US government spends millions researching UFOs

by Gary Bates and Lita Sanders

It is common for Christians to wonder why CMI talks about UFOs and aliens. Even some committed supporters of the ministry wonder if it might be a side issue. But, as we consistently explain, the whole issue goes back to origins—did God create us, as the Bible teaches, or did we evolve, or, even, did aliens create life on Earth, which is becoming an increasingly popular idea? The reasoning for the existence of extraterrestrial life is evolutionary at its core—if life evolved over billions of years on Earth, then it’s probable that it happened elsewhere. Without evolution, there would be no room for speculation about ETs!¹

Research into possible visitors from another planet is not limited to cranks working out of their basements, either. The U.S. Government conducted research projects Sign, Grudge, and Blue Book but officially ceased investigation in the 1960s. However, astronomer and UFOlogist J. Allen Hynek, who headed up Bluebook, became frustrated because he believed they were covering up sightings that could not be explained by natural causes, and that merited further investigation. In fact, to help avoid further media scrutiny of certain UFO sightings, he coined the famous ‘swamp gas’ comment, which has become part of modern UFO lore.

A surprise announcement

While this research is 60+ years old, the government recently admitted to spending $22 million (admittedly a drop in the bucket of the government’s budget) on secret UFO research from 2007–2012.² Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader at the time, defended the research on Twitter:

This is surprising, given the government’s previous policy of not releasing any information about the strange aerial phenomena that they have witnessed buzzing their planes and even affecting the operational readiness of their nuclear weapons. Obviously they would not want to cause any public panic or admit that they can’t control or don’t really know what the phenomena are.

Forget sci-fi and Hollywood

The media loves to portray wiser and more benevolent aliens visiting the earth. However, anybody who seriously researches this subject (and not the layperson influenced by popular cultural themes), Christian and even non-Christian, comes to the same conclusion that reports of strange sightings in the sky have occurred for centuries, and people have claimed encounters with strange entities that assert they are from outside our earth. While most sightings can be explained by natural phenomena, like oddly-shaped clouds or misidentified aircraft, there are a few sightings that defy naturalistic explanation—that is, we are dealing with something paranormal, or as Christians would term it, supernatural. In fact, the evidence of objects, lights and other oddly-shaped objects seen on radar demands a spiritual explanation. It’s because these UFOs do not conform to the natural laws of our environment when they perform physics-defying feats that would annihilate their alleged occupants.

One cannot scientifically test something one cannot ‘grab’

This is important to understand. The government doesn’t officially recognize a category of supernatural occurrences, which is going to affect their ability to interpret this information. As we’ve written before in Prepare ye the way: aliens are coming!, it wouldn’t surprise us if some official announcement were to be made by some government that the Earth has been experiencing UFO activity that ‘must be’ advanced extraterrestrial. For them, what else could it be?

While occasionally individuals such as pilots or radar operators will testify regarding unusual sightings, it is very rare for the government itself to acknowledge the existence of unidentified flying objects. So, when the government released footage of a pilot chasing a flying object which appeared to rotate as it flew, it attracted worldwide media attention. At CMI we have received dozens of inquiries.

The timing couldn’t be better

As Christians, it is more important than ever to be able to explain this phenomenon from a biblical foundation. The book, Alien Intrusion: UFOs, Aliens and the Evolution Connection, first released in 2005, has helped thousands of people understand this phenomenon. It still ranks in the top 50 of UFO books on Amazon.com. And since this press release we (Gary Bates) have been inundated with media interview requests, and they are fascinated that there is even a Christian ‘take’ on this subject matter.

Amazingly, this astonishing announcement by the US government was (providentially?) made just a few weeks before the US release of CMI’s new movie-length documentary Alien Intrusion: Unmasking a Deception. On January 11, 2018, it will premiere in over 720 theaters for one night across the US. This new film interviews experts from both sides of the fence, and experiencers, and as the faith-friendly Hollywood actor and narrator says:

This is because, for the first time, a documentary reveals what is really behind this phenomenon. While it will be an inconvenient truth for some, it ultimately provides an encouraging message of hope through the Gospel, and the power of Christ today. And importantly it helps Christians to be prepared to ‘give an answer’ by providing a contact-point with the culture regarding one of its own cherished icons—the evolution of alien life.