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- "Other intelligent beings
exist"
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- The reality of the UFO phenomenon
and its theological implications: using reason, extraterrestrials are here.
A glimpse of their nature and a mention of the Third Secret of Fatima.
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- By Adriano Forgione
(tranlation from Italian by Dawn A. Bissel)
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- I met Monsignor Corrado Balducci at the
Second Ufological Conference of Ancona, entitled "Alien civilizations:
between doubt and reason" on 17 April 1999. Balducci, a demonologist
of the Vatican is a very open person with a pleasant manner who is quite
well known in the ufological circuit for having openly declared that he
believes in the possibility that extraterrestrial intelligences are interacting
with Earth. Are his statements made on behalf of the Vatican? I tried to
examine the religious repercussions of contact with Monsignor Balducci.
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- AF: Monsignor, where does your interest
in extraterrestrial intelligences spring from?
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- MB: I really became interested in ufology
a couple of years ago, even though I started talking about it on TV about
four years ago, in 1995. Actually, it all started in 1959 when I began
to devote my time to studying demonology. As I had to explore fields such
as psychiatry and parapsychology, I indirectly came into contact with topics
linked to ufology. I remember that in the Fifties, there was a tendence
to deny at all costs the object of parapsychological studies amongst the
public, some scientists and also amongst us clergymen. They said that there
was no basis for acknowledging parapsychology and phenomena which were
called nonsense and fantasy. To put it simply, they denied everything.
This was reflected in ufology, which is linked to other frontier topics.
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- As I collected material, I realized that
this generalized denial stemmed from illogical fanaticism. There must be
something there, even if you just use your common sense, and, using reason,
the phenomenon is undeniable. Strict criticism goes against common sense
because it goes against the value of human testimonies. In recent years,
accounts of ufological events have greatly increased and yet there are
still too many people who tend to pass everything off as nonsense. Of course,
in many cases, natural phenomena for example, may be wrongly interpreted,
but it's absolutely unthinkable to put eveything into that category. Total
scepticism is compeletly unjustified.
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- AF: And what's happening at the moment
in your field?
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- MB: I've never told anyone this, but
I'll tell you: some theologists have said to me "Balducci, what are
you doing, it's all just fantasy! ", and they were important theologists,
not just anyone. Then when I explained my interest, I defended it tooth
and nail so as to say that it's time to change this attitude because if
we go on like this, we'll end up weakening and destroying the value of
human testimonies. This is what worries me because human testimonies are
the basis for our life as an individual, our life in society but above
all the basis for the spiritual life of Christians, given that the Divine
Revelation is a historical fact that was testified to. God's Revelation
is testified to by people and by the gospels. If we believe in the accounts
of Biblical miracles, then using reason, we must also believe the accounts
of extraordinary events that happen today. It's obvious that we must prove
that every affirmation is based on credible foundations. Above all, I decided
to get involved in ufology in order to defend human testimonies.
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- AF: On various occasions you have said
that the occupants of UFOs could be more highly evolved spiritually than
we are.
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- MB: I must start by saying that angels
do not use spaceships. As purely spiritual beings, they are where they
want to be and if they wanted to show themselves, they wouldn't have any
trouble taking on visible forms. So, when we talk about extraterrestrials,
we have to think either of beings like us or, preferably, other types of
beings who always combine a spiritual part with a material part, a body,
even though they have a different relationship compared with us terrestrial
humans.
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- Nowadays, science accepts the existence
of forms of life in the cosmos, even though it doesn't want to take into
account the fact that these intelligences could already be here in our
planetary sphere, at least in an obvious form. How does theology tackle
this problem? Opinions in favour of the habitability of other worlds are
held not only by secular scientists, but also theologists and people who
died and were made saints like Padre Pio. The book written in 1974 by the
priest Don Nello Castello, "Così parlò Padre Pio"
("Thus Spoke Padre Pio"), says that someone in Padre Pio's confraternity
asked him "Father, I thought Earth was nothing compared to the stars
and all the other planets", to which Padre Pio replied "Yes,
and if we leave the Earth we are nothing. The Lord certainly didn't restrict
his glory to this little planet. On other planets, there will be beings
without sin.".
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- I can also mention Cardinal Niccolò
Cusano (1401-1464) who wrote "there is no star from which we are authorized
to exlude the existence of beings, who may even be different to us".
The Jesuit and astronomer, Father Angelo Secchi (1818-1866) wrote "It's
absurd to consider the worlds that surround us as uninhabited deserts".
And I could go on and on. Of course, we still don't have scientific confirmation
of this particular issue.
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- However, in the field of theology and
the Scriptures we can make some observations. As God's power is limitless,
it is not only possible but also likely that inhabited planets exist. In
fact, there is a great difference between angels, who are purely spiritual
beings, and ourselves, who are made of spirit and matter and whose soul
is limited in its actions by the abilities of the body itself. This is
explained by the axiom that Nature doesn't take jumps. And so it's likely
that the distance between us and angels is reduced by beings who, although
they have a body, maybe a more perfect one, have a soul which is less conditioned
in its evolution. Probably, not only is this possible and likely but, in
my opinion, also desirable. In a not so distant future, these beings could
help us, especially on our spiritual path.
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- AF: Some researchers think that this
already happened in the past.
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- MB: That's an interesting point. It's
arguable that these beings have been protecting and helping us for a long
time. Some people have put forward the hypothesis that some disasters have
been avoided thanks to them. If intelligent beings from other planets really
existed, we would find the solution as to how to reconcile their existence
with Christ's redemption. If Christ is the centre and head of all creation,
no world exists which doesn't refer to Christ, as everything is under the
influence of the divine Word and His glory. And no glory is possible without
the existence of intelligent beings who can understand it. In any case,
it's absurd to think that the only form of intelligence is our own. Other
intellectual forces, different to the human one and constructed with a
different type of structure is not only possible, but extremely probable.
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- AF: Is your research personal or is
it on behalf of the Vatican?
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- MB: It's personal.
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- AF: Twenty years ago, Father Domenico
Grasso spoke publicly in favour of the UFO phenomenon. Was it personal
research for him too?
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- MB: This research is absolutely personal.
The Vatican doesn't decide anything. We aren't told "study this or
study that" but it gives great freedom of action to individuals. In
the Vatican will be pleased when it knows that Balducci too has spoken
about ufology. We don't work according to specific orders, absolutely not.
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- AF: In your opinion, what are the possible
implications of the phenomenon for our current civilization or for the
near future, if we acknowledge a possible interaction between man and extraterrestrial
intelligences?
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- MB: That's a question which leads me
to think that it would be better if we knew what these beings are like.
I have already gone into this and I justified my opinion with "likely".
What you want to know depends on whether they are inferior or superior
to us. If they are like us, there wouldn't be many implications, as they
could have a civilization on the same level as our own. It would be different
if they were superior beings. In that case a lot of presuppositions could
change.
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- AF: According to some studies, visions
of Blessed Virgin Mary are connected to the UFO phenomenon. Some associated
phenomena seem to be of a ufological nature. What do you think?
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- MB: It's absolutely out of the question.
For pity's sake, Our Lady can do what she wants, and definitely doesn't
need a UFO.
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- AF: Two years ago, an article was published
in 'Il Messagero' which quoted some of your statements about a nuclear
war and a celestial cataclysm which will happen within ten years. That
was a sensationalist article.
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- MB: The truth is, I said that they are
two risks we are running. The nearest is a nuclear world war, a danger
that's more real when there are two powers involved. So, I speculated on
who could be a possible opponent for America, and I said China or the Arab
world, but I didn't mean that this would happen tomorrow. I pointed out
that for near future I meant around 2030. China first has to develop its
commerce and industry to the point where it has enough military power to
involve the West in a future war. (At the time of the interview, the war
in Kosovo was already under way - Ed). The danger could also be that Russia,
being in a destitute state, has already sold arms, technology and people
to Third World countries. But I think that however small a country is,
it thinks before dropping an atomic bomb on the USA.
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- AF: And what do you think the other,
more distant danger is?
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- MB: An asteroid hitting Earth. I hadn't
thought of that. I was actually referring to an ecological crisis which
is growing because of the increase in pollution which is faster than any
human corrective measure. But of course I'm not talking about only surviving
ten years.
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- AF: Staying with this issue, in an edition
of the magazine 'Visto' three years ago, you partly confermed the text
of the Third Secret of Fatima which has been around for thirty years but
has never been backed by the Church. Yes. There are two things in the Third
Secret of Fatima. Everyone noticed the first, but very few noticed the
second. The first tells of a nuclear war before the end of the millenium.
From the context, that's clear. In fact, the text talks about the use of
arms that are more powerful than a thousand suns. It's clear what arms
are intended if we look at what the text goes on to say: "the living
will envy the dead". This means that the people who survive the nuclear
weapons will suffer from radiation.
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- The other, less known aspect, is the
doctrinal crisis of the Church. Three years ago, I was interviewed by Canadian
TV. I said: "Yes, the Madonna of the Third Secret of Fatima says this,
but no-one has noticed that she first says that it will happen if mankind
doesn't mend its ways.". So its all conditioned by this previous remark.
But I am optimistic. We, as people, can influence the realization of a
prophecy, change the date and the intensity of the prophesied events and
mitigate them. The renewal of spirituality in the young is a good omen.
I mean to say, spirituality based on the rules of the Church.
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- AF: Do you believe that non-terrestrial
intelligences could intervene in a possible future cataclysm?
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- MB: I've already said that it's possible
for these beings to come to the aid of mankind. Anyway, we shouldn't expect
help from anyone, it has to be us who change and mature.
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