God is the Parent of all humankind. We are His children, created to grow to maturity in love and live in eternal joy. A supreme example of the joy God wants us to have is the sexual love shared by husband and wife. Through this love He wants us to create families of three generations that will dwell eternally with Him in Heaven. Incarnating God’s creativity through love, Adam and Eve were meant to create such a family and inaugurate an eternal lineage. (Gen 1.28)

Reverend Moon teaches that husband and wife together reflect the image of God as male and female. The universe, from the smallest particles, elements and molecules, to plants, animals and human beings, is composed of complementary, interacting partners. This interplay of masculinity and femininity energizes the world, intensifying its beauty and ordering its life. Emblematic of this, the reproductive organs establish the elemental correspondence of man and woman. Their complementary design reveals the oneness of God. This is why Jesus taught, “the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason… the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one.” (Mt 19:4-6)We believe that man and woman fulfill their potential most fully through their mutual relationship in faithful marriage. Their need for each other is so deep it is beyond description—for inspiration, for protection, for pleasure, for personal completion. While each person and couple is unique, successful marriage combines the complementary masculine and feminine strengths. Moreover, marriage matures the partners in love. The challenge of stretching to embrace so intimately one of the opposite sex is a God-given environment for the individual’s moral growth. In addition, children can best fulfill their potential with both male and female parents. The love relationship between a man and a woman not only creates children but also offers the optimal context to nurture them, for a father and mother together can provide the best stimulation for moral and cognitive development. In light of this spiritual and ethical framework, and consistent with the world’s major religions, Reverend Moon rejects as sinful all forms of sexual behavior, both homosexual and heterosexual, that take place outside of marriage between a man and a woman. Jesus condemned sexual sins strongly when he demanded that “if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.” Yet, when faced with a woman caught in adultery, Jesus did not condemn her, but said, “Go, and sin no more” (John 8:10-11). Similarly, Reverend Moon’s attitude toward individuals caught up in sin is embracing and compassionate. He trusts that, guided by conscience, we will take responsibility for our actions, and knows that we can grow in no other way.

A word on social practice is necessary. Although homosexual persons have offered much to the world, society has maligned and mistreated those who acted upon same-sex attractions, while being much more lenient with heterosexual sin. Such hypocrisy is tragic. Moral standards should be clear, applied fairly and supported through a healthy, family-friendly culture. And before judging others, we should examine ourselves. Renewal in others comes best through our own sacrificial love and living testimony to the truth.