Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States
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Could you please give me the church’s view on UFOs? My husband witnessed something he describes as an unidentified flying object when he was young, and because of this, he has always believed in higher forms of life outside of our universe.  He says it was a brightly lit object flying in an erratic pattern. It lasted about 1-2 minutes. This was from his backyard in Southern California. He is convinced it could not have been a drone because it was in the 80s, and did not resemble a shooting star or any military aircraft.  I do not believe in UFOs, and we argue a lot over this point. Would you please give me the church’s point of view on this?

Although it is possible, it is not likely. In the account of creation, the coming to existence of all terrestrial beings is clearly defined. Biblical emphasis starting from the elaboration on creation has focused on the salvation and redemption of mankind. It is implied that celestial beings were created prior to the account of creation mentioned in the Book of Genesis. Thus, the void described in Genesis 1:1-2 could imply that the darkness and void upon the face of the earth may have followed the war in heaven. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:1-2).

Satan surfaces as a distinct and developed evil personality in a mature form of existence in Genesis 3:1 without any prior mention of the creation of angels or the fall of Satan and his demons. Celestial beings would include all the heavenly powers, ranks of angels, thrones, and dominions. Terrestrial beings conform to the law of the universe and celestial beings conform to the law of spiritual matter, whether good or evil. Celestial beings have no need of any sort of object for transportation. Global history agrees on the engineering genius of the aircraft by the Wright brothers. Following, their discovery and further improvement and advancement, came the development of other travels by air. Just recently, travel by "air" was added to the Litany of the Travelers.

Sightings of unidentified flying objects can be best explained by weather disturbances that may appear to mimic unexplainable flying objects, or possibly some kind of highly classified air force or space exploration experiments that cannot be revealed to the public. Though your husband does not believe that what he witnessed could have been a meteor or military aircraft, experiments on drones and many other devices have been studied for years, long before the public was made aware. In addition, as you mentioned, he was very young at that time. Young people have interesting imaginations and can be very impressionable by many things witnessed on television or heard in discussions. Having said that, if this subject matter is aggravating your relationship, avoid escalating the matter. It is not wrong to believe that there could be other intelligent life form beyond planet earth and the heavenly realms, but it is unlikely.  
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