The Words of Hyo Jin Moon
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The Words of Hyo Jin Moon |
Thailand
representative returns the championship banner to Hyo Jin Nim
Distinguished guests and fellow students:
It is a great pleasure to once again address the world students gathered here for the annual CARP convention.
I hope the time we spend together in this beautiful city of Paris will be enjoyable and memorable for you and that you will have an opportunity to experience the rich cultural heritage of the French nation.
Since our first convention in Korea in 1984, these gatherings have always been very exciting and have inspired great hope among the participants. Whenever thousands of young people from more than 84 nations gather in one place for such a noble purpose, it is bound to encourage feelings of optimism and expectation.
But this year is especially exciting. As we meet here in Paris in August 1990, it is perhaps easier than ever to see the potential in our world for universal peace and friendship. We have not yet seen the end of tyranny but it is clear, judging from current events, that tyrants who prey on their weaker neighbors will face a world united in opposition against them.
Since we met in London last year, our world has experienced some remarkable changes which were unthinkable a year ago.
Many of you attended the fourth CARP Convention in Berlin in 1987. I hope you still have vivid memories of our march to the Berlin Wall. There were songs of liberation and we prayed together with our hands on that wall which had divided Berlin since 1961. The banners read "De Mauer Mus Veg" ("The Wall Must Go") and I am sure many Berliners saw us as naive and idealistic dreamers.
But that dream has become a reality. The wall has gone! With the help of these university students, the heavy cloak of oppression has been rolled back and most of the nations of Eastern Europe are free to decide their future direction.
The relationship between the superpowers is improving almost daily and we are witnessing a truly remarkable degree of friendship and cooperation.
But the real importance of all these changes lies not so much in their immediate results as in the opportunities which they provide. It is not a time to sit back and expect that new freedoms in Eastern Europe will somehow produce universal happiness.
The experience of the United State shows us that political freedom and material prosperity offer no guarantees of a healthy society. Crime, prejudice, disease and drug abuse continue to plague the American cities. Clearly, this is a time that demands our involvement.
In spite of these continuing social problems, we find ourselves presented with a unique opportunity to assist and to participate in the shaping of a new world order.
This is a time when many of the world's nations are discussing the ideological foundations of their future development. Marxism-Leninism has clearly been exposed as a flawed and outdated worldview while democracy also seems incapable of resolving the problems which divide humanity.
At such a time, it is appropriate that we are gathered here in France, the birthplace of many of the ideas that have shaped our world. From Jean Jacques Rousseau to Jean Paul Sartre, French philosophers have been major contributors to the discussion of human life.
The question which particularly concerns us here is, "What will be our role in the 90s? How can the world's students best seize the opportunity of these times?"
Our first task is to lead and encourage a spiritual renaissance as a precondition to social, economic and political progress. Universal values such as love, honesty and fidelity represent the foundation of a healthy society.
When we recognize God as our common parent then we can regard all of humankind as one family. Without a spiritual renaissance, apathy, cynicism and moral decay will prevail on our campuses. Disillusionment will continue to lead young people into self-serving materialism.
It is up to us to make God's true love a reality for the world's young people. But most importantly, we must put into effect true love as the basis of our values. Since true love cannot be formed without a reciprocator it is clear that sacrificing for others is the way to attain true love. Indeed, this is the principle in which agents involved in the process of reciprocation must abide.
The unity of man and God is never a simple thing to accomplish. This is because of the disunity between the mind and the body. The desires of the body are often in conflict with the principles to which the mind adheres and can weaken our commitment to them.
This is why Rev. Moon's teaching emphasizes the importance of the unity of the mind and the body and the need for an ideology which can strengthen our resolve and our commitment to a God-centered life.
Unificationism promotes the family as the cornerstone of society since it is there that we form our worldview and learn how to relate to others. What then, is to be done about the declining health of the institution of the family? Can we legislate family unity? Will increased funding be the solution? Clearly not.
The one thing we can do to restore the health of the family is to become true parents ourselves. We must make God the center of our marriages and allow God's true love to flow through us to our children. Our children should know clearly of God's existence through the unconditional love that we as parents give to them.
Hyo
Jin Nim welcomes the 1500 people attending the Opening Ceremony
The joy we experience in love is the very purpose of God's creation. In other words, the intoxicating joy of true love is the purpose of life. The more we invest ourselves for the sake of others, the more we experience what it really means to be alive.
This is especially true when we become parents. We want our children to be better than us and we do everything to make their lives more fulfilled than ours. This is God's heart and it is as true parents that we will experience God's hope and desire for mankind.
This parental heart is the very core of real leadership. When you relate to other people from a heart of love, you will naturally become a respected figure in your community and your nation.
In addition to becoming true parents, we also need to become true teachers, committed to what we know to be true and able to convey God's Will with a heart of love. Through our service in our communities we need to be examples that others will want to emulate.
Thirdly, we should be true owners, treating all things, including the created world, as holy. A true owner feels a sense of responsibility for the things in his environment and invests his energy in caring for them. With this heart, we can restore the right relationship of harmony between humankind and the world around us.
As true parents, true teachers and true owners, we can be the leaders for whom God is searching. This is the teaching of Rev. Moon. My father is particularly concerned about the role of students in the 90s. This is why in June of this year, he invited 380 students and professors from the Soviet Union to visit the United States. They visited New York and Washington D.C. where they were given a firsthand experience of American society and culture.
Also, they studied Rev. Moon's teaching about true love and the creation of God's ideal on this earth. My father hopes that these young men and women will become respected leaders who can inspire others by their example of integrity, industry and public service.
I am happy to see that some of those students and professors are with us today. Their presence here is the clearest indication of the way in which our world is changing.
When Rev. Moon met with Mr. Gorbachev in Moscow in April of this year, he expressed his love and support for the Soviet Union as it goes through this period of transformation. In his address to the World Media Association he told the Soviet people, "You are undertaking a new Soviet revolution, but this should be a revolution without blood or bullets -- a revolution of the heart and soul."
History records many heroic deeds of student revolutionaries. The recent history of Eastern Europe shows how we students can make a significant contribution to social and political change. But the change that is now most desperately needed in our world is not political but spiritual. The final war which needs to be fought is inside ourselves; it is the struggle between the mind and the body: from selfishness to unselfishness.
Let your conscience be your constant internal teacher. Like a parent, your conscience urges you to be a good, unselfish individual and guides you to do the Will of God.
As this decade of the 90s progresses, the year 2000 will increasingly become a focus of hope and expectation. The people of the world will look to the dawn of a new millennium as the opportunity for a new beginning. If that hope is to be fulfilled, it will be by a new generation of leaders, proud of their cultural, ethnic and religious heritage but united by a common, God-centered vision of a unified world.
As you return to your campuses, please think seriously about the contribution which you will make in this time of hope. Make a determination to never give in to apathy and cynicism or to compromise your ideals in selfish materialism.
Live your life for the sake of God and mankind and become an example for your family, your campus, your nation, and your world. With God's help, we will gather again in the year 2000 to celebrate a world where all can live in peace and where all will know the intoxicating joy of true love.
May God bless you all!
The
enthusiastic European team prepares for the Hanmadang Games
The Academic Alumni Association of Europe was formed by President Won Pil Kim. Its members are graduates of the Unification Theological Seminary.
Following on the coattails of a successful and action-packed CARP Convention in Paris, the scene was set for the third meeting of the Academic Alumni Association (AAA), the first such event having taken place at its founding in November of last year, the second at Glory House in March of 1990.
Commencing on August 26 at 10:30 a.m., and running through until the early evening of the next day, we gathered at the French Headquarters in Paris, setting into motion a meeting which would have "flexibility" as its internal theme.
The first morning, each of the AAA members in attendance gave an account of their experiences -- from their graduation from the Seminary or completion of their doctoral studies, up to the present date. Because we converged from various missions, our discussion was rather interesting.
For instance, Tirzy Martin (France) and Christine Cheve-Floria (Italy) were able to relay their experiences in Poland and Romania, respectively; Colette (German CARP) shared of welcoming 120 guests to Regelsmuhle for an overnight stay enroute to the CARP convention; and Steve O'Connor (Britain) shared of his pioneering in York, England. In addition, David Fraser Harris (Italy) told of his work with RYS in Europe, IRF in Italy, and having recently returned from the Assembly of World Religions in San Francisco; he described this monumental event to such an extent that each one of us felt as if we had participated ourselves.
This glowing account by David was expanded in the afternoon session which described the RYS project in Poland, followed by Diet r Schmidt who elaborated on the strides being taken by CAUSA in Europe now that the Berlin Wall has fallen!
Tying into our internal theme of "flexibility," Mr. Sa, the European CARP President, unexpectedly joined us in the early evening to give a brief report on the CARP Convention. He said that Hyo Jin Nim was very happy with this year's convention, even though there were major disturbances thwarting the running of the various events. He spoke at length about Joe Longo and his band, the "Ancestors."
The next day's program began with a morning service offered by Ulrich Tuente, who started to give his prepared lecture on Unification Thought, entitled "The Theory of Original Nature." However, this intended full lecture was prematurely called to a halt by the arrival of Pres. Won Pil Kim at our meeting place.
President Kim explained that he wanted each of us to "...be a locomotive for the European Providence, going ahead. Each one of you should be a leader in your area and a leader in your nation... I want you to be an example to your family, in your church, and to your nation." Moreover, he instructed us to become teachers of Unification Thought, so as to teach the socio-political leaders of our nations, and advised us to make a move in "the eastern direction".
After these few words, we had a quick lunch with Pres. Kim and literally raced to the Trianon Palace Hotel to join in a meeting with Mr. Dong Moon Joo, who was to address the European Leaders. For us it was delight to listen to his testimony, in which he gave the external and internal background on the International Federation for World Peace, explaining in depth our True Father's desire in the creation of this worldwide peace federation.
However, this moving speech did not bring our AAA two-day meeting to a close -- rather, at Pres. Kim's suggestion, Roger Johnstone testified concerning his role at the convention. He was not only Master of Ceremonies for the main convention, but was also responsible for Hyo Jin Nim's band, Joe Longo's band, and for overseeing all the musical small points surrounding the convention.
And so our third meeting was called to an end -- a meeting in which our hearts were drawn together, forming what we would hope to be, as Pres. Kim asked of us, "a pillar of Europe"!
The CARP Convention originates from the time when Father went to Danbury and was established to restore mankind's mistake of sending True Father to prison. Whatever Father decides has a deep and providential meaning, and the Seventh CARP Convention was no exception.
This Convention was special from an historical point of view. Last year, France celebrated the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. The original ideals of the Revolution -- freedom through the guarantee of basic human rights -- were noble and principled. However, the revolution was not centered on God and as a result terror and bloodshed broke out, claiming thousands of innocent lives.
The "Terror" of 1793 was aimed particularly against all forms of religious authority. Through the Revolution, France became the center for the godless ideology of communism.
This year's CARP Convention also fell on the same day as the liberation of Paris during the Second World War on August 25, 1944. The Convention represented the spiritual liberation of Paris. Father has invested a great deal in France in the past and through this Convention this investment could finally bear fruit.
From the beginning we knew that it would be a great challenge to succeed in organizing such a large public event in France.
Over the past years, French officials have always attempted to stop our movement from holding events and public meetings. Added to this, our full-time membership in France was not large. Despite these factors we were determined to bring victory to God and True Parents. After meeting with the French National Leader and European CARP President Mr. Sa, I proceeded to book the halls for the Convention during the final months of last year. However, only a few months before the Convention could we find a suitable venue for the Hanmadang Games.
All the French CARP members did extensive prayer and fasting conditions as well as Il Jong prayers at all the venues. This was a very good experience as France has a very strong Christian foundation.
Up until the last 40 days we had to manage with a very small Convention team. As we did not have enough members to seriously prepare everything we were fortunate to receive a large mobilization team from all over Eastern and Western Europe which eventually grew to 70 people.
In the last 40-day period I could really feel the serious prayers of our elder brother Hyo Jin Nim for a victorious convention. Through Hyo Jin Nim's prayers every event could take place without any major problems.
In the CARP Convention there were 5 major events, ranging from the Opening and Closing Ceremony, which were for CARP members only, to the Main Convention where we had at least 2000 other guests. All these events take months of preparation. Added to this is the problem of providing food and accommodation for CARP members from all over the world. However, despite the external difficulties we could still focus on the all-important internal aspect of the convention.
As Hyo Jin Nim told us, this Paris convention represented the completion of the 7 stages in the evolution of the CARP Convention. The 8th Convention will establish a new providence. That is why a complete victory was necessary.
I was determined to do everything to ensure a victorious meeting for True Parents. The fear of losing the beautiful Convention hall though negativity haunted the depths of my mind for many months. I prayed so many times for the French saints and patriots to protect this place, and amazingly nothing stopped us from holding the Main Convention at the Palais des Congres. For this we must be grateful to God and True Parents.
It was truly a blessing for France to welcome for the first time to the CARP Convention brothers and sisters from Eastern Europe. These Eastern European students could attend the Convention through the victory of the collapse of the Berlin Wall. This convention really represented the fruit of all of Father's hard work to overcome communism.
Right from the start of the convention, at the Opening Ceremony, Hyo Jin Nim was happy and in high spirits. With 1500 people attending, Hyo Jin Nim expressed how he felt there was a good atmosphere. He stated this event was possible only because of True Parents' sacrifice, and that we should be constantly grateful to them. Hyo Jin Nim emphasized that all of his and our achievements are based upon our True Parents' sacrificial course.
The Symposium went very well. Held in the modern CNIT Conference center at La Defense, the Paris financial district, the event attracted 1200 participants, including a number of leading academics headed by Dr. Morton Kaplan.
A press conference was held with two leading daily newspapers, two television networks, one radio station and five magazines. Although two reports were negative, on the whole the media coverage of this Convention was better than that received by previous conventions. Naturally, it must be hard for journalists to write negative reports when an event held by Father is a success!
Just before the Main Convention, the biggest event, I was extremely concerned for the protection of the True Children and that we could fill up the hall. Many people doubted that we would be able to fill the 3700 seat Palais des Congres, the prestigious venue for the Main Convention.
Thankfully, with God's help and protection, and through our strength and determination, we could fill the Convention Hall: 4,000 people came, including 2,500 guests and members of World CARP and around 1,500 French guests. I really felt that this festival, held in such a magnificent place as the Palais des Congres, could serve as a unifying force for bringing together East and West, and thereby become a landmark in the history of restoration.
When the moment came for the ceremony to begin and for all the delegates to come on to the stage, I could feel that the spirit of Hyo Jin Nim and Nan Sook Nim was working hard to ensure that the final touches were well-placed.
Dr. Kaplan gave an important speech which testified to the heart and determination of our True Father. Dr. Kaplan shared the history of his long involvement with Father's projects, and gave a stirring testimony about True Father's activities.
In the intermission Hyo Jin Nim expressed his pleasure with the way in which the Convention was going. He warmly thanked Dr. Kaplan for sharing our Father's efforts with the media and PWPA. A wonderful relationship was struck between Hyo Jin Nim and Dr. Kaplan; they both stood up and related to each other their love for music, the result being that Hyo Jin Nim invited Dr. Kaplan to edit his tapes in the Manhattan Studios!
In the second half of the Main Convention, the full hall was entertained by dance performances from several countries, most notably from Eastern Europe. The highlight of the evening was the musical performances of the electronic keyboard maestro, Mr. Takimoto, the Japanese band "Sunrise Ocean," and the incredible New York rock group "Ancestors," led by Joe Longo. The manager of the Palais des Congres even asked the Ancestors to come back and perform again.
When we returned to Hyo Jin Nim's hotel after the festival had finished, we ate the victory cake with Hyo Jin Nim and Nan Sook Nim who were so happy with the Convention. We felt a very high spiritual atmosphere. I felt that all our investment had been fulfilled though this victorious Main convention. The hall had been filled with 4000 people -- we had managed to reach our goal! To see Hyo Jin Nim so embracing and joyful was for me the greatest possible gift from Heaven.
The 25th of August was vitally important to clinch the final victory for True Parents. Unfortunately we faced some opposition from the Secretary of the local city hall. I sensed that Satan was so upset by the success of the Convention that he could not just stand by and watch. I felt it was a direct attack by Satan to try to prevent Hyo Jin Nim from speaking.
However, through our determination we could continue with the Hanmadang Games, and Hyo Jin Nim was still able to speak through a loudspeaker after the stadium officials cut off all electricity. The Games concluded with victory for the United States, Europe coming in second position and South East Asia placed third.
The closing ceremony began with a speech from Hyo Jin Nim, the World CARP President, asking us to be more responsible and to take an active part in changing people's attitudes toward True Parents.
After passing the Convention flag to the Korean CARP leader, Reverend Bon Tae Kim, we had the privilege to see Hyo Jin Nim perform several songs with some blessed children. The atmosphere was tremendous -- we all stood up and danced, so moved by the music!
During this time I had the unique opportunity to attend Hyo Jin Nim closely and understand his heart better. The brothers and sisters who worked to prepare this Convention told me that it was the most precious gift that they could receive to come closer to deeply understanding Hyo Jin Nim's and Nan Sook Nim's heart.
We all need to connect to the heart of the second generation; through attending the True Children, the blessing from True Parents can be substantialized.
I would like to conclude with some words from Hyo Jin Nim: "If you can do this much for this convention, then you can do even better for next year's World Festival of Culture in Korea."
He said further that we should never forget the sacrifice of True Parents. Hyo Jin Nim said that his only desire for this Convention was that it could bring glory to True Parents. We should also act in a responsible way, seeking to offer every good achievement to True Parents, and to take personal responsibility for any mistakes which we make.
For the first time, this year's CARP Convention included participation of students from Eastern Europe. When members of our movement in the various East European nations started to rally for the event, it raised considerable interest; East European students have been deprived of contacts with the outside world for almost four decades. Hundreds attended 2-day seminars in order to qualify to attend the CARP Convention in Paris. This way we could find many young people who were seriously interested in the Principle.
At a 21-day Divine Principle workshop held in Budapest, Hungary following the CARP Convention, several participants offered reflections of their experiences at the CARP Convention. There were two things which really caught the hearts of these young students: First and foremost they were deeply moved by the personality and leadership of World-CARP President Hyo Jin Moon.
Maria, a 24-year old language graduate from Zagreb, Yugoslavia commented, "1 was deeply impressed by the quality of Hyo Jin Nim's character. He is a truly powerful young man. His value is magnified by the fact that he can control his energy. In this way he is an ideal for young people, because he can inspire young people to take responsibility for building a better world." Sandor, a medical student from Budapest, has already studied the Principle for two years, but it was for him the first opportunity to meet members of the True Family: "I knew that the True Children are the way to True Parents; but by meeting Hyo Jin Nim I deeply and personally felt that it is so. It was surprising how quickly I could feel that he was really my elder brother. I could also see on the faces of other students that he could reach them immediately, too."
Hyo Jin Nim could win the hearts of East European students in many ways. One of them was through the "international language" of music when he performed with his band at the Closing Ceremony. Says Greg, a 21-year old student of law from Warsaw: "I myself am a guitarist, so I was impressed with the feeling with which he played the guitar. I could not imagine something like that before. We can compare his playing with such great guitarists as Bibie King or Mark Knopfler from Dire Straits." And Jadwiga, who studies history in Krakow, Poland commented "I was impressed by how true his expression is, and how he can reach the heart of young people, especially when he sings."
Besides meeting Hyo Jin Nim, the second thing to catch their hearts was experiencing the unity between brothers and sisters from all over the world which made the event unforgettable. Roman, a student from Prague and leader of CARP in Czechoslovakia, remembers: "I felt during the pre-Convention mobilization and during the Convention that we are in the center of God's Providence, and that everything we did was very significant, particularly toward the establishment of unity between young people from Eastern and Western Europe. I was moved to see how everyone was giving his or her best, and also by the care elder brothers and sisters provided, especially by Mr. Sa's taking care of us. Sandor reflected, "The most impressive part of the Convention for me was the moment we arrived at Paris and met brothers and sisters from all over the world. Previously we could only meet East European members. Now, for the first time, we could feel a beautiful international spirit."
The beautiful program provided for, many inspirations and insights into the dynamics of true give and take. "I was very moved when I saw how brothers and sisters participated in the Hanmadang Games, how beautifully they served as masters of ceremonies, as sportsmen and sportswomen, and also as an enthusiastic audience," says Gregory, a 22-year old student of physics from Krakow. He also had his taste of music changed due to the high-standard performance of the artists during the Main Convention: "When the band Ancestors and Yashimoto played, I could feel Heavenly Father has a big heart and wants to embrace all people. I myself never liked Heavy Metal music before, but because the motivation of the band members was so good, I actually became fond of this music."
Overwhelmed by the blessing to have the opportunity to participate in such a historic event, many felt very indebted to God and True Parents. When Elisabeth, a Polish student, had the honor of presenting flowers to Nan Sook Nim, she felt "that we should offer her something of special value. I cannot offer just flowers. I looked for something we, the young generation, could offer, but could not find anything; it was very painful. S. I had the desire to pray to God to become a very pure generation like Hyo Jin Nim and Nan Sook Nim." A very beautiful offering, indeed.
Ulriche
Tuente delivers a Unification Thought lecture
On the occasion of the Seventh Convention of World Students, members and friends of World CARP have gathered together from over 80 nations. We are the future leaders of the world and must contribute to build a world of peace, leading mankind into a harmonious 21st Century.
We acknowledge that:
1. The crisis of universities and education have an important role among the youth problems of drug abuse, immorality and suicide;
2. Society cannot become better unless its leaders change their habits and their hearts for a stronger sense of responsibility and morality;
3. Selfishness and the misuse of science and technology are the main causes for the destruction of the environment in northern countries and the problems of poverty and hunger in southern countries.
We resolve:
1. To formulate a new vision of education by relating intellectual knowledge to the values of beauty and goodness centered on true love;
2. To contribute to raising heartistic and honest leaders for the future in order to create a harmonious society of liberty and justice;
3. To promote a new ethical standard in order to pursue the progress of humankind and to protect the environment and the beauty of the creation.
United in heart and hand, the 4,000 participants of this Seventh CARP Convention of World Students proclaim these resolutions to be the foundation upon which we will take responsibility to contribute to the establishment of international peace and harmony.