A "
lunatic cult" created by
French journalist Claude Vorilhon (Rael) after his meeting with a four foot tall, olive skinned, almond eyed
extraterrestrial with long dark hair. From his meeting, Rael
learned that humans were created deliberately through manipulation of
DNA by aliens who now wish to regain contact with us.
The Raelians go so far as to say that the Elohim have provided prophets over the years (Buddha, Moses, Jesus, etc...) to educate humanity as it progressed through time. They claim that every major religion was founded by chosen ambassadors of the Elohim.
Either genuine or artificial, an important claim made by Raelians is that the Elohim are not invaders. The Elohim await the construction of an embassy in or about Israel (read: large scale nuclear bomb ..grin..) and open airspace, as they do not wish to disrupt our political and economic stability with an unscheduled landing.
The Raelians claim to be open about membership, and all may come and go as they wish. They are also non-profit, which they define as entirely volunteer based. Apparently, an embassy will eventually be constructed to the specifications of the Elohim.
Raelianism goes hand in hand with support for human cloning. As a central message of the Elohim is that of deliberate Scientific Creationism, the Raelians should have no qualms about cloning. They even claim that cloning is a means of immortality.
Perhaps the least fortunate trait of Raelianism is a belief in geniocracy. More specifically, only individuals with an intellect 10 percent above average should be allowed to vote, while a measured intellectual ability at least 50 percent above average would be required to hold a position in government. Testing alone would be an insurmountable task, but the results could be even more damning. To imagine a world ruled by people like Johannes Kepler and Isaac Newton is grim indeed.