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Description
How best should scholars of humanities and social sciences approach the UFO phenomenon as an object of study? Why are otherworldly experiences intertwined with new forms of religiosity? Focusing on the consequences for research methodology and knowledge production, this book explores how the UFO phenomenon challenges, disrupts and reshapes current academic practice.
Expanding existing scholarship, this book brings together global contributions at the intersection of religion, technology, and the UFO phenomenon. After an introduction addressing the contemporary relevance of the subject, the book is divided into four distinct themes: ontologies, epistemologies, sociologies, and religions.
Chapters include a case for taking UFOs seriously within the theological space; a sociological look at abduction narratives from late-Soviet and post-Soviet popular culture; a plaidoyer for expanding rational knowledge to account for UFOs and non-human intelligences; and the ecological insights such non-human intelligences could inspire. The authors show how the UFO phenomenon challenges our epistemic assumptions, leading us to revaluate research practices and innovate new methodologies.
Rather than solely studying UFOs in relation to minority religious groups, this book unites scholars of religious studies, anthropology and social science to explore the academic, societal, scientific, and religious consequences of a potentially real UFO phenomenon.
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Table of Contents
Part 1: Ontologies
1. “Becoming Strange: UFOs at the Edge of Knowing”, Hussein Ali Agrama (University of Chicago, USA)
2. “Jinn, UFOs, and Extraterrestrials: A Shi'i Islamic View”, Amina Inloes (The Islamic College, London, UK)
3. “UFOs and the Rise of Techno-Shamanism”, Shayne Dahl (University of Calgary, Canada)
Part 2: Epistemologies
4. “UFOs as Religious Experiences: The Pioneering Role of C.G. Jung”, Nathan Fraikin (École Pratique des Hautes Études – PSL, France)
5. “UFO Field Investigations as Epistemic Practices”, Cristoffer Tidelius (Uppsala University, Sweden)
6. “UAP, Technological Rationality and the Boundaries of Knowledge”, Christian Peters (Bremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences, University of Bremen, Germany)
Part 3: Sociologies
7. “UFOs and Local Environmental Governance”, Samantha MacBride (Baruch College, CUNY, USA)
8. “Gods or Vivisectionists? Alien Abduction Narratives in Soviet and Post-Soviet Popular Culture”, Alexander Panchenko (Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia and European University at St. Petersburg, Russia)
9. “The Ethnicization of Extraterrestrials: The Hungarian Paleoastronautics”, István Povedák (Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, Hungary)
Part 4: Religions
10. “The Arrival of the Supraterrestrial: Childhood's End in the Era of AI”, D. W. Pasulka (University of North Carolina Wilmington, USA)
11. “Playing With Fire While Learning to Swim: Why (And How) Theologians Should Take UFOs Seriously”, Taede A. Smedes (Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands)
12. “Reconciling the Risk of Ontological Shock with Mosaic Prophesy and Talmudic Messianism”, Ilan Chaitowitz (Independent scholar, UK)
Afterword, Jeffrey Kripal (Rice University, USA)
Index
Product details
| Published | Dec 10 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 304 |
| ISBN | 9781350507999 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Illustrations | 12 bw illus |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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