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Unprecedented collection of 36 Lunar Bible 50-page text fragments that were carried by LMP Edgar Mitchell during the historic Apollo 14 mission, and which have remained in unbroken institutional custody since September 24, 1972, when they were ceremoniously placed in the cornerstone of Church of the Savior, United Church of Christ, in Knoxville, Tennessee. Upon their return to Earth, the segments were officially presented to Reverend John Stout, Director of the Apollo Prayer League, who then delivered them to Helen Greene, secretary-clerk of Church of the Savior.
These highly desirable 50-page segments of microfilmed King James Bible are affixed to individual off-white 5 x 7 Apollo Prayer League presentation sheets signed at the conclusion by Stout. These sheets, each of which bears a unique serial code, read, in part: "This is part of the first Bible to have been taken from planet Earth to another celestial body…The above 50-page segment of the King James Version was carried on this historic mission. The First Lunar Bible...was carried in the spacesuit of astronaut Edgar D. Mitchell for the Apollo Prayer League as a personal gesture to Rev. John M Stout." The reverse of 29 sheets bear affixed ‘Honor Roll’ swatches of microfiche containing the names of people and organizations that aided in the Lunar Bible mission.
The serial codes are as follows:
C81 (marked X in the upper left corner)
T8G, T8H, T8I, T8J, T8K, T8L, T8M, T8N, T8P, T8Q, T8R, T8S, T8T, T8U, T8V, T8W, T8X, T8Y, T8Z, T825
T9K, T9L, T9M, T9N, T9P, T9Q, T9R, T9S, T9T, T9U, T9V, T9W, T9X, T9Y, T9Z (the last five are all marked X in the upper left corner)
In overall fine condition. Accompanied by letters of authenticity from Greene and Stout, as well as by the five original envelopes in which the Bible fragments were stored when they were placed in the Church of the Savior cornerstone for over 50 years. Inside each envelope is an Apollo Prayer League newsletter about the ‘First Lunar Bible,’ a dedication program for the Church of the Savior, and a form letter from Church of the Savior Pastor John M. Flick.
Greene’s letters read, in part: “Today, September 24, 1972, I placed the envelope you now have, containing parts of the first Lunar Bible, in the cornerstone of Church of the Savior, United Church of Christ, Knoxville, Tennessee. More than a year ago I wrote Captain Edgar Mitchell, asking for one of the Bibles that he carried to the moon on Apollo 14. I thought that the project of sending men to the moon was a program of the future, and because I believe that the program of Church of the Savior is one of now and the future, I wrote Captain Mitchell that I felt that the Lunar Bible would be appropriate for the cornerstone. Rev. John M. Stout, who sent us parts of the first Bible on the moon, has outlined a plan for distribution of these envelopes that will preserve parts of the first Bible on the moon for future generations.”
Stout’s letters read: “This envelope was left in this resting place so that a part of the first Bible on the moon may be preserved for future generations. This is one of five envelopes originally placed in the cornerstone of the Church of the Savior in Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. A. on September 24, 1972 by Helen Green…In the envelope…you will find the five parts of the Bible, each with an appropriate serial number. One additional part is marked with an ‘X’ in the upper left hand corner. Attached to each part is a copy of the honor roll which was taken on the flight of Apollo 14 to the moon with the first Bible on the moon…The project to put the first Bible on the moon was a personal project of mine with deep religious and personal significance. Capt. Mitchell took the first Bible to the moon as a personal gesture to me at the time when I was serving as an industrial chaplain at the Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, Texas.”
After the tragic Apollo 1 fire that claimed the lives of astronauts Ed White, Gus Grissom, and Roger Chaffee, Reverend John Stout—an engineer and chaplain at NASA—established the Apollo Prayer League, dedicated to praying for the safety of the astronauts. Membership quickly swelled to more than 40,000, and out of this effort emerged the ‘Lunar Bible Project,’ whose goal was to place the first complete Bible on the lunar surface, symbolizing both faith and human achievement.
To meet the weight and space restrictions of a lunar mission, the Bible was reproduced in microform, with all 1,245 pages of the King James Version reduced to a tablet scarcely larger than a postage stamp. Attempts to send these microform Bibles on Apollo 12 and Apollo 13 were unsuccessful, but the dream was finally realized on Apollo 14 when LMP Edgar Mitchell carried approximately 300 microform Bibles in his personal preference kit, with 100 traveling down to the lunar surface aboard the Lunar Module Antares. Upon the crew’s release from postflight quarantine in February 1971, Mitchell personally returned the Bibles to Reverend Stout, who engraved serial numbers on many copies and later prepared smaller 50-page and 2-page ‘Text Fragments’ for wider distribution.
With their place in Apollo history firmly established, these Apollo 14 Lunar Bible fragments were, upon their return to Earth, entrusted to the Church of the Savior in Knoxville, Tennessee, where they were reverently housed for more than fifty years. This extended period of custody within a house of worship highlights their authenticity and adds to their appeal, linking lunar exploration with long-standing spiritual stewardship.
