The Bible and Flying Saucers

Rating:
Summary: A Minister With a Nonbiblical Worldview
Review: Although I *am* open to the possibility of aliens - due to the fact that the Bible doesn't address the subject one way or the other - I am, at the same time, committed to the Bible as the word of God, because it's furnished plenty of evidence toward that conclusion. The blurb on the back of Downing's book states:

"_The Bible and Flying Saucers_ illuminates the part UFOs played in biblical religion in its old and new testaments, speculating that many events once thought miraculous may have their best explanation in natural science and the existence of extraterrestrials."

Downing's thesis seems to derive from a presupposition of *naturalism*, which automatically biases a person against supernatural explanations, such as divine miracles. I reject that presupposition, because while I am a believer in true science, I am not a believer in scient*ism*. What's more, in order to accept Downing's thesis I would have to ignore the Bible's own literary context and purpose, meaning a rejection of its *own* explanations for various miraculous phenomena. This also stems from naturalism, which presupposes that the biblical writers can't be taken at face value when they claim to have had encounters with the supernatural.

However, the following part of the blurb is intriguing, for it hints at what is just as much a logical possibility if one resists a naturalistic bias: "Dr. Downing examines the striking parallels between contemporary accounts of close encounters and alien abduction, and biblical tales, now regarded as myth, of visitations from angels."

That statement merits some unpacking. First of all, *not* everyone regards the biblical narratives as "myth"; only those who presuppose naturalism view them as myth, and naturalism is not a logically necessary worldview. Indeed, human experience mitigates *against* naturalism. See, for e.g., Phillip E. Johnson, _Reason in the Balance: The Case Against Naturalism in Science, Law, and Education_ (InterVarsity Press, 1995).

Secondly, I fully agree that there are "striking parallels" between the Bible's miracle accounts and modern reports of UFOs - but such parallels are, ironically, explainable from within a biblical worldview as demonic manifestations. In other words, if what appears to be miraculous could possibly have a natural explanation - why is it not equally plausible that what appears to be natural (to the naturalistic thinker) may have a supernatural explanation?

I must point out, too, that just because one is titled a "minister" (Downing is a Presbyterian pastor) or has a doctorate of divinity, that does not mean they genuinely subscribe to the biblical worldview. The Bible chronicles a millennia-long war between theism and naturalism. And frankly, the way Downing talks in his introduction, he hardly deserved that doctorate for all the shoddy thinking he displays: he seems to assume that there are only two possible explanations for the "miraculous" events of the Bible: they are mythological fabrications, or they are alien-originated. This is a false dichotomy if there ever was one. Good thinkers do not entertain false dichotomies.

(Not to mention that the back cover skewers the meaning of Heb. 13:2 by misquoting it as: "Do not neglect to show hospitality to aliens, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." That is not what the verse is saying. The word they mistranslate as "aliens" derives from the Greek 'xenos', for "strangers" or "foreigners," without any thought given to the possibility of extraterrestrials.)

Rating:
Summary: Pass on this one...
Review: In this well thought out and researched book, Barry Downing provides evidence that extraterrestrials might have been behind the "miracles" of "God". Surprisingly, this book is written by a theologian, though most theologians oppose the Ancient Astronaunt theory. You should pick up this book even if you criticize UFOs.

Rating:
Summary: Makes you wonder
Review: This book bescribes Moses being protected by a u.f.o when the Red sea is seperated and the burning bush might have been extaterrestrial influenced. This book is filled with close encounters in the Bible that might have been aliens. This book is worth a read.

Rating:
Summary: Oh, please
Review: This wasn't what I was looking for, I was disappointed why??? The book was very bland, uninformative and it really just very useful to me