The Words of the Jenkins Family after 2008
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The Words of the Jenkins Family after 2008 |
Left
to right: Rev. Jeong Ok Yu lectures at an OSDP workshop; Rev. Norman
Keanaaina of Hawaii gives testimony; Rev. Joshua Cotter is the
moderator for a panel (which includes Christian pastors) taking
questions on the Divine Principle.
Dr. R. M. "This was the best and the clearest, most inspiring presentation of the Divine Principle that I've ever heard -- to see the Bible unfold with such clarity and be so solid. I'm a university professor, but I felt honored to receive Father Moon's teaching. My wife and I have been blessed by True Parents. However, I now am feeling the confidence and reality that Christianity is going to move in a big way with ACLC."
One hundred and seventy-two faith leaders were transformed through True Parents and the Registration for God's Kingdom last September. Central to this was True Parents' engrafting each of the religious leaders into a Korean tribe, whereby each received a Korean name. Through the Original Substance of Divine Principle workshop (OSDP) given by Rev. Jeong Ok Yu, and traveling to many Korean cities to testify to True Parents, they had experienced first-hand how God has prepared Korea to be the Holy Land in this new age.
True Parents visited the group thirteen times while they were in Korea. Upon Father's request, twelve pastors among the many that came to Korea agreed to stay an extra week beyond the two weeks they had devoted away from their usual responsibilities. This smaller group went fishing with Father on the seas off Geomun Island. There, Father guided them personally with Hyung Jin nim translating. Hyung Jin nim moved to different parts of the boat while we were fishing and shared True Parents' teachings and encouragement for the ministers in their mission. Many of them testified that, through listening to Hyung Jin nim, they felt hopeful about the future. Especially after meeting him personally, they felt True Parents' love and spirit upon him.
On the final occasion at the Cheon Jeong Peace Palace garden, Father and Mother gave these twelve (and, through them, all 172) the great commission: "You must become Jesus to your church, community and nation. To do this you must establish twelve as Jesus did."
This commission to become the embodiment of the Lord created a burning passion in the hearts of the ministers.
When we returned to America, Father again called representatives of the 172 including the twelve selected in Korea. Father commissioned us to multiply the 172 by twelve. Additionally, other ACLC members in America were asked to find twelve more. Together these would total three thousand, the number that Father had said Heaven needed us to educate.
Then Father suddenly asked us to assemble at least 1,200 members of the clergy in Las Vegas within twenty-four hours to kick off this providence. Our U.S. church president, Rev. In Jin Moon, was absolute in her resolve to achieve what Father had asked and gave us strong encouragement. Our continental director, Dr. Chang Shik Yang, guided our planning, and the Unification Church leadership team plus that of the American Clergy Leadership Conference sprang into action. On Wednesday, October 5, less than 24 hours after Father had given the instructions, twelve hundred faith leaders from around the nation met in Las Vegas. There, True Parents held a second Registration for God's Kingdom and Fatherland.
We followed Father's direction to educate three thousand faith leaders and began to conduct the Original Substance of Divine Principle conferences. Rev. Jeong Ok Yu taught them first in Las Vegas, and then in Atlantic City, New Jersey -- and we are continuing to go to major areas to invite pastors from all over the country. Archbishop Ki Hoon Kim, Father's special representative to all religious leaders, gave deep guidance and helped our team understand how to fulfill this historic condition. At first it was slow, but the religious leaders began to feel the Holy Spirit moving strongly in the conferences. Said a bishop from a major denomination: "You can feel the presence of the Holy Spirit so strongly in this convocation, and it gives us confidence in Father Moon's call that we as clergymen can transform Christianity and turn America and the world in God's direction for marriage and family."
In
Jin nim speaking at the 16th Annual True Family Values Banquet at the
Hilton Hotel in Chicago, December 17, 2011. This was the culmination
of an OSDP workshop that brought the number of faith leader
participants to 3,000.
Archbishop Stallings and all the core leadership of ACLC, myself included, worked with the faith leaders and the ACLC co-chairs from around the country with the tremendous support of the Unification Church in all fifty states.
Pastors are coming to understand the Original Substance of Divine Principle better than before, as Father's conditions are being harvested in the Second Israel. They are coming forward to join with True Parents as a body of Christ united in their understanding that Jesus anointed True Parents to fulfill the Second Coming of the Lord.
So that the pastors could better understand the core concepts of the Principle, Father gave permission for them to hear parts of the OSDP in English. Lecturers were chosen who had extensive lecturing experience. Father was most inspired to hear that Archbishop Stallings was teaching the Fall of Man and the Mission of Jesus. Bishop Jesse Edwards, Rev. Tanya Edwards, Bishop Sulanch Lewis and others were teaching and actually positioned like John the Baptist -- to make straight the way of the Lord.
Although the depth of Rev. Yu's presentations could not be achieved, the spirit of the lectures was the same. Through his guidance and support, the door opened for the audience to receive, in their own language, an understanding of Shim Jung, of God's heart, and especially of absolute sexual morality. It was from there that the religious leaders would go back from the conference and bring five, ten or even forty of their fellow faith leaders with them the next time. It was rapid expansion, the likes of which has never been seen before.
Amazing breakthroughs began to occur in the conferences. Bishop Sulanch Lewis, who is now on the national board of ACLC, was deeply moved by Father's commission. Even in the very first OSDP kingdom registration conference in Atlantic City she felt strongly that she had to "bring twelve." And as she was reaching out to other pastors, she spoke with bishops and encouraged them to also bring twelve ministers. Bishop Sulanch Lewis was able to bring forty-one ministers from New York with her to her very first conference. She commissioned each to go out and "bring your twelve disciples in."
This opened up a huge vision for the clergy of how they could actually multiply. In the past, our outreach teams would invite ministers, and new ones would come, but only one by one. Now, because of Father's vision and his clear understanding of how to fulfill that vision, they are now coming by the dozens and by the hundreds. Bishop Lewis has brought more than 120 religious leaders.
The
OSDP workshops welcome faith leaders from various traditions and a
wide range denominations.
One co-chair, Rev. Michael Sykes of New Jersey, was one of the twelve pastors that went to Las Vegas after returning from the trip to Korea with the 172. He shared with us that at first he was very apprehensive about bringing ministers and elders of his church to the OSDP workshop and to hear testimonies about Father and Mother Moon. But because of the love he felt from True Parents, he broke through in his heart and began to bring dozens of people. First he brought four of his key ministers, and this amazement they were deeply inspired by the Holy Spirit. They started to feel the affirmation of the advent of the Lord, that True Parents are fulfilling the Second Coming under the anointing of Jesus.
At the next conference Rev. Sykes' four ministers were able to bring twenty-five more. That's how the multiplication occurred. Many key pastors came from Las Vegas; for example, Rev. Hudson Griffith who hosts a prominent Christian radio program. He also caught the vision, and together with his wife, brought many ministers to the OSDP to achieve the twelve. In this way, Father's vision, that the body of Christ is truly ready to unite to build God's kingdom, is being realized.
One exciting aspect of the program was the panel discussions, with members of the ACLC sitting on the panel, answering questions about the Divine Principle and the Bible. And there were tough questions. Members of the audience would write them down, the moderator, Rev. Cotter, would read them out, and then someone on the panel would answer. Some of the Christian ministers were so advanced in their understanding of the Principle that they could answer very precisely and with confidence. That led to greater understanding, and the ministers began to open their hearts. Everyone had their Bibles out. Questions would come to the panel about the Fall and the meaning of the sexual aspects. Questions would come about Shim Jung, and why we would talk about absolute sexual morality. Some of these religious leaders could answer so clearly and so deeply. Our ACLC board members were also on hand to help explain things.
In all the programs for educating religious leaders, since the early workshops in Koreas through today, there has never been such a groundswell or expansion of clergy being able to receive God's word and fully accept the Divine Principle teachings on the Bible. ACLC Executive Board Member Rev. Levy Daugherty, who led the ICC work to bring seven thousand members of the clergy to Korea in the 1980s, expressed it like this: "True Parents always said that if we just keep loving and sharing God's word with ministers, they would one day rise up to fulfill their mission. That day has now come."
In teaching the Principle to ministers, our emphasis is always based on John 16:25, where Jesus said, "I have said this to you in figures; the hour is coming when I shall no longer speak to you in figures but tell you plainly of the Father," and John 16:12-13, "I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth...."
Left:
A minister receives a True Family Values Award during the banquet
concluding the final OSDP workshop of 2011. Rev. Michael Jenkins is
at left. Right: Almost nine hundred attended the OSDP workshop in
Chicago in December.
We emphasized very strongly that Jesus taught that you must put new wine into new wineskins. In other words, when Jesus taught new understanding of the Scriptures, "new wine," he always taught that you had to have a new mind, an open mind; that is, a "new wineskin."
Another highlight of the kingdom building conferences is the Blessing Ceremony with the holy wine. These feature testimonies of ministers who have received the blessing of marriage from True Parents and then our guidance on the meaning of the change of lineage.
Archbishop Stallings gives his amazing testimony about how through the fifty-state tour (in 2001) he came to believe in Father and Mother and how he was matched by Father. Today they are a beautiful blessed couple and have two sons. Archbishop Stallings' testimony totally stimulates the audience.
Bishop and Mrs. Edwards would share how True Parents' blessing blessed and completely transformed their marriage into a marriage of true love.
At the same time, we found that people would be touched deeply about the meaning of the blessing, not only from the clergy couples but also from our blessed central families. Sometimes after the holy wine ceremony the ministers would offer prayers of healing for anyone who would gather round; these were very beautiful, spiritual nights, a beautiful way to end the ceremony in which the couples drank the holy wine and then rededicated their marriage.
In Father's many years of work to guide the clergy, I have observed one thing repeatedly. When a significant victory was about to occur, members of the clergy began to experience spiritual phenomena. This is now happening through the OSDP kingdom registration workshops. One pastor from Brooklyn had the following dream: "Father Moon appeared to me in my dream the second night of the OSDP. It was in the garden behind the Peace Palace where the twelve of us had gathered for a special dinner with True Parents. Father gave a book to me in the dream and told me, you religious leaders have to bring this back to America. You have to swim across the ocean, but don't worry, the book will never be damaged or get wet. Suddenly in the dream, we swam across the ocean to America. We arrived in Las Vegas at the OSDP. When I looked, the book was in perfect condition. It was the Original Substance of Divine Principle book. This is the book we are using at the conference that completely reveals the truth about the Bible. I awoke feeling amazed."
After various testimonies got out to ministers across the country, the OSDP workshops began to noticeably expand. Yet we still had to push hard to meet the goal. It was never easy, and without the support of the Unification Church members, it wouldn't have happened.
Then, we were able to break through. Almost nine hundred religious leaders came to Chicago for the OSDP conference from December 14 to 17. True Father's prayer was being realized. On the last day, we completed the three thousand. The participants were stunned to learn that, on the very day we were concluding the OSDP, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il had transitioned to the spirit world. They felt that a new age had dawned.
The Chicago conference concluded with a beautiful sixteenth Annual True Family Values Banquet at the Hilton Hotel, with more than two thousand people. With the spirit of the word guiding us, Rev. In Jin Moon gave a tremendous message centering on how True Parents have brought victory once again in bringing three thousand, that Jesus is liberated and he has anointed True Parents and anointed the clergy to fulfill their historic responsibility. The sermon was very well received. We are united as one in the American movement.
Following this, Father commissioned us to invite 9,000 more clergy. We reached 1,500 in the first forty days and then Father increased the goal to 10,000. Now we are on the path to reach out to and bring 10,000 more religious leaders, for a total of 13,000. We can't wait to see what happens when the thirteen thousand leaders of the Second Israel fulfill Father's direction in the twelfth year of Cheon Il Guk. We know that with the spirit of True Parents guiding us victoriously, we will be able to fulfill our responsibility to Heaven.
Pastors
at the Original Substance of Divine Principle workshop in Las Vegas
in October
Bishop W. M. "This is my first time to be with ACLC. I had heard of Father Moon all throughout my life, but somehow when I heard about this conference I felt it was sent by God. I completely believe that the teaching of the OSDP correctly reveals the new wine in Scriptures. I have been praying that Jesus would reveal to me the way we must lead our congregation. This is an answer to prayer. I brought my wife after I found how wonderful it was. We were very moved by the blessing and the understanding of the change of lineage. I can now see how God is revealing the truth on a new level. I appreciate deeply those who taught us. I told Rev. Jenkins, 'I have joined this movement. Please give me the direction to go. I was asked to bring twelve and I will do that immediately. --
Bishop Sulanch Grant-Lewis: "This conference was deeper for me than ever. Hearing the Original Substance of Divine Principle, I could understand more clearly than ever the Fall of Man and the meaning of the change of lineage. I'm grateful to True Parents for their love. On the boat at Geomun Island I shared with Father Moon that we would bring the fruit now and he turned to me and said, 'I know you will.' Some nights I can't sleep now because after the urgency of Father's heart in the special garden, I feel such urgency. I will work closely with the leadership of ACLC to organize ACLC in New York. Now the leaders that I brought are wanting to organize more than 100 churches. Bishop Brown and Bishop Lunsden and I were deeply inspired by Father Moon's teaching. Without this teaching we cannot fulfill our role as clergy. Father Moon's heart is beating in us. We feel that this is the hour that is most serious. We cannot miss this moment in history. We must bring the fruit and the harvest as Father commissioned us in the special garden. In Las Vegas I was again privileged to be one of the twelve that came. Father's heart of urgency is burning in me. I just want to bring more and more of the leaders now and comfort Father's heart. I was deeply moved by the Holy Spirit in this convocation. I could understand Shim Jung and God's heart because I feel True Father's heart is so urgent. God's heart is so urgent and yet so loving. We will bring the harvest. I feel True Mother's love and I know that the members of the clergy are prepared."