RT Article
T1 Alone in the Universe
JF Zygon
VO 51
IS 2
SP 497
OP 519
A1 Smith, Howard
LA English
PB Wiley-Blackwell
YR 2016
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1555105599
AB We are probably alone in the universe—a conclusion based on observations of over 4,000 exoplanets and fundamental physical constraints. This article updates earlier arguments with the latest astrophysical results. Since the discovery of exoplanets, theologians have asked with renewed urgency what the presence of extraterrestrial intelligence (ETI) says about salvation and human purpose, but this is the wrong question. The more urgent question is what their absence says. The “Misanthropic Principle” is the observation that, in a universe fine-tuned for life (“Anthropic Principle”), the circumstances necessary for intelligence are rare. Rabbis for 2,000 years discussed the existence of ETI using scriptural passages. We examine the traditional Jewish approaches to ETI, including insights on how ETI affects our perception of God, self, free-will, and responsibility. We explore the implications of our probable solitude, and offer a Jewish response to the ethical lessons to be drawn from the absence of ETI.
K1 Astrobiology
K1 astroethics
K1 Astrotheology
K1 Exoplanets
K1 Extraterrestrial Life
K1 Judaism
K1 Kabbalah
K1 Misanthropic Principle
K1 Talmud
DO 10.1111/zygo.12256