The Words of the Hyun Jin Moon
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The Words of the Hyun Jin Moon |
My
soul, my life, and my breath exist for True Parents.
Why do you come here to Belvedere? Is it just to see the True Family? You might all have different reasons, but your absolute reason should be to understand True Parents' standard as a Unification Church member. That will be the topic of my speech today. I'm sorry that True Parents cannot be here with you, but please be totally willing to listen to what I have to say.
As God-centered people, what kind of standard should we uphold? It is the standard that True Parents have been setting in their mission -- to live not for our own sake, but for the sake of our brothers and sisters. There have been many religions in history, yet none of them was able to completely follow this standard. If we look at Christianity today, what do we see? There are so many groups separated from each other. Each denomination sees itself as the only true recipient of God's heart. Of course that's so for a true man or woman, but no one else can say that because no one else is truly living according to Gods standard.
In the Unification Church there is some disunity. That occurs when you look at yourselves as individuals or separate groups. How come we are not absolutely united? You are the best judge. You can't lie to your original mind. If you try to deviate from your original mind, it will follow you and say, "No, no, no! You're doing something wrong!" If you are living for the sake of yourself, I feel sorry for you, because you are living in absolute hell. Your original mind is going to bug you and bug you until you change. All of you know from experience, right? I know from experience, too.
If you look at history, you can see that man has always been on a path to reach a common destiny. In early human history, there were many tribes, each living only for its own sake, but as history progressed, many nations came into being. Now, however, there are only two major ideologies -- those of communism and the free world. This is because at the time of the True Parents, God is making it clear for man to see what is wrong and what is right. True Parents said that within these three years of 1986, 1987, and 1988, you will see drastic changes. This is all because of True Parents' foundation.
To understand your purpose as Unification Church members, you have to understand that the root of the fall was individualism. If the archangel Lucifer had said to himself, "I do not exist except for the sake of my God," do you think the fall would have happened? If Adam and Eve had had an absolute standard of love for Heavenly Father, how could the fall have ever occurred? That is why having True Parents' standard is so crucial. Even though you are a Unification Church member doing a mission for True Parents, all your efforts are meaningless if you still haven't gotten rid of the fallen standards you inherited from this world. Because of those standards, you may even grumble about the True Family and judge them, saying things like, "Their lives are not as regimented as mine. How come?" That is the same kind of attitude Lucifer had towards Heavenly Father and Adam and Eve. You are not in the position of subject! Heavenly Father is the absolute subject, and on earth the ideal subject is True Parents. Even I, as a member of True Family, cannot be my own entity. If I were, I would perish, because my mind-set would be false. My soul, my life, and my breath exist for True Parents.
If I sound like I'm being critical, it's because I want you to inherit True Parents' standard. It is your destiny, and all mankind's destiny, to be the true children of Heavenly Father. But I also want you to be my true brothers and sisters.
The
True Children playing on the lawn when they were young.
What do ideal children seek? They want to be a carbon copy of their parents; they want to follow and do everything their parents do. What does a false, fallen child seek? His or her own individual standard! It is so crucial to set a true standard now, because many of you already have a four position foundation. Your children cannot understand True Parents when they are very young, so they will follow whatever standard you have. Can you sit here and look me straight in the eye and say you are living a tradition that is centered upon God every day? Can you say that you truly understand True Parents' heart and their total devotion to mankind? If you don't understand their standard, then how can you adequately serve and represent them? This is the dilemma.
At Heung Jin's last Day of Victory of Love ceremony, I said that people generally claim that even though they may have had difficulties in their relationship with their parents, it is their parents they feel closest to. That is because even fallen man wants to have an absolute standard of give and take. In the fallen, materialistic world, the most absolute relationship exists between parent and child. No matter what, physically the parent will always be the parent, and the child will always be the child. How much more should you, in the internal realm of your relationship with True Parents, cherish that absolute standard? Many of you haven't truly understood the value of True Parents. I myself am finding out their value more and more every day. As I grow, the bond I have with them gets deeper every day. It should be the same with you.
What if somebody suddenly took away my child and he grew up with another family? From a physical standpoint, he would grow up to look like me and act like me because he has my genes, yet because of having been brought up by that other family, he would have a completely different foundation. Likewise, you are all sons and daughters of God it's just that false parents came and snatched you away. You should feel like shouting, "I want to go back to my original parents!" That's why when you first met Father and heard his words, you felt, "Wow! I don't want to leave! I want to hold on to this foundation forever!" Even though you have physical parents, you are still the child of God. You belong to God.
Some religions stress that the only way you can find salvation is through the institution of the church. But Yesu Nim [Jesus] taught that all men and women are the children of God. Look at me. I'm the son of Father and Mother. Do I have to go through some institution to get close to my parents? That bond is absolute! That is why God is so unrelenting in trying to save mankind.
When I first came to America, I was four years old. Ye Jin Nim was 12 and Hyo Jin Nim was 11. My older brothers and sisters really went through a lot. When we were growing up, our parents were always away. Sometimes for a few minutes on Sunday, Father would explain why they couldn't be with us and say, "I'm sorry, my children, that I cannot be a better parent to you. But I'm living for the sake of all mankind." As I reflect on these words now, they are such great words, but to a boy eight or 10 years old, how do you think those words sounded? I really felt pity for myself and for the rest of my brothers and sisters. I thought, "Why can't my parents be like other parents? This must be the most horrible life anybody can lead!" I didn't really know Mother and Father intimately -- I didn't have the kind of close relationship you need with your parents when you are growing up.
When I went to school, the kids would call Father "Full Moon" and me "Half Moon." Everybody wants to inherit a standard of absolute love, and that's what I tried to give them. But they would whisper to their friends, "Don't make friends with him because he'll brainwash you." Every day I would come trudging home from school and I would call up some of the blessed children who were my friends, and even they would complain to me, saying, "My parents are always away on some mission!"
When we were young, we saw how so many people were thronging around Father and Mother at Sunday service, and we knew that our lives could never be our own We knew that people were going to look at us and judge Father and Mother based on our behavior.
When I was in middle school, I was third highest in my class. I was the captain of my football team and named Most Valuable Player (MVP). I was also MVP in lacrosse. All my teammates' fathers and mothers would come to our games. I was the star of the team, yet my parents were never there. My friends would say, "Where's your father and mother?" I'd tell them, "They're doing something else." Their parents would look at me and feel sorry for me. After a game there would be a picnic, and I would be there all alone. And at that age, it kind of crushes you a little.
Do you all know what a tragedy is, in the Shakespearian sense? A tragedy is when a heroic figure goes through an immensely difficult situation, and then comes to some kind of conclusion with a greater realization in the end. In a way, I can say my life was a tragedy, and the lives of all my brothers and sisters were tragedies, because we had to face so much at a young age. We didn't even have a childhood, really. This is the first True Family in mankind's history, and no one had a clear idea of how to attend or how to live for the sake of True Family. So when we were growing up, we were exposed to a lot of confusing things. We had to be taken care of by a lot of different people, and each of them had his or her own idea of how to treat us. Members couldn't really understand our situation or our position. All these years, I kept many frustrations inside me that were often overwhelming. And I'm sure all of my brothers and sisters would say the same thing.
A person growing up in that kind of lonely situation would most certainly begin to hate mankind, hate life, and hate his parents. But as my brothers and sisters come and stand here before you, showing you how absolutely united we are with True Parents, it seems like a total contradiction to what should have happened. In spite of that tragic foundation, the era in which we felt very confused ended when we became more determined to unite with the heart of True Parents. It's the outcome of a struggle that matters most.
In the past, you Unification Church members did not have the foundation you have now to receive True Family. The only way I or my brothers or sisters can come and speak to you now is because your standard has changed. Do you think that five years ago you were in the position to receive me the way I am?
Even people in the fallen world can sooner or later recognize the value of a person who lives for the sake of others, eventually calling them saints. Because of True Parents' foundation, the Unification Church has reached every country in the world within this 43-year period. Even though there is still some negativity toward our church, there is nevertheless an increasing openness now.
Rev.
Kwak smiles happily at a young Hyun Jin Nim carrying melons from the
offering table at East Garden.
Horseback riding is considered a very royal or elite sport, so when I go to horse shows, I come in contact with many wealthy people, and I try hard to make good relationships with them. Sometimes it's a drain on me emotionally, because some of them lead such immoral, decadent lifestyles. Slowly, however, the people in the equestrian field are coming to accept us, and more and more I see a willingness in them to find out about our church. People come up to me now and say things like, "How are you? How is your father?" and they ask me about my ideas. This kind of acceptance is happening today because
True Parents have put themselves in the position to love all mankind, and you as their children are in the position to receive the love of all mankind. This is the result of the principle of give and take.
Blessed children are very special. Their standard in serving True Parents and living for the sake of others is more absolute than yours. Blessed children are born without sin; therefore, they are born without the foundation of the fall. They're going to teach you a lot. Many East Garden staff members who have children tell me, "Oh, my son -- when he wants something, he won't stop crying. He is so stubborn! That nature doesn't come from me. I was never that stubborn!"
Do you want the Unification Church to die in the second generation? Do you want the Unification Church to exist only for a hundred years? The thing that will hold the Unification Church together is tradition. Should your own standard become the tradition? Think about it. Because the satanic tradition was passed down through all human history, the process of restoration is so difficult. Now that the heavenly tradition is being passed down from generation to generation, the foundation is going to get purer. Your children's foundation is going to be purer than yours.
All of you are going to create a four position foundation and will set the course for your children's future. First, you have to receive True Parents' standard and make it your tradition; then you can pass it on to your children. If you create the right kind of standard, mankind's future is restored, and all we have to do is restore mankind's past. With that foundation, we can truly create an ideal world.
At the time of its formation in 1776, America was the only nation that believed in such things as freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and that all men are created equal. This was not just coincidental -- this was God's dispensational course to create a foundation for True Parents. If there were a monarchial system today, do you think True Parents would ever be in a position to speak their opinion and be received by the rest of mankind? Never! That is why America's course has not been for itself but for the rest of the world.
After World War II, America was militarily and influentially the strongest nation, because she was the only nation with the atom bomb. America began to send troops to many countries that had no governments of their own and helped establish many democracies. After World War II, America was primarily a moral, Christian nation. There was a foundation in the free world that would have allowed Father to establish the Kingdom of Heaven within a seven-year period.
But today we see a decadent America that has no true moral standard and is plagued by things like the AIDS epidemic. More and more, people in other countries are saying, "Americans, go home! We don't need you anymore!" This is because America is not living up to its providential mission. If America had truly united with True Parents, how easily restoration could have taken place! If you truly want to be American patriots, you American members can't just be half-heartedly serving your country.
Fallen man needs a regimented life, or else he will let his physical body take over, creating chaos. The communists live a regimented life centered upon material, but in the church we live a regimented life centered upon God. Order centered upon love is much different from other orders because there is give and take between subject and object. In dictatorships there is no real give and take. The subject says, "You must follow me!" Hitler said he wanted to create an ideal world. He conquered all the nations of Europe, but why did his regime crumble within a five-year period? Because he centered his vision only on a physical basis. Many people who followed Hitler were opposed to him in their minds and in their hearts. True Father, on the other hand, always waits for us to willingly follow by the response of our original mind, which encourages us to give our wholehearted support to True Parents. If the subject just says, "Follow me!" all the subject will win over is that object's body. He will never win over the heart or the mind.
I'd
like to hug all of you, but I don't have arms big enough!
I have a very hard time overcoming my tendency to be impatient. In my equestrian training, at first I wanted everything to happen right away. If my horse wasn't performing correctly, I'd get so mad! No animal is so stupid as to want to have a person ride on his back and make him jump over a five-foot vertical barrier! If he had his choice, he would probably just go to the pasture and eat all day. When you ride, if the horse does not want to listen to you, you have to be more stubborn than he is. And if you get too mad, then you just make the horse more upset, and it takes longer for you to fix whatever problem there might be. So you have to sit there, constantly working with the horse to get him to respond to you in the right way. Sometimes it takes up to 30 minutes. After 15 minutes, your arms, back, and legs start to really ache.
It's not at all the same as when I ride the Barrytown horses, where I can just gallop as fast as I want. When a horse gallops, he normally gets more stretched out, but for jumping, you don't want him to get stretched out. You want his hind end to curl underneath so he is like a compact little ball. You do that by holding his head and constantly kicking him, driving that hind end underneath. If you don't constantly hold his head at the same time, he'll just go flying down the road.
After I ride just one horse, I sweat like anything! And I have to ride six of them every day. In the beginning I wanted results right away, but the more impatient I got, the worse the horses got, and the harder I had to work at it. I remember telling Father last year, "Oppa! I used to like it before when I just got on a horse and galloped along, but all this jumping is hard work!" Father said, "It's good training for you." Now my horses are coming along great, because I've learned patience and I don't get upset at them as easily as I used to.
Through riding, I've learned a lot about subject and object relationships. First of all, you have to have absolute unity between rider and horse. You have to know your horse and your horse has to know you. You may not like to sit here at Belvedere and listen when your physical body is saying, "I'm tired and I want to go home and rest!" It's the same principle for the horse -- he does not want to jump. But it's the rider who says to him, "You're going to do it!" It's painful for both horse and rider.
Riding is not easy. Sometimes you fall off and physically hurt yourself. My back got worse because of riding. My lower back takes a constant pounding. It's hard for me to sit. When I sit, it feels like my back is going to fall apart. It feels like my spine is not connected; as if I'm going to be split in half!
When you first joined the church and heard the Unification theology, you felt, "Wow! I want to share this with somebody!" You had a fire burning inside you, didn't you? How come that no longer exists? Ideally, the longer you are in the Unification Church, the more you should understand True Parents' standard and the more vigorous and energetic you should be, always striving to do better. Look at the reality though! You know it better than I do. I'm sorry to say, but that's why Father said, "If I had 100 true Unification Church members, I could have created the foundation for the Kingdom of Heaven within seven years." I am not saying that to judge you or make a conclusion. You have your own responsibility to change.
True Parents have been suffering too long. Father has been walking this 40-year course all alone. It's time that we as their children really vindicated them from their immense suffering. To me, what is truly valuable is to vindicate my parents from being misunderstood. That's my own conviction, and it's the conviction of all my brothers and sisters, too. How about you? They are your parents, too. When I was going through some of my old books and papers, I could see that in the past I really didn't know about my own Father's life. As I read about his life, I felt so many tears. How could I be so blessed to have such great parents? I felt so unworthy to be their son! But I'm not going to stop there. I'm going to try to be worthy! Do you think that just because you joined the church you can be called a son or daughter of True Parents? You have to become worthy. You truly have the greatest parents. My conviction is getting stronger every day. Yours has to, too. That's your five percent responsibility.
I just hope that through today, your conviction to become true sons and daughters of True Parents can be absolute. That's all my family could wish for. Then I'll be in the position to truly embrace you and say, "Welcome, my brother, welcome, my sister." You have to earn that right, do you understand? So are you determined? I'd like to hug all of you, but I don't have arms big enough.
Keep that fire burning within you -- never let it die out. The Vietnam War is a perfect example of what can happen when people lose their purpose. The United States had every opportunity to win that war, but Americans lost that desire within themselves. That's not going to happen to us, right?
I don't have the attitude that I can't make it in horseback riding, even though I know how many odds are against me. I've only been riding for three years. Nobody has gone to a Grand Pix after having trained only three years. But Un Jin and I are preparing to compete not only in the Grand Prix competition, but in the Olympics! That would seem impossible to most people. All of you, I know, want me to win. But even getting to ride in that competition will be a great victory in itself. The Korean riders have been riding for 20 years. The American riders have been riding since they were five. And they ride the best horses -- our horses are not even comparable. However, I'm going to fight like a true champion until the last breath.
Do you know who your worst enemy is? Yourself. Many times when Father gives a direction to leaders, they say, "Oh, it's impossible!" In that way they are defeating Father's direction and destroying the whole foundation Father laid to create that victory. That's why faith is so important. You can change by totally denying your own standard and receiving True Parents' standard. When I think of Unification Church members, I think ideally of true men and women of God, living for the sake of Heavenly Father. The outside world is saying, "Live for yourself!" But we Unification Church members are living for the sake of mankind. The individual standard cannot exist! I'm going to keep on saying that until you can look at your brother and say, "I'm going to love you more than I love myself. I'm going to love your children more than I love mine." We are Unification Church members. That means we are heavenly soldiers! I really admire some of those early Christian martyrs. They didn't have a physical manifestation of their Lord, as do you. How about us? Not only does the world have a true man now, but it has his bride, and it has the foundation of a true family. Those early Christians had such a strong commitment that they would willingly die for their beliefs. Sometimes I feel that they were more righteous than we are. How much more do we have to reach deep inside ourselves and let our original minds be subject and subjugate our body?
You truly are blessed people. Most people live day to day with no purpose, no direction. How scary that must be, to base one's existence only upon whatever happens day to day. You have a purpose, a goal, a conviction. You know what you're living for. You are creating value within yourself; without you, the ideal cannot exist. If you truly want to create the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, you have to believe it and live it and breathe it, absolutely following True Parents' standard. Just as every cell in a child comes from its parents, you have to strive to reach that point where every thought and every standard you have within you comes from True Parents. Be true parents yourselves. With that conviction, nothing can stop you.
Can you say you truly have faith in True Parents? No matter what the odds, we're going to march forward, right? Even to Moscow! Thank you.
Hyo Jin Moon's Remarks after Hyun Jin Moon's sermon on May 8, 1988, Belvedere.