My Sunday Thought for December 13, 2015: Little Green Men

"What makes you think they're gonna care about a bunch of lifers who found God at the ass-end of space?" 

-- Ripley, "Alien III"

Ever wonder what's at the ass-end of space?  Hundreds of scientists research it. Hundreds of writers fictionalize it.  The entertainment industry spends an enormous amount of money producing movies about it.  So, we must care about it, right?  But, is the destination as interesting as the journey?  The science behind the journey is what keeps me in awe.  Anyone can fly from Los Angeles to New York, but why would you want to fly for hours from some big, overpriced, overcrowded, traffic gridlocked west coast tourist trap, to visit the big, overpriced, overcrowded, traffic gridlocked rotting apple, tourist trap?  What if you could be there in the blink of an eye, and be home for dinner?

This is where I would usually jump in with my "it's all about the journey" spiel, and if we're discussing a trip from L.A. to N.Y.C., the spiel would be pertinent.  But to get to the ass-end of space will require us to sleep through the trip like astronautsicles in a freezer.  When we finally get to the ass-end of space we'll either find the popsicle stick God shoved up it, or a sign saying "UNDER CONSTRUCTION - AWAITING COSMIC DEBRIS," and under this statement, in much smaller print, we'll read, "Thank you for your patience, God."

Out there, we will probably find ourselves surrounded by a hundred other alien species, just floating around at the edge of the abyss, scratching their... uh, pointy ears.  And, again, we will probably find that the destination is much less interesting than the beings we meet along the way.  We will find we are just another alien culture.  They'll refer to us, behind our backs, in some derogatory fashion, like the description of us in Star Trek as, "ugly bags of mostly water," their version of "little green men."  Let's make sure we have a multi-colored, multi-cultural, multi-religious, crew.  This will probably screw with their minds, for at least a split second, as we try to explain to them that "all lives matter," a concept they probably accept as a given and will be concerned that we're so concerned about the obvious.

We'll need to get passed this proper name for God issue.  Allah, the Great Spirit, Brahman, Tawa, Wankan Tanka, and Yaweh, to name a few, are really just other names for the one God.  Who is right?  Well, as the Bible says, who are we to judge?  Each of us will stand or fall before our own master, so let's try to get over it.  When we meet whatever awaits us "out there," I'm sure they will also have their own name for their creator.  If we can't accept the cultural diversity of our own thoughts and beliefs, how will we accept the diversity of their thoughts, beliefs, and culture?

Yet there are those who would throw the scripture in our face and vehemently restate that there is only one way to the Kingdom.  And, for mankind, this argument might hold true, even though we can't even seem to agree amongst ourselves which Abrahamic religion is correct, much less include the other religions in on the debate.  I have to ask myself, why would Christ appear to another culture that has no materials to make a cup, no concept of drinking from a cup, nothing to put in the cup to drink even if they could make one, and try to explain to this culture that without a cup to drink from, they will go to hell for all eternity?  "Hell?  What is this hell?" they might ask, as they explain to us that their all benevolent creator gives them everything.  They probably had no concept of evil, until we arrived and introduced it.  We have the capacity to destroy culture just by opening our pie holes and letting loose our years of well intentioned, albeit hypocritical, bullshit.

Sucks being us.

Perhaps we will meet a culture from out there that will be able to explain how simple a concept God really is, and explain it in such a way that all of us can grasp.  But, then, I have to remember who we are.  It really sucks being us.  We have such a great capacity to think, to create, and to love, yet we spend more time trying to get over, to be offended, and to destroy, than we do just trying to get along.  And, if we do grasp the concept, our intrepid crew will have to survive the journey home in time to save us from ourselves.
 

Who in God's great universe would ever want to know us?  We're probably considered a multifaceted game for pari-mutuel betting in some galactic casino.  We are probably an interesting subject for little green xenobiologists and astrobiologists, looking for other advanced alien life throughout the universe.  They have probably decided there is nothing here of any interest, but their insider knowledge forces them to place a bet on Putin to break even, and double down on ISIS to lose.  Hell, would it really surprise us if we were told by an advanced species that we had to leave so they could turn our beautiful, lush planet into their version of a Sandals resort, before we totally destroy it?   

What would you say to a little green guy from space, when you try to explain our concept of God and Christianity?  What would you think when they smile, shake their heads, and simply point up, confused at why we have made a simple concept so difficult as to totally lose the point and wage war over it.  Would it surprise any of us that they are confused by a philosophy that preaches peace, love, understanding, and tolerance, while striving to destroy the very planet that gives us life? Perhaps when they point up, we might want to consider they aren't trying to tell us where they come from.  Maybe they'll be trying to tell us, through their far advanced knowledge of simplicity... there truly is only one way.  How thick will we show them we can be?  But, then, we are only "ugly bags of mostly water."

So, who's gonna care about a bunch of lifers who found God at the ass-end of space?  I would like to think that's the very reason we sent them.  I would like to think we are looking forward to hearing what they found, what they learned, and who they met.  I would like to think we are better than what we are, but...

...we are only human, right?

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so.

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion and debate in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years as a military intelligence analyst, planner, and briefer, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.

Frank Anthony Villari (aka, Pastor Tony)

Pastor Tony is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path."