The possible discovery of extraterrestrial life poses an infinity of questions, and one of them – perhaps the most important in simple terms – is to know how we will react as humanity to such a discovery. And for NASA, theology plays a key role in providing that answer, which is why it works on a project with 24 theologians , who are tasked with discerning how the different religions of the world would explain the discovery of life beyond planetary borders. .
One of the experts participating in the project, which is conducted at the Center for Theological Research at Princeton University, in the United States, is Reverend Andrew Davison, theologian from the University of Cambridge and also a doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Oxford
For the scientist, the project he is working on is easy to define: “I investigate the main themes of the Christian faith, often called ‘systematic theology’, from the perspective of life in other parts of the universe,” says the specialist in a note published by the University of Cambridge .
Davison elaborates and points out: “The most important question that there is probably is how to answer from theology to the possibility of life in another place, under the idea of many incarnations of Jesus or under a single one, from which theologians often speak. I also think about the doctrine of creation, especially in terms of how it deals with the issues of multiplicity and diversity. ”
In other words, the theologian Andre Davison’s research raises a possibility that might sound sacrilegious: was Jesus extraterrestrial?
Research from NASA and the Center for Theological Research is for now for academic purposes only. It is expected that an investigation will be published that will allow to answer the question on which, that is to say, the answer is in heaven.