Why Should Theology Take SETI Seriously?

One of the most compelling scientific issues of our generation is the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. The question of whether we are alone in the universe has long fascinated the media and the public and has received fresh momentum in the discovery of exoplanets, a small minority of which have Earth like characteristics. The discovery of life elsewhere in the universe, especially if it is intelligent, asks major but fruitful questions of the Christian tradition in areas such as creation, incarnation, redemption and the nature of what it means to be human. Theological work is needed now rather than being left as a future possibility.