We don't have to wait for alien visitors to grapple with this question. Koko the gorilla was taught deaf-and-dumb sign language and was able to converse fluently with her keepers. Deaf-and-dumb people were brought in to converse with her and came out saying she was perfectly intelligible. Koko had a child and taught it the language. (Koko also took a kitten as a pet and kept it with great tenderness.) It is a puzzle to me that few people are aware of this long-running experiment (Koko has passed away).
We are made in God's image. As part of that, we have a limited power to interact with His creatures and pass on that gift, as though passing on His light. Our fellowship with creatures expands the heart. We know this throughout our experience (dogs, cats, horses, dolphins, etc.). If we cannot appreciate what a divine mystery this is in our life on Earth, we will have no appreciation if it comes from Mars.
But, as NASA continues to have an empty holster, I do not expect any revelations. They are attempting to displace Christianity with Darwinism, and all their efforts at "finding life" are an attempt to find evidence that life---being found elsewhere---must have "evolved" to be there. One can sense NASA's desire to develop more space probes to "look for life," and to create public relations sympathetic to this goal. In my view, this whole effort should be scrapped as an irrelevant waste of time, talent, energy, and money. The only focus should be "boots on alien soil." If there is life, we will see it when we get there. But don't hold your breath. It would be more devastating for NASA if all they find is barrenness, and Earth is the only refuge of life.
We don't have to wait for alien visitors to grapple with this question. Koko the gorilla was taught deaf-and-dumb sign language and was able to converse fluently with her keepers. Deaf-and-dumb people were brought in to converse with her and came out saying she was perfectly intelligible. Koko had a child and taught it the language. (Koko also took a kitten as a pet and kept it with great tenderness.) It is a puzzle to me that few people are aware of this long-running experiment (Koko has passed away).
We are made in God's image. As part of that, we have a limited power to interact with His creatures and pass on that gift, as though passing on His light. Our fellowship with creatures expands the heart. We know this throughout our experience (dogs, cats, horses, dolphins, etc.). If we cannot appreciate what a divine mystery this is in our life on Earth, we will have no appreciation if it comes from Mars.
But, as NASA continues to have an empty holster, I do not expect any revelations. They are attempting to displace Christianity with Darwinism, and all their efforts at "finding life" are an attempt to find evidence that life---being found elsewhere---must have "evolved" to be there. One can sense NASA's desire to develop more space probes to "look for life," and to create public relations sympathetic to this goal. In my view, this whole effort should be scrapped as an irrelevant waste of time, talent, energy, and money. The only focus should be "boots on alien soil." If there is life, we will see it when we get there. But don't hold your breath. It would be more devastating for NASA if all they find is barrenness, and Earth is the only refuge of life.