When the Heavens Speak, the Soul Reaches for the Cross
The National Catholic Register reports on the emotional aftermath of the Artemis II lunar mission, in which commander Reid Wiseman, describing himself as “not really a religious person,” broke down in tears upon seeing the cross on a Navy chaplain’s collar after splashdown. The article presents this as a spontaneous, authentic encounter with the divine — a moment of transcendence that supposedly validates the spiritual significance of space exploration. Yet beneath this sentimental veneer lies a profound theological void, a naturalistic reduction of the supernatural order, and a telling silence about the only true source of grace and salvation: the Holy Catholic Church and her sacraments. The article’s framing — celebrating a NASA astronaut’s emotional reaction to a chaplain’s collar while ignoring the state of his soul, the validity of his baptism, and the doctrinal content of his faith — is symptomatic of the post-conciliar Church’s capitulation to secular humanism and its replacement of supernatural religion with mere sentimentality.
