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On April 12, 1961, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin climbed aboard a rocket and left Earth’s atmosphere, becoming the first human to ever fly through space. Upon landing, he infuriated Christians because he was quoted by Communist Party leaders as saying, “I looked and looked but I didn’t see God.”
The truth is, he said nothing of the sort.
For decades, Col. Gagarin endured a rough reputation among Christians worldwide for his cutting quip. In fact, a few famous American pastors taunted him by saying he would have seen God had he simply stepped out of his space suit!
But in 2006, in an interview with Colonel Valentin Petrov, a longtime friend of Gagarin, the record was finally set straight. According to Petrov, who was a decorated military official in the Russian Air Force, the statement about “not seeing God” wasn’t spoken by Gagarin, at all. The words were actually attributed to him by none other than Premier Nikita Khrushchev at a meeting of the Central Committee of the Communist Party in Moscow.
At the time, Khrushchev was busy promoting the official Communist policy on religion – atheism – and rhetorically asked, “Why should you clutch at God? Here is Gagarin who flew to space but saw no God there.” The Communist Committee decided the statement would sound best if it were ascribed to Gagarin, the country’s latest hero.
The fascinatingly ironic part, however, is that Gagarin – in spite of his bad reputation amongst Christians worldwide – was a Christian himself! That’s right; not only was he not an outspoken atheist, he was, according to Valentin, “a humble, soft-spoken, reluctant hero and a man he knew as a believer.” Valentin should know; he was a Christ follower, as well. Throughout their friendship, both men strictly followed the teachings of Russian Orthodoxy, and as instructors, actively encouraged their younger students in the Air Force Academy to visit monasteries.
Sadly, on March 27, 1968, just a few years after his successful orbit of the Earth, Yuri Gagarin and a fellow flight instructor died when their MIG jet crashed on the outskirts of Kirzhach. Without a doubt, in the moments immediately following, Col. Yuri Gagarin finally saw God.
Resource’s Origin:
Preaching Magazine, March/April, 2012. Vol. 27, No. 5. “Illustrating So People Will Listen,” by Charles Swindoll, Pages 11-12.
Topics Illustrated Include:
Atheism
Beliefs
Communism
Evidence
Faith
History
Lie
Pilot
Reputation
Testimony
Truth
Wrong
(Resource cataloged by David R Smith)
