This so-called "moral imperative" to seed the universe is a strange humanist, post-modern twist on Genesis 1:28, "And God blessed them. And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'"
While I am not opposed to including "be fruitful and multiply" to extend beyond the physical confines of the earth, such a task does not seem practical or very possible with the current technology, nor does it serve a good purpose. In the meantime, we should not forget the dominion given to us over the earth now, including "fill the earth."
Directed panspermia missions could target interstellar clouds such as the Rho Ophiuchus cloud complex located about 500 light-years away. This view spans about five light-years across. The false-color image is taken from the Spitzer Space Telescope. Credit: NASA.
Professor: We have a 'moral obligation' to seed universe with life
(PhysOrg.com) -- Eventually, the day will come when life on Earth ends. Whether that’s tomorrow or five billion years from now, whether by nuclear war, climate change, or the Sun burning up its fuel, the last living cell on Earth will one day wither and die. But that doesn’t mean that all is lost. What if we had the chance to sow the seeds of terrestrial life throughout the universe, to settle young planets within developing solar systems many light-years away, and thus give our long evolutionary line the chance to continue indefinitely?
...the last living cell on Earth will one day wither and die.
ReplyDeleteWell he got one thing right. Perhaps, though, he should look to Scripture for the reason. And on that day, it will matter not whether you are here on earth our out there on a settlement in a developing solar system. The growing population of under-developed countries will not matter either.