Close encounters of the religious kind: how God and UFOs have both begun religious movements

Looking towards the heavens for meaning doesn’t always mean looking to God. 

UFOs (and the modern moniker UAPs) have long been the food for thought of sceptics, theologians, and astrobiologists alike.  

But what does belief in these mysterious phenomena have in common with religion? 

And what implications does life outside Earth have for the existence of God? 

GUESTS:

• Bill Chalker, UFO researcher. Contributing editor, International UFO Reporter. Author of Hair of the Alien and The Oz Files: The Australian UFO Story. 
• Reverend Dr Tim Jenkins, Reader in Anthropology and Religion, Divinity Faculty, University of Cambridge. Author of Images of Elsewhere 
• Dr. Diana Walsh Pasulka, Professor, Religious Studies, University of North Carolina Wilmington, specialising in UFO and UAP religions 

This program first went to air in February 2025

This episode of God Forbid was produced on Gadigal land, and recorded on Gadigal and Dharug land as well as the sovereign land of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.