It is not too late to register for UFO Conference 2008, November 7-9 in Las Vegas. Speaker topics include "UFOs and the National Security State," "Roswell's Day in Court; The Deathbed Testimonies," and "Disclosure 2009? Exopolitics and the New Administration."

Though I have never attended a UFO Conference, I am going to guess that the people there will range from the strongly curious to the obsessed, from those who think of UFOs in terms consistent with modern science to those who think in terms of "light beings" and multiple dimension and time travel.

And, there may be attendees for whom UFOs are central to their religious beliefs and feelings.

From Wikipedia (yes, I know I knock some of their entries, but this one is legit)

A UFO religion or UFO cult is an informal term used to describe a faith community whose belief in the existence of extraterrestrials and/or UFOs is a central component of its religion and practice.

Though their beliefs are highly varied, UFO religions commonly believe that alien beings exist; that they have played, or are still playing, a key role in human history; and that at some point in the future, humanity will become part of a wider galactic community. The arrival or rediscovery of alien civilizations, technologies and spirituality will enable humans to overcome their current ecological, spiritual and social problems. Issues such as hatred, war, bigotry, poverty and so on are said to be resolvable through the use of superior alien technology and spiritual abilities. Such belief systems have often been described as millenarian in their outlook.[who?]

Of course, not all believers are members of faith communities of the like-minded.

Perhaps the most famous, or infamous, UFO cult was Heaven's Gate, whose members committed mass suicide on March 27, 1997.

Trolling the internet, one can find "revelations" that

The third secret of Fatima also concerns the return of Jesus Christ and the fact that mankind is going to have contact with inhabitants from other planets. I was told that all mankind will realize that we are not alone in the universe. We will understand that many of these beings are much more evolved than us, not only on a psychological level, but above all on a spiritual level. And I was asked to talk about what Jesus Christ tried to teach us, the fact that we have to love one another, that we have to respect the planet, to respect one another, exactly what he taught us 2,000 years ago. I was asked to spread this message to the world. Read more.

and

The power-oriented civilization behind the 2008 Disclosure Management Psyops does not represent the future of human civilization. That civilization - which we call the "permanent war economy" - represents a species of human consciousness which is destined to become extinct during the emergence of transparent, interactive contact between our Earth and ethical advanced Extraterrestrial civilizations surrounding and following alignment during the period 2011-2012 with the gigantic Black Hole at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, 23,000 light years from Earth, and 4000 as heavy as our Sun. As our Earth approaches alignment with the Black Hole, time as a dimension accelerates and human consciousness stratifies into two domains or dimensions. For polarity's sake, we can call these two domains "Fear & Contraction" and "Love & Expansion".
During this post 2011-2012 transitional period we are entering, Exopolitics - the new political science of outer space - and Exo-consciousness - humanity's emerging Extraterrestrial consciousness - will establish the platform for transparent and inter-active contact between an emerging human civilization based on values of sustainability, Universality, cosmic Love and advanced ethical Extraterrestrial civilizations. Read more.

and

I also strongly suggest that there are many people who have experienced themselves outside of their own physical and mental bodies.

This is a form of existence for many human beings on earth. There are doctors and scientist who are aware of people who say they have had near death experiences (NDE), out of body experiences (OBE), and ET UFO experiences. (ET UFO Exp). Some prefer to call these contacts, some abduction, and some experiences. Regardless of the words chosen or accepted while in discussion, these situations are real. The differences that have occurred are based on the individuals and yet we know there are now similarities. Read more.

What do I think? Well, it is a big universe. May be we are not alone, that there are other sentient beings with civilizations perhaps more technologically advanced than our own. But, I cannot imagine that our obscure solar system on the edge of our galaxy is some sort of high-traffic space crossroads. If other races exist, odds are we'll never meet. And, I don't think they are necessarily higher spiritual beings than ourselves.

What interests me most, is the way UFOs function for some people as a focus for religious feelings and beliefs. Scientific secularism is ultimately unsatisfying to almost all people. Homo sapiens seems hard-wired for belief. We need to believe in something that transcends the ordinary, that is higher than ourselves, that gives us hope. Some people find this in UFOs. I pray that some day they may find it in the truth as it is in Jesus.