Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible

by Michael J.S. Carter

Whitely Strieber, author of Communion: A True Story considered Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible to be, "the best book ever written on the subject." Reverend Michael S. Carter's Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible is written from the point of view of a man or woman in biblical times, anything that came down from the sky would be considered a god, or at least sent by the gods. Now consider what the site of modern technology, such as a helicopter or rocket ship, would do to the mind of a 1st century man or woman. The explanation of this type of phenomenon would probably sound an awful lot like what we find in civilization’s most sacred books. Reverend Michael S. Carter explores the possibilities that the Bible, Koran, and other religious texts contain clues to visitations from extraterrestrials in this expanded second edition of Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible. Rev. Michael J. Carter is originally from Baltimore, Maryland. He moved to New York City in 1980 and lived there for 25 years, working as a professional actor before moving to Asheville with his family. Michael is an ordained Interfaith minister and received his BA Degree in Letters from the College of New Rochelle where he graduated cum laude. He received his Masters In Divinity Degree from Union Theological Seminary in New York City (class of 2000).While serving various Unitarian Universalist Congregations in New York, Michael was trained as an anti-racism trainer and has been recognized by President Clinton for his efforts. Michael was also a weekly columnist for the Asheville Citizen Times. Rev. Carter now serves as the minister for Unitarian Universalist Congregation of The Swananoa Valley, in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. Rev. Carter has written articles on UFOs and Religion for such publications as UFO Magazine, Alien Encounters ( A British Publication),The MUFON UFO Journal, Contact Forum, The S.P.A.C.E. Newsletter (Support Program for Abductees Contact Encounters) a UFO support group in New York City. He has spoken at UFO Conferences such as the 2nd Philadelphia, Need To Know Conference, The Annual Long Island UFO Conference with Budd Hopkins, as well as appearing on radio and TV appearances across the nation. Rev. Carter has also appeared on Japanese television discussing the Bible and UFOs. A long-time UFO experiencer, he lectures extensively on the topic of religion and UFOs. He has appeared on the Sci-Fi Channel’s production of Steven Spielberg's Abduction Diaries, The Real 4400, Coast to Coast AM, and is a frequent guest on The History Channel’s production of Ancient Aliens.

Genres: Research

97 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Rev. Michael JS.Carter is originally from Baltimore, Maryland. He lived for many years in New York and now lives in North Carolina.

Michael is an ordained Interfaith Minister. He has written a number of articles and books and had a variety of TV appearances.

Reviews

[C.E. Case · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book and its suppositions have irreconcilable flaws.

1) Typos and editing mistakes. "Piqued" as "Peeked" instead, and he spells UFOs as UFO's. I mean, if you're writing a book on UFOs and you can't spell it... what's going on there? He also translates AD as "After Death" instead of "In the Year of our Lord." These are easy mistakes that looking at a Wikipedia entry could solve.

2) The information is sparse. He spends only a tiny part of the book discussing bible stories (even though this covers the Old and New Testaments AND the Koran). There's not a lot there, and what is there has no in depth analysis or explanations of the passage. The book is filled with quotes about aliens and love and God. Along with the sparse information, it seems like this book is half blog post about the author's life, and half copied and pasted quotes.

There's no discussion of theories of UFOs/aliens in antiquity, such as Gnosticism, or modern Christian sects, such as Mormonism. He name-drops the Book of Enoch but doesn't explain what it is or what's in it.

3) He relies on people being stupid. His overarching theory is that "primitives" are too stupid to recognize space ships for what they are, that they would be cowed by science and technology. He even states, multiple times, that ancient scholars believed the world was flat. Any reader of Aristotle knows that the ancient people were not primitive. It smacks of Colonialism.

I prefer the deeply intelligent, if flawed arguments by Graham Hancock, Bart Ehrman, Aristotle himself, which rely on the intelligence of people to understand, not the non-intelligence of people to be duped.

[Denver Michaels · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good book for a look at UFOs and ETs from a spiritual perspective. It picks up where Rev. Barry Downing's ground breaking work, The Bible and Flying Saucers, published in 1968, leaves off. I'm a bit skeptical of Carter's claims of personal alien visitation (as I am of the alien abduction phenomenon as a whole), but I appreciate that he shared his experience. A great book, but not for those with a rigid, literal interpretation of the Bible. Must be read with an open mind!

[Steve Cran · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you watch the TV show “Ancient Aliens “ then you have heard most of this before and even seen the author on the show. The first part of the book tells about the author’s life and how he grew up in an African American Community and found a great love for the Church. By and large he was Presbyterian but now he is more ecumenical . His interests in UFO’s began when he began receiving visitation from grey aliens when he was 19 or so. At first he would see little orbs of light shaped like donuts later on he would see grey aliens in his house all the while his first wife slept through it. Later on he would be visited by a reptilian alien who held him down on his bed, like modern sleep paralysis, and told him that he would be rich and famous.

The author’s main interest in UFO’s is not in the mechanics of how they got here but rather he is interested in how it changes the spiritual perspective of the contactee. Notice the use of contactee as opposed to abductee. He was not abducted nor did he feel violated as some people had. The author notes a right and left perceptual bias in UFOology. People on the religious right tend to perceive the aliens as evil or satanic. Those on the left tend to see them as benevolent. The author seems to take a middle of the road position. Humans have a tendency to lump the unknown together and personify it as evil. He wants us to avoid that.
Going into the bible he starts off with describing incidents in Exodus where in the Israelites are guided through the desert by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire in the evening. Something had to hover over the Red Sea to make it part. Or how about Elijah when he is taken up by a fiery chariot. Ezekial’s vision has been turned into a UFO construction. Enoch was taken up by a craft all the way to the sky and shown the mansions of Heaven.
In the new Testament you have the artifial insemination of Jesus. How else could Mary remain a virgin yet have a child without having coitus. There are a couple of examples of this in the New Testament. Usually birth are followed by shining lights in the sky. The Wisemen were guided by the star of Bethlehem which flew over the place Jesus was being born.
The author also goes into UFO sighting in the Quran. Giving an overview of humans. Angels and Jinn, the author tells how Muhammed ascended to the sky on a horse. What could this be other than an alien space craft.
The author is concerned with spirituality and believes the authorities have been covering up alien involvement since the beginning of time. There are have been many modern UFO sighting that are being covered up by our government. Contact has been going on for ages but our ancestor did not have words for what they saw. If they were to see up they would think that we too are gods. How would the religions handle it if the truth were let out. How could spiritual angels or being mate with flesh and blood human beings?

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

IS THE BIBLE ‘A BOOK OF UFO STORIES’? IS GOD REALLY A ‘PERSON’?

Rev. Michael J.S. Carter wrote in the Foreword to this 2013 book, “It has been quite a journey since I first began this work. It started as my Masters of Divinity Thesis for Union Theological Seminary … Imagine my telling my professors that I wanted to write about the Judeo-Christian religion possibly being originated by beings from outer space!... Not only was I encouraged to write the thesis but my Professor of Systematic Theology suggested that I pursue Doctorate Studies upon graduating… Now I must admit that this was before I added my personal contact experience to the book, and … I was scared to death to even mention it. Without the encouragement of my initial publisher… my story would never have been told.” (Pg. 5)

He continues, “I cannot help but muse on the fact that the three monotheistic religions [Christianity, Judaism, Islam]… were started by beings from another world, beings who some mistakenly thought were gods… I am not suggesting that there is no Creator, just that we might consider broadening our understanding of Creator, that a different sense of Creator might not be the traditional sense of the word… We create our gods in our own image; for this reason, the finite will never fully comprehend, much less sufficiently describe, the infinite… I must confess that I do have one agenda in writing this book: I want us to look at the monotheistic religions with fresh eyes for our 21st century world.” (Pg. 6-7)

Later, he summarizes, “I propose that the Bible is a book of UFO stories. Some may construe this statement as blasphemy or heresy; however, it is clear to me that UFOs… can be found in the Bible, if one reads with an open mind… the Bible is MUCH MORE than just a book of UFO stories, but UFOs definitely figure into the scenario. If my hypothesis is correct, then those beings in the Bible that we know as ‘angels,’ might be more appropriately referred to as ‘extraterrestrials’ of ‘ancient astronauts.’ … These beings are intelligent and are most likely brought into being at the will of the one infinite Creator… this theory does put the traditional Judeo-Christian view of ‘God’ at risk. This book will explore the fact that this UFO reality is and was fully capable of having brought about the Biblical religion… the UFO reality … has the power to control our minds and our physical reality so totally that it could have performed every miracle in the Bible. To some… the traditional Judeo-Christian view of God is validated by belief in UFOs… However, one could propose the theory that the Biblical religion might have originated with beings from other worlds for reasons of their own… that have nothing to do with ‘God.’ … this theory … calls into question the entire basis of the Judeo-Christian religious tradition. It is this risk that makes some religious persons extremely nervous.” (Pg. 27-28)

He acknowledges, “I am one of those people who are not so much interested in the ‘nuts and bolts’ of the UFO phenomenon… in propulsion systems and … that makes the ET spacecraft maneuver through time and space… I am more interested in how the contact experience influences the inner life of the contactee… In other words, what are the spiritual influences or transformations that occur in the experiencer… and how does this transformation affect their lives as human beings on planet earth?” (Pg. 11)

He recounts in detail his own ET contact experiences; e.g.: “When my contact experiences consciously began for me on December 28, 1989, I resisted any form of organized religion as I attempted to process my experiences and what they meant to me---both with regard to religion in general and to my personal spirituality. I became heavily involved in the study of metaphysics and New Thought philosophies as a result of my contacts with ET beings… I attended an Interfaith Seminary… after graduation, I was ordained an Interfaith Minister. Later, I would attend Union Theological Seminary… For a few years I was on the path of being fellowshipped as a Unitarian Universalist minister but eventually decided against that affiliation…” (Pg. 14) [NOTE: Rev. Carter is currently the minister of a Unitarian Universalist congregation in North Carolina.]

He adds that after his contacts, “my worldview started to change… My views about what people call ‘God’ and religion definitely shifted to a more inclusive view of Creation… And just as I was getting used to the visits, they slacked off… the twice a month visits became less frequent. Sometimes months would go by between visits, and this began to disturb me… The visits usually consisted of my lying in bed attempting to sleep… they would show me pictures in my head of them being in the room… One must remember that I was WIDE AWAKE during [these] visits!” (Pg. 18-19) He joined the support group SPACE (Search Project for Aspects of Close Encounters), which “turned out to be a godsend.” (Pg. 20-21)

He suggests, “there are many reasons for a U.S. government cover-up. One of them could be that UFOs are human-made by one of the superpowers, and that the potential of these craft as weapons demands a high level of secrecy. That theory is dubious… Another possible reason … is that the nations of the world do not want to admit to their citizens that they cannot defend their airspace… the basic motivation behind these reasons is fear… of public reaction… Fear of what might happen if the peoples of the earth thought of themselves … as cosmic citizens as opposed to the nationalistic worldview… Certainly, our earth-based religions … would have to rethink the present cosmology regarding who and what God really is, not to mention … questions regarding the universe, how it works, and our place in it.” (Pg. 33-34)

He turns to the Bible, and comments, “why does Genesis refer to the Nephilim as sons of the gods (plural) or Elohim (plural). The plurality … is certainly an aberration in a bible devoted to monotheism.” (Pg. 47) “There is no reason to expect that the people who lived in biblical times called a flying saucer a ‘flying saucer.’ It is oftentimes referred to as a ‘cloud’ … they could only describe what they saw in the … vocabulary of the times of which they lived… I am speaking about a very primitive and superstitious society… in which people unfortunate enough to have epilepsy were believed to have been possessed by ‘demons.’ In this society, anything which came down from the sky---a meteor, a falling star, etc.---was considered either a sign from the ‘gods’ or maybe even the god or gods in person… the word ‘cloud’ is much easier to use than ‘Pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night’ (Ex 13:21-22).” (Pg. 49)

He continues, “It is my contention that this Yahweh is an astronaut from space whom the people of Israel worshipped as a deity. The commandment to not have any other god … speaks quite clearly to the fact that there was indeed competition from other gods or astronauts… at that time!” (Pg. 53) “There is evidence of UFO activity surrounding the life of Elijah the prophet… ‘Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven’ [2 Ki 2:11]… The book of the prophet Ezekiel also contains UFO sightings and contact with UFO intelligences.” (Pg. 54) “In all likelihood… this ‘star’ [the Star of Bethlehem] was in fact a UFO… if we were to replace the word ‘angel’ with the world ‘extraterrestrial or alien’ in … any other biblical story, these stories take on a whole new meaning.” (Pg. 61) “[Jesus’] father quite literally resides in the heavens above, and quite possibly on a UFO…the ‘many mansions’ may be other planets… after his resurrection, the Bible tells us that Jesus is taken away… on a ‘cloud’ into heaven.” (Pg. 63)

He summarizes, “This [traditional] type of mentality must change if Christianity is to remain relevant in the 21st century and beyond. Our way of doing ‘God Talk’ will have to change.” (Pg. 65) He acknowledges, “The belief in UFOs in the Bible is a statement of faith, and the alleged participation of ETs in biblical stories is still yet a hypothesis… the claim that revelations through UFOs and ETs have continued up to the present age contradicts the common Christian belief that revelation came to an end with the New Testament. This belief also requires radical rethinking of the traditional Christian doctrines of creation and redemption.” (Pg. 67) ‘Belief in the UFO phenomenon does not negate belief in a Supreme Creator. Perhaps this Creator created other life forms as well as human beings. Belief in the UFO phenomenon in the Bible need not trivialize ‘God’ to the role of astronaut…” (Pg. 68)

He also suggests, “this paradigm may take two separate forms… it could adopt a pantheistic view of nature, which sees God not as a person… [Or] it could develop a … worldview, which maintains that the existence … of superior aliens from space are devoid of any supernatural content and can be subjected to … physically verifiable principles of modern science.” (Pg. 73-74) But he also cautions, “The theories contained within this book are by no means a definitive guide of events; they are simply my theories and nothing more. I wholeheartedly welcome the discussions and debate which I hope will arise from my presentation of these theories.” (Pg. 79)

This book will definitely not appeal to ‘conservative’ Christians, but those with broader perspectives may find it highly creative and thought-provoking.”

[Joey Madia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A few months ago, I reviewed the most recent book by this articulate and passionate author. Initiation: The Spiritual Transformation of the Experiencer is a handbook for those who have had alien contact, or know someone who has. Reverend Carter’s insights into the nature of these extraterrestrial beings is refreshing, comforting, and enlightening. If the field of UFOlogy is to evolve out of split camps, ridicule, sloppy investigations, click-baiting, and a false narrative of fear (such as the one being put forth in the supposed Disclosure of the past few years), then we need to hear more from scholars and experiencers such as Reverend Carter.
Written eight years before Initiation, Alien Scriptures: Extraterrestrials in the Holy Bible also takes as its basis the author’s contactee experiences, which set him on his path to combine theology, spirituality, and UFOlogy to better understand what was happening to himself and others, and how long and why it had been happening. Although the title specifically mentions the Holy Bible—Carter’s area of most expertise because of his Christian schooling and study—Alien Scriptures covers a much broader base, from which the book, and therefore the reader, immeasurably benefit.
After sharing his contactee experiences (this book being the first time he publicly did so), Carter gives us an overview of what to expect by way of an Introduction, which shares statistics about just how many people believe in and have experienced visitors from other worlds/dimensions (they have increased even more in the ensuing almost decade). It also gives an overview of UFOs in popular culture. This survey of documentaries, films, and TV shows includes Ancient Aliens, on which the reverend has been a popular and longtime contributor.
Chapter 1 outlines some of the major UFO events in recent history. The survey starts with Kenneth Arnold’s sighting, which birthed the term “flying saucers”; the Roswell incident; UFOs over Washington, DC in 1952; and the famous incident of the Phoenix Lights in Arizona in March 1997 (I arrived there ten days later, and people were still talking about it), among several others. Carter then examines the longtime US government cover-ups, false flags, and distortions and denials of these and other cases, from which we are still suffering today. This obfuscation is important because many, many people over the years have lost their jobs, their minds, and/or their reputations because of the lack of open discussion about the phenomena in America.
With a solid base presented, Carter moves back in time to “UFOs in Antiquity.” Here he discusses famous religious paintings that appear to contain flying saucers, and quotes from the Roman Catullus, Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmose III, Aristotle, and Alexander the Great regarding what sound very much like experiences with UFOs. It is here that Carter moves to other religions and spiritual systems, pulling in the Mayan Popol Vuh, and the Hindu Vedas, Ramayana, and Mahabharata. If you are familiar with Ancient Aliens or the theory on which the show is based, these texts are explored time and again because they speak of compelling phenomena such as the vimana, a “flying celestial vehicle.” And this was in is 3000 BCE!
For those most interested in UFO phenomena in the bible, Carter does not disappoint. He starts with Genesis in the Old Testament, with fascinating insights into the Nephilim, Elohim, and architect of the Sumerian Annunaki theory Zachariah Sitchen’s early statements that mistranslations were vastly changing the meaning and implications of these words. Carter then moves on to the Tower of Babel, Exodus, and the nature of Yahweh, especially the often remarked-upon image of the angry, vengeful father who seems less like a God and more like an interstellar dictator.
For me, one of the central mysteries of the Old Testament is prophets like Ezekiel and Elijah and the nature of their supposedly angelic visitors. There is clearly technology described in these passages, and the angels sound more like the interstellar travelers classified as Nordics than what we see in Renaissance paintings and on the cover of greeting cards in a Christian bookstore. Reverend Carter’s analysis here is one of the highlights of the book.
Perhaps most controversial to Christian readers will be the notion that Jeshua ben Joseph, otherwise known as Jesus Christ, was an interstellar traveler. Carter, anticipating this, does not dive right into it, but sets the stage with the chapter “Religious Conservative and Liberal Perspectives.” There is much talk of where the Vatican positions itself in terms of ETs, and the UN has an ambassador for them. I have never felt that the existence of life elsewhere in the Universe obliterates human notions of God. It honestly seems silly, and a similar smokescreen to the USAF and RAND and other units of the Military–Industrial–Intelligence Complex pushing the narrative that your average citizen “can’t handle the truth!” to quote the Marine commander in A Few Good Men. The polls Carter references earlier in the book puts that rationale for secrecy to rest.
In the sections on Jeshua, the reverend focuses on several of his quotes, the star of Bethlehem, the miracles he performs, and his Transfiguration. He then postulates on the larger questions of what it might mean for Church doctrine if Jeshua was in fact an interstellar traveler. This is an extended section where Carter’s eloquence, scholarship, and reasoned argumentation truly shine.
In line with my own areas of research, Alien Scriptures next considers the nature of angels and demons in terms of Ancient Alien/Astronaut theory.
The closing sections look at the contentious relationship between science and religion—the meeting of two of the most committed gatekeeper cults on the planet—before expanding out to consider ET phenomena in the Koran.
The mark of a talented writer, speaker, or reverend is the ability to move between the micro (the personal) and the macro (the societal or Universal). Carter employs an excellent technique for doing so in Alien Scriptures—it begins with the micro, becomes increasingly macro, and then returns, in the Afterword, to the micro. A worthy summation of a complex subject, this final section comes back to Carter’s contact experiences and considers the larger meaning of extraterrestrial encounters in light of the precarious status of Mother Earth. The growing role of technology as humankind’s new central deity (what I call the New Technic) is examined, and Carter poses and answers the question of whether or not technologically advanced means spiritually advanced. Certainly, in the case of humanity, what I see is a considerable moral gap that indicates that technology and spirituality are very different and our current condition is that the former greatly outpaces the latter, to our detriment and peril.
With a robust Bibliography and set of Endnotes, Alien Scriptures provides the tools you need to do your own research. Reverend Carter has taken a well-traveled subject and explicated complexities, illuminated hidden puzzle pieces, and offered his own experiences to put it all into context.
Now it is up to us to add our own experiential data and move the conversation forward with love, respect, and vigor, as does Reverend Carter.

[John W. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this book touches upon a few interesting connections between events from the Bible (old and new Testaments) and even a bit of the Koran in the sense of there being UFO involvement, but lacks real substance. I'm not even evaluating the writing as in "I believe" or "I don't believe," I'm speaking more generally as in, "Is this a well constructed set of evidence based arguments?" There are also typos and repetition present. Ironically, I enjoyed the Afterword most of all- it contains some deep spiritual and philosophical thinking- despite it doing nothing to drive home the author's main points about UFO's in the Bible.

[Lisa Kizer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really a 2.5 rating. It's great to read a text written by a clergy who believes in the possibility of ETs. This book was not exactly what I was expecting (more along the idea of presenting a lot more text that could be evidence of UFOs). The author tended to be very, very long-winded in getting to his point. I do however appreciate the bibliography list.

[Darlene Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought Provoking, For sure!

Must be read with an open mind and conscious consideration for challenging what you think is/are truths. Be prepared to just sit and wonder, could he be right?

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heard this book referenced on syfy and finally had a chance to read it. There are a few typos, but they weren't too distracting. The reason I gave this four stars was because it was obviously written from the heart. Mr. Carter shared his deeply personal experience and I applaud his courage. I don't agree with all his theories, but I found them creative and fascinating. Overall, I feel reading this book opened my mind up to various possibilities in our universe. Plus, I always enjoy when writers write Jesus in a favorable light. I also learned a bit about the Koran and its philosophy from this novella. And I wouldn't be surprised if the gods of Egypt and Greece were aliens -- or at least time travelers with some epic technology at their disposal.

Overall, I was entertained and felt good after reading the book.