A renewed wave of speculation about extraterrestrial life is drawing attention to an ancient religious text long regarded with caution by the Church, raising questions among the faithful about how to interpret such claims in light of Catholic teaching.
According to a recent report by the Daily Mail, Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna has publicly encouraged people to “Read the book of Enoch,” while also sharing an image of a Renaissance painting sometimes referred to as the “Madonna of the UFO.” These remarks come amid her role in congressional efforts to investigate unidentified aerial phenomena.
The Book of Enoch, however, occupies a complicated place in religious history. As noted in the report, it is “an ancient Jewish religious text, written in stages between 300 and 100 BC,” but “is not part of the standard Bible used by most Jews, Protestants or Catholics.” The Church has historically excluded the text from the biblical canon due to concerns about its authorship and theological content.
Central to the Book of Enoch is a dramatic narrative describing how angels—often called “Watchers”—descended to Earth and fathered a race of giants. The text expands on the mysterious passage in Genesis about the “sons of God,” but its interpretations remain outside the bounds of authoritative Catholic teaching.
Luna has suggested that such ancient accounts may connect to modern reports of unidentified phenomena. In past interviews, she claimed: “Have I seen evidence of this? Yes… Have I seen photo documentation of aircraft that I believe were not made by mankind? Yes.” She further speculated that some historical accounts may point to what she described as “interdimensional beings.”
In another statement cited by the Daily Mail, Luna argued that if certain sightings are not attributable to human or foreign technology, “then it does confirm what the Bible talks about of there being other creations.”
Such interpretations, however, require careful discernment. The Catholic Church teaches that Sacred Scripture must be understood within the fullness of divine revelation and guided by the Magisterium. While the Bible does affirm the existence of angels as purely spiritual beings created by God, it does not support speculative claims that equate them with extraterrestrial or interdimensional entities.
The resurfacing of artistic works like the painting attributed to Domenico Ghirlandaio—featuring a distant, disk-like object in the sky—has also fueled imaginative interpretations. Yet scholars generally caution against projecting modern ideas onto historical art, noting that symbolic imagery was common in religious paintings of the time.
At the same time, the broader question of life beyond Earth remains open to scientific inquiry. The Church does not oppose the possibility of extraterrestrial life, recognizing that all creation ultimately comes from God. However, it firmly rejects interpretations that distort revealed truth or rely on non-canonical sources to redefine biblical teaching.
As public interest in UFOs continues to grow, Catholics are reminded to remain grounded in the faith handed down through Scripture and Tradition. Curiosity about the unknown can coexist with fidelity to truth—but only when guided by sound theology and a clear understanding of what the Church teaches.
In an age of speculation, the enduring message of the Gospel remains unchanged: that God is the Creator of all things visible and invisible, and that salvation is found not in hidden knowledge, but in Jesus Christ.
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