The Words of Sun Myung Moon from 1963 |
Father, You created the cosmos and all things with an eternal purpose, to be centered upon true men; this we know. The eternal world which You created was the world of Truth, the world of Goodness, and the World of Love. It was a world which contained everything man could possibly want. We know that this world of happiness was to be the eternal inheritance of Your beloved sons and daughters. It was Your Will to bless Your children so that they might respect Your Will and live in Your world with eternal happiness, ideals, and satisfaction.
We knew that You should have been receiving joy and glory from our forefathers, who, according to the expectation You had for Your creation, with utmost loyalty and filial piety should have set the way of true Husband and Wife, of true Father and Mother, and we knew that they should have become True Parents to be worthy of being called a true son and daughter, and that they should have sung a song of eternal love. In this kind of world, our forefather caused the Fall against Your Will, and the true man You had hoped to see disappeared.
True husband and wife, true father and mother, true family and tribe, true nation and kingdom, true world and cosmos were lost. We know that this became the sorrow of man and the grief of God. Hence man became more worthless than a handful of mud. Yet You did not desert man and determined to deliver him from the lowest depths. You worked in the Old Testament Age for his deliverance by setting him in the course of a servant. We know that you have been working during the dispensation of Jesus on the foundation laid by those who followed the course of servants to find true, devoted sons and daughters.
We knew that it was Your Will to send the Messiah as the Everlasting Father of mankind and that with him You wanted to lay the foundation of individuals, families, and tribes. We knew that Jesus had come with the mission to fulfill this great task and that all men of earth should have celebrated his coming and that the entire creation should have served him as the true parent and helped him fulfill and established a bond with him as true children, and that he should have established one world, fulfilling all conditions.
Since Jesus could not set up true children, You have been working for the past two thousand years providing for the adoption of men as true children. Thus many Christians and numerous people all over the world have been seeking the way to be adopted. We know that by setting the way of adoption, You have been given the idea of the Second Coming in order to restore once again the true Father of mankind. To find a servant, to find an adopted son, to find a true son, for the long period of 6,000 years, You have been the Pioneer, fighting through the way of tears, blood, and sweat, We are standing here with You, to fulfill Your desire to unify individuals, tribes, nations, the world and the cosmos.
This is Your Unification flock, who have vowed to follow You, Father. Since You, Father, have gone through the way of blood and tears, I told them to go the same way. Knowing that You have suffered for helpless people and the entire world, vowing to follow through that way, they have shed their sweat, blood, and tears on this land of Korea and have fought for Your cause. Please accept them on this day of July 24, 1963. I pray to You, Father, that You grant the promised blessing to them and make a joyful bond with them in the eyes of this congregation, of all Korea, of the whole visible and invisible worlds.
On this sacred day we are celebrating the Feast of Candles. We are celebrating this feast for You, Father; please accept it as Your own and make a day on which man will give praise and take pride because of the ideal of one world and brotherhood has been demonstrated. We are more than grateful if this event creates joy for all men. We are more than grateful if this nation can rejoice and give praise because of this event. I pray, Father, that You will conduct the marriage ceremony of these 124 couples. Give them Your blessing that they may be warriors in the satanic world in order to bring about one Day of Glory, so that the whole creation, all mankind, and the entire universe may rejoice with them.
For this they are willing to endure any trials and sufferings, bearing the cross for themselves, for their families, for their nation, and for the whole world, to bring you this one day of glory, these sons and daughters have made a deep and solemn vow in their hearts. Accept them as Your sons and daughters forever, They have made a promise to become husband and wife, not only on earth but throughout the world of eternity. Father call them Your pride and show them off to the world. The glory of heaven, the harmony of earth be with them forever, with this congregation, and with the entire creation.
After this marriage feast, may the glory of Your victory be with them forever! They have made a vow to become true husband and wife, true parents, true sons and daughters, therefore embrace them in Your bosom forever.
This prayerful blessing have made in the name of the True Parents and the eternal Father. Amen.