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# The genesis, nature, survival, and movement of primitive life forms, including the hazard that spaceborne microbes might pose to [[astronaut]]s or to the earth itself.
# The genesis, nature, survival, and movement of primitive life forms, including the hazard that spaceborne microbes might pose to [[astronaut]]s or to the earth itself.
# The possibility of prior or future detection, contact, trade, or war with an extraterrestrial [[civilization]].
# The possibility of prior or future detection, contact, trade, or war with an extraterrestrial [[civilization]].
== Christian Views on Extraterrestrial Life ==
The question of whether the existence of an extraterrestrial race is compatible with the [[Bible]] is in sharp dispute. The dispute is probably of modern origin--the Catholic Church never issued any formal pronouncement on the question of alien life, and most Protestant confessions are silent on the matter. Those insisting that the Bible is entirely compatible with extraterrestrial races hold that the Bible contains no verse that says directly that man is the only sentient race in the universe.
===John 10:16 ===
Compatibility advocates quote this verse:{{Bible quote|I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd.|book=John|chap=10|verses=16|version=NASB}}
Critics of this position point out that that verse probably referred to the distinction between [[Judaism|Jew]] and Gentile, and reject the proposition that "other sheep" might include extraterrestrial races.
===Uniqueness of the Atonement===
Opponents hold that the presence of such a race would give the lie to the claim of [[Jesus|Jesus Christ]] that He came to take away the sin of the world.<ref>{{Bible ref|book=I_John|chap=2|verses=2|version=NASB}}</ref>, and that He died once and only once to bring this about. They contend that since Jesus is referred to singly (as he was an individual person), this rules out the possibility of an alien counterpart to Jesus, and that an alien counterpart to Jesus is a necessary precondition for an alien nation to exist.<ref>{{Bible ref|book=Genesis|chap=1|verses=26-28|version=NASB}}</ref><ref>{{Bible ref|book=Romans|chap=5|verses=14|version=NASB}}</ref>--and that Kingdom is also not of this universe, or "cosmos".
Defenders of the compatibility position might insist that neither of the two verses named above speaks directly to the uniqueness claim. But the original [[Hebrew]] and [[Greek]] texts use definite article adjectives and references to a specific person named [[Adam]] (and another, named [[Jesus]]), with no hint that either Adam or Jesus had any counterpart elsewhere in the cosmos. These things militate in favor of uniqueness almost as well as any direct negation of plurality might. Again, compatibility defenders might cite a lack of evidence that any hypothetical alien race would ''require'' counterparts to Jesus or Adam. But [[Christian]] critics reply that if the Bible is real at all, then life does not arise out of non-life. Therefore ''every'' race would have its Adam--and if any given Adam did ''not'' fall into sin, then his race would be under strict Divine orders to avoid contact with humans until the "hour of temptation" (see above) came to pass.<ref>For a further exposition of the uniqueness position, see [[Essay: Extraterrestrial Life and the Bible]].</ref>
The speculation concerning Jesus dying multiple deaths on other worlds has occasionally found poetic expression. See, for example, [[The Innumerable Christ]] by Hugh McDiarmid.
=== Extent of the Creation ===
The presence of extraterrestrial ''microbes'' on one or more of the other planets in our solar system (most likely Mars) does excite some fear in Christian quarters. But not all Christians harbor such fear, and even [[Young earth creationism|young earth creationists]] are quite confident that they could explain such a finding. For example, if the hydroplate theory is correct and a slurry of mud from the Great Flood traveled to Mars and poured itself out upon it, then such a slurry would almost certainly contain microbes. That some of these might be extremophiles, and thus capable of long-term survival even in such a harsh environment as that of Mars, is entirely possible and would allow complete harmony between the finding of microbes in such locations and the Biblical account of earth pre-history.
=== Exotheology ===
:''Main article: [[Exotheology]]''<br>
Many Christians examine the possibility of extraterrestrial life from within a Christian perspective. Many believe that if aliens exist they would necessarily be free from [[Original Sin]] as they are not descended from the Earthly Adam and Eve. Proponents of this view include the [[Vatican]]<ref>Willey, David. "[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7399661.stm Vatican says aliens could exist]?" ''BBC News'' (London), 13 May, 2008. Retrieved August 24, 2008.</ref> and [[C. S. Lewis]] who expanded upon the idea in his book [[Out of the Silent Planet]]. In the book a human explores Mars which, due to its isolation from Earth, is free from sin.
=== Microbes and other primitive forms ===
=== Microbes and other primitive forms ===