From Elijah to Ancient Astronauts: Aliens and the Jewish Question
Thu, December 19, 1:30 to 3:00pm EST (1:30 to 3:00pm EST), Virtual Zoom Room 02Abstract
From Elijah to Ancient Astronauts: Aliens and the “Jewish Question.”
Are humans alone in the universe and/or is there intelligent life on other planets? That many believe in the existence of alien life has been documented, but less recognized is how Jews have been incorporated into what is termed as Ufology. Ufology is the investigation of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) by believers in the extraterrestrial visitation of earth. Viewed by mainstream scientists as a pseudoscience, Ufology, or at least the belief that space aliens have shaped human history since antiquity, has been normalized via popular culture and might also constitute a mass movement. UFO “believers” also argue that governments have suppressed the “truth” about space aliens. A 2019 Gallup poll, for example, found that 68 percent of respondents believe the U.S. government knows “more about UFOs than it is telling us.”
Whatever the reality, this paper will examine how Jews and Judaism have been integrated into contemporary UFO culture, first via Ufologists’ reworking of classic Jewish conspiracy theories, and secondly by their rereading the Bible as a record of human/alien encounters.
First, Ufology utilizes older conspiracy theories, updating 19th century racialist notions into taxonomy of inter-galactic species. Ufologists have theorized about alien races, including “Grey” aliens, “Nordics” and the “Reptilian” alien races. Reptilians have been conflated with Jews, alongside the usual suspects in a world-wide Jewish conspiracy as the British Royal Family and the Rothschilds. In short, the reptilians - - like Jews - - are a hidden, behind the scenes menace, are running the world.
Secondly, UFO culture has incorporated Biblical texts into its canon. Central to Ufology is the “Ancient Astronaut Theory,” a hermeneutic explaining Biblical writings as the records of ancient encounters between primitive humans and aliens. For instance, the Prophet Elijah’s ascent into heaven via a “chariot of fire” is reinterpreted as proof-text for alien visitation while the chariot of fire is reinterpreted as a space vehicle.
From appropriation of Jewish Bible to the reframing of Antisemitic notions, this paper will examine how Jews and Jewish texts have been used to further the gospel of Ufology.