The program aims to answer questions that have baffled us since the begging of time such as what is life? What does it mean to be alive? Where do we draw the line between the human and the [a-word]? What are the possibilities for sentient life in other places?

In 2014, NASA gave $1.1 million to the Center of Theological Inquiry, an independent institution "rooted in Christian theology." The grant supports an initiative to study "the societal implications of astrobiology." Surprisingly, it took more than a year for anyone to complain.
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Since 1998, part of the Astrobiology Program's role has been to address the societal implications of the field, mostly through a series of initiatives at the Library of Congress (although there's also an astrobiology-themed, NASA-funded student debate competition. Most recent topic: "Resolved: An overriding ethical obligation to protect and preserve extraterrestrial microbial life and ecosystems should be incorporated into international law.") The Library has a Chair in Astrobiology and hosts dialogues about astrobiology-and-society issues.