Who's On Mars?

   

       
          Two possibilities exist: Either we are alone in the universe or we are not. Both are equally 
terrifying. ...
              Arthur C. Clarke

          A little philosophy inclineth man's mind to atheism, but depth in philosophy bringeth men's minds about to religion.
          Sir Francis Bacon

        On the mysterious: It is the fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science. He who knows it not and can no longer wonder, no longer feel amazement, is as good as dead, a snuffed-out candle.
          Albert Einstein

        Imagination is the highest form of research.
          Albert Einstein



     As soon as the server brought our beer, I saw that my friend Harry was in one of his reflective moods.
     "Tell me this," he said before taking so much as a sip. "What is the evolutionary function of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony?"
     "What?" I said.
     "Or Shakespeare's sonnets?"
     "Uh?" I said.
     "Or the Mona Lisa?"
      Harry is a man of many parts. Day-to-day, he is like most of us. He thinks about earning a wage, paying the mortgage, loving his family and having from time to time a bit of fun. But Harry has another side. Actually, Harry has several other sides.
     Harry is a reader. His tastes are catholic. He may take an interest in football strategy or ancient religions. In fudge recipes or particle physics. When Harry takes a new interest, he goes all-in. If a thing catches his eye,  it's worth a long look. And he's likely to think that you should feel the same.
     "You've been reading again," I said when Harry lifted his beer.
     "Yes."
     "What is it this time?"
     "John Polkinghorne, among others."
     "Who is he?"
     "He is a theoretical physicist and an Anglican priest."
     "Odd combination," I said.
     "Actually it's not. Lot's of scientists are religious. Always have been. Francis Bacon was. He's been called the father of modern scientific method."
     "You started talking about evolution. So, where does Polkinghorne land on that one? With science or with religion?"
      "Both," Harry said. "He says it's not at all an either-or question. He's got a quote that sticks in my head: 'As a Christian believer I am of course a creationist in the proper sense of the term, for I believe that the mind and purpose of a divine Creator lie behind the fruitful history and remarkable order of the universe which science explores. But I am certainly not a creationist in that curious North American sense, which implies interpreting Genesis 1 in a flat-footed literal way and supposing that evolution is wrong.' "
       "Curious North American sense?" I said.
       "Yes," Harry said. "If you look around a little, you find that our fundamentalist neighbors have ginned up some screwy notions about the Bible."
       "You said you'd been reading Polkinghorne among others. Who else?"
       "Dorothy Sayers, for one."
       "I thought she was a mystery writer."
       "She was. But she also wrote about theology."
       "And ... ?"
       "She says that the creative impulse in humans is our little share of divinity."
       "Heavy stuff," I said. "So is this conversation. What got you started in this direction?"
       "That kind of thing, actually." Harry nodded toward a muted television set above the bar, where a commentator was silently narrating a documentary on Mars exploration.
       "You lost me there."
       "Why do we do it?  What's it for?"
       "A lot of useful stuff has come out of space exploration."
       "Yes. But we don't know that before we start. We don't know before we go up there that we will discover anything more useful than dirt. In particular, speaking of evolution, it has no logical connection to the survival of our species. We do it because of some other kind of inner impulse."
       "I guess we're just curious, and daring."
       "Yes, and you could say 'reckless,' as well."
       "Pardon?"
       "Sometimes science lets us know more than we understand."
       "Meaning?"
       "Lots of stuff. Thalidomide, DDT, asbestos, nuclear fission, gene editing."
       "So, it's reckless to check out the dirt on mars?"
       "Dirt is only one possibility." Harry nodded toward a television picture of the Mars lander.  "Suppose a Martian walked up to that thing and gestured a greeting."
       "Yes," I said. "Would it be 'hello' or 'en garde' ?"
       "That's not what I wonder about," Harry said.  "I don't wonder what Martians would say. I wonder what we would say."
       "You're losing me again."
       "If we encountered alien life, how would our world react? Would we finally decide we couldn't afford to war with each other any more, or would we fight over access?"
       I hid behind a sip of beer.
       "Have you thought about it?" Harry said. "How you would personally react?"
       "No," I said. "I guess I haven't.  I guess most people haven't.  Probably it would make good fodder for a combined course in science and ethics."
       "Yes," Harry said. "And maybe for a sermon as well."
       Harry is truly a man of parts.