The Words The Kwak Family
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The Words The Kwak Family |
I have been thinking continually about how we must match our situation with that of True Parents in 1960, when Father started his own 21-year course. We want to be like him, to follow his direction and tradition, but so often we forget about the internal process he went through.
True Father doesn't like to share about his own sacrificial past. Usually he wants to encourage and guide us with hope and vision of the future. If it were possible, he himself would take all responsibility, because he doesn't want such a heavy burden to fall on us. Because we don't have enough faith, he usually talks to us about the wonderful future, not his serious past. But we must understand about his past, not only his expression of victory and glory.
Of course, he's our victorious Father, our victorious Parent, but he gained this victory not by a simple process, but rather by passing through a severe course. In those days, by his prayers, tears and humility, Father showed himself to be a religious leader completely devoted to God.
When I visited him recently, Father shared a story about the North Korean prison where he was held. Their strategy was to control prisoners by slowly starving them and demanding heavy work quotas. The prisoners could only hope that some relative would come to visit, for when they did, they usually brought rice or barley powder. Whoever received such powder would customarily share one spoonful with each of his cellmates and keep the rest for himself, because the hunger was so severe.
In jail, Father gained disciples through the guidance from the spirit world. He couldn't communicate openly, mainly at certain times, and even then only through eye contact. Think about how deep such communication must have been.
Normally, prisoners were so hungry that upon receiving such a spoonful of powder, they would put it in their mouth. But these disciples were determined to follow Father, so they would want to share this little bit of powder with Father, knowing his hunger. Their only chance to meet him was during the 10-15 minute lunch break, and even then there was no free communication.
It wasn't easy to keep the powder until then. In jail they could find only bits of newspaper or some other paper in which to wrap the powder. They would then keep it perhaps under the shoulder of their humble clothes, taking great care not to drop it while working. When the time came for lunch, they would look for Father and quickly pull out this small present, which was by then soaked with sweat. But True Father has never forgotten such wonderful gifts.
During these times, under great difficulties and dangers, just to preserve his physical life was sometimes all he could manage. Under such serious circumstances, he built his tradition.
In Korea, the early times of our movement were very much the same. No one could go fundraising; the leaders had no source of income. Because there was no financial foundation, many local church leaders spent many days fasting or survived on almost nothing at all.
When junior high school students heard Principle and joined the church and understood their leader's very severe lifestyle, they would leave their lunchbox at the church on their way to school. They would slip the food into the kitchen, without telling the leader. Then the leader would find this lunchbox, which became the source of his breakfast, lunch and dinner. While he ate from the lunchbox, you can imagine how his thoughts went to the young student who was fasting during lunch. Through this kind of sacrifice, the leaders and followers built their heartistic relationship.
When I was the Taegu regional leader, the meals at the church were so humble there was simply not enough to eat. However, even under severe persecution from their families, members would sometimes manage to bring a piece of meat or fish from their kitchen to the church. Following Father's tradition, many times I ate this kind of meat and fish. Even now when I have a wonderful meal, I remember these early times; a banquet cannot compare with meat or fish from a member's lunchbox.
Think about why Heavenly Father gave man all responsibility. It was because He expected man to inherit Heavenly Father's content and thus gain the title of "co-creator" through his own responsibility. Until man inherits the co-creator's position and reflects the Creator's nature, we cannot inherit His blessing. First we must become similar to Him. We have to copy His internal content. Likewise, if we expect to inherit True Father's tradition, then we have to be similar to him.
We want to take on our Parents' personality, character and attitudes. When Father gives Sunday service, he often smiles, laughs and jokes; on these occasions we can smile and laugh along and share a similar good feeling.
But when Father's internal heart is more serious, how do you feel? When we feel distant from Father, our original mind generally makes us uncomfortable. Have you experienced this?
When we see Father speaking joyful things, wonderful things and laughing, his way may seem easy. Then, even though we imitate him, we are copying his external process, his external form. Deeply and truly, by such an external process our eternal mind cannot remain comfortable, because he never built his tradition or laid his foundation for victory by any enjoyable or easy process. Never.
Generally, we don't like to sacrifice or serve. Our physical body continually asks us to take the easy way, wonderful way. But honestly, this will make our original mind uncomfortable; our internal direction guides us toward the sacrificial way. If you are ill at ease only temporarily, then actually there's no problem. But if your discomfort were to last throughout eternity, then what would you do?
Every Sunday or the first of every month, we repeat to Heavenly Father our Pledge, to become one with Him by inheriting His word, His personality and His heart. This is the internal process we have to go through. So please remember that the external process does not matter. The most important thing is to unite with His words, His personality and His heart. Take this and think deeply about its meaning.
What is the content of Father's words? He has shared with us so many times; he has given us guidance more than a thousand times. You research deeply into his words; in any of his speeches, can you find that he asks you to take an easy or joyful way?
Please don't think from your point of view or your standard; rather, think about his standard. Why doesn't he offer a joyful way, an easy way? Not only once, but continually, he urges us to take the difficult path. The conclusion of all his speeches is hard work, sacrifice, devotion -- the narrow way. How painful his mind must be!
Why can't he guide us to an easy way, a joyful way? Because, even though we unite with him and make a joyful relationship externally, we never would be able to reach his main content by external conditions.
Father urges us to make unity by the fundamental, sacrificial way; if we do so, external unity comes easily. If Father sits before you, with serious face and eyes closed and keeps quiet for one hour, ten hours, one week, what would you do? Could you imagine his heart? Could you imagine his desire? Could you imagine his plan? Could you deeply understand his content'? Impossible. We could use our imagination, but actually, we are so distant from him.
When Father speaks to a group, he doesn't share much about this kind of attitude, just privately, with close disciples.
Many members feel proud to be externally close to Father, but without proper internal preparation, even to be close with him is not enjoyable. Without understanding his internal heart, just to stand near him is really painful; you couldn't survive.
All of us, as Unification Church members who are starting this second 21-year course together, must try to reconstruct Father's attitude, circumstances and situation of the 1960's. We have to emulate and follow him now, in 1981. Our training, our work, our devotion, our sacrifice, our mission must completely connect with True Parents' beginning times.
A couple of times Father has mentioned that even just one day before his Holy Blessing in 1960, he was called by the police department. Amid such confusion and fighting, under such serious circumstances, he laid the eternal foundation. As we know, he started building his eternal ideal under tremendous persecution.
Rather than finding so many excuses for our situation, we should solve our problems through connecting with True Parents. We cannot honestly compare our small difficulties today with those of True Parents.
I want to share with you a few more details and examples.
Sometimes in order to solve your problems, you and your members want to visit some theater or restaurant. But it is my understanding that Father never went to the theater until beyond the age of 40; especially in 1960, we never saw him going to the theater. Furthermore, as he told us a couple of times, in order to build his own personality he even avoided walking in front of theaters, not wanting to see the movie ads. It's not easy if you think about it.
As I have told leaders under me, it's okay to go to the movies on occasion to build up good feelings among the group, but don't try to solve struggles with members by visiting the theater.
When you don't feel so good, please look for fundamental solutions, not external or temporary ones. The leader who gives a serious response, who connects your present difficulties with a similar situation of True Father, is really your leader. So I urge you to compare even your free time with True Parents' attitude in 1960.
As I visualize Father, I see him praying with tears. Think what it means for us to inherit from Father the Tribal Messiah's position. We must be following his tradition in our own daily life before we can pass it on to our future followers.
If Father had first gained many followers and then decided to share some tradition with them, it would have been too late. Father taught us his tradition so effectively because he already built it before we followed him. So if you develop successful Home Church activity and gain many followers, can you then try to develop certain traditions? Impossible. Heavenly Father and True Father sincerely ask you, "Please fulfill your responsibility and inherit my tradition." We need to establish our own foundation of prayer, without which we cannot retain the title of Tribal Messiah.
To understand better about tradition, I want to relate an incident which shows Father's concern for living creatures. During a period of preparation and prayer, while he was walking down a path, Father once stepped on an ant which had crawled under his foot. Father couldn't step away without crushing the ant. Because of his sympathetic feeling for all living creatures, and seeing this small ant almost dying, Father spent half the day crying and taking care of it.
In America, Father speaks with many kinds of gestures, sometimes like an actor, sometimes like a general, and it's very entertaining for you. But in early times his sermons began with crying, continued with crying and ended with crying. Early Korean members all remember Father this way.
Furthermore, before 1960, not only an ant's life, but any living thing would deeply move him. Since he thought so deeply about the life of an animal and cared for it so earnestly, how much more does he care about a man's life! Because this is his fundamental attitude, whenever he meets someone, his foremost concern is for his eternal life.
Simply hearing about this is not enough. When you are in your Home Church or doing corner table witnessing, every day you meet many persons. If you keep one tenth of the concern and seriousness Father felt when he stepped on the ant, then maybe you can gain a spiritual son or daughter. So when you are witnessing, you need to be serious, because at the core of Father's tradition is his deep concern for man's life and all living creatures.
I realize you don't like to have a serious attitude. Even myself, I don't always like a serious attitude. I like joyful feelings, I like light feelings, but because of the importance of our mission, because of this age, he is asking us to maintain a sincere attitude. As the entire Unification Church develops this sincere attitude, then we will gain many results.
As we study Father, we soon understand that he is like an iceberg. Above water is the small part he has shared with us. What we can observe of Father externally is like the tip of the ice. But most of his real value and content is under water, unseen and unseeable. Could we ever really capture the depth of Father's heart by taking an external approach? It's impossible.
The most important point for you to know is that the spiritual world completely supports him and recognizes his activity. Furthermore, the spirit world supports not only him, but even followers who have never met him. I want to share this testimony I heard from our missionary in Zaire.
There was a medium who would pray for many sick people, and they would be healed; many miracles happened through this young lady. One day recently she received a wonderful revelation: "Your hard work, devotion and prayer are all meant to prepare you to meet a wonderful leader. Until you meet this leader, you must not shake hands with anybody?'
In Africa, this is a big problem, because Africans so love to shake hands. Even our missionaries sometimes complain about this point. Usually, because of our cultural upbringing and tradition, when we arrive late for a service, we humbly sit down and begin to pray quietly. But in Zaire, latecomers even to Sunday service customarily shake hands with all present.
Nevertheless, Heavenly Father directed this lady not to shake hands; it really was not easy for her to go against African custom, but she completely obeyed Heavenly Father's direction. She kept her right hand tucked into her pocket, waiting for the appointed day.
After that initial instruction, Heavenly Father did not continue giving specific details. But three months later, as she prayed, Heavenly Father enlightened her further: "Today, you will meet two leaders, and you may shake their hands. Look down your road (this lady's house is on a high hill, so she could watch the road); two people whom I am sending to you will arrive. You must absolutely obey their direction."
As she was watching and waiting so joyfully, two persons came up the hill. And then Heavenly Father said to her, "Of these two, you may shake hands with only one." So she protested, "Heavenly Father, how can I be so rude? If two persons come, how can I shake hands with only one?"
"Anyhow, only one."
In Kinshasa, our family has set up a wonderful Home Church tradition, and they are expanding rapidly. Already there are 52 completely established Home Church areas, each with 20 to 30 members. More than 700 people attend Sunday service at our headquarters, but in order to attend these services, people must have already participated in a two-day workshop at their local Home Church. One missionary, Annette Kamga-Fotso, organizes the Home Church activity, and under her there are 12 Home Church group leaders, each of which is responsible for various Home Church trinity leaders.
Originally this missionary and one group leader intended to visit this spiritual healer's house that day. But unfortunately, our missionary suddenly became physically sick, so she asked a trinity leader to accompany the group leader. Heavenly Father didn't permit the woman to shake hands even with a trinity leader, only with the group leader!
The woman has joined our church, because she received revelations about Home Church activity and detailed instructions to "absolutely obey" headquarters' direction. She is an excellent Home Church worker now.
Heavenly Father's main dispensation is Home Church activity. Think how distant African members are from True Parents, and yet how intimately Heavenly Father could work through this one lady, giving such instruction to shake hands with the Home Church organizer! For three months, He prepared her, forbidding her to shake anyone else's hand, except the prepared hand. This lady was not just a normal person, she already had a heartistic foundation.
What do you think about this kind of spiritual activity? Spirit world's mission is to support Father, and they will support us as well.
This next story, which was told by our missionary Mr. Shirao, is unlike any I had ever heard before. He is one of the 1800 couples, his brother is one of the 777 couples, and his whole family has joined the church. According to his understanding, his father was a wonderful, earnest person. Even before joining, his father supported the church, and after joining, he pretty much devoted himself to God's will. But suddenly he died in a car accident.
After receiving this information, our brother was so shocked and saddened. He questioned why such a thing would happen. "Our family is so devoted and working so hard:' he reflected. "My Father is not so old, and he devoted himself to True Parents. Why did such a serious thing happen? Why did he have to die?" Our brother could not stop questioning this tragic event.
But the story doesn't really stop there. Some of you heard Daikon's father when he spoke here at Belvedere earlier this year. He is a medium. Mr. Shirao's father came to Mr. Daikon and shared his entire story: After the car accident, even though he was dead, he didn't realize that he was in spirit world, until some of his relatives came to him. Then someone guided him along the way. There were various stop signs or gates, where they were asked their name and identity. He passed through a couple of gates by this process, and then something very interesting occurred. From a distance, a loud voice announced, "Please don't stop him; one of his sons is among the 777 couples and another son is a foreign missionary." So he proudly arrived at a high level, where he continues to work. After hearing this story, our missionary became so joyful and confident.
Think about the meaning this has in spirit world, to be the father of one of the 777 couples, to be the father of a foreign missionary. Even one's relatives can receive this kind of benefit.
On earth, people have certain authority within a given territory. But in the spirit world, there are so many examples of support for our True Parents and recognition of our movement. So what does this mean? How does this authority in the spirit world compare with authority on earth? Our eternal life will be spent there.
Father has shared so intimately and so lovingly with us, as a parent with a child. He tried to share his joy with us. His mission, his attitude, his love, his devotion, his sacrifice has been for us, but we have not been able to follow him directly. Regardless of how sincerely or lovingly he shares with us, or what kind of direction he gives to us, the determining factor is the gap between our standard and his. We have to overcome this distance. We have to follow his internal standard.
Imagine that Father picked you out and took direct care of you, letting you accompany him everywhere. In the beginning, you would feel wonderful and excited. But what would you do if without any preparation your received this kind of benefit? Inside, you would feel uncomfortable.
It doesn't matter where Father is now. His standard is that of the victorious True Parent, representative of God. He has certain spiritual authority, and he is the eternal owner of my life. His state is unchanging; the problem is myself. Every day up and down, up and down -- so changeable. With such a changeable feeling, we cannot have an eternal relationship with him.
In conclusion, Father wants to pass everything on to us. But we can inherit his tradition only through following the sacrificial way, having a humble attitude and uniting internally. If we are internally close, then one day external harmony will be possible. But if you are internally distant, any external closeness will last only one day, one month, one year. Because of their position, many leaders have such easy contact with him; but any internal gap will cause problems. So don't expect to be externally close with him before making internal preparations.
Before 1960, Father thought of everything as his responsibility. When the situation of the country became serious, he felt it happened because he did not fulfill his responsibility. If some person was working hard or experiencing difficulty, he thought, "When I build the heavenly kingdom on earth, then I will have to support him." He would feel that if the providence was delayed, it was because he had not fulfilled his responsibility. This is the fundamental attitude of the messiah.
So as Tribal Messiahs, we have to develop this same attitude of personal responsibility. If there is some difficulty in the Unification Church, never try to lay the blame on someone else. Regardless of how serious the situation may be, you should think, "This is my responsibility." Then you will have the correct attitude. All members have been basically at the same starting point: standing on True Parents' victorious foundation. But after May 16, 1981, this situation will never be repeated. There will be a vast difference between someone who works hard and takes responsibility and someone who takes the easy way. From now on, we can advance only by our own responsibility.
Therefore, my concern is that you inherit his tradition and connect with his situation in the 1960's. We should never ask for more than the circumstances our Parents faced in 1960. If you nurture this attitude, your work will advance easily.