I was reading about Shen Kuo, an 11th century polymath scientist in the Song dynasty China. He was the first to describe the working of the magnetic compass and determine the difference between magnetic north and true north. But he also collected accounts of UFO's that are strikingly similar to modern ones.
Bishop Agobard of Lyons in the 9th century recorded stories of airships said to come from a world beyond the sky called Magonia. Locals believed the aerial sailors caused crop failures and practiced withcraft, but Agobard told the peasants they were superstitious and should leave the Magonians alone.
So apparently, they have been visiting us for a very long time.
A Quote from
Fr. Seraphim Rose's Book :
"Orthodoxy and the religion of the Future"
Orthodoxy and the religion of the Future - иеромонах Серафим (Роуз)
A demonic “kidnapping” quite close to UFO “abductions” is described in
the Life of St. Nilus of Sora, the 15th-century founder of Skete life in Russia. Some time after the Saint’s death there lived in his monastery a certain priest with his son. Once, when the boy was sent on some errand,
“suddenly there came to him a certain strange man who seized him and carried him, as if on the wind, into an impenetrable forest, bringing him into a large room in his dwelling and placing him in the middle of this cabin, in front of the window.” When the priest and the monks prayed for St. Nilus’ help in finding the lost boy, the Saint “came to the boy’s aid and stood before the room where the boy was standing, and when he struck the window-frame with his staff the building was shaken and all The Unclean Spirits fell to the earth.” The Saint told The Demon to return the boy to the place from which he had taken him, and then became invisible. Then, after some howling among the Demons, “The Same Strange One seized the boy and brought him to the Skete like the wind... and placing him on a haystack, He became invisible.” After being seen by the monks, “the boy told them everything that happened to him, what he had seen and heard. And from that time this boy became very humble, as if he had been stupefied. The priest out of terror left the Skete with his son.”
(Chapter 6)
Here's a quote from the site written by
Archbishop Chrysostomos of Etna that makes reference to
Father Seraphim Rose' book
"Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future" :
Alien Abductions and the Orthodox Christian
"It is worthy of note that the late Father Seraphim Rose, in his book Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future (Platina, CA: Saint Herman of Alaska Brotherhood, 1990; Revised Edition), has also examined the phenomenon of alien visitations to earth from an Orthodox standpoint. He devotes an entire chapter of this work, "‘Signs from Heaven:’ An Orthodox Christian Understanding of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs)," to the true nature and meaning of alien contacts with human beings. Though Father Seraphim, at a superficial level, approaches this matter in a way reminiscent of Protestant fundamentalistic thinking, and while his materials are dated and center only on more sensationalistic abduction reports—deficits compounded by the fact that some of the authorities whom he cites are clearly on the fringes of science—, his deeper analysis of the phenomenon is ingenious and supports much of what I have suggested about alien encounters with humans.
He also observes that the aliens in contemporary abduction reports are similar in appearance to the demons which, for centuries, have been described in Orthodox literature (p. 134). In fact, he recounts two cases of demonic "kidnappings" in fifteenth- and nineteenth-century Russia that, in Father Seraphim’s words, are "quite close to UFO ‘abductions’" today (pp. 136-137). It is his conclusion that classical demonic possession, known to the Orthodox Church for centuries, accounts for the alien abductions that we see in modern times and that "...modern men, for all their proud ‘enlightenment’ and ‘wisdom,’ are becoming once more aware of such experiences—but no longer have the Christian framework with which to explain them" (p. 137). This conclusion perfectly reflects what I have said about alien abductions and how they should be understood and viewed by the Orthodox Christian."
When Demons / Fallen Angels Appear As People (Very Interesting Video)
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