Leadership and Divine Principle

Derek Dey
December 24, 2012

The question of leadership kept me awake the other night. There was a post, a slideshow, which doesn't work for Unification Church types. Robin Marsh's project was impressive however, and then I remembered the team experience I had in Europe a while back. I began to think programs from the "outside", even the one I mentioned, are just a distraction. Why is Divine Principle not used, defined, explained, and practiced, when it works so well and opens to issues others never even think of? The following is a practical working model. If you don't have time for the document the short version runs like this: Leadership and creativity is by Logos in Divine Principle. Logos points to the quadruples bases, maintenance and developmental. Maintenance refers to inner qualities if we talk about personal creativity, and inner authenticity if we conclude this is the model for leadership. The qualities of leadership is described in the document but it involves heart, knowledge, wisdom, patience, and the ability to love-heal etc. Within a group or team structure the developmental base is the team. It takes time to grow into a real team which needs to display an authentic organic unity (trust, openness, communication and so on). This team building process is related to the idea of a "natural surrender". It is a process embarked upon by individuals who either volunteer or come to feel gratitude and work from that base. It is not just an appointment or command.

In addition, inspiration may be found at any level – it does not always conform to a top-down hierarchical model. Leadership involves faith in others and trust in the general makeup or plan of the group – a belief that inspiration manifests anywhere. If the team and leader become an organic unity such a group connects to increased energy and inspiration – field energy. Universal prime force/energy becomes apparent and excitement increases. In addition field energy is also qualified by synchronicity (the connected body in Divine Principle). From this, connections of value make an appearance almost effortlessly.If the original project is centered properly, then, to put it simply, the team/group will then encounter God's plan or part in it all, and through synchronicity events will unfold, perhaps surprisingly, but purposively and always moving towards a healthy conclusion- and usually something greater than the original concept. In my opinion this is a global system where any successful group, organization, business, holds to these principles or at least to some of the major components. If something fails the failure can be identified as belonging to the dysfunctions in any part of this system also. Therefore there is a fix. Elements from other experienced sources may be useful, but need to be contextualized properly. However and so-far, they do not define the principle.

Cain and Abel resolution – Leadership Groups and Creative Networks In 1979 I encountered a major problem which shook my faith and left me feeling I had betrayed God and had lost him for all time. There was no meaning in my life and it almost broke me. It was not the fall but a confusion of priorities. In addition a theory of communism had infiltrated the publications department, where I worked via a select few who were taught this system and turned an open and creative enterprise into a positional thinking and legalistic desert. My salvation finally came in the form of an invitation to join a mobile team traveling through Europe. Joseph Kamiwatari was the team leader and we met for some lectures before we left England. His version of the fall saw Eve having fallen with Lucifer; then approaching Adam with two agendas. One was seduction because she had learned that from the archangel. The other was an unspoken cry for help. Adam failed to see the second one – her confusion and her cry of pain, her cry for help. Here separation from God left her with anxiety, dread, and worse and she sought liberation.

The the healing relationship is dependent on clear standards but in this case Adam failed to understand the importance of staying connected and therefore as a source of healing and redemption – and that the point. The healing relationship is the sacred thing whether we call it healing or salvation. When he fell to the dynamics of seduction the path back was lost and there was no counsellor – no messiah left. Rightly or wrongly, these insights and others were so profound and moving for me, in comparison to what the British church was offering as insights into the principle at the time. They were basic and legalistic. All this new stuff pointed to concern and paths of healing as opposed to positions, blame, heartlessness, and ignorance which struck many at the time. Joseph had gone through his own trials in Japan and almost left the church. He prayed one day and stated he would read through the principle one more time and if he found nothing meaningful he was finished. What caught his attention however was the quadruple bases. This part was in fact a more detailed explanation in Unification Church Thought of the four position foundation – the four position foundation repeated ad infinitum with no real explanation as to how it functioned. It was drawn on boards as four circles basically and not much more. However Josep suddenly saw this was the modus operandi for making relationships work, particularly in the Cain-Abel situation.

It was a model for leadership, groups and projects. He went to work to put it into practice and before long had himself a new member, a Cain to look after and he was successful until he got arrogant and it fell apart. So he tried again and after struggling with his own nature and the nature of the person he found next, things seem to come together. He learned to take care of his inner world and that of his new friend. Later our team the third he led through Europe was governed by these principles in a remarkable way. We left England and arrived in Holland, did some sightseeing which was unusual for the times, and got to work later fundraising and witnessing. I for one felt accepted and thought this was a fresh start but my distance from my God was still extreme and a continuing problem – I was doing but not feeling it. One day witnessing in Dam Square Amsterdam I was suddenly overwhelmed by a feeling to flee and I did, heading towards Vondel Park.

I got through the gates and immediately broke down in a welter of tears, and rising emotions. In the midst of this another experience profoundly felt, led me to think the hand of God took mine like a child and He walked with me in love, comfort, and acceptance. I was shattered, not fully rational and must have looked so distressed that some of the public called the cops. I was interrogated as to what was happening.. Drugs, a psychotic breakdown, a death in the family; all these things were fired at me … They were as confused as me and said some had reported me literally walking in tears with one hand in the air … but finally they let me go after explaining simply that I was going through a relationship thing. The experience shook my inner world.

The team continued into Germany. I felt renewed and offered some conditions in gratitude. I began to tell Joseph my whole story and he likewise accepted me unconditionally. More than that he said problems like mine were widespread in the church and this was a result of Satan in the leadership? I was surprised because I'd never heard it put like that, though I understood the general atmosphere was less than enlightened. Yet in part it was true. I had seen that in some of my CF's (another story) and I understood it because there seemed to be no sensible answers for stuff because it was endemic in the hierarchy. My talks with Joseph continued and he often offered profound insights. Sometimes he just listened actively, and I went through it time and again seeming to make a journey through pain, starting with the most recent failure in London, going back to events when I was fundraising, shaming when I joined the church, and then through my personal history before the church where issues had contaminated and broken my original self.

Joseph continued patiently then introduced the idea that I might make a good lecturer; something which came as another shock because I'd been shamed on that point within a couple of months of joining. He was fascinated by my arts background and suggested I developed something; a presentation along that lines. He thought people would love it. I protested saying I needed research for that but I had no confidence anyway. He asked what I needed to succeed and gave me what amounted to a couple of weeks of the teams budget and I was sent off to buy some expensive art books. We had done some analysis, now it was time for synthesis – putting things back together.. A time to look at some potential beyond the damage and mistakes I seemed so good at carrying like unwanted baggage.

Joseph did something similar for all the others and spent a lot of time in contemplation. We found him one day sitting on some church steps on a street (he stayed there all day) and we asked if he was OK. He said, "Fine," he was just meditating on what kind of people were in front of him. If he had no idea or feeling for them how could he witness to them. Over time he put himself into it all profoundly, and for us he always sought out ways to help. Being accepted for what we were, we were becoming friends on the team reflecting the same acceptance and becoming completely honest with one another – accepting ourselves for what we were. If someone was bummed out it was fine; it was just Charlotte being bummed out – so what? That's what we were all like sometimes. This was not the early church in general – it was obedience and persona. One day he announced we were going for a three day walk through the countryside ending in Camberg.

On the way out, in the middle of nowhere, we came to a slight hill on the road where Michele, one of our team, simply broke down in tears; in some unspoken agony which we could not quite understand. Through the sobbing she confessed to abandonment as a child and a life where no one had come to her help. Now in the sight of the hill before her she could not go on. The hill was like the struggles she encountered in her life and exhaustion had broken the last of her defenses and her resolve. Still sobbing two brothers ran up behind her, placed their hands upon her back and ran her all the way up the hill laughing as they went until they all reached the crest. She was sobbing more violently than ever, then laughing, then sobbing, then laughing again, until she didn't know quite what to do. But her world had changed. She had finally been helped. Joseph had taken the time and effort to grow and now he gave us time and space; our growth period where the pain bled out and health took over allowing us to be what we were, and to come together in a natural way – in honesty.

On our travels staying at various centers we spoke to everyone revealing open and honest testimonies. It was not the tradition at that time and some people got edgy and quite angry. Some became very angry. Later we discovered the introduction of this different way of being was part of the plan but we were exposing defenses and denials hence the anger. When we got to Nuremberg I had offered to street-preach out of my own free will and from gratitude. This became my witnessing effort and others joined in including Jorma. He told me he came from Finland in the forests where everything, including himself, had grown up in perfect silence. So speaking out was different – a life changing enterprise for him. Something else happened regarding this new enterprise. There was a ruffle of rebellion by some. "Aw I'm not doing that," or "I don't like that," and so on, but it was accompanied by something else, "Well, I'll stay home and cook for the team. I like to cook," or in Jorma's case, "Well, I'll be the driver. I did the street preaching but I like driving better."

Michele became the musical director because she was a good guitarist and so the team became naturally, inner directed like any good organic system and each found his or her gift; their God given talent, to put to use. Its a philosophy of seed – innate, inner directed, and willful, in the sense we naturally are driven towards our optimum identity, creativity, and self esteem, given the fact that there is a supportive and open environment for this to emerge. In the right time and place, and being ourselves, we can be full of radiant intelligence, a journey in virtues guided innately by, what some call, a holistic right brain way of knowing. No need for much intervention. We know what to do. And it implied trust and maturity on the part of Joseph to watch this happen. One day on the street, while preaching, I was confronted by a German who became enraged and he was in my face. One of our topics was German unification and it sharply and passionately divided the crowd at the time. Intuitively I knew if I began to defend myself the thing would go wrong.. Badly wrong.

The guy was so close as to be spraying spittle on me as he raged. I focused and basically continued talking through him to the small crowd who had gathered; and offered all of it to God internally. In Nuremberg there were always a small band of punks gathered around the Church nearby. They used the fountain in front to shave their heads and usually came out of it with cuts and abrasions leaving blood trickling down their heads from the wounds from the blunt razors they carried. Two of them came over and told my opponent to stop attacking me. He didn't. They told him again and warned him the next was his last warning. When he still didn't stop they grabbed both his arms dragged him to the back of the church and dealt with him. I suppose if there is a Cain and Abel thing this was our Cain type line of defense. But these punks had principles in their own way. They understood the principle of three. The next day something similar happened. I began to speak.

A crowd gathered and some were negative and downright unpleasant. Down the same street I saw, out of the corner of my eye, two folk singers with their own crowd around them. Michele was standing next to me and intuitively I suddenly told her to go down there and get them over here. Because of our natural openness and trust she did so without question. When she returned with them, we discovered the two musicians were lapsed Catholic monks from Ireland who, still believing in the love of God and the need to demonstrate it to others in some way, had chosen to uplift the crowds in the streets with their singing. When we explained we were doing something similar they understood completely – but we had problems with our crowd and they asked if we needed help. I explained our challenge with characters who were getting outraged and angry and just as I said this, someone in our crowd right behind erupted into rage. The two monks told me not to worry.

One went over to the guy and ushered him forward into the semicircle of gathered people. The monk was wearing a raincoat and from his sleeve he produced a feather duster, the kind clowns pull out in their circus shows, all bright colors. He bent down and swept part of the cobbled street clean and encouraged the man to sit down. The other monk came over and the two, one at each side of the angry guy, started to play and sing for him and his rage diminished and faded away. He was finally peaceful and even had a smile on his face. The people who had gathered were delighted. The monks played on for another 10 or so songs for all the crowd which had grown quite large by now. Then they slipped off to the side but ushered me in to the circle to talk before they vanished for the day. I had the largest audience I ever had, and in the evening we had seven maybe ten guests over for dinner and a lecture on Divine Principle. The monks were our 2nd defense – an Abel-like affair this time, I thought.

With the team acting naturally / organically and with many internal issues resolved, the energy became high. We got out of bed, even after short hours of sleep, filled with excitement in the morning wondering what God might do next. It seemed to be a little miraculous, quite fun, and it was expanding and deepening rapidly beyond the team into Nuremberg as if a plan were unfolding and we were part of it. We were alive – full of wonder and excitement. In the quadruple base we have the 'maintaining base' and we have the 'developing base.' Joseph held to the maintaining part and the team became the developing base. When we got our act together there was a natural expansion flowing freely beyond us into the streets and into the hearts and minds of others and it was totally unexpected and changed our way of thinking as to what was possible and what was not. A natural unity of give and take, a healthy conversation had released energy -Universal Prime Force- and we were experiencing it as never before. This was what the developing quadruple base was all about. In addition to the growth, change, and expansion, of our being-ness and our adventures, there seemed to be a field of preparations lying waiting for us, ready to unfold as we qualified to access it.

When I looked back, this element related to synchronicity, the connected body and networks, which began to open with ease before us. Before we left Nuremberg we had gathered a few people who volunteered to come with us. We also connected to history and the providence. Hitler had held his great rallies, and built his parade grounds, in Nuremberg. We went there to pray one evening. On another night I was praying on the castle mound overlooking the city when I experienced Father's face hovering, as a vision, large like a full moon over the city. (pardon the metaphor-not intended) What came with it was an idea that evil spirits were lying above the city and this blocked people from seeing how to be creative, how to live fully and freely. In some cases this negative and unseen influence was so heavy it created illness and even led to death for some.

Suffering in Europe is layered through centuries of tragedy and war and has its effects, continuing relentlessly from the world beyond. Tragic consequences continue to influence the living in unknown ways. It is Europe's unseen enemy. America is so different – so light in this respect. In a few days word came through that Father had conducted a liberation ceremony for Hitler at the Berlin wall. He confirmed what we were beginning to understand. If Germany was to be free, these layers of spiritual evil and tragedy had to be set free first, lifted from the soul of the German peoples so that a nation could once again rise. There could be no real growth until this unseen problem was peeled away. The team continued to Switzerland and encountered opposition form the Swiss authorities and we creatively worked around it. Then we were disbanded. Our time was over. We returned to Camberg where the European leaders wanted their manpower back for their missions. We gave testimonies in the hope we could continue but they were adamant and we were scattered.

We asked Byung Ho Kim the European president at that time why he allowed this to happen. He explained that the team was an attempt to introduce a new tradition into Europe. We had been given great freedom, so how could he give his European leaders any less. They had to choose. A part of Joseph's work lay in the maturation of his personality and his connectivity and the principles of acceptance, growth, and adventure he had given us. He qualified because he understood the principle quite deeply and he understood the psychological mechanisms that trapped us and others which released us. He was not controlling and allowed for the fact that divine nature dwelt in all and here and there divine inspiration might emerge from anywhere. A part of this absolute standard was his unbroken and deep bond with Byung Ho Kim and in turn their bond was joined directly to Father which is why our team had connected to what was going on in a bigger way in Germany.

At one point I received some photos of the team from Joseph. In one photo, standing in front of our yellow VW team bus, there was Joseph holding Byung Ho's hand, an oriental demonstration of deep friendship. Both were smiling. That was the link. They were together in a very warm way. It was Byung Ho's thinking which told us Europe, for one, was not living the principle and it was father who wanted to change it. Divine Principle is not the problem. The real problem is in understanding and in the practice of it. Many of our team didn't make it after that. They went home – they left. Going back to routine church missions and a culture of positional thinking and military style operations was simply going back to the stone age. None of the European leaders at that time understood anything we were talking about – how the principle could work given a chance. We discovered, when the call came from Father to send their best members, they had sent only their problem members to these teams – people they didn't want – us. Then when we came back we were once again useless unwanted members and so we were relegated again to a prevalent feudal tutelage.

They didn't understand why many became dysfunctional again, and it was our fault. Joseph lingered in Nuremberg and I kept in touch. He spoke of other troubled members being sent to him. One was a Japanese sister who had always been the top fundraiser. She had gone so far as to raise money in public, in a wheelchair, which gave her great economic results. She began to boast she was better than Moon and finally cracked up. In Nuremberg she wailed all night as if struggling with a deep psychosis. She woke the neighbors. Joseph comforted her. He wrapped her in blankets to keep her warm and to muffle the sounds. He fed her, offered her acceptance, listened, and finally she opened up. As a girl, her home in Japan had been invaded and her father had been killed before her eyes by a thief and murderer. When the mother collapsed the invader went to rape her and the little girl got up and offered herself instead. She saw her father as impotent and unable to save them.

He was weak. And in trying to save her mother, she was the one who had the real strength, who could save the day. This dynamic began to repeat itself in the church. The father now Moon, was weak and ineffective. She had to take his place as the real achiever and to save the day. She went to unusual and unacceptable lengths to fulfill this deterministic destiny she carried within. She had it hardwired into her from the trauma of the invasion murder and rape. As she began to realize this she sobbed for days. When Joseph went out with her for a walk along the river bank she was astonished at the colors. In suppressing and denying her agony, so she had suppressed her senses. She had seen little color since the death of her father and the rape. Still later at dinner the same thing happened with taste. In opening up she tasted food for the first time in a long time and she was amazed.

There was some healing and a liberation from the unconscious pathways of her responses which had held her in captivity for so long. I often heard the phrase, "problem member," spoken by those in a position to lead. But there are no problem members, there are only those God sends to heal. But it doesn't happen like that usually. Joseph was finally sent home to a workshop for retraining. He had lost his faith as the Japanese Church saw it. I struggled on in Europe and almost left again. I basically hid in the church burying my true self because of the enmity I found there and strove not to be critical, not to judge and sometimes did it. This was a conscious choice taken at that time which has helped ever since. I went to America and stayed there in relative freedom for over 25 years. After the first couple of years of putting up with more misguided thinking and a few of my own hiccups I was able to come out and, 'pay it forward' for a time in Florida; to treat people decently, to get things done, to help and heal others, and to build some bridges; and to accept that not everyone gets it – but to respect their journey. And accept I might still have a bit to go myself. And discover a beautiful country because America is – achingly so.

Free, almost, of all the difficult history and spiritual negativity that surrounds and oppresses Europe. I met Joseph again at Camberg before we were all scattered and as soon as I laid eyes on him I knew what was in his heart, what he longed to do next, what he hoped for and dreamed of: and he knew in the silence which lay between us, in the warmth, in mutual respect, and in the bond forged in some deep layer of consciousness, that I understood and shared in his concerns without a word being spoken. There was no need. It was as if we were one and spoke silently in some universal language, in some other field of consciousness which we both shared. We were brothers standing there in one heart and one mind – always will be. I'm profoundly grateful

for that. It was an unforgettable gift from God. Cain and Abel is just a short journey we might undertake and then its over and we are in a different world; a different realm of consciousness – and Cain and Abel are then just tales from the past with no real meaning for the present or the future. It is a rite of passage not a permanent state. It's a journey back to connectivity and the connected body. Its a journey back to shared creativity.