Bill Nelson recently travelled to the Vatican for the World Meeting on Human Fraternity.
He was the second-ever sitting member of US Congress to fly to space. Now, after serving as a US Senator for 18 years, he is head of NASA.
His discussions of world peace with Nobel prize winners led him to reflect on the perspective he gained from his time in space.
In 1986, Senator Bill Nelson orbited Earth 98 times over the course of six days. This time in space afforded him some insight into the human condition.
“I did not see racial division. I did not see religious division. I did not see political division. All of those things that bedevil us here on the face of the Earth.
“From your perspective in space, we’re all in this together as citizens of planet Earth.”
Senator Nelson says that space has the special power to unite us all. But he also believes that Pope Francis holds this unique capacity as well.
“I think it is particularly this pope, Pope Francis, that is such a healer, a reconciler, a pope that brings people together instead of all these divisions on the planet that we engage in everyday,” he said.
During his time in Rome, Senator Nelson also met with the President of the Italian Space Agency to discuss the historic work that the two nations have achieved together.
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