On December 21, 1968, a Saturn 5 rocket was launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida carrying Lunar Module Pilot William Anders, Command Module Pilot James Lovell, and Mission Commander Frank Borman.
This was the Apollo 8 mission. The three-man crew would orbit the moon and return safely to earth, but something else extraordinary would happen as well. On Christmas Eve, in a special television broadcast, the crew offered the world a special present. They shared the following.
Lunar Module Pilot William Anders:
We are now approaching lunar sunrise and, for all the people back on Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 has a message that we would like to send to you.
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.
And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
Command Module Pilot James Lovell:
And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
Left to right: Lovell, Anders, and Borman
Mission Commander Frank Borman:
And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good [Gen. 1:1-10].
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.
More about the Scripture reading on the Apollo 8 mission, as well as the mission itself:
- What Apollo 8’s Mission Overcame To Give America A Christmas Miracle, by G. W. Thielman in The Federalist, December 21, 2018
- 50 Years Ago, Apollo 8 Soared To A Christmas Miracle For A Weary World, by Howard Chang and Jordan Lorence in The Federalist, December 12, 2018
- Apollo 8 Astronaut Recalls Historic Scripture Reading From Space in The New American, December 24, 2013
- youtube.com video of the broadcast
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