The Accidental Tourist
by David Frohman
Limited in his nature, infinite in his desire, man is a fallen God who remembers heaven.
Alphonse de Lamartine
The year 2011 represents a remarkable confluence of anniversaries in literary and religious history,
and indeed the very history of human exploration of the universe. It represents the 400th anniversary
year of the first edition of the King James Bible in 1611, and the 40th anniversary year of its landfall
on the Moon in 1971 in the form of "The Lunar Bible".
The "Lunar Bible", in-turn, represents the first fully-documented Bible, first complete holy scripture, and indeed the first true book ever carried by mankind to landfall on another celestial world!
Or, put another way, the Lunar Bible represents a "delicate tablet within which mankind forged a union between its spiritual desire to glorify God on another world, and the technical ability to condense, print, and transport the Bible to its first heavenly landfall."
Sometime during the year of 1611 in London, England, the English Bible found perhaps its greatest expression in the publication of what we know today as "The King James Bible". This epic work is, in-turn, the most widely-printed and widely-read book in history. It is also the single volume which standardized the English language. What was once a mixture of Middle-English and French was transformed by this Bible into the cohesive tongue used everyday by billions across the Earth.
And regardless of one's religious beliefs, the influence of this single book on civilization is undeniable!
The Bible has also traditionally accompanied great voyages of exploration, and the manned Apollo voyages to the Moon were a logical extension of this. During that era, an ambitious effort was begun by one man and his family to transport the first printing of the Holy Bible to landfall on another world.
The Lunar Bible's roots were thus planted at the turn of the seventeenth century, and reached maturity in the form of 100 precious tablets resting within the Apollo 14 Lunar Module "Antares" on the Moon. A silent passenger resting upon the ancient lunar highlands while bathed in extraterrestrial sunlight, and embraced by the Moon's one-sixth gravity.
"The Story of the First Lunar Bible" tells the tale, then, of that amazing achievement completed in near secrecy during the twentieth century and its fascinating aftermath to date in the twenty-first.
The Lunar Bible's roots thus extend from the mud-filled streets of medieval London to the primeval lunar dust of the "Fra Mauro Highlands" of the Moon. This is a story of a treasure concealed by one generation only to be rediscovered and cherished by the next. And as in the history of many of Man's great efforts, one later marred by tragedy as their creator who once touched heaven would eventually taste the bitter fruit of obscurity and madness.
The "Lunar Bible", in-turn, represents the first fully-documented Bible, first complete holy scripture, and indeed the first true book ever carried by mankind to landfall on another celestial world!
Or, put another way, the Lunar Bible represents a "delicate tablet within which mankind forged a union between its spiritual desire to glorify God on another world, and the technical ability to condense, print, and transport the Bible to its first heavenly landfall."
Sometime during the year of 1611 in London, England, the English Bible found perhaps its greatest expression in the publication of what we know today as "The King James Bible". This epic work is, in-turn, the most widely-printed and widely-read book in history. It is also the single volume which standardized the English language. What was once a mixture of Middle-English and French was transformed by this Bible into the cohesive tongue used everyday by billions across the Earth.
And regardless of one's religious beliefs, the influence of this single book on civilization is undeniable!
The Bible has also traditionally accompanied great voyages of exploration, and the manned Apollo voyages to the Moon were a logical extension of this. During that era, an ambitious effort was begun by one man and his family to transport the first printing of the Holy Bible to landfall on another world.
The Lunar Bible's roots were thus planted at the turn of the seventeenth century, and reached maturity in the form of 100 precious tablets resting within the Apollo 14 Lunar Module "Antares" on the Moon. A silent passenger resting upon the ancient lunar highlands while bathed in extraterrestrial sunlight, and embraced by the Moon's one-sixth gravity.
"The Story of the First Lunar Bible" tells the tale, then, of that amazing achievement completed in near secrecy during the twentieth century and its fascinating aftermath to date in the twenty-first.
The Lunar Bible's roots thus extend from the mud-filled streets of medieval London to the primeval lunar dust of the "Fra Mauro Highlands" of the Moon. This is a story of a treasure concealed by one generation only to be rediscovered and cherished by the next. And as in the history of many of Man's great efforts, one later marred by tragedy as their creator who once touched heaven would eventually taste the bitter fruit of obscurity and madness.
THE SHEPHERD AND THE ACCIDENTIAL TOURIST
And what of Edgar Dean Mitchell, who became the sixth man to walk on the Moon and served as the
Bible's "Shepherd" and guardian during his journey? Within the pages of "The Story of the First Lunar Bible"
you will learn about the man who carried both the first Bible and book to landfall on another world.
A true Renaissance man who is one of histories great explorers, scientists, humanitarians, and Freemasons.
And what of your narrator, and how is it that I have come to tell this tale?
I am the accidental tourist who stumbled into Oz one day, and in doing so discovered the technicolor world of the Lunar Bible. A world encompassing a precious tablet that represents the supreme physical marriage between mankind's religious faith and its scientific achievements. Or, expressed in somewhat more poetic terms, the Lunar Bible represents a Bible built by God borne in a rocket built by science.
My rediscovery of the Lunar Bibles in 1999 was completely serendipitous, and occurred in my capacity as the president of my company, Peachstate Historical Consulting, Inc. Since 1997, Peachstate has served as a consultant, advisor, and appraiser to the astronauts and their families, national museums and libraries, schools and universities, and the United States government. Peachstate also functions as a market-maker for many of the world's most important space artifacts.
The Lunar Bibles and the project to put them on the Moon were re-discovered by me at a 1999 space memorabilia auction. In that auction was quietly offered a tiny microfilm Bible housed in a case stating that it was the first printing of the Bible to land on the Moon during the Apollo 14 mission. Unfortunately, no other accurate information was provided with the lot. However, I was hooked and purchased the lot with plans to research it further. What, then, was it about this unassuming lot that called out to me?
I am also a specialist in the field of rare books and a former theology student, and it was this unique synthesis of interests that made the possibility that this lot was genuine so mesmerizing. If authentic, this item represented not only the first Bible and complete scripture ever carried by Man to its first landfall on another world, but indeed the first true book as well! Could such a thing actually exist! The Bible was also accompanied by a microfilm tablet described as an "Honor Role".
In a leap of faith, I acquired a lot bearing two small pieces of raw microfilm, consisting of one "NCR" Microfilm Bible and one microfilm "Honor Role" packed with it. Everything that has since followed, beginning with my Bible encapsulation and certification work and leading to my writing and publishing "The Story of the First Lunar Bible", had its genesis in my "leap of faith" at that 1999 space auction.
Throughout my Lunar Bible journey since 1999, I have been blessed to have been in the right place at the right time. Immediately after my purchase of the Bible in May, 1999, I began working with Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar D. Mitchell as his personal archivist. In that capacity, I would then catalog and appraise his personal space collection several months later. At the very moment the Lunar Bible came to my hands, I thus found myself face to face with the man who had carried them to their lunar landfall.
In an amazing twist of fate, Mitchell, in-turn, had just been independently contacted by James W. Stout of the former "Apollo Prayer League". The League, as you will learn, was responsible for creating the Lunar Bible project and placing the Bibles on the Moon, and Stout sought Mitchell's recollections of the project. This was Mitchell's first communication with the Stouts in decades, and occurred independently of me and my simultaneous purchase three thousand miles away.
Mitchell, in-turn, immediately put me in touch with James W. Stout, and so began my journey through the amazing Lunar Bible landscape.
My rediscovery, documentation, certification, and transformation of the Lunar Bibles thus required three pivotal events to occur simultaneously. First, my leap of faith in buying the un-documented Lunar Bible at auction. Secondly, James W. Stout independently contacting Edgar Mitchell at that exact moment in history, and finally Mitchell, in-turn, then uniting me and my newly acquired but undocumented Lunar Bible with Stout.
And what of your narrator, and how is it that I have come to tell this tale?
I am the accidental tourist who stumbled into Oz one day, and in doing so discovered the technicolor world of the Lunar Bible. A world encompassing a precious tablet that represents the supreme physical marriage between mankind's religious faith and its scientific achievements. Or, expressed in somewhat more poetic terms, the Lunar Bible represents a Bible built by God borne in a rocket built by science.
My rediscovery of the Lunar Bibles in 1999 was completely serendipitous, and occurred in my capacity as the president of my company, Peachstate Historical Consulting, Inc. Since 1997, Peachstate has served as a consultant, advisor, and appraiser to the astronauts and their families, national museums and libraries, schools and universities, and the United States government. Peachstate also functions as a market-maker for many of the world's most important space artifacts.
The Lunar Bibles and the project to put them on the Moon were re-discovered by me at a 1999 space memorabilia auction. In that auction was quietly offered a tiny microfilm Bible housed in a case stating that it was the first printing of the Bible to land on the Moon during the Apollo 14 mission. Unfortunately, no other accurate information was provided with the lot. However, I was hooked and purchased the lot with plans to research it further. What, then, was it about this unassuming lot that called out to me?
I am also a specialist in the field of rare books and a former theology student, and it was this unique synthesis of interests that made the possibility that this lot was genuine so mesmerizing. If authentic, this item represented not only the first Bible and complete scripture ever carried by Man to its first landfall on another world, but indeed the first true book as well! Could such a thing actually exist! The Bible was also accompanied by a microfilm tablet described as an "Honor Role".
In a leap of faith, I acquired a lot bearing two small pieces of raw microfilm, consisting of one "NCR" Microfilm Bible and one microfilm "Honor Role" packed with it. Everything that has since followed, beginning with my Bible encapsulation and certification work and leading to my writing and publishing "The Story of the First Lunar Bible", had its genesis in my "leap of faith" at that 1999 space auction.
Throughout my Lunar Bible journey since 1999, I have been blessed to have been in the right place at the right time. Immediately after my purchase of the Bible in May, 1999, I began working with Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar D. Mitchell as his personal archivist. In that capacity, I would then catalog and appraise his personal space collection several months later. At the very moment the Lunar Bible came to my hands, I thus found myself face to face with the man who had carried them to their lunar landfall.
In an amazing twist of fate, Mitchell, in-turn, had just been independently contacted by James W. Stout of the former "Apollo Prayer League". The League, as you will learn, was responsible for creating the Lunar Bible project and placing the Bibles on the Moon, and Stout sought Mitchell's recollections of the project. This was Mitchell's first communication with the Stouts in decades, and occurred independently of me and my simultaneous purchase three thousand miles away.
Mitchell, in-turn, immediately put me in touch with James W. Stout, and so began my journey through the amazing Lunar Bible landscape.
My rediscovery, documentation, certification, and transformation of the Lunar Bibles thus required three pivotal events to occur simultaneously. First, my leap of faith in buying the un-documented Lunar Bible at auction. Secondly, James W. Stout independently contacting Edgar Mitchell at that exact moment in history, and finally Mitchell, in-turn, then uniting me and my newly acquired but undocumented Lunar Bible with Stout.
WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE LUNAR BIBLES?
I have been privately asked over the years what my personal feelings are regarding the significance
of the Lunar Bibles. Why did I go to so much effort and expense to rescue them from oblivion?
And why did I wait to release the "Story of the First Lunar Bible"?
After two decades, I will now answer those questions publicly for the first time.
The Lunar Bible represents the first printing of the Bible, the first complete Holy Scripture, and the first printing of any book to ever land on another celestial world. That accomplishment in the 20th century, however, would also transform the few surviving and fully-documented copies of the Lunar Bibles into coveted treasure in the 21st.
Treasure that I did not believe should be released to the larger world without careful forethought and safeguards. Safeguards both to protect the original project participants, and safeguards via my elegant and costly encasement's and extensive first-person certification work for the few indisputably authentic copies. I also created these safeguards to protect the public from what I expect will be a deluge of fake copies flooding the market once the specific details of this story are publicized.
Some might ask if the Lunar Bibles are merely flown souvenirs without true significance, and this is an important question worthy of consideration. Indeed, personal souvenirs were flown by individual astronauts either for themselves or for family friends, and then typically on a single mission.
However, the project to land the first Bible on the Moon was a formal effort underwritten by the Apollo Prayer League, an organization of some 40,000 members worldwide.
It was a project that also required extensive planning and the assistance of NASA. Indeed, as you will learn, the effort to land a Bible on the Moon required not just one voyage there, but three consecutive voyages on Apollo 12, Apollo 13, and Apollo 14 in order to finally land a Bible there just once.
This effort also required the help of not one but multiple astronauts, including Apollo 12 Moonwalker Alan L. Bean, Apollo 13 Commander James Lovell, and Apollo 14 Moonwalker Edgar D. Mitchell.
Along, as you will learn, with future president George H.W. Bush.
So unlike a simple souvenir carried to the Moon for one or two people, the attempt to land the first Bible on the Moon was done on behalf of the 40,000 member Apollo Prayer League. As proof of this, thousands of those member's names were officially recorded on a small microfilm "Honor Role" that flew with the Bibles to the Moon.
And the effort to land a Bible on the Moon required not one, or even two, but remarkably three separate NASA spaceflights to finally get the job completed. In this case, the third time really was the charm!
It is thus obvious that the "Lunar Bible" project was not a stunt to fly a souvenir to the Moon. Rather, it was a unique effort requiring extensive planning and three separate NASA flights to the Moon. Flights, in-turn, that required the personal assistance of crews from three separate missions. It was also done on behalf of thousands of people, including many whose names were officially documented on a unique microfilm "Honor Role" that flew with the Bibles.
After two decades, I will now answer those questions publicly for the first time.
The Lunar Bible represents the first printing of the Bible, the first complete Holy Scripture, and the first printing of any book to ever land on another celestial world. That accomplishment in the 20th century, however, would also transform the few surviving and fully-documented copies of the Lunar Bibles into coveted treasure in the 21st.
Treasure that I did not believe should be released to the larger world without careful forethought and safeguards. Safeguards both to protect the original project participants, and safeguards via my elegant and costly encasement's and extensive first-person certification work for the few indisputably authentic copies. I also created these safeguards to protect the public from what I expect will be a deluge of fake copies flooding the market once the specific details of this story are publicized.
Some might ask if the Lunar Bibles are merely flown souvenirs without true significance, and this is an important question worthy of consideration. Indeed, personal souvenirs were flown by individual astronauts either for themselves or for family friends, and then typically on a single mission.
However, the project to land the first Bible on the Moon was a formal effort underwritten by the Apollo Prayer League, an organization of some 40,000 members worldwide.
It was a project that also required extensive planning and the assistance of NASA. Indeed, as you will learn, the effort to land a Bible on the Moon required not just one voyage there, but three consecutive voyages on Apollo 12, Apollo 13, and Apollo 14 in order to finally land a Bible there just once.
This effort also required the help of not one but multiple astronauts, including Apollo 12 Moonwalker Alan L. Bean, Apollo 13 Commander James Lovell, and Apollo 14 Moonwalker Edgar D. Mitchell.
Along, as you will learn, with future president George H.W. Bush.
So unlike a simple souvenir carried to the Moon for one or two people, the attempt to land the first Bible on the Moon was done on behalf of the 40,000 member Apollo Prayer League. As proof of this, thousands of those member's names were officially recorded on a small microfilm "Honor Role" that flew with the Bibles to the Moon.
And the effort to land a Bible on the Moon required not one, or even two, but remarkably three separate NASA spaceflights to finally get the job completed. In this case, the third time really was the charm!
It is thus obvious that the "Lunar Bible" project was not a stunt to fly a souvenir to the Moon. Rather, it was a unique effort requiring extensive planning and three separate NASA flights to the Moon. Flights, in-turn, that required the personal assistance of crews from three separate missions. It was also done on behalf of thousands of people, including many whose names were officially documented on a unique microfilm "Honor Role" that flew with the Bibles.
TO WHOM ARE THE LUNAR BIBLES PRECIOUS?
I) The World's Faithful
I speak of a twenty-first century treasure. Whom, then, would treasure the Lunar Bibles?
It is my personal belief that the Lunar Bibles would logically be precious to at least four
distinct groups of people who are still essentially unaware that they exist. That ignorance
is also unlikely to last long, as the story of this amazing Bible begins to spread
in the age of the internet and cable television.
The first area of interest will come from the world's faithful. The Lunar Bibles represent the first fully documented Bibles and complete Holy scripture ever carried by mankind to landfall on another world. As such, in my opinion their importance as religious symbols (or artifacts, reliquary, or whatever term you chose) to a sizable percentage of the billions of faithful worldwide will be profound. And when I speak of the religious faithful, I do not speak only of the world's one billion Christians.
The Lunar Bible did indeed manifest itself in the form of the King James version of the Holy Bible, and as such it has direct profound interest to those billion Christians. However, as you will learn, it was Reverend John M. Stout's belief that the Lunar Bible should first and foremost glorify God's presence throughout the universe, on behalf of all His children as they took their first steps into the universe.
In my opinion, those children include Christians and Jews, Muslims and Hindus, and the countless other faithful believers in what is essentially a grand architect of the universe. It is my sincere hope that all of Earth's faithful will find themselves within this noble effort. Indeed, Reverend Stout saw the "Apollo Prayer League" as a sort of "First Interplanetary Church" that encompassed all humanity, and the Lunar Bible became the physical manifestation of that church.
Now let us consider numbers and percentages. For example, the world's Christian population represents one billion people. If only one Christian in a thousand fully appreciates the significance of the Lunar Bible, that would still literally represent one million people.
Consider that level of interest in comparison to the mere 100 copies of the Lunar Bible that landed, of which far fewer complete and documented copies still exist today. And that number does not include the countless religious institutions such as the Vatican, Westminster Abbey, or Washington's National Cathedral that would cherish a copy of the Lunar Bible for their collections.
For example, I can easily see a copy of the Lunar Bible residing in Washington's National Cathedral next to their "Moon Rock" stained glass window! Indeed, I cannot imagine a more perfect venue!
Many of the world's great institutions such as the British Museum, National Library of France, and the Library of Congress strive to own a copy of every important edition of the Bible in history. Except that today they still remain unaware of the existence of the Lunar Bible.
Let me draw a parallel using Columbus and the Bible that he perhaps carried with him as he sailed to the New World. Such a Bible has long been lost, but it is intriguing to speculate on its value if such a fully-documented Bible was rediscovered tomorrow. How does one quantify the value of the first fully documented Bible ever carried from the "Old World" to the "New"? And who would win the inevitable battle for it; an institution like the Vatican in the "Old World" or the Smithsonian in the "New"?
I feel that most would share my belief that the Columbus Bible would obviously be priceless, despite having remained on Earth and only been carried between two continents. If so, then how does one begin to quantify the value of the first printing of the Bible ever carried by Man not from one continent to another, but from planet Earth to landfall on another celestial world?
Or, in a poetic sense, to its first "heavenly landfall"?
The first area of interest will come from the world's faithful. The Lunar Bibles represent the first fully documented Bibles and complete Holy scripture ever carried by mankind to landfall on another world. As such, in my opinion their importance as religious symbols (or artifacts, reliquary, or whatever term you chose) to a sizable percentage of the billions of faithful worldwide will be profound. And when I speak of the religious faithful, I do not speak only of the world's one billion Christians.
The Lunar Bible did indeed manifest itself in the form of the King James version of the Holy Bible, and as such it has direct profound interest to those billion Christians. However, as you will learn, it was Reverend John M. Stout's belief that the Lunar Bible should first and foremost glorify God's presence throughout the universe, on behalf of all His children as they took their first steps into the universe.
In my opinion, those children include Christians and Jews, Muslims and Hindus, and the countless other faithful believers in what is essentially a grand architect of the universe. It is my sincere hope that all of Earth's faithful will find themselves within this noble effort. Indeed, Reverend Stout saw the "Apollo Prayer League" as a sort of "First Interplanetary Church" that encompassed all humanity, and the Lunar Bible became the physical manifestation of that church.
Now let us consider numbers and percentages. For example, the world's Christian population represents one billion people. If only one Christian in a thousand fully appreciates the significance of the Lunar Bible, that would still literally represent one million people.
Consider that level of interest in comparison to the mere 100 copies of the Lunar Bible that landed, of which far fewer complete and documented copies still exist today. And that number does not include the countless religious institutions such as the Vatican, Westminster Abbey, or Washington's National Cathedral that would cherish a copy of the Lunar Bible for their collections.
For example, I can easily see a copy of the Lunar Bible residing in Washington's National Cathedral next to their "Moon Rock" stained glass window! Indeed, I cannot imagine a more perfect venue!
Many of the world's great institutions such as the British Museum, National Library of France, and the Library of Congress strive to own a copy of every important edition of the Bible in history. Except that today they still remain unaware of the existence of the Lunar Bible.
Let me draw a parallel using Columbus and the Bible that he perhaps carried with him as he sailed to the New World. Such a Bible has long been lost, but it is intriguing to speculate on its value if such a fully-documented Bible was rediscovered tomorrow. How does one quantify the value of the first fully documented Bible ever carried from the "Old World" to the "New"? And who would win the inevitable battle for it; an institution like the Vatican in the "Old World" or the Smithsonian in the "New"?
I feel that most would share my belief that the Columbus Bible would obviously be priceless, despite having remained on Earth and only been carried between two continents. If so, then how does one begin to quantify the value of the first printing of the Bible ever carried by Man not from one continent to another, but from planet Earth to landfall on another celestial world?
Or, in a poetic sense, to its first "heavenly landfall"?
II) The Rare Book World
The above discussion has addressed only the first of the four groups of interested parties
I spoke of, namely, the worldwide religious community. I will now address the second group;
namely, those who represent the rare book-collecting world.
The first recognized books first appeared as Sumerian "Cuneiform" clay tablets over five thousand years ago. The irony is not lost on me that we have now gone full circle, having reverted back to a Bible in tablet form due to spacecraft size and weight constraints! Hence, the first books on Earth appeared as clay tablets and the first book on the Moon appeared there as a microfilm tablet! This does not surprise me, for logically the first book to arrive in a non-traditional environment like the Moon would likewise do so in a non-traditional format such as a microfilm tablet.
Ironically, my early career was focused on the collecting and sale of rare books, to include the sale of fragments of the Gutenberg Bible, first edition King James Bibles, and even early Shakespeare folios. I was thus well prepared to appreciate the significance of the Lunar Bible to the world's "bibliophiles" when I first stumbled across a copy and began my documentation process.
By their very nature, the Apollo missions were full of firsts. It took several landings but eventually the first book finally arrived. And when this occurred on Apollo 14, it took the form of the Holy Bible.
Which, I might add, is also the only work ever automatically defined as a "book" by non-other than the "American Heritage Dictionary".
So how does the rare book community began to quantify the value of the first fully-documented book to ever make landfall on another world? Such a question would have seemed absurd ... until now!
Venues like the Library of Congress, the British Museum, the Vatican Library, the Huntington Library, the Morgan Library, and countless others would make wonderful homes for a copy of the Lunar Bible.
Indeed, I could easily see the Lunar Bible resting next to a copy of the Gutenberg Bible. To the faithful, the technical achievement of the printing press in 1455 created the Gutenberg Bible, allowing the Bible to establish a physical presence across the Earth. The ability to miniaturize the Bible, in-turn, led to the Bible establishing its first physical presence on another celestial world in the form of the "Lunar Bible".
Imagine a display case containing the oldest cuneiform tablet, a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, and a copy of the Lunar Bible! The entire history of civilization could be traced through these three objects representing Man's earliest-known book, the first book created using movable type which allowed the mass production of books, and the first book physically carried to landfall on another celestial world!
The first recognized books first appeared as Sumerian "Cuneiform" clay tablets over five thousand years ago. The irony is not lost on me that we have now gone full circle, having reverted back to a Bible in tablet form due to spacecraft size and weight constraints! Hence, the first books on Earth appeared as clay tablets and the first book on the Moon appeared there as a microfilm tablet! This does not surprise me, for logically the first book to arrive in a non-traditional environment like the Moon would likewise do so in a non-traditional format such as a microfilm tablet.
Ironically, my early career was focused on the collecting and sale of rare books, to include the sale of fragments of the Gutenberg Bible, first edition King James Bibles, and even early Shakespeare folios. I was thus well prepared to appreciate the significance of the Lunar Bible to the world's "bibliophiles" when I first stumbled across a copy and began my documentation process.
By their very nature, the Apollo missions were full of firsts. It took several landings but eventually the first book finally arrived. And when this occurred on Apollo 14, it took the form of the Holy Bible.
Which, I might add, is also the only work ever automatically defined as a "book" by non-other than the "American Heritage Dictionary".
So how does the rare book community began to quantify the value of the first fully-documented book to ever make landfall on another world? Such a question would have seemed absurd ... until now!
Venues like the Library of Congress, the British Museum, the Vatican Library, the Huntington Library, the Morgan Library, and countless others would make wonderful homes for a copy of the Lunar Bible.
Indeed, I could easily see the Lunar Bible resting next to a copy of the Gutenberg Bible. To the faithful, the technical achievement of the printing press in 1455 created the Gutenberg Bible, allowing the Bible to establish a physical presence across the Earth. The ability to miniaturize the Bible, in-turn, led to the Bible establishing its first physical presence on another celestial world in the form of the "Lunar Bible".
Imagine a display case containing the oldest cuneiform tablet, a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, and a copy of the Lunar Bible! The entire history of civilization could be traced through these three objects representing Man's earliest-known book, the first book created using movable type which allowed the mass production of books, and the first book physically carried to landfall on another celestial world!
III) The World's Freemasons
The third group of people that I believe the Lunar Bible would have special significance to
are the world's five million Freemasons. The Holy Bible has also been held in reverence by
Freemasonry, and the knowledge that Freemason and astronaut Edgar D. Mitchell carried the
first Bible to landfall on the Moon will likely have profound significance to Masons
worldwide.
IV) Collectors of Space Artifacts
The fourth group of people to whom these Bibles would be precious are collectors of space
artifacts and memorabilia. These individuals would value the Bibles as fully-documented
artifacts returned to Earth from the lunar surface, and flown to the Moon not once but twice.
They flew around the Moon during the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission and then landed on it
during Apollo 14. Artifacts that have been on the lunar surface are of the highest rarity
and desirability, and the fact that this artifact is non-other than the first printing
of the Holy Bible makes it only more so.
These, then, are only four obvious groups of people that I believe will treasure the Lunar Bible and what it symbolizes. I also believe that there are countless more interested parties who will most likely surface over time, as word of the existence of the Lunar Bibles spreads.
These, then, are only four obvious groups of people that I believe will treasure the Lunar Bible and what it symbolizes. I also believe that there are countless more interested parties who will most likely surface over time, as word of the existence of the Lunar Bibles spreads.
Why I waited until 2011 to release this story
After their historic landfall, the Lunar Bibles slept quietly through the passage of a
generation until awakening in 1999 at the dawn of the new millennium and becoming
entwined with my life. By 2001, I had completed my certification and encapsulation
work on the Lunar Bibles.
Why, then, did I wait another ten years until 2011 to publicize this story?
There were two reasons, of which the first was that I believed this story was too important to casually release in anything other then a carefully-researched and dignified fashion. I thus methodically wrote "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" from 2002 until 2005 when I completed it. The final step to finish this book was for James W. Stout to write his "Welcome Letter" in 2005 that you just read, and for me to complete this essay on December 25th of 2011. "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" was thus essentially completed in 2005, and I prepared to release it to the world.
At that very moment, however, I made a horrifying discovery!
Why, then, did I wait another ten years until 2011 to publicize this story?
There were two reasons, of which the first was that I believed this story was too important to casually release in anything other then a carefully-researched and dignified fashion. I thus methodically wrote "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" from 2002 until 2005 when I completed it. The final step to finish this book was for James W. Stout to write his "Welcome Letter" in 2005 that you just read, and for me to complete this essay on December 25th of 2011. "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" was thus essentially completed in 2005, and I prepared to release it to the world.
At that very moment, however, I made a horrifying discovery!
The Decline of Reverend John M. Stout
As you will learn, there are two Stout brothers involved with the Lunar Bibles.
The first is Reverend John M. Stout, who is the "Father of the Lunar Bible" and was responsible for putting them on the Moon. The second and younger brother is James W. Stout, who was also an official with the "Apollo Prayer League Governing Committee", and as such was directly tasked with helping to distribute the Bibles after their return from the Moon. It was James W. Stout who, along with astronaut Mitchell, I have been privileged to work with since 1999 in compiling the Lunar Bible story.
When I met James W. Stout in 1999, I naturally inquired as to the whereabouts of his elder brother, Reverend John M. Stout. I was informed at that time that the two brothers were no longer close, and the last that James had heard of his brother was that he had moved to Alaska and was believed to be living in a tree-house. Research on my part, in-turn, confirmed this amazing story.
Then, as I was about to release "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" in 2005, I uncovered the current whereabouts of Reverend John M. Stout. He and his wife Helen were, in-turn, living in horrible squalor in a dilapidated apartment outside Houston, and sadly he also appeared to suffer from intermittent dementia.
It also became obvious to me that Reverend Stout would not accept any assistance and I, in-turn, was thus powerless to help despite my best efforts. I also realized that once I publicized the Lunar Bible to the wider world, Reverend Stout might be set-upon by people who would possibly do him or his paralyzed wife Helen harm.
For example, people posing as a "friend who would tell his story" might appear on his doorstep, only to then loot any Lunar Bible property he had remaining. And all because I had publicized his existence and what he had done.
I thus made a difficult but what I ultimately believe was the best decision possible.
Despite my eagerness to unveil the Lunar Bible story in 2005, I decided to wait until such time as Reverend Stout and his wife Helen were in protective custody before moving forward with my book. This decision was also reached in partnership with John's brother James W. Stout and other insiders, who agreed that this was the safest course of action.
Finally, in 2010, I was notified by an attorney representing the Texas Department of Aging and Disability that Reverend Stout and his wife Helen had been relocated from their squalid apartment, and placed in a nursing home as wards of the State of Texas.
The first is Reverend John M. Stout, who is the "Father of the Lunar Bible" and was responsible for putting them on the Moon. The second and younger brother is James W. Stout, who was also an official with the "Apollo Prayer League Governing Committee", and as such was directly tasked with helping to distribute the Bibles after their return from the Moon. It was James W. Stout who, along with astronaut Mitchell, I have been privileged to work with since 1999 in compiling the Lunar Bible story.
When I met James W. Stout in 1999, I naturally inquired as to the whereabouts of his elder brother, Reverend John M. Stout. I was informed at that time that the two brothers were no longer close, and the last that James had heard of his brother was that he had moved to Alaska and was believed to be living in a tree-house. Research on my part, in-turn, confirmed this amazing story.
Then, as I was about to release "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" in 2005, I uncovered the current whereabouts of Reverend John M. Stout. He and his wife Helen were, in-turn, living in horrible squalor in a dilapidated apartment outside Houston, and sadly he also appeared to suffer from intermittent dementia.
It also became obvious to me that Reverend Stout would not accept any assistance and I, in-turn, was thus powerless to help despite my best efforts. I also realized that once I publicized the Lunar Bible to the wider world, Reverend Stout might be set-upon by people who would possibly do him or his paralyzed wife Helen harm.
For example, people posing as a "friend who would tell his story" might appear on his doorstep, only to then loot any Lunar Bible property he had remaining. And all because I had publicized his existence and what he had done.
I thus made a difficult but what I ultimately believe was the best decision possible.
Despite my eagerness to unveil the Lunar Bible story in 2005, I decided to wait until such time as Reverend Stout and his wife Helen were in protective custody before moving forward with my book. This decision was also reached in partnership with John's brother James W. Stout and other insiders, who agreed that this was the safest course of action.
Finally, in 2010, I was notified by an attorney representing the Texas Department of Aging and Disability that Reverend Stout and his wife Helen had been relocated from their squalid apartment, and placed in a nursing home as wards of the State of Texas.
400 and 40
This news also arrived as the pivotal anniversary year of 2011 approached.
This year, of course, represents both the 400th anniversary year of the first edition and birth of the King James Bible, and the 40th anniversary year of when it landed on the Moon in the form of the "Lunar Bible".
Indeed, an amazing confluence of anniversaries!
Accordingly, I resumed my work on "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" with the intention of completing it during this pivotal anniversary year.
This year, of course, represents both the 400th anniversary year of the first edition and birth of the King James Bible, and the 40th anniversary year of when it landed on the Moon in the form of the "Lunar Bible".
Indeed, an amazing confluence of anniversaries!
Accordingly, I resumed my work on "The Story of the First Lunar Bible" with the intention of completing it during this pivotal anniversary year.
A New Moon
As the "Accidental Tourist" writes these final words early on Christmas morning in the year 2011,
I hereby finish what I began at the turn of the millennium in 2000. Namely, complete
the historical task of telling "The Story of the First Lunar Bible".
As I write these words the sun has not yet risen, and in a star-filled sky hangs a beautiful crescent new moon bearing silent witness to the "Accidental Tourist" as he finishes this chronicle.
A chronicle of faith, perseverance, and wonder, and the tale of a man who shot for the stars, touched the Moon, and then achieved immortality without ever knowing it.
Man plans and God laughs.
Whereas this Bible, this child of Man, this supreme marriage of science and religion, once born in tribulation only to transcend death across the celestial void, yet endures!
As I write these words the sun has not yet risen, and in a star-filled sky hangs a beautiful crescent new moon bearing silent witness to the "Accidental Tourist" as he finishes this chronicle.
A chronicle of faith, perseverance, and wonder, and the tale of a man who shot for the stars, touched the Moon, and then achieved immortality without ever knowing it.
Man plans and God laughs.
Whereas this Bible, this child of Man, this supreme marriage of science and religion, once born in tribulation only to transcend death across the celestial void, yet endures!
Completed at Roswell on the 25th Day of December, 2011
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