Marina Koren has a nice history of religious allusions in space speeches.
3 thoughts on “Mike Pence’s Space Gospel”
–A tinge of gospel is not to everyone’s taste, of course, and Pence’s remarks risk alienating members of the nasa community and others who do not share his beliefs. Indeed, Pence’s speeches have prompted grumbling from those who say overt religious references have no place in policy, especially nasa policy. “Yes, space is wondrous and brings out romantic and transcendent elements in people’s thinking, but not necessarily linked to Orthodox Christian doctrine,” says John Logsdon, a space historian and a former director of George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute. “How would a Buddhist or a Muslim react to this particular language?”–
Good question, maybe NASA should find out, meanwhile the US is a mostly Christian nation, and NASA should explore space for the benefit American people and the world. In order for NASA to do it’s job, it needs the support of the mostly Christian people of American.
Mostly NASA has squandered this public support financial support, by failing to explore the Moon and then Mars.
If NASA were to do it’s job, it probably will religious people who will venture into space and make it into their homes and lives.
It faith that has and will mountains, perhaps in term faith can move the hopelessly disorganize NASA agency so it will finally to do it’s job.
The idea that NASA people do not share Pence’s religious orientation is unfounded. The NASA center system was, after all, set up mainly in the Sunbelt states, which are largely Bible belt states. The people at MSFC, KSC, and JSC that I know well are deeply religious Christians. The majority are either engineers, or non-technical support staff. In other words, more practical, less cynical. But you can bet that even in DC, even the highest-ranking NASA person will, if they are from the Sunbelt, be deeper than average religious Christians.
It is true of many in NASA that they do not object to religion. However, those in frequent or continual contact with academia will have an irritation with open expression of religious views, because their time inside academia is spent watching their mouth to make sure nothing like that comes out of them. Here in the Portland area, even the chaplains for PSU are no longer too open except when they know they are unwatched by progressive atheist proselytizers.
They are wise, because the atheists can round up a crowd with little trouble. If you’ve seen video of what the local Antifa crowd does with “No More Border, No More wall, No More USA at all!”, then you can imagine what even less impacted academic bigotry can do to create reflexive pain when pointed at a religion that s not generated inside academia.
–A tinge of gospel is not to everyone’s taste, of course, and Pence’s remarks risk alienating members of the nasa community and others who do not share his beliefs. Indeed, Pence’s speeches have prompted grumbling from those who say overt religious references have no place in policy, especially nasa policy. “Yes, space is wondrous and brings out romantic and transcendent elements in people’s thinking, but not necessarily linked to Orthodox Christian doctrine,” says John Logsdon, a space historian and a former director of George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute. “How would a Buddhist or a Muslim react to this particular language?”–
Good question, maybe NASA should find out, meanwhile the US is a mostly Christian nation, and NASA should explore space for the benefit American people and the world. In order for NASA to do it’s job, it needs the support of the mostly Christian people of American.
Mostly NASA has squandered this public support financial support, by failing to explore the Moon and then Mars.
If NASA were to do it’s job, it probably will religious people who will venture into space and make it into their homes and lives.
It faith that has and will mountains, perhaps in term faith can move the hopelessly disorganize NASA agency so it will finally to do it’s job.
The idea that NASA people do not share Pence’s religious orientation is unfounded. The NASA center system was, after all, set up mainly in the Sunbelt states, which are largely Bible belt states. The people at MSFC, KSC, and JSC that I know well are deeply religious Christians. The majority are either engineers, or non-technical support staff. In other words, more practical, less cynical. But you can bet that even in DC, even the highest-ranking NASA person will, if they are from the Sunbelt, be deeper than average religious Christians.
It is true of many in NASA that they do not object to religion. However, those in frequent or continual contact with academia will have an irritation with open expression of religious views, because their time inside academia is spent watching their mouth to make sure nothing like that comes out of them. Here in the Portland area, even the chaplains for PSU are no longer too open except when they know they are unwatched by progressive atheist proselytizers.
They are wise, because the atheists can round up a crowd with little trouble. If you’ve seen video of what the local Antifa crowd does with “No More Border, No More wall, No More USA at all!”, then you can imagine what even less impacted academic bigotry can do to create reflexive pain when pointed at a religion that s not generated inside academia.