---
title: "Professor: Belief in Aliens Could Replace Traditional Religion"
description: "## New Religion"
date: "2019-06-04"
modified: "2019-06-04"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/professor-belief-aliens-replace-religion"
categories:
  - "Off-World"
  - "Space"
tags:
  - "aliens"
  - "extraterrestrial life"
  - "religion"
  - "the digest"
---

# Professor: Belief in Aliens Could Replace Traditional Religion

![Professor Diana Pasulka sees the growing human belief in aliens as mirroring what happens when a religion begins to take shape.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/professor-belief-aliens-replace-religion.png>)
*\<em\>Image: Pixabay/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## New Religion

The number of Americans who [believe in intelligent alien life](<https://www.newsweek.com/most-people-believe-intelligent-aliens-exist-377965>) is now about the same as the number who [believe in God](<https://www.pewforum.org/2018/04/25/when-americans-say-they-believe-in-god-what-do-they-mean/>) — and Diana Pasulka doesn't think that's a coincidence.

Pasulka is a professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina and the author of "[American Cosmic](<https://www.americancosmic.com/>)," a newly published book in which she argues that belief in UFOs and aliens is following the same path historically blazed by new forms of religion — and that humans might be hoping aliens will be our species' savior from above.

## Alien Salvation

In a fascinating [interview](<https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/6/4/18632778/ufo-aliens-american-cosmic-diana-pasulka>) with *Vox*, Pasulka describes how she sees the human relationship with aliens mirroring the birth of a new religion: something beyond the human realm communicates with a person, that person shares their experience, and a new religious narrative emerges.

As for why humans might be more willing to embrace this new "religion" of [alien belief](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nyt-navy-pilots-ufo-encounters>) now than in the past, Pasulka says advances in space exploration play a role — but she also thinks an increasing belief that our planet is headed toward a crisis factors into the equation.

"A lot of people see disaster on the horizon, and there’s a deep fear that we won’t be able to save ourselves," she told *Vox*. "So what will save us? Well, for some, it will be these advanced beings who come to us and tell us what we can do or how we can escape."

**READ MORE:** [The new American religion of UFOs](<https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/6/4/18632778/ufo-aliens-american-cosmic-diana-pasulka>) \[*Vox*\]

**More on aliens:** *[New York Times: Navy Pilots Baffled by UFO Encounters](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/nyt-navy-pilots-ufo-encounters>)*

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)