We are pleased and humbled to carry on the process of translation into English of the collected sermons of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. This and the 200 succeeding volumes represent the core of the messianic thought which will bring the world to peace, freedom and happiness in our time. Although not recognized yet by the great and powerful of this world, these words of Reverend Moon's are the bedrock of God's eternal kingdom on earth, and will serve as the original point and center of true human understanding.

I make this tremendous claim with fear and trembling, because it is not the work of human beings but the work of God through His Word which will bring it to pass. Nonetheless, God allows us to resurrect ourselves as His sons and daughters by our participation in this great task. From the perspective of our contribution, we are sorrowful and repentant. But from the perspective of the glory of the Word which calls us, we are strong and triumphant.

There are uncountable inspirations which you will find in the words of this volume, but for the purpose of this preface I would like to highlight three of them.

The first is the further revelation of the deep oneness of Sun Myung Moon with Jesus Christ and the Christian path of sainthood and martyrdom. Even at this late hour, Christian leaders have not faced the fact that Reverend Moon's lifelong ministry began not of his own doing but by the personal call of their own Lord, Jesus Christ. It was Jesus himself, not an angel or passed-away saint, who called the Reverend Moon early in his life. And the call was not that the young man serve as an evangelist, or a theologian, or a missionary. Jesus called him to complete the messianic mission on the earth, that is, to inherit Jesus' own earthly mission which was cut short at the cross.

The depth of Reverend Moon's penetration into the heart and bone marrow of Jesus, which resulted from his total dedication to Jesus' call, is revealed in these speeches. Breathing through Reverend Moon's words is the living spirit of Jesus, who out of absolute love sacrificed his tortured life for sinful humanity. His message is not a rehearsal of traditional Christian themes. These words are spoken as if from the cross itself.

The second point brought forth in this volume is the consistency of these teachings with the entirety of Reverend Moon's fifty years of thought and ministry. Again, this is a sign of the perfection of the truth which he speaks. It is evidence that his words are not those of an individual minister, but are those of the Heavenly Father who has been waiting to disclose the fullness of His love and totality of His story.

Reverend Moon's theology is not the result of formal education, but of his day to day life of perfect attendance to God and to all people. And yet, these words capture the deepest essence of the eternal gospel, the essential Jewish and Christian truth. It is brilliantly consistent with the mainstream of Christian thought as, at the same time, it carries this thought forward to its fulfillment (John 16). The truth does not change, and the thoughtful reader will sense the one truth of God in these pages.

My third point is based upon my first meeting with Reverend Moon in 1957. Please do not even imagine that it was easy for him to deliver these sermons, that he was just receiving messages from God or the spirit world in a relaxed way. Reverend Moon delivered these sermons with incredible investment of blood, sweat and tears to save the people and liberate God. I remember his clothes completely soaked with sweat as he poured out his very heart and soul to us humble young members. To receive this priceless treasure of God's truth, the reader also must invest his complete heart and soul. You cannot appreciate the value in this book if you approach it with an easy relaxed attitude.

We pray that as the volumes of this series gradually appear, the foundation to receive them will expand, until the Christian world, the worlds of all faiths, and the hearts of all people are reborn into the Age of the Completed Testament.

The Unification Church Committee for the Compilation of the Sermons of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon in Seoul, Korea, has done a monumental task in producing Reverend Moon's sermons. Now we in the United States are undertaking an equally monumental task to translate them into English. I would like to express my gratitude to the translators and producers of this historical volume, and encourage the reader to feel him or herself to be a part of this vital project.

Reverend Joong Hyun Pak
Contintental Director
Unification Church of North America
August 25, 1995  

Download entire page and pages related to it in ZIP format
Table of Contents
Copyright Information
Tparents Home