"The Responsibility/Authority of the Unification Family" is the title of my sermon this morning. We often speak of sovereignty; we know what it is. Sovereignty has a center around which it administers its work. What is the Unification family? How does it differ from the ordinary family? The Unification family means the families of the blessed couples. We say the words Unification Church, but when it is written in the original way, it is very interesting.

"Church" is comprised of two words and the first word contains two elements. The element on the left means "sons and daughters of filial piety." The element on the right side means "father." "Father of filial piety," in other words. The word by itself includes the meaning of education, or teaching. Also, "politics" is also written in Chinese characters in this way. So these two words. The first word is "correct, righteous father" "politics" means righteous. Coming back to "education", that is what education is all about: Father teaches all the historical and present child/parents relationship. That is what education is all about.

It is all one concept: education, religion, school. "Religion" means "primary teaching." The central pillar of teaching. The center of that teaching is (Father?) (the father?). So teaching about Father is what religion is all about.

There are billions of people living in China and that nation has continued to flourish for thousands of years. How can they continue as a good nation? It is because they have this concept underpinning their society of education, politics... In our life, we live with our father, we become like him eventually, and follow all the traditions he established, and leave our own traditions behind for our own children. This is what life is all about.

Compared with this real meaning of our human life, how long do you think the current democratic/individualistic way of life can continue? It is very recent on the world scene. The relationship between husband and wife is very weak. The world cannot continue without being connected in all different realms of relationship. No one can exist alone. The world is simply the realm of reciprocal, corresponding relationships. Once we become united within a family, then that family maintains correct relationship with other families, and on and on to form the larger community.

Now in the so-called democratic countries, the philosophy of politics is not based on the father/son relationship as it should be. They are more aligned with the concept of struggle, similar to the communist philosophy. Within the democratic elections, there is much outright fraud and dishonesty involved. Special favors come about, bribery and so forth all the roots of vices are connected with such elections. Power, money, greed: all the human vices come to bear on elections. Confusion is piled upon confusion: this is what we see in American society. No one can claim that this is an ideal form of society. There is so much deceit, empty promises which are easy to make during campaigns. These things happen very easily.

We see these things everywhere in the world. The question is, how can we digest these bad things and turn them into good? Should we sweep them out, or digest them? Which one would be more desirable? Why should we digest them? It is because if you sweep out something, then you automatically create an enemy. This is the problem in American society today. Even though some forces may be righteous, when they subjugate the other side by their power, they cannot avoid creating enemies.

Those who hated Reverend Moon wanted to exercise their power and do away with him. Of course, it did not work. We all know it is wrong, and instead of being contained, we expanded, developed and became bigger. We can now clearly see in the religious realm the meaning of Jesus' words: Love thy enemy. People have wondered, "How can I love my enemy? What can I get out of it?" We now know that loving our enemy came from this point. It is not easy to love your enemy. This is our responsibility, our predicament, in a way: to digest our enemy. Understand and make corrections.

Is Reverend Moon a strong man or a soft and gentle man? Yes, I am very strong! But have you ever seen me attack or strike out at others? No, I am the one who is always hit first. How about God? We know that God Almighty is the truly strongest being in the universe, yet God has been struck, hit, hurt all throughout history. There has been no justice concerning God He has always been hit. Yet we have seen that every time in history when the unrighteous side strikes out at the righteous side, including God, they have to pay the price eventually.

World Wars I and II, as well as other major wars, the ones who began the wars always lost. And everyone in the world who joined in the attack against Reverend Moon are now coming to the time when they are having to pay the price. Especially the power of world communism, above all. They have been striking against the free world. At last they have failed.

Humanity around the world joined in the attack against Reverend Moon. Now, who is rising up and who is falling down?

I wanted to make this point: the Unification family has a tremendous responsibility to change things but not through fighting, only through the Principle. I am asking you now to please make your families available to anybody who wishes to come in and out, as they please. No fences. Doors open. Suppose you build up your family, your home, and somebody comes along and says, "I want your house. You move out and let me move in." You should be able to respond, "All right, I have had the experience of living very comfortably. Now it is your turn. Come on in and live here." Then after such a person lives in your plundered house for three days or so, his conscience will most likely bother him so much he will say, "This is really your house. Come on back and live here. I will leave." That is the way of religion. Religion always has this concept.

If a nation puts all its energies into struggling for power and economic expansion, certainly they will be able to achieve it but only for a short time. It cannot last.

"Rather than collecting money, let us invite good people, finding more and more able, capable people and love them." That is religion. And to embrace a nation, that is what heaven has. So embracing an individual, you will be successful in your lifetime, one generation. But if you embrace the whole nation, your success will continue forever. Even beyond that, if you embrace the entire race, it will be even longer lasting. That is the terminal point: that is where we want to go.

Each one of our Unification families has to have a clear understanding of this concept because it is the base of everything. There is no other place in the world teaching this concept. Harvard University doesn't teach this. Even though many have attacked Reverend Moon the individual, the realm of family will support him. The universal power to preserve the family, or family fate, will support the individual who is attacked.

Even if families oppose him, the power which preserves the nation, the national fate, will surround and protect him. Even when the power of nations comes against Reverend Moon, still there is a greater power, the world level, cosmic fate, surrounds and supports him because that is the realm which is serving. CIA and KGB these organizations may have had great power, but they do not exist for the sake of the world's interests.

I have just laid out a very simple, general rule. Even though you may not understand it completely, do you believe that it is probably correct? (Yes!) You are smart! I don't know so clearly, but you sound so firm! You are very smart, otherwise you wouldn't be here.

Here is a classic example: There is a narrow bridge and two elements, whether individuals, countries or whatever, are approaching it from opposite directions. This bridge is too narrow for both to pass by, so what do they do? Usually, they would struggle, with one winning over the other and gaining the right to pass first. But that is not the way of religion. If you step aside and allow the other to pass first, knowing that you have yielded to him, then that person will become grateful to you. Both will survive in that way, rather than the other way with only one surviving. Obviously the one who goes first benefits first, but later on, he comes and bows with respect to the other who yielded. If you are willing to yield and do that in every circumstance, then you will become the one who actually molds history. Not the other person, the one who goes first. So it is authority, power.

Now those who are in the families of the Unification Church understand how precious is this way of life. But I do not approve of anyone just holding onto this preciousness. You can't draw into yourself and family, saying, "Nobody can come into our circle. My family is so valuable, I don't want to be open. Everybody else has to be beneath us. They have to come and show proper respect to us." That is an attitude I will never approve, of course. The person with that kind of attitude will not even be able to expand or survive. The other way is the correct way, to be available to others, to be like their servants.

When a person is full of himself, his own denomination, and his own family he is very loyal to them but he is too full. He is so densely packed that he doesn't have any room for anyone else. There is no room for any other element to come in, including some other thought or religion. But Reverend Moon has been teaching, "Don't be filled up with yourself or your denomination. Empty yourself, go out and serve other Christians, serve Muslims. Embrace and serve other people, take them into your life."

America tried to destroy Reverend Moon, but I have never stopped investing and giving more and more to America. I emptied out everything. Like a shell, I don't own anything, but I continue to give more to this nation which has been my enemy. We can compare this to the way the atmosphere works. If you have an area of low pressure coming into the range of a high pressure area, what happens? Does the low density go into the high density area, or does the high pressure area go into the low pressure area? Which direction does air move? High pressure moves toward low pressure automatically. Nobody has to make any effort to make this happen. It is natural.

We have seen a recent television broadcast on PBS, which was an effort to make Reverend Moon look bad, under the guise of being fair and neutral. Everybody knew what they were up to. When the American population watched the program, they silently took Reverend Moon's side. They could see through everything and say, "There is nothing wrong with Reverend Moon."

We must understand this clearly. I myself often think, "Nobody has lived such a life as I." I have been attacked so much, sometimes attacked beyond my own understanding and I think, "Why am I being attacked now?" There has been so much turmoil throughout my life. But I wake up every day feeling strong and ready to go again. I sometimes ask myself, "What is protecting me and allowing me to continue like this?"

Now there is a gigantic worldwide foundation which was "made by Reverend Moon" according to the PBS television program. I often think about it, "Who made that foundation? It wasn't me as an individual, but it was the protecting force of the entire universe which helped me to make it." It is the work of the whole universe. I have never considered the foundation which has been established as my own work. Rather, I know I have been protected by the heavenly fate and by God, and that is why it has been successful.

We know that God has creative power, that He is omnipotent, that He can do anything. We must understand what lies behind history.

Now that we understand this much, do you think it would be wise or foolish for a man to say, "I will become a great man, living for my own purposes alone and become great before the rest of the world." Yes, it is foolish. What is your description of a wise man, then? It is the man who lives for the sake of others, for God, the world, the cosmos. He who lives that way truly lives forever because all that power protects and promotes him. That is a reasonable, logical conclusion.

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