Apollo 13 and the Gospel

An opinion piece by David Wilkinson, Executive Director of Associated Baptist Press

April 17 marks the 40th anniversary of the splashdown of Apollo 13. It was a happy ending to a nearly disastrous and tragic mission. It was also a tribute to the bravery of the three-member crew and the ingenuity and teamwork of the crew, flight controllers and support personnel who brought the crippled spacecraft home.

Twenty-five years later, the events of the "successful failure" of Apollo 13 were dramatized in the movie by the same title. Nominated for nine Academy Awards, the movie has ranked among my favorites since the first time I saw it. Film critic Roger Ebert praised the movie as "a powerful story ... told with great clarity and remarkable technical detail, and acted without pumped-up histrionics." I have always been amazed by the creative genius of director Ron Howard and his ability to create tension and suspense in retelling a story to an audience that already knew the outcome.

Howard's remarkable ability as a storyteller has also provided a spiritual lesson for me. It is a reminder of the challenge that confronts every preacher, Sunday-school teacher, Bible-study leader or spiritual formation small-group facilitator: How does one take the well-worn stories of Scripture and retell and recast them in ways that are interesting and compelling? How do we, living this side of Easter and the empty tomb, retell the story of Jesus in fresh and imaginative ways to an audience that already knows the outcome?

Click here for the rest of the story.