Believing in alien life does not contradict a faith in god according to The Rev. Jose Gabriel Funes, a Jesuit priest who directs the Vatican Observatory. Funes asked:

“How can we rule out that life may have developed elsewhere? Just as we consider earthly creatures as ‘a brother,’ and ’sister,’ why should we not talk about an ‘extraterrestrial brother’? It would still be part of creation.”

Funes went on to say that such a belief “doesn’t contradict our faith” and that refusing to even admit the possibility of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe would be the same as “putting limits” on God’s abilities.

His statement offers evidence that the Church has progressed somewhat since Galileo’s “round earth” theory that led to his persecution 400 years ago. But while the Church is making strides when it comes to the division between science and religion, it remains stagnant on acknowledging gay people as equals. As recently as yesterday, Pope Benedict firmly restated the Roman Catholic Church’s position that only unions between a man and a woman are moral.

One question remains, what is the Church’s position on gay aliens?