Articles
On Christmas Eve
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When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
(Psa. 8:3-4)
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Exactly fifty-two years ago today, astronaut Bill Anders took this photo of an earthrise as Apollo 8 orbited the moon--the first manned mission to another heavenly body. In a broadcast to a worldwide audience back on earth, Anders and his two crewmates took turns reading verses from the creation account in Genesis 1, ending with this farewell greeting: “And from the crew of Apollo 8, we close with good night, good luck, a Merry Christmas, and God bless all of you — all of you on the good Earth.”
Atheists pitched a fit, of course, but the astronauts were on solid ground. Over the next several years other astronauts witnessed the same breathtaking view, and even walked on the moon. Among the astronaut community, the experience of seeing the earth from space strengthened their faith in God. Some examples:
- "I had an enormous feeling that there had to be a power greater than any of us--that there was a God, that there was indeed a beginning" (Frank Borman, Anders' crewmate on Apollo 8).
- "I felt the power of God as I'd never felt it before" (James Irwin, Apollo 15).
- "To look out at this kind of creation and not believe in God is to me impossible" (John Glenn, Friendship 7 and STS-95).
- "I can tell you I felt a sense of awe out there looking at the Earth that I never had before, and it's easy to relate that to a spiritual kind of thing" (Bryan O'Connor, STS-61-B and STS-40; later ran the space shuttle program for NASA).
- The first food consumed on the moon was a communion wafer and wine, taken by Buzz Aldrin shortly before Neil Armstrong took his first step off the LEM. He later explained, "I could think of no better way to acknowledge the Apollo 11 experience than by giving thanks to God.”
We do not have to leave earth to taste a glimpse of what these men experienced. God created this entire universe--only a fraction of which we can see at night--as a signpost to knowing Him. Like David, gazing upon that vast expanse should humble us in the presence of the Almighty.
On this Christmas Eve, the words of Apollo 8 are as fitting as ever: "Good night, good luck, a Merry Christmas, and God bless all of you — all of you on the good Earth."
--David
