Serendipity: Mission to Mars

My favorite genre of movies is science fiction. I have a vivid memory of the War of the Worlds movie as kid and have continued to watch and read various iterations of the same H. G. Wells novel. (I was also a UFO geek in the 1970s, but that is for another blog.)
 
Today I follow developments for a mission to Mars with some interest – and wonder if the human race will get to Mars before my time on this planet expires. And no, I will not be volunteering for a one-way mission to colonize the red planet – although it would be kind of cool to be the first historian of Christianity on the planet…
 
I have also been interested in how Christian theologians have pondered the possibilities of sentient life elsewhere in the universe.[1]
 
But now for my serendipitous discovery. As I was researching Baptist views of the Boer War I was pleasantly surprised by finding an article on reflections on life on Mars – in 1901!
 
There is much of interest in the two-page article: views on the age of the earth, evolution, travel distance, communication with the planet using nineteenth century technology, forms of life, and so on make for a fun read. I will not spoil the contents by summarizing the material – I will let you have the fin of reading it yourself. Enjoy!


[1]https://biologos.org/articles/what-would-life-beyond-earth-mean-for-christians; http://cdn.theologicalstudies.net/60/60.1/60.1.1.pdf;
https://www.iscast.org/node/278;
https://frenchpress.thedispatch.com/p/when-the-aliens-come-will-it-destroy