A New Beginning
Mike Oldfield Lyrics


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In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

And the earth was without form, and void;
and darkness was upon the face of the deep.

And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

And God said,
Let there be light
and there was light.

And God saw the light,
that it was good...





(Extract spoken by Lunar Module Pilot Wiiliam Anders, from the Apollo 8 crew live television broadcast, made when the first manned mission to the moon entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve, December 24th, 1968)

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "A New Beginning" by Mike Oldfield are a recitation of the creation story from the Bible's book of Genesis. The verses quote directly from the King James Version of the Bible, with a few minor changes. The introduction quotes the well-known first verse of Genesis, which sets the stage for the rest of the song's lyrical content. The second verse describes the state of the earth before God created light, using the phrases "without form" and "void." The third verse depicts God's initial movements in creating the world, as the Spirit of God "moved upon the face of the waters." The fourth verse quotes God's first spoken words in the Bible, "Let there be light," and the following verse describes God's satisfaction with the result.


The song then transitions to a spoken word sample of Lunar Module Pilot William Anders on the Apollo 8 mission, reading from the book of Genesis as the module orbited the moon. The use of the recording creates a sense of unity between science and religion, as the two events (creation and the exploration of space) are drawn together through the lyrics. The overall meaning of the song is one of hope and renewal, suggesting that through God's creation of the world and man's exploration of the universe, we can continuously begin anew.


Line by Line Meaning

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
At the start of everything, God made the heavens above and the planet we call Earth.


And the earth was without form, and void;
When the world began, it was shapeless and empty;


and darkness was upon the face of the deep.
and the only thing around was darkness covering the unknown depths.


And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
Then, the spirit of God spread across the surface of the waters.


And God said, Let there be light and there was light.
God spoke the words, 'Let there be light' and in the blink of an eye, light was born into existence.


And God saw the light, that it was good...
God took a look at the light and realized that it was good and perfect, exactly the way it should be...


(Extract spoken by Lunar Module Pilot Wiiliam Anders, from the Apollo 8 crew live television broadcast, made when the first manned mission to the moon entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve, December 24th, 1968)
These words were spoken by William Anders, who was aboard the first mission to the moon, as they got closer to the lunar surface on Christmas Eve in 1968.




Contributed by Jeremiah B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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