The video above was designed by a parishioner of mine, his voice narrates, as he came to realize that back when official exploration of the moon was popular, on the famed Apollo 11, when the first human being set foot on the moon (July 20, 1969,) the astronaut Buzz Aldrin, before Neil Armstrong had placed his foot on the moon, received communion and prayed. Although he was Presbyterian, Mr. Aldrin with permission of his pastor, took bread and wine with him and joined symbolically with other Christians in that moment of unity and prayer. So, yes the communion was taken "out of this world" where God has no barriers and his love extends well beyond this tiny planet.
While the main objective of Apollo 11was to finally fulfill President John Kennedy's national goal of sending a man to the moon before the end of the 1960's, it was also to be not only an unprecedented scientific and technological accomplishment, it also became a way in which faith was expressed in the awesome power of the divine, the creator of the universe we wonder at and where we live.
If the same exploration was being done today, would we hear such an open expression of faith from the scientific community or would that too be "canceled?" A thought . . .
A bit of trivia you may not have known!
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