Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Politics and Religion
We Are Not Alone in the Universe

We Are Not Alone in the Universe

Last updated on: June 9, 2026 at 6:00 am by Gene Veith

0 Comments

We Are Not Alone in the Universe 2026-06-06T16:38:17-04:00 Gene Veith

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“The eternal silence of these infinite spaces frightens me” (Penseés, #206). So said Blaise Pascal in 1657. That was before we knew just how vast the universe really is, with its millions of galaxies millions of light years away from each other.

More recently, astronomer Carl Sagan said, “We live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe.”

No wonder so many people believe our brief life on this “insignificant planet” is meaningless. And no wonder so many people believe or want to believe in extraterrestrial life. Surely, they say, we can’t be alone in the universe. That would be really terrifying.

In our recent post entitled Would Evidence of Aliens “Shatter” Christian Beliefs?, we discussed claims that the discovery of extraterrestrial life would undermine the Christian worldview. I would argue that the apparent emptiness of this vast universe is much more corrosive to religious faith.

I came across an article by Scott Ventureyra in the Catholic magazine Crisis entitled We Have Never Been Alone. He too cites the quote from Pascal and goes over some of the ideas we discussed in our earlier post. He usefully surveys what other Christians have said about the issue. St. Thomas Aquinas, for example, was open to the possibility of other worlds. And the modern Catholic theologian Karl Rahner even entertained the possibility, like C. S. Lewis, of multiple incarnations.

In the course of all of this, he makes this illuminating, paradigm-shifting statement:

The modern framing of the question “Are we alone?” often assumes a purely material universe. Yet from a Christian perspective, humanity has never been alone in creation, for God remains immanent in His creation.

Ventureyra goes on to cite angels and demons and continues with his discussion. I want to linger on this point. As of His Ascension, says St. Paul, Christ “fills all in all” (Ephesians 1:23; ESV). Other translations render the text as Christ “fills all things.” Or Christ “fills everything.” Or Christ “fills the universe.” The Greek is even stronger, if that is possible: “τὸ πλήρωμα τοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσιν πληρουμένου.” The fullness of all in all fullness.

Christ fills the infinite spaces. Pascal was the great Christian apologist. As Ventureyra says, Pascal “viewed humanity’s fascination with other worlds as a form of divertissement: a way to avoid confronting our own spiritual emptiness and need for God, the only one who can fill that vacuum.” The infinite spaces are not in the universe, but in us. The vacuum is not in outer space, but in us. But Christ can fill our emptiness.

Another 17th century Christian writer raised these same issues and came to the same conclusion. At several points in Paradise Lost, John Milton raises the possibility of other worlds, without taking a definite position on the issue. For example, Satan, flying through outer space to tempt Adam and Eve on earth, moves

Amongst innumerable stars, that shone
Stars distant, but nigh hand seemed other worlds;
Or other worlds they seemed, or happy isles,
Like those Hesperian gardens famed of old,
Fortunate fields, and groves, and flowery vales,
Thrice happy isles; but who dwelt happy there
He staid not to inquire. (Book 3, lines 565–571)

When Milton describes God’s creation, he brings up the “infinite spaces” problem and then resolves it. These are some of my favorite lines in Paradise Lost. This may be the most sublime passage in the poem, and thus in all of literature. God, on the verge of creation, speaks:

Boundless the Deep, because I Am who fill
Infinitude, nor vacuous the space. (Book VII, lines 168–169)

The reason “the Deep” is boundless is because God is boundless. “Because I Am”–note God’s name: I Am (Exodus 3:14), connecting Him to absolute being. (In the very next verse, Exodus 3:15, God reveals His name as the tetragrammaton, YHWH, meaning “He is.” Scholars say “I Am” is how God speaks of Himself; “He is” is how others must speak of Him.)

God, “I Am,” fills infinitude! Space is not a vacuum after all, because He is there and everywhere!

We are not alone in the universe after all. And the “infinite spaces” are inhabited by the infinite God.

As for our interest in extraterrestrial life on other planets, Milton has an answer for that too. In the epic poem, the angel Raphael reveals to Adam what he needs to know. He concludes with this:

Heaven is for thee too high
To know what passes there; be lowly wise:
Think only what concerns thee, and thy being;
Dream not of other worlds, what creatures there
Live, in what state, condition, or degree;
Contented that thus far hath been revealed
Not of Earth only, but of highest Heaven. (Book VIII, lines 172-178)

And here is what the Psalmist says about our alleged insignificance in the vastness of the universe:

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet. (Psalm 8:3-6)

Yes, we are small compared to the moon and the stars and the vastness of the universe. But the Creator of it all is “mindful” of us. He “cares” for us. He gives us dominion over His creation. He puts “all thing” under our feet. This is fulfilled not just by man, but by the “Son of Man,” to whom we are engrafted by faith.

Image: Galaxy, Star, Universe by lumina_obscura via NeedPix, https://www.needpix.com/photo/1674253/, Public Domain.

Christ fills all things

extraterrestrial life

God's immanence in creation

John Milton

size of the universe

Previous Post

June 8, 2026

Monday Miscellany, 6/8/26

Next Post

June 10, 2026 A Definition of Conservatism

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"This is good. I would add one important piece of the puzzle, and a related ..."

1another

What Human Beings Are For

"Yes, the discussion seems to be about the cultural side-effects of religion instead of religion ..."

David N. Gray

A Catholic Century or an Evangelical ..."

"I take it as a given that he means faith in “Jesus” or at least, ..."

1another

A Catholic Century or an Evangelical ..."

"Unfortunately she is also defending Russell Brand, so perhaps she also remains a total wacko."

reg

Monday Miscellany, 11/9/26

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category America Apologetics Art baseball Bible Blog Christ Church crime Culture Economics Education Ethics Family Food Football Government History Holidays Holy Week Humor International Islam Language Law Life Issues Literature Media Medicine Movies Music Nature News Personal Philosophy Politics psychology Reformation Religions Sacraments Science sex Social Science Sports technology television terrorism Theology Uncategorized Vocation war

Select a Month November 2026 October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Where did Saint Patrick bring Christianity?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Ireland Spain Italy France

Books by This Author Books by Gene Veith

See All Titles »