News of Neil Armstrong’s death has brought back memories of the days when I needed heroes and astronauts were the main men. In the 1960s they were promoted by NASA as the archetypal all-rounders: super-fit, intelligent, brave, happily married, popular with everyone. And that seemed to me to be the kind of person we should all want to be. I read about them, collected cuttings, followed the missions and looked forward to the day when the dream would be fulfilled and a man would walk on the moon.
Imagine my consternation when I realised that I would be on holiday when Apollo 11 touched down on 20 July 1969. On holiday on a camp-site in Machrihanish with no televisions for miles around. I had to be content with my radio and occasionally poking my head out of my tent to look at the moon which that night seemed very clear and big.
The next day the newspapers were full of it of course. The headlines and photographs were all pretty similar but there was one cartoon which I have never forgotten. It showed a huge astronaut seated on the moon with his feet resting on the earth with a huge grin on his face and giving the thumbs-up. Beneath him were the words: ‘The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.’ It was cut out and pasted into my scrapbook.
It was some time later that I realised that these words given to the cartoon astronaut were from the book of Isaiah in the Bible and were actually the words of God. The message was that with this great achievement man had displaced God at the centre of the Universe. There was no more need for a Supreme Being when we had supermen walking on the moon.
Move on to 11 April 1970 when Apollo 13 is launched. Something went wrong. An oxygen tank exploded and the planned moon landing was aborted. Despite great hardship which has been well represented in the movie Apollo 13 the crew were eventually returned safely to Earth. I remember the moment the crew stepped out on to the deck of the recovery ship USS Iwo Jima. They were met by the ship’s chaplain Commander Philip Eldredge Jerauld who offered a prayer of thanksgiving for their safe return.
It was good to remember this acknowledgement that despite all the breathtaking achievements of humankind there will always be times when we need a strength beyond our own strength and a power we will never be able to demonstrate. Many astronauts were men of faith were happy to give expression to this great truth. They also gave thanks that in their explorations they were given opportunities to appreciate more of the heaven that is His throne and the earth that is His footstool.
