The Words of Sun Myung Moon from 1987
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The Words of Sun Myung Moon from 1987 |
We have all known students of whom people say, "Oh, he is a very good student. He studies hard and always excels." What kind of people are such students? Those whose minds are never detached from their work, who don't allow extraneous thoughts in their minds. If such a student is majoring in a foreign language, in everything he reads or speaks he thinks of the equivalent words in that language. If you compare the mind of such a student to a color, it would be white. It would not be red or black or a mixture of colors. This means that his mind is always focused, consciously or unconsciously, on the goal of his study.
In a similar way, a good businessman always thinks in terms of the business he is engaged in. The same holds true with a research scientist. If a person is entrusted with researching some problem, everything he does and thinks is geared toward finding a solution. In other words, his research dissolves into his life. His life is just a continuation of his research.
What is a good friend? A friend is defined by how much he thinks of you. The more he thinks of you, the better a friend he is. If you think a lot about something, then without really trying too hard, your actions will go along with your thoughts. How your body acts depends on what you think about. People notice this. If you give a lot of thought to your family, your community, and your country, then people will call you a good family man and a good citizen. If a person thinks about and works for the sake of the universe from the day he is born and assimilates that concern into everything he does, the universe will say, "That person lives for the universe. He is truly a good person."
Today's topic is prayer. I'm not talking about a prayer where you set aside a little bit of time and pray, but the type of prayer where you pray almost continuously all day long while doing your daily activities. I'm talking about one consistent prayer, a lifestyle of prayer. Whit, you are eating, your mind is focused on your prayer; while you are walking or talking with other people, your ultimate desire is your prayer.
We all have to experience this kind of prayer. The first step is to rearrange our minds, our thoughts, and our ideas. Since our thoughts are subject, our thinking has to be stable, because our body responds as an object to our minds. So first we have to have a firm goal. What is our goal?
God is our subject, isn't He? Because God is our subject, we want to carry out everything according to what God wishes, not what we ourselves prefer. Our purpose is to do whatever God wants to achieve. This is very important.
When I pray, actually, for whom do I pray? What would be more appealing to God -- that I pray for the sake of myself or for the sake of God? Since I pray for the sake of God, I come on the scene only secondarily: first God, then me as God wishes me to be. My preference is always to be on the side that God is on. If God is on the east side, that's the side I want to be on. But if I pray and find out that God wants me to be on the west side, I must say, "Yes, I want to go to the west side" If I think, "No, I want to be on the east side no matter what You think;' then my prayer really doesn't work. God has a purpose for us. God is the main theme of prayer. This you should never forget. You don't have to pray too much about yourself. Those who pray for themselves will decline, and those who pray for God and the rest of the world will rise.
Most Unification Church members know that the world is the objective of prayer, so all day long they think about the world and maybe for a few minutes they verbalize it and pray, "Oh, Father, please help us work today for the sake of the whole world and for You!" That prayer is more powerful than a prayer for small things all day long. Those small prayers are like leaves and twigs on a tree, whereas the other kind of prayer is like the trunk.
God's ultimate goal is world salvation. Contrary to the belief of most Christians, their denomination is far less important than the world, and the individual is even less important. The salvation of Christianity is important, yes, but God would sacrifice even this for the salvation of the whole world. This is not rhetoric.
After the Americans won the war in 1945, they began to become confused, and by the 1960s America was declining. That was when Kennedy was assassinated and Dag Hammarskjold was killed. When America began to drastically cut its foreign aid, the country started to plummet because it was going against God's will. Until then, the world had looked up to America with hope and love and respect, but after that, you just heard, "Yankee, go home!" When America and established Christianity both failed in carrying out God's dispensation, the Unification Church took over. The Unification Church became the sacrifice in their place and totally took responsibility for God's will.
Do you thoroughly understand the root of the Unification Church? It is Rev. Moon, of course. Actually, to describe me is not that difficult. I am a person who thinks like God, that's all. I'm on God's side. The main theme is not me, nor is it the Unification Church. The ultimate theme is God. However God wants it, I will do it that way. For me, God is the main theme, but since God also prays for things to happen in the future, I am God's main theme.
God has to restore the entire world, and to do that He needs a central person and a central group. Through me and my work, God is trying to restore the whole world. Therefore, I have an unmistakably clear view of what the world will be like in the future. What I predict always comes true because I clearly understand God's formula through which He works His dispensation. God is the center of our prayer; therefore, we have to understand His formula so we can pray in accordance with His desire.
(Father draws a chart.)
English
version of the chart Father drew.
First, we need to establish a firm understanding of the relationship between God and man. Today, in all other religions except the Unification Church, this idea is unclear and ambiguous. However, we know that the relationship between God and man takes place on eight levels: God and the individual, God and the clan, God and the race, etc. God has an image of what the races will be like in the future, what the nations will be like, and what the cosmos will be like. And God knows what He Himself will be like. From the very beginning you were taught that you have to go through each level. You are clearly going through that path in the wake of my pioneering.
The primary thing you have to understand is the relationship between God and yourself. Eventually you can pray for the sake of yourself, but you have to go through the proper sequence. You don't just throw words away and hope they will be listened to. Not at all. Rather, you have to be consistent and go along with the order of all things. You have to say, "Our Father, my goal is even beyond my family. My goal is saving this country, but before I save this country, my family has to be unified. We are having a problem of unity in our family. So please, God, I will do whatever you want me to do, but please help us establish our family in Your way." Do you understand? You have to look at God from a very valuable position. You have to see yourself not through your own eyes but through God's eyes, in the order that God looks at you.
Secondly, we have to understand responsibility and indemnity. If the fall hadn't taken place, there would be no purpose in having religion. Everyone would already be living joyously with God. But we cannot do that. We need to fulfill our five-percent portion of responsibility. The individual has a certain responsibility to God, the family has a certain responsibility to God, and so on. Step by step, we have to come all the way up to the place where God originally created man to be.
Because of the fall, Satan came into being. Satan does not want to let us go. In order to shake loose from Satan, we must do something Satan cannot do -- that is, pay indemnity. Without paying indemnity, we cannot fulfill our portion of responsibility. Only by fulfilling our responsibility can we reach the world of love. So we have to pay indemnity, separate from Satan, and fulfill our portion of responsibility, in that order. Anyone in the indirect dominion must fulfill his responsibility before he can go up to the direct dominion of God. If we are accompanied by Satan,
God certainly cannot accept us. We have to know this clearly or else we cannot go the path.
In the original creation, we wouldn't have had to restore anything; we would have just lived as we were designed to live. But because of the fall there is a tremendous gap, there is an insurmountable wall, and we have to go over that wall. So when we pray, we shouldn't pray vaguely or ambiguously. We must pray, "God, this is the way the original creation was, but I am not that way, nor is the rest of mankind. I need to go up to the original place and be an object to You. So you have to help me" We can have a really powerful prayer this way. God cannot deny it because this is the Principle.
Of course it is painful to pay indemnity. It can never be really enjoyable. Joy is not a word associated with indemnity. We can enjoy ourselves and be happy in the presence of Satan, but that happiness is part of the satanic world. That is not our goal. Most American members still seem to have an ambiguous idea of happiness. They complain, "Why can't I be happy in the world while treading along God's way?" However, we cannot. While paying indemnity we cannot feel joy. If we are always happy, there must be something wrong. Only after paying indemnity can we be joyful for the moment.
Why is the Messiah necessary? Why can't you reach perfection yourself? Well, you didn't fall, your ancestors did. The Messiah makes up for what your ancestors did. After he does that, you can fulfill your portion of responsibility, which is far less than what the Messiah has to do. Actually, only a true family can go to the highest level. Fallen individuals and families have no qualification to go there. To gain this qualification, you have to go through the Messiah.
Looking back at history, you can see a clear pattern. Only after Jesus came could God's dispensation of salvation and restoration actually begin. The first attempt at recreating a true Adam and a true father/son relationship was made at that time. We know in great detail to what extent Jesus accomplished his mission and why Jesus has to come again. He must come in both spirit and flesh. In the same way, we need to be restored in both mind and body by fulfilling our portion of responsibility.
The third thing we have to consider is the Cain/Abel relationship. Cain is still working in the world today and still occupying the elder son's position. Today, the democratic world is on the Abel side and the communist world is on the Cain side, but neither side understands God or His dispensation. Therefore, somebody has to teach the democratic world about this relationship and help it in its task of digesting the communist world. Digesting means clarifying the problems and solving them. The Cain/Abel relationship is restored on eight levels: the individual Cain/Abel relationship, the family Cain/Abel relationship, and so on. In restoring this relationship, we have to go through a similar process of indemnity.
The fourth main point is the transfer of lineage from the false to the true. We have to transfer our lineage on the individual level, the family level, and all the way up. The world should be of the proper lineage, not the satanic lineage. Accomplishing this is the Messiah's chief role. For any individual to change his lineage, he must have the right ancestry. The role of the Messiah, the root of all beings, is to establish this ancestry.
Each fallen individual is destined to go through restoration and become the true object of God. He needs to do that, but he himself is helpless. He doesn't have the right ancestry; thus the Messiah must come and help him. The Messiah restores the individual's true lineage, helps him to resolve the Cain/Abel relationship, and teaches him to fulfill his portion of responsibility. After that, there can finally be a normal relationship between God and man.
During these many years, I have been more than breaking my back to make a foundation for mankind to follow this path of restoration. Now the dispensation has advanced to the point where the fog seems to have lifted. Now the doctrine of Godism -- the real, true philosophy -- is visible to everyone. A few years ago no one understood it, but now people do. You see, the dispensation went exactly according to this formula. These are the most essential points in man's restoration history, yet until now there was no human being on earth or in the spirit world who knew about this.
If Christianity had united with me in 1945, within seven years God's plan would have been accomplished. But because it didn't, I had to reindemnify, in a span of 40 years, the entire 4,000 years of history from the time of Abraham. This is what the Unification Church is all about. The seven years from 1985 is the time allowed to reshuffle and reorganize everything and to reach the world level. The roles of the free world and the communist world -- what position they should be in and how they should conduct themselves -- will become more and more apparent. Everyone on both sides will come to know this within these seven years.
Now we are in a period of conversion into a completely new world; it is not merely an extension of the old. First we must know what is going on in God's timetable, and then we have to pray according to God's plan. Otherwise our prayer is insignificant.
You have just listened to the real crux of the Principle. You must clearly have this chart, this formula, in mind when you pray to God. You should get rid of all of your thoughts, all the junk, and replace it with this chart. Think about this every minute of the day, every second of every minute, actually, and live it; then you don't have to pray. Your life should be a prayer. At the end of the day, you can pray maybe five or ten minutes about this, since you now know it exactly.
You see, your role as the children is vastly less burdensome than the role of the parents. I did it all, amid fierce opposition and indescribable persecution, and all you have to do is believe my instructions and carry them out. What I am giving you is priceless, yet free of charge. And you are going to accomplish this without persecution, in a free environment. Don't ever think it was this way from the beginning -- never. This is the first time we have had an environment where there is so little persecution.
Every single prayer I ever dedicated to Heavenly Father was to tell Him I wanted to follow His plan, to do what He wants me to do, to be what He wants me to be. I never prayed for anything else. God told me, "This is the way I want it;' so I carried it out. You must do exactly the same thing. You have the standard of my lifestyle, so you must pray to follow me. You are historical individuals; therefore, you have to think as God thinks. What does God think about? He thinks of nothing else but people.
And what is God's real desire? He wishes that His own spirit could be manifested into everything.
You will be having your own children, and very soon you will stand in the True Parents' position. So you have to think about the four position foundation. This is one inseparable unit. Today, men and women love each other on some level, but the average American never thinks about God and doesn't trust his own children. The divorce rate is becoming sky-high. You can see how cruel Satan has been, and how successful. Everybody has become individualistic. It's easy for some people to think they have achieved their historical purpose. They think, "Yes, I'm happy. I did what I wanted to do in life Then a person on God's side just smashes their concept and says, "No! This is God's ideal. This!"
I have just explained the historical task of the Messiah, which is being carried out here in the most advanced country in the world. I am not doing this in Africa. I am doing this in 20th-century America, here where people's minds are full of trash. God has introduced the truth right here, and He wants to teach it to the American people. That is our goal and we are at the final stage of that goal.
You must pray to know what God's ideal and dispensation are. Pray to God that all this, centering on the True Parents, will be accomplished correctly. You can't pray about this just once or twice or three or four times a day. You have to pray this way from early morning until you go to sleep at night -- even while you sleep, 24 hours a day. I don't mean verbal praying but lifestyle praying. Our life must be a prayer.
We are going to repair all the precious ties of the four position foundation. Then we will go out to the satanic world and teach the people this and urge them to follow. Every one of us must go all over America and shout like crazy that this is it, this is what we have to do! If we do this, then we don't have to go off and pray by ourselves, because we are doing prayer, we are living prayer. Then God cannot but give us His help.
I paid indemnity with a real physical body, didn't I? In the same way, you have to pay indemnity by making the proper condition. There is no way you can do what I did, but if you devote everything you have into the task, it will be considered in God's eyes as if I had done it. That condition is home church. By your accomplishing home church, God will consider it as if you had accomplished world restoration. Do you understand?
You might forget about this chart; in fact, it is rather complicated for some. But what you should not forget in your daily life is that you are part of my family. You are part of the four position foundation with me at the top. You, as the offspring, should clearly establish that father/son relationship; then go out and set the condition of doing home church. If you do, what will happen? You will have the privilege of following me wherever I go. This is a tremendous privilege. This is not abstract at all, it is a clear formula.
In home church, all the elements are there: the transference of the true lineage, restoration of the Cain/Abel relationship -- everything. All will be accomplished when you do home church, and you will become a true extension of me. In other words, in my absence, you, as the home church director of your area, can give the Blessing to the people of your 360 homes. You can direct the matchings and the Blessings because that is what the True Parents do. How can I go out and perform all these ceremonies physically? It is impossible.
This is the time. This is the time when communism still reigns, so always pray while you work and keep all these things in your mind. Hold onto me tightly every minute of the day. Think of nothing else except uniting with me and doing home church. This is the work for America.
How is the Cain/Abel relationship restored? I am in the Abel position and you are in the Cain position. When you completely surrender and become one with Abel, then you have accomplished this. This is the real core of salvation. If you deny this Cain and Abel relationship with me, then you are in great personal trouble, aren't you? There is no other way. Indemnity and one's own portion of responsibility have everything to do with the Cain/Abel relationship. If you fulfill your portion of responsibility, then the Cain/Abel relationship is already fulfilled. Thus the Cain/Abel relationship is actually essential. Restoring this is almost synonymous with the solution of human history.
In the American government, there are the Democrats and the Republicans, locked in a Cain/Abel relationship. They are divided because of the fall; it was not man's devising. The relationship between the communist world and the free world is the same. Unless the Cain/Abel relationship is brought into the right order, we cannot say that man's portion of responsibility has been fulfilled. Your portion of responsibility can only be fulfilled as a result of the other three conditions.
You have always felt that I speak randomly, jumping from one topic to another, just like a spiritual being moving all around the cosmos, haven't you? But I am actually very consistent, because I am the master of these principles. I am never lost. My greatest historical achievements are described right here in the four columns of this chart. This formula is the essence of theology. If you understand this, you are a number-one theologian. All mankind has searched for these things. Until now, no person has ever established clearly what the relationship between man and God is, for example. If someone asks you, "Who is God?" you can answer, "God is our father, and we are His sons and daughters." That's it. It is so simple, yet there are tremendous contents in this chart to back this statement up, don't you think?
A son can inherit everything from his father, no matter how big or precious or noble he is. That is a son's right, for he is the heir. No matter how humble you are, I can bequeath everything to you. After I completely fulfill my portion of responsibility, Satan will see that I am in Adam's position. When the fall is totally indemnified, Satan, who has been persecuting and slandering Adam, will be shaken loose. He will have to leave Adam instead of clinging on. Only by solving the Cain/Abel relationship can I advance to the elder sonship. I can inherit the world from God Himself.
I know that inside God, I stand at the point of the original human ancestry, in Adam's position. The world is in the second son's position, not the first son's position anymore. When the position of the first son is established, the transfer of the blood lineage will be almost automatic. All people have to do is just get married with the right lineage and they will automatically be on the True Family's side.
These four things -- who has done them for you? True Parents. You can only inherit all this if the father/son relationship has been established. Where can we inherit this? In home church. No matter what you do in your daily life, always pray about this in your mind, so that your daily life becomes a prayer. If you live this kind of life in your home church area, all will be accomplished.
Then what will happen? You can live with True Parents forever and ever, not only here but in the hereafter, and eventually you can live with God. This won't be the indirect dominion, as it is now, but the direct dominion, as it was supposed to be. Isn't that what the Principle says? By doing home church, you will experience this. This will affirm that what you are doing is right.
All I am concerned about is doing God's will. I want to liberate mankind from ignorance and from his hellish state to the original lineage. You too must join with me completely. When you witness to a person, you shouldn't think about anything else except: "I am going to save him by this formula, not by anything else."
Actually, compared with what you know from listening to me today, your life in the past was outside of the Principle. Sometimes you went here, and sometimes you went there -- total inconsistency. Even though you were taught the Principle, you just let it remain a concept. Sometimes you felt it, and sometimes you didn't feel it. You didn't listen to your elder members. Sometimes the Principle didn't occupy your mind at all. This is really an absurd tragedy. But now you know clearly that I am your Abel -- not your leaders.
If you receive persecution, you should think, "Well, this persecution is inevitable. Father's course was much, much more difficult. This is not bad at all. I am glad to follow his course There is nothing you cannot persevere through. If you know your king, nothing can discourage you. When things become rough and you want to quit, think, "I have to go over this or bust. If I can't go over this, Satan will be with me forever, and I won't be able to stand that." You must push yourselves and make that your motivation.
You can never entertain separating from me because this is absolutely real. There is nothing more real than this. Without going through this, you cannot get into heaven. Some people say, "The Unification Church teaches beautiful things" These so-called beautiful teachings were discovered by me, going laboriously every step of the way. Every inch of these teachings was fought for, won, and occupied with tears, sweat, and blood.
I have never let up my pace. As a result, even though I don't really remember how everything happened, all kinds of people are now coming to me, even in the spirit world. Buddha is telling his followers on earth about me, so they are coming and asking for my guidance. Muslims are also coming. A Muslim from Senegal was recently guided to me. This man came thousands of miles because the spirit world told him, "Go find Rev. Moon in America" He found where I was through a New York taxi driver. This is the work of God; it is not the work of the Unification Church. So actually, we are working side by side with God. God is right here. When we have difficulties, we should tearfully ask God, "You must have gone through all this before me. I don't mind suffering, because Your will must be done" When we pray this way, miracles will happen. Become a specialist. Our specialty is this formula. To find this formula, I thought this way, that way, and upside down. I attacked the problem from every conceivable direction to come up with this understanding, and now I have taught it to you.
I have absolute confidence in you. Let us wipe out our past lifestyle and be reborn into a new mode of life in 1987. Those who say, "Yes, Father, I pledge to go through this and begin a new life!" raise your hands. Thank you.