What is it like to believe you were kidnapped by an alien?
Alien visitations, odd as they are, have something in common with religion: people believe in them. Why do people have the belief they were abducted by aliens? How do those beliefs relate to beliefs they or other people have about anything, including God? If we understood the neurological mechanisms underlying why people believe they were abducted by aliens could we understand why they believe in other things, including God?
Today the New York Times published an article entitled Explaining Those Vivid Memories of Martian Kidnappers, talking about the forthcoming book Abducted: How People Come to Believe They Were Kidnapped by Aliens by Susan A. Clancy. According to the cover blurb, “Clancy argues that abductees are sane and intelligent people who have unwittingly created vivid false memories from a mélange of nightmares, culturally available texts, and a powerful drive for meaning that science is unable to satisfy. This book is not only a subtle exploration of the workings of memory, but a sensitive inquiry into the nature of belief.”
The Times comments: “Although it focuses on abduction memories, the book hints at a larger ambition, to explain the psychology of transformative experiences, whether supposed abductions, conversions or divine visitations.”
Unfortunately, Clancy failed to gather information about the “abductees” religious lives, but now realizes this was a mistake. As the Times notes: “The warmth, awe and emotion of abduction stories and of those who tell them betray strong spiritual currents that will be familiar to millions of people whose internal lives are animated by religious imagery.”
January 10th, 2006 at 13:34
I was kidnapped by aliens, they poked me lots good time. I like to be poked. Can I poke you.
January 10th, 2006 at 13:38
The aliens poked me for ten years!!! Thats lots good pokes. Gomfernidle rules!!!! Thanks for believing me man. . . .. I’m Not insain.!@#@%%TQCFGW F
August 31st, 2006 at 06:19
In a way you’re right that some people believe in them and some don’t. But then you can’t expect that all people have been abducted or as you say believe they have been abducted. More than often those who have been abducted, whether or not they believed before, believe greatly in them after their ordeal. It is not a religion, a cult, or club. It is a belief for those who haven’t experienced it, a reality for those who have, and a theory for those who don’t want to believe. I believe in them and I have had my more than fair share of real and steady sightings, along with a few witnesses. But I always question it because of conspiracies that the government is behind it all and their record to hide things from us.
February 12th, 2007 at 02:08
You lot are insane. How you get poked by an alien?! Firstly, if the alien has it’s own air to breath would it survive in Earth’s atmosphere? And would you survive in space without a suit? I think not!
Suzii X
February 12th, 2007 at 02:23
Suzii made a great point. She is really smart also, a bit flirty. -.-’ Suzii How old are you? The truth please. Also Rey made a good point too! But truthly, I ain’t that smart…. But I’m training to be an astronaught. So i’ll tell you if I see an “Alien” Cos alot of this is interesting. Aliens, super novas and when the Sun dies. But that’ll be some time away…. O_O
Bye, Also Suzii I LOVE habbohotel. Whats your thingy. Mines .Zoe,x yours ??????
February 12th, 2007 at 02:25
Well well well…..
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June 22nd, 2008 at 14:37
aliens are not here to poke at people. has anyone ever seen The pale Blue Dot? its a pic showing earth from two probes at a distance past the milky way. Earth is only one of trillions of planets.(search, i am correct)These planets past us are lightyears away, it would take 1000000 years a t lightspeed to reach the closest. so if these alien creeds are that far ahead in inttelecual capability, why would they come all this way to poke humans and rape cows?
July 9th, 2008 at 07:29
Well…i think that aliens are very real. Its possible that they come to find more about us just like we are doing with them. I have not seen no sightings or anything but i still believe in them. They look so much like us and sometimes it makes me think if they could be our ancestors lol. I know that sounds stupid but it could be possible. These species have a very advanced technology and i think we humans were not the first life on the galaxy. Why? well its very obvious,their technology is far better than what we have today. I would love to be the first to enter an alien spaceship, i know now that sounds stupid because no one knows if they mean to hurt us or abduct us to make experiments or analyze us in someway but i am so eager to find out about them because i think that they can tell use the purpose of Earth,Us Humans and the Galaxy. I recently found out about uso’s. Ufos and usos are the samething but when an ufo enters the ocean waters it turns into an uso; An unidentified submerge object. They have such an advanced technology that they can travel so fast even in our ocean waters. I believe that uso or ufos (same thing) have a base on earth some where in the oceans, they have proof that its possible. But anyways…wow i wrote a lot….umm well my point it that beware because these so called ufo’s are as real as we are.
August 17th, 2008 at 20:31
I can get very confused with this WHOLE segment! I mean like really, Suzii is sooo right! If we can breath on the earth, and not in space,and aliens can breath in space… then how can they breath on earth??? This really really is freacky!!!! Besides…. the aliens do live FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR away!!! So only if they can travel fast enough then there you go! But…If ypou think hard enough then you will realize that aliens are really stupid! Also, I don’t think that the “Aliens” can have a “U.F.O” beacause it involes ELECTRONICS DEVISES in it! So wheere would the “Aliens” get the parts for a “U.F.O”????
October 5th, 2008 at 20:40
i honestly think they are here to reproduce their population. so they show the human scientist to reproduce us and give way better technology. I know they are not here to destroy us, that explain the astroids not hitting us. but the goverment will address the people with an alien attack just so that they can telll you aliens exsite and gain your trust and your weapon so that no one freaks out. probably by 2018-2026 or so, so says John Lear.
September 23rd, 2011 at 10:09
i was abducted before they locked me up in a cage with chains on me before they examended me. And 1 alien came up to me because i was crying he told me not to be afraid and he stroked me on the head.