The Astronaut and the Loving God (e)
„And the earth was without form and void.“ (Genesis 1:1-2)
Who was the first person on the moon? Well, most people know that, even if they sometimes get the first name wrong. Anyway, ultimately the question is really about how the public no longer values those who come in second, which is why everyone just wants to be first. When it comes to the moon landing, Buzz Aldrin, who was second, is still popular, but everyone who was sent to the moon after him didn’t get much attention in living rooms around the world. Or can anyone off the top of their head say how many Apollo missions there were in total? NASA was a bit disappointed by this, too, and that’s why it stopped its lunar missions earlier than planned.
Yet a journey to the Moon is a fantastic scenario, both in literature and in science, and when it’s set against the backdrop of the biblical Genesis in such a wild way, as the Apollo 8 mission did, it’s truly moving. It made a deep impression on me as a child, and to this day, it hasn’t lost any of its impact for me. ¹ But now I’m reading an article in the Süddeutsche Zeitung that’s really throwing me off balance. According to the article, astronaut Charlie Duke – who, as part of the Apollo 16 mission, became the tenth person to set foot on the Moon – has undergone a strange change of heart in his old age. The story is typical of our times, ranging from evangelical to creationist and is both ridiculous and appalling.
Now it’s slowly dawning on me, and I’m wondering: what kind of nutcases did they send on this mission, supposedly in the name of science? I feel betrayed by my sky-diggers. Okay, they’re all Air Force soldiers, but they’re also bona fide engineers. After all, the job description for a NASA astronaut required not only at least 1,000 flight hours but also a degree in the natural sciences. So the fact that a person who was sent on a moon mission at enormous expense no longer believes in evolution completely destroys my hope for world peace. But first things first.
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¹ See the 2017 Christmas Blog (German only) Die Erreichbarkeit der Himmelskörper
Photo: NASA / Apollo 16, Lunar Landing Sequence (Image source Wikipedia)
The fact is: on April 21, 1972, Charlie Duke and John Young landed on the Moon (see photo of the landing sequence above); once again, not everything went according to plan, and on top of that, NASA had made a mistake in the potassium content of the astronauts’ food, which caused the crew to suffer from flatulence during their excursions. Young to Duke: “I have the farts, again. I have them again, Charlie.” And he said it with the microphone on, so the whole world got to hear it. I’ve always wondered how the Haynes company came up with that ridiculous bean commercial. That’s probably the answer. So far, so funny.
Refreshingly simple humor, but from a purely scientific standpoint, the joke doesn't hold up because the Moon has no atmosphere and therefore no direct sound transmission. A fart wouldn't embarrass anyone there.
But seriously. The scientific haul: nearly 100 kg of moon rocks. And this recently became a problem for Charlie Duke. Because in his old age, Charlie Duke likes to accompany his wife to the local Bible study group. We’re familiar with this sort of thing from Mark Twain’s novels, where, for example, Widow Douglas forces poor Huckleberry Finn to stay indoors until he escapes back to his freedom at the next opportunity. The moonwalker Charlie Duke seems to have a less self-assured disposition, for he – who supposedly collected rocks billions of years old – must now be told that none of this can be true, because the universe created by God is, after all, only 6,000 years old, as is clearly stated in Genesis.
„The lunatic is on the grass“
At some point, the astronaut finds himself alone on a road trip, lost in thought, and truly unsure of what to believe. Who’s right, after all, science with its mind-boggling calculations of geological age, or the Bible? He gets out of the car and looks up at the sky. “I’ve chosen God,” the Bible-believing Duke proclaims in an interview, and the rest of us cover our faces with our hands. Well, I’m familiar with the 6,000-year legend, too. You can read about it in my post from December 2022. I’m not claiming that there aren’t plenty of deluded Christians among us Europeans as well. However, the evangelicals in North America pose a tangible threat to humanity. Precisely because their representatives, on the one hand, unabashedly build careers and make money in the realm of scientific reality, while on the other hand spreading a fundamental “heaven-and-hell” paranoia. Unpredictable lunatics² whom one should avoid.
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² Funfact: The English language uses the word “lunatic” very aptly for this. — And, fittingly, the lyric comes from “The Dark Side of the Moon”; here’s the link so you can sing along.
Finally, the question arises: How can an astronaut, of all people, become so irrational in his old age? I’ll go with the most obvious explanation. When you’re over ninety, it’s natural to be afraid of dying. No scientist would hold it against Charlie Duke if he doubted him. As for God, though, I wouldn’t want to mess with Him either.
Christmas-Blog 2022 (German only) Anfang und Ende der Welt
Christmas-Blog 2017 (German only) Die Erreichbarkeit der Himmelskörper