I saw this post while scrolling through a media feed and noticed it’s one of the most brilliant men on the planet stating what is one of the most fundamental questions. I quickly became curious as to what that question might be and discovered he’s talking about the “Fermi Paradox”; something that I had not heard of. Of course, as these men recognize this as a fundamental question, that means it’s also a theological one at its core.
I had to look up what the “Fermi Paradox” is. It is named after the physicist Enrico Fermi who once asked, “Where is everybody?” during a lunch discussion about UFOs. I asked Grok (the X AI) to break it down for me:
“The Fermi Paradox, named after physicist Enrico Fermi, addresses the apparent contradiction between the high probability of extraterrestrial civilizations existing in the universe and the lack of evidence or contact with such civilizations. Here’s a breakdown of the paradox:
The Premise:
- The universe is vast, containing billions of galaxies each with billions of stars.
- Many of these stars are likely to have planets, some of which could be within the habitable zone (where conditions might support life as we know it).
- Given enough time, if life can arise on one planet (Earth), it should statistically arise on others.
- Advanced civilizations might develop technology to communicate or travel across space.
The Paradox:
- Despite these probabilities, we have no confirmed contact, signals, or signs of extraterrestrial intelligence. This silence from the cosmos forms the crux of the paradox.”
To boil it down, with a mind-boggling, seemingly uncountable number of galaxies, each with mind-boggling numbers of planets, why are we alone? Why is the universe silent? Why don’t we hear from others? As Fermi asked at lunch that day, “Where is everybody?”
It’s a great question, and I totally agree it is a fundamental one as Elon Musk stated. Are we humans, here on this one speck of dust in one solar system in one little corner of one galaxy – completely insignificant in our own galaxy much less the grand scale of the universe – are we it? Are we alone? It is a fundamental question and one we’ve asked for a while.
I recall the twin Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft that NASA launched in 1977. While they were to do studies of planets in our own solar system on their way out, I remember we put on each spacecraft gold-plated records with sounds and images of Earth, intended as a message to potential extraterrestrial life that may encounter these spacecraft as they go far beyond our solar system. The first of them entered interstellar space in 2012, now over 15 billion miles from Earth, making it even then the farthest human-made object. Power for these two spacecraft is expected to last until the late 2020’s to mid-2030’s. So as of 2024, Voyage 1 and 2 have been flying out through and beyond our solar system for now 47 years.
And still – silence. We get data from planets it passes, but as far as other intelligent life – silence.
So that is the Fermi Paradox – with so many possibilities for other planets with characteristics close to ours that can support life out of a number of possibilities we can’t even imagine – there is nothing. Silence. Spacecraft flying for 50 straight years into outer space have heard nothing.
I love the theological issues that raises. As I view it, the Fermi Paradox is based on the presupposition that intelligent life arises naturally if certain physical and environmental conditions exist that are similar to Earth’s. If physical/environmental/atmospheric conditions out there are similar enough to ours, then some intelligent life will have arisen just like it did here. It’s just a matter of probability right? We exist because of the conditions that existed and have continued on this planet. A totally naturalistic presupposition. Therefore, with a seemingly infinite number of planets available in the universe, why are we seemingly alone after all this time? It really is a good question!
I believe we have been given the definitive answer. We have a solid answer, not a paradox. The Creator of this universe has, on his own initiative, revealed to us the answer and also the “why”, the reason behind it all. To those who can hear it, it is a fully satisfying answer. He has shown us our presuppositions that lead to this paradox are completely wrong. We only need to listen, and believe.
First is our presupposition about the origin of life. What is this thing we call life and where does it come from? THAT is a fundamental question that determines whether you have a Fermi Paradox or not.
To most, “life” is physical life; it is the sum total of all the chemical processes occurring at the cellular level in a physical body. If that is all life is, then it’s pointless. The real answer is God IS life, the source of all life, life eternal is in Him, it is derived and given from Him, and He is thus the one who can determine to take it. As Jesus Christ said in John and this is one of almost a dozen verses that make this point:
I am the way, the truth, and the life.
John 14:6 ESV
So the first thing you must do is decide what “life” is. Do you believe it is something that just arises when the right atmospheric conditions – the right mix of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen exist? Is that all you really are? OR, is life the result of God creating and giving and sustaining not only a physical life, but a conscience, an embodied soul consisting of a mind, emotion, and will?
Be careful if you believe the former because that is ultimately hopeless and there is zero basis to call anything “right” or “wrong”. We simply are bags of chemicals that happened to arrange themselves correctly on planets with the right raw materials. Morality is a farce and nothing anyone does to you, not matter how cruel, is wrong as there is no basis for even the concept.
But if we are specially created beings by God and one with a moral law, what a difference that makes! We now have purpose and meaning. Our goal is to know the one who created us, to glorify him for his goodness. We “live” for a REASON because we were created as living beings by such a God!
Now this still doesn’t address the nearly infinite size of the universe from the Fermi Paradox. However, that same Creator God tells us why the heavens exist and why they are as they are.
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Psalm 19:1 ESV
The size of the universe is there for the reason he states – to tell us something – to shout in our face His glory. You will either see it or you will not. A fuller treatment of this is in The Meaning of the Universe.
In fact, as we continue to discover the scope of the galaxies and stars we can’t even fathom, He actually can all each one by name:
He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.
Psalm 147:4 ESV
So to those who know God, there is no such thing as a Fermi Paradox. The Creator of it all revealed to us how he made man in his own image here on this planet, and he created the rest of the heavens to shout to us his glory – if we’ll see it.
I beg you. Lay down your rebellion, repent, and see.