in a darkened house to simulate the long journey they expected to have in outer space.[6][7]

Love Has Won

Love Has Won incorporated beliefs about extraterrestrial beings into their spiritual teachings. The group claimed that Mother God, whom they believed was embodied by Amy Carlson, had direct contact and communication with advanced alien civilizations. Love Has Won followers believed in the existence of various extraterrestrial races like such as the

Annunaki, Sumerian deities, reptilians, and that these beings were actively involved in guiding and supporting their spiritual journey. The group claimed to receive messages and guidance from these alien entities, which they shared with their followers.[8][9]

Raëlism

The International Raëlian Movement has been described as "the largest UFO religion in the world."[10] Raëlians believe that scientifically advanced extraterrestrials, known as the Elohim, created life on Earth through genetic engineering, and that a combination of human cloning and "mind transfer" can ultimately provide eternal life.

Scientology

Scientology has been discussed in the context of UFO religions in UFO Religions by Christopher Partridge,

hydrogen bombs into them, thus killing the entire population in an effort to solve overpopulation. The spirits of these people were then captured by Xenu and mass implanted with numerous suggestions and then "packaged" into clusters of spirits.[14][15]
: 103 

From the early 1950s onward, Scientology's founder,

]

Scientology teaches that all humans have experienced innumerable

superhuman powers which cannot be restored until they have been fully rehabilitated as spiritual beings through the practice of "auditing", using methods set out by Hubbard in his various works.[16][15]
: 76 

According to Hubbard, a thetan (the Scientology term for a soul) has a body. When that body dies the thetan goes to a "landing station" on the planet Venus, where they are re-implanted and are programmed to forget their previous lifetimes. The Venusians then "capsule" each thetan and send them back to Earth to be dumped into the Gulf of California; whereupon, each thetan searches for a new body to inhabit. To avoid these inconveniences, Hubbard advised Scientologists to simply refuse to go to Venus after their death.[17][18]

Unarius Academy of Science

Founded by Ernest L. Norman and his wife, Ruth, in 1954, the Unarians are a group headquartered in El Cajon, California, who believe that, through the use of Four-dimensional space physics, they are able to communicate with supposed advanced intelligent beings that allegedly exist on "higher frequency" planes. Unarians believe in past lives and hold that the Solar System was once inhabited by ancient interplanetary civilizations.[19][20]

Universal Industrial Church of the New World Comforter

The Universal Industrial Church of the New World Comforter is a UFO religion of the

vegetarian cookbook called Cosmic Cookery. There was a large mural on the side of the restaurant painted by Allen Michael that had written above it the phrase Farmers, Workers, Soldiers Unite — The People's Spiritual Reformation 1776–1976! The farmer was holding a pitchfork, the worker was holding a hammer, and the soldier was holding a gun, and they had their arms around each other's shoulders. Above the three were three flying saucers coming in for a landing. In 1973, Allen Michael founded "The Universal Industrial Church of the New World Comforter" and published the first volume of his channeled revelations, The Everlasting Gospel. In 1975, the church headquarters and the vegetarian restaurant relocated to Stockton, California. Allen Noonan ran for president of the United States in the 1980 and 1984 elections on the Utopian Synthesis Party ticket.[26][27]

Universe People

The Universe People or Cosmic people of light powers (Czech: Vesmírní lidé sil světla) is a Czech movement centered around Ivo A. Benda. Its belief system is based upon the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations communicating with Benda and other "contacters" since October 1997 telepathically and later by direct personal contact. According to Benda, those civilizations operate a fleet of spaceships led by Ashtar (sometimes written Ashtar Sheran) orbiting and closely watching the Earth, helping the good and waiting to transport the followers into another dimension. The Universe People teaching incorporates various elements from ufology (some foreign "contacters" are credited, though often also renounced after a time as misguided or deceptive), Christianity (Jesus was a "fine-vibrations" being) and conspiracy theories (forces of evil are supposed to plan compulsory chipping of the populace).[28]

UFOs in non-UFO religions

Ascended Master Teachings

The

Sananda, sometimes rides with "Commander Ashtar" in his flying saucer fleet.[29][30]

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

According to Mormon scripture, the Earth is just one of many inhabited worlds, and there are many governing heavenly bodies, including the planet or star Kolob, which is said to be nearest the throne of God. Kolob is a star or planet described in the Book of Abraham. According to Mormon cosmology, the Earth was created near Kolob during six creative periods referred to scripturally as "days", then moved to its present position in the Solar System.

Nation of Islam

Elijah Muhammed claimed that the biblical Book of Ezekiel describes a "Mother Plane" or great "Wheel". Elijah reported in his books that his mentor, Wallace Fard Muhammad, claimed that there was hidden technology on the Earth which selected scientists all around the world are secretly aware of. Fard explained that he had a huge "Mother Plane" or "Wheel" constructed on the island of Nippon (Japan) in 1929. The movement's current leader, Louis Farrakhan
, describes the "Mother Plane" thus:

The Honorable Elijah Muhammad told us of a giant Motherplane that is made like the universe, spheres within spheres. White people call them unidentified flying objects (UFOs). Ezekiel, in the Old Testament, saw a wheel that looked like a cloud by day but a pillar of fire by night. The Hon. Elijah Muhammad said that that wheel was built on the island of Nippon, which is now called Japan, by some of the original scientists. It took 15 billion dollars in gold at that time to build it. It is made of the toughest steel. America does not yet know the composition of the steel used to make an instrument like it. It is a circular plane, and the Bible says that it never makes turns. Because of its circular nature it can stop and travel in all directions at speeds of thousands of miles per hour. He said there are 1,500 small wheels in this mother wheel which is a half mile by a half mile (800 by 800 m). This Mother Wheel is like a small human built planet. Each one of these small planes carry three bombs.[31]

Share International and Maitreya

The

Gobi desert on the etheric plane of Earth), originally came from Venus 18,500,000 years ago.[35] Adherents to Creme's teachings believe there is regular flying saucer traffic between Mars and Venus and the Earth in order to neutralize nuclear radiation, and that crop circles are mostly caused by flying saucers from these two planets.[36]

Tempelhofgesellschaft

An

Black Sun. They teach that since the Aryan race is of extraterrestrial origin it has a divine mission to dominate all the other races. It is believed by adherents of this religion that an enormous space fleet is on its way to Earth from Aldebaran which, when it arrives, will join forces with the "Nazi Flying Saucers from Antarctica" to establish the Western Imperium.[38]

Training centre for release of the Atma-energy

This sect was originally a splinter group of the Brahma Kumaris[39] and is known for a police and media scare in which an alleged attempt to commit ritual suicide took place in Teide National Park in Tenerife in 1998. Apparently, the 32 members of the sect believed that they would be collected by a spacecraft and taken to an unspecified destination.[40]

Worldwide Community of the New Message from God

The New Message from God is at once both a set of teachings with claims of divine authority

Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad, in receipt of an unworldly communication having salvific power for individuals and for the planet among others in a populated universe.[44] Summers has recorded these communications on tape,[45] the transcription approaching ten thousand pages.[46] Key components of this communication include warnings of an incursion upon Earth called the Intervention,[47] and pronouncements about the future involving global upheaval[48] and interaction between the human race and extraterrestrials which, Summers claims, are from "the Greater Community."[49]

See also

References

  1. .
  2. ^ (Partridge 2003, p. 274)
  3. ^ When We Enter Into My Father's Spacecraft. Andreas Grünschloß. Marburg Journal of Religion, Vol. 3, No. 2 (December 1998), pp. 1–24
  4. ^ (Partridge 2003, p. 7f)
  5. S2CID 234904304
    .
  6. ^ "Mass suicide involved sedatives, vodka and careful planning". CNN. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  7. New York Times
    . Retrieved November 9, 2008. According to material the group posted on its Internet site, the timing of the suicides were probably related to the arrival of the Hale–Bopp comet, which members seemed to regard as a cosmic emissary beckoning them to another world.
  8. ^ "Crestone Cult Love Has Won Leaves Man to die in Desert". July 23, 2020.
  9. ^ "From 'Mother God' to Mummified Corpse: Inside the Fringe Spiritual Sect 'Love Has Won'". Rolling Stone. November 26, 2021.
  10. ^ (Partridge 2003, pp. 188, 263–265)
  11. .
  12. .
  13. "OT III Scholarship Page". David S. Touretzky
. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  • ^ .
  • ^ Sappell, Joel; Welkos, Robert W. (June 24, 1990). "Defining the Theology". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on June 14, 2009. Retrieved June 1, 2008.
  • ^ Cempa, Joe; "Petrolia's New Neighbors", North Coast Journal, June 1991.
  • ^ (Lewis 1995, p. 85)
  • ^ How Prophecy Never Fails: Interpretive Reason in a Flying-Saucer Group (Sociology of Religion 59.2 (Summer 1998), pp. 157–170)
  • ^ a b Jaramillo, Paula. "Communal Living Sketches in Berkeley". FoundSF. Independent Arts & Media. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  • ^ a b c Michael, Allen. "Allen Michael's Cosmic Initiation". Galactic Messenger. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  • ^ Michael, Allen. "The One World Family Commune". Galactic Messenger. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
  • ^ Allen, Michael. 1977. UFO-ETI World Master Plan, Santa Rosa, California: Starmast Publications
  • ^ a b c Ramella, Richard (December 12, 1973). "Noonan spreads the galactic word". The Berkeley Gazette. p. 13.
  • ^ (Tumminia 2007)
  • ^ Michael, Allen The Everlasting Gospel Universal Industrial Church of the New World Comforter 1975
  • .
  • ^ Joshua David Stone: "The Ashtar Command—The Airborne Division of the Great White Brotherhood". Retrieved from http://www.luisprada.com/Protected/the_ashtar_command_ii.htm.
  • ^ "The divine destruction of America: Can she avert it?". finalcall.com
  • ^ Creme, Benjamin Maitreya's Mission—Volume II Amsterdam:1997 Share International Foundation, page 217
  • ^ Creme, Benjamin The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of the Wisdom London:1980 Tara Press Page 205
  • .
  • ^ Creme, Benjamin The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of the Wisdom London:1980 Tara Press Page 117
  • .
  • ^ Goodrick-Clarke 2002, p. 164.
  • ^ Goodrick-Clarke 2002, p. 168.
  • , p. 157. "The case refers to the Atman Foundation (originally a splinter group from the Brahma Kumaris) and made international headlines on January 8, 1998 when it was announced that the Canary Islands police had prevented a mass suicide of "a branch of the Solar Temple" by arresting its leader. German motivational speaker Heide Fittkau—Garthe. and a number of followers During subsequent months' the case disappeared from the international media. At the local level, it was clarified that the Atman Foundation has nothing to do with the Solar Temple but, according to a family of disgruntled German ex-members, may be "just as bad". Police investigations in Germany failed to detect any evidence that the Foundation was preparing a mass suicide. However, the accusation is maintained in Spain at the time of this writing, together with some others, although no trial has been scheduled."
  • ^ Suicidio colectivo con zumo de frutas Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine Diario de avisos, 21 april 2004
  • ^ The Edge AM with Daniel Ott, Interview with Marshall Vian Summers, September 13, 2008. Retrieved 2015-10-15.
  • ^ Gordon Bonnet,"The New Holy Writ." Retrieved 2015-10-15.
  • ^ Sigal Samuel, "Why Are Some People Attracted to New Religions?" Retrieved 2018-1-28.
  • ^ The God Discussion Show, interview with Marshall Vian Summers, February 9, 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-26.
  • ^ The Late Night Alternative with Iain Lee: Interview with Reed Summers, November 1, 2017 Retrieved 1-30-2018.
  • YouTube
    , May 31, 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
  • ^ Alfred Lambremont Webre 1-3-2018 Interview with Reed Summers Retrieved 1-29-2018.
  • ^ The 'X' Zone with Rob McConnell, Interview with Marshall Vian Summers, July 15, 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-29
  • ^ U.F.O. Undercover, hosted by Joe Montaldo, Interview with Marshall Vian Summers, June 14, 2012. Retrieved 2012-20-29. Archived October 29, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  • Bibliography