On  May 13, 2008, Father Gabriel Funes, a Jesuit priest who directs the Vatican's observatory at Castel Gandolfo, near Rome declared that ”As an astronomer, I continue to believe that God is the creator of the Universe. The search for extraterrestrial life does not contradict belief in God." He added that some aliens might even be innocent of the original sin. "How can we rule out that life may have developed elsewhere?" Funes said. "Just as we consider earthly creatures as 'a brother,' and 'sister'. Why should we not talk about an 'extraterrestrial brother'? It would still be part of creation." When Funes calls the Extraterrestrial “our brother or sister”,  we are involved in some revolutionary thinking. That statement goes beyond saying that we are not alone in the Universe.

To make this statement even more important, the newspaper Il Osservatore Romano released the interview. The newspaper Il Osservatore Romano is the official mouthpiece of the Vatican. In the article, Funes stated “Even if we don't currently have any proof, the hypothesis" of extraterrestrial life cannot be ruled out”. "Just as there are a plethora of creatures on Earth, there could be others, equally intelligent, created by God," he said.

ETs & Monsignor Corrado Balducci

It is with this statement that he echoes the words of Monsignor Corrado Balducci, my friend and UFO researcher many years in the field. Balducci is known to us researchers as the “unofficial” voice of the Vatican. At many UfO Conferences in Italy , Monsignore Balducci , once Vatican Nuncio to Washington DC, often echoed Father Funes when he said in Public “ All is possible.” God created us to give praise to Him, as I imagine he created others species to do the same. How can God be glorified without a varied creation?
When I was living and working in Italy for the past fifteen years, I lived very close to the Vatican. I would dine often with Monsignor Corrado Balducci who was also an expert Demonologist, at his home near Via Anastasio II . He wanted to be the priest to open the door to this study of  Ufology and he told me that since no one has ever hindered him, it serves as a silent approval. I believe that now the approval is not so silent with the Vatican proclamation of Father Funes!

Balducci and I both would share information and often  I would ask him if he thought that there were aliens who were demons. He would tell me“ the devil does not need UFOs”. He believed that over the last 150 years, this phenomenon has appeared sequentially and with an increasing spreading and frequency rate.  He wanted to make it clear that Spiritualism or the paranormal and Ufology are two different types of manifestations.  He was very adamant that on evolutionary scale there is something between us and the angels and they could be ETS.  Essentially we were at the bottom of evolutionary the ladder because we know the difference between good and evil, and often choose evil.

It is obvious that in the Future, the Catholic Church and the Pope will have a difficult time incorporating this belief in official dogma. Maintaining official Catholic doctrine may be impossible in this disclosure process because it is all unmapped territory as yet.

Unlike Father Funes who says that humans are the only ones possibly with original sin and therefore Jesus did not need to die for the sins of others in the Cosmos, Monsignor Balducci in 2004 said that  Jesus did. He said “ Yes, of course. Jesus died for all beings in the cosmos. In the sacred Scriptures, He is called King of the Universe at least sixty -six times. Balducci adds “never underestimate the great mercy or compassion of God, whose grace and compassion surpasses all, and that means it relates to all of creation in all the cosmos .”

In his interview, Father Funes however, claims that original sin, which by Christian tradition occurred in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit of a particular tree, refers to the fallen state from which humans can be saved only by God's grace. Asked about the difficult theological question, Father  Funes answered: "If other intelligent beings exist, it's not certain that they need redemption.” They could "have remained in full friendship with their creator" without committing the original sin, he said. If not, extraterrestrials would benefit equally from the "incarnation," in which Jesus Christ, the Son of God, assumed earthlings' flesh, body and soul in order to redeem them, which Father  Funes called "a unique event that cannot be repeated”.

UFOs in Sacred Art

This is revolutionary considering that the Catholic Church has avoided the UFOS subject for centuries although UFOs are clearly depicted in Renaissance art. The blessed are usually followed by beams or balls of light in great works of art.

Extraterrestrials & the Vatican Something has changed with the Vatican when - Pope Benedict XVI named a new director for the Vatican Observatory. Father José Gabriel Funes will succeed a controversial American, Father George Coyne. Father Funes, an Argentine Jesuit, is already a member of the Vatican Observatory team. The outgoing Father Coyne, also a Jesuit, has been director of the Observatory which includes the observatory on  Mt Graham ,Arizona for more than 25 years, and now steps down at the age of 73. Last year Father Coyne drew worldwide attention for his public comments on the topics of evolution and the theory of intelligent design. In an August 2005 column for the London Tablet, the Jesuit astronomer criticizes arguments put forward by Cardinal Christopher Schönborn questioning the Darwinian theory of evolution. A few weeks later, speaking at a conference in Florida, Father Coyne said that "intelligent design isn't science, even if it pretends to be." The Vatican Observatory The Vatican Observatory was established by Pope Leo XIII in 1891 to advance astronomical knowledge and to demonstrate the Church's support for the physical sciences.

The Annunciation of St Emidus by Carlos Crivelli-1486

Originally it was located at Castel Gandolfo, near the Pope's summer residence. In 1981, because of the smog that obscures viewing of the sky near Rome, the main observatory was moved to Arizona, and Father Funes was spending most of his time there. Now observatory scientists can get down to business and study all the scientific evidence on origins of life and the universe and not just try and force fit the  Catholic faith into the myth of evolution. "Intelligent Design" and the "Abrupt Appearance" will now be discussed along with evidences that show that life just hasn't been on Earth very long.

The scientific community and the church have split more than four centuries ago in the outcome of Galileo's persecution, who said that neither the Earth nor the Sun were situated in the center of the universe. In 1633, he was tried for heretic beliefs and forced to deny his theory.

"The church has somehow recognized its mistakes. Maybe it could have done it better, but now it's time to heal those wounds and this can be done through calm dialogue and collaboration", said Funes. The beginning of the reconciliation between church and science began in 1992 with Pope John Paul's declaration saying that Galileo's trial was a "tragic mutual incomprehension".

Since then the Vatican Observatory has been frantically trying to close the gap between science and religion. Its meteorite collection is currently one of the largest on Earth. The observatory was opened in 1891 by Pope Leo XIII and is located in Castel Gandolfo. The team of cleric researchers often participates in studies held at the observatory at the University of Arizona. 

The Mt. Graham, AZ Vatican Observatory site holds a special place. It is the home of the southernmost extension of many species as well as being, simultaneously, the location of the northernmost extension of others. The Sonoran and Chihuahuan desert populations also meet in this vicinity. Thus it was critical to assess the impact of the observatory presence upon the species represented on the top of Mt. Graham, especially those listed as endangered or threatened.. There is another issue which has come to the fore more recently than the environmental issues. This is the issue of the religious significance of Mt. Graham to the Apache tribe, specifically those living on the San Carlos Reservation. 

The question is “are the Jesuits then looking for ET? 

Two major  Vatican observatories, an avante guard  astronomer priest, we need only add that it is it's OK to believe in aliens and we can see a revolutionary change in policy. But then Monsignor Balducci has been studying UFOS for Years. He has met most of the important American researchers, such as Steven Greer and Dr. John Mack, Whitely Strieber and  Dr. Richard Haines. He also had several meeting with Mexico’s own Jaime Maussan who saw him in Rome and filmed him in Washington DC when Balducci gave permission to all the Spanish world to embrace the extraterrestrial reality because it does not conflict with the Catholic religion. I accompanied him to Washington DC to Steven Basset’s X-Conference from Rome to receive a special award for courage.  In this timeline, Padre Balducci precedes Father Funes, Vatican astronomer who in reality verifies Balducci’s own claims.

UFOs fascinate Mosignore Balducci and he approaches the topic voluntarily even with strangers.He says”  We should believe contactees and witnesses who say they see UFOS because it is based on human testimony, as are our Gospels. Since a great deal of the Catholic faith is based on witness testimony, we must realize how important human testimony is. It would be a tragedy if we began to be suspicious of all people who report that they experienced something unusual like seeing crafts in the sky.

He adds, "What I understand, there are some very credible witnesses who have seen this phenomenon and have come forward. They are courageous and should not be dismissed. Many church fathers have addressed the extraterrestrial presence in early philosophical works. In fact, testimony is a form of communication of our faith. Imagine what could happen to individual and social life if the value of human testimony were diminished, an act which would logically cause the decrease and disappearance of our faith, which is essential for daily life! "

Balducci adds, "I think that we need to examine it, then formulate theological and Biblical considerations on the habitability of other planets. First of all, there is a clarification: We should exclude that angels use spaceships, because they are merely spiritual beings. They are wherever they want to be, and in the rare cases when they show themselves, they have no difficulty in assuming a visible form. We can say the very same thing about dead people. The Holy Virgin, in the very few cases when she seems to contact humans (very exceptional episodes and to be confirmed in their authenticity), continues to choose other very different ways to transmit to us her maternal affection, her urgencies, her maternal claims or her sweet reproaches. We need to separate these realities."

I asked Monsignor Balducci how he reached these conclusions.

Balducci answered, ” My conclusions come from my research in parapsychology and demonology. There are human testimonies concerning the UFO phenomenon—in particular the abduction phenomenon—which are essential to historical truth and must  be considered seriously. These things cannot be attributed to the “devil.” He does not need UFOs. This has nothing to do with the Devil. These important UFO sightings by credible people must be taken into account because there are so many witnesses. It is as important as scientific research is!

"If we live in constant skepticism, we will destroy society and our dignity as human beings. We will believe no one. Catholicism, which is partially based on human testimony—primarily letters of followers of Jesus (Apologists), who explained the religious phenomena of Jesus and the resurrection and presented a certain truth. The church has based many of its doctrines on this human testimony.

"The Existence of  UFOs is not contrary to one’s faith or Catholic Church doctrine? The acronym UFO (Unidentified Flying Object), is used here in a wider sense to include the existence of living beings on other planets. The aim of my intervention and speaking out is to underline that something real must exist in the phenomena, and that this does not conflict at all with Christian religion, and is considered positive, even among theologians.

"First, Something real must exist. Secondly, I have made some theological considerations on the habitability of other planets. Thirdly, much  witness testimony favors it. Conclusion: Something real must exist. These ideas are mine, and I do not represent the Vatican.  However, I am told that the Holy Father Pope John Paul II is has seen me on Italian TV several times and follows my radio homilies. If there were some objection, I’m sure I would know. I have much research in this topic. I believe there to be no problem here.! I heard that Padre Pio said something of this nature. Don Andrea Beltrami (1870-1897), the Salesian Father and servant of God, prayed also for the possible inhabitants of other planets. Of the 16 booklets he wrote, one seems to deal with this topic.

"Second is the recently sanctified Padre Pio, who was beatified by Pope John Paul II on May 2, 1999, and canonized on June 16, 2002.  He was asked the following question: “Father, some claim that there are creatures of God on other planets, too.” Padre Pio replied, “What else? Do you think they don’t exist, and that God’s omnipotence is limited to this small planet Earth? What else? Do you think there are no other beings who love the Lord?”  Another time someone asked him, “Father Pio, I think the Earth is nothing, compared to other planets and stars.” His answer: “Exactly! Yes, and we Earthlings are nothing, too. The Lord certainly did not limit His glory to this small Earth. On other planets other beings exist who did not sin and fall as we did.”

In the May 13, 2008 interview done by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Funes adds that such a notion "doesn't contradict our faith" because aliens would still be God's creatures. Ruling out the existence of aliens would be like "putting limits" on God's creative freedom.”

So Both Monsignore Balducci and Father Funes are in agreement here. They know a phenomenon exists, and although we don’t know who these aliens are, it is possible that they are more evolved than Man is today.

Maybe we can learn from them.

Paola  Leopizzi Harris
July 20,  2008
Boulder Colorado.

www.paolaharris.com

Paola Harris, MEd is an Italo-American photojournalist and investigative reporter in the field of extraterrestrial related phenomena research. She has studied extraterrestrial related phenomena since 1979 and is on personal terms with many of the leading researchers in the field. From 1980-1986 she assisted Dr. J. Allen Hynek with his UFO investigations and has interviewed many top military witnesses concerning their involvement in the government truth embargo. In 1997, Ms. Harris met and interviewed Col. Philip Corso in Roswell, New Mexico and became a personal friend and confidante. She was instrumental in having his book The Day After Roswell, for which she wrote the preface, translated into Italian. She returned to Roswell in the summer of 2003 for the American debut of her book, Connecting the Dots…making sense of the UFO Phenomena (Granite Press). Paola has consulted with many researchers about the best avenues for planetary disclosure with emphasis on the "big picture" and stressing the historical connection. She has written for Nexus, UFO Magazine, Notizario UFO and Dossier Alieni, among other publications. Her books include Connecting the Dots, Exopolitics: How do you Talk to a Ball of Light?, and her  forthcoming book Exopolitics: All of the Above.

Editor's Suggestions:

EXOPOLITICS: Why the Vatican Announced its ET Policy on Fatima Day (May 13, 2008) by Alfred Webre

http://www.exopoliticsradio.com/5-17-08.html

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