“A BRILLIANT JEWEL in the black velvet sky.” That’s how lunar-module pilot Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin described the Earth in a 1998 interview, recalling how our planet looked from the vantage point of its natural satellite. Fifty years ago this summer—on July 20, 1969, during the Apollo 11 mission—Aldrin and Neil Armstrong became the first people to walk on the moon, a revolutionary moment for all humanity.
Another first transpired on that historic day, one that tends to be omitted from records or simply overlooked due to the complex relationship between religion and science. After landing on the moon’s Sea of Tranquility, Aldrin celebrated Communion, marking the momentous occasion with an act of thanksgiving after silently reading from scripture that he had written on a small card. “I am the vine, you are the branches,” he read. “Whoever remains in me, and I in him, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me.”
Read the Full Article
