The Words The Kwak Family
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The Words The Kwak Family |
This year our True Father celebrated his 62nd birthday and True Mother her 39th birthday. In honor of this occasion, I want to share with you my convictions about the impact of their lives and testify to their devotion for the sake of mankind and God.
Father is like a mountain -- so high I cannot see its totality just by looking straight at him. He is also much like an ocean which simply defies every effort to fathom its depth. So in attempting to give tribute to our True Parents, I can only try my best, but it can never be enough.
I have a passion to know Father better. As I "drink" of him, I continually thirst for more; my craving is not quenched. How I wish I could unravel the inner working of his heart! Sometimes for hours on end he appears incredibly engrossed -- staring beyond the horizon while in the midst of an immense ocean. In all he does, he is meticulous and alert, yet so sensitive. I search for glimpses into his rare moments of solitude. He is sojourning on this earth -- which is not yet prepared to accept him for what he truly is.
When we are alone, I sometimes feel awkward and do not know what to say. But Father mercifully breaks the silence. I'd like to tap the shadow of his being when he bursts into laughter. Inevitably I feel he is so much more highly evolved than I am, and I worry that I might not be able to tune into him at all.
Still, I offer this brief portrayal of the man who has so graciously cast his own lot with so many of us throughout the world. But this is just my own version, seen as it were through the opaque and imperfect lenses of my own understanding and emotion.
If we search the annals of history, we can never find anyone to compare with our True Parents. Men have honored Jesus, Buddha, Confucius and Mohammad as great saints and religious founders. But if we study their records, we find that during their physical life, their efforts were focused on their own people.
Jesus spent the 33 years of his life within the confines of Israel, teaching almost exclusively the Jews. The Gospels record two stories of Jesus interacting with non-Jewish people: one incident of him talking to a Samaritan woman and another to a Roman centurion, planting the seeds of faith in their hearts. However, when he sent his disciples out teaching, he expressly told them to witness only to the Jewish people. Without being accepted by the Jewish people, Jesus had no opportunity to go on to Rome and influence the larger society of his day.
Gautama Buddha was born the son of a king of a small realm in Nepal. Upon becoming aware of the existence of suffering in the world, he abandoned the princely privileges in favor of an ascetic life. When he attained enlightenment, Buddha went to Benares and gave his first sermon there. For the remaining 45 years of his life, he taught in the eastern part of the Ganges River valley, in a part of India close to his native Nepal. Men of every caste -- Brahmin, merchants, warriors and even untouchables -- joined Buddha's monastic community, but all his followers were Indian.
Confucius (K'ung-fu-tzu) was born in the Shantung province of China (a little south of Peking). He sought a government post in the feudal duchy of Lu, where he lived, in order to counter the corruption in society at that time, but he was never given a position of authority. In his middle age, frustrated that the rulers would not follow his advice, Confucius left the court to look elsewhere for recognition. However, after 13 years of endless wanderings, he returned to his native state, where he died at the age of 73.
Mohammad first taught in his hometown of Mecca, on the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia, and after 12 years fled to Medina, the nearest large city to the north. There he was able to win wide acceptance, and his influence spread throughout Arabia. His early disciples included a Yemenite, an Abyssinian and a Roman. However, during his lifetime, Mohammad never left his native Arabia.
In contrast, Father has devoted his entire life for the sake of all mankind. He has personally visited more than 40 countries and has gathered together leaders in all fields, in order to share with them his vision of a world based on God's truth and love. His words are now being taught and practiced in more than 127 countries. This is truly a miracle.
Furthermore, although founders of religions have all received persecution, what our Father has suffered sets a historical record in terms of the intensity of suffering and the number of nations which have opposed him.
Jesus was misunderstood by his own family and relatives and persecuted by his nation, Israel. He was accused of heresy, blasphemy, breaking the law, demon possession and disruption of society. When it became clear that the society of his time could not accept him, he focused on teaching his 12 disciples; at the end, he was abandoned by his disciples and even betrayed by one. Given a mock trial, he was tortured and crucified as a common criminal. However, even his suffering and death at the hands of the Roman soldiers resulted from the rejection by his people and the determination of the Jewish leaders to get rid of him.
Buddha gave up a life of ease for an ascetic course of renunciation, in which he tried to discipline his physical senses and uproot his passions. Still, he did not experience the liberation he sought in that way. Later, after his enlightenment, he devoted himself to teaching, wandering from city to city, until he was given a beautiful place in which to reside. Within three months of beginning to teach, he had converted 60 monks to his cause. He faced substantial opposition from the Hindu hierarchy of his day, who denounced him as a dangerous heretic, but he never suffered any bodily harm at the hands of others. Until his death, he devoted himself to teaching his faithful followers.
Confucius' father died when he was very young, and he was brought up by his mother in very humble circumstances. He sought a high post at court, but in the corrupt society of his time in that region, no ruler gave him a chance to implement his political ideas and straighten out society. So Confucius turned to teaching, developing a school for diplomats and courtiers. Although his advice seems to have been always rejected, he suffered no overt persecution. However, 3,000 young men became his pupils, and some rose to positions of considerable influence. The would-be statesman spent much of his time collecting and editing old books, and teaching; he was apparently the first person in China to devote himself almost entirely to teaching.
He died seemingly a failure, but his disciples could not forget what he meant to them.
Mohammad was born into an illustrious family in Mecca and married a prosperous merchant. At the age of 40 he received his first revelations and began teaching them to others. His teachings caused an uproar in Mecca, which even then, with its several hundred idols, was the center of Arabia's religious life. Mohammad's radical monotheism and denunciation of idol- worship aroused intense opposition. He was called a fool, a bigot, a mad poet, a man possessed of demons. For a time, Mohammad was protected from violence by his powerful kinsfolk, but when his uncle and wife died, further persecution, including a plot to kill the Prophet, forced him to flee to the city of Medina, where 70 people had pledged to follow and obey him. There he was handed the reins of absolute power. From that base, Mohammad was able to wage wars against Mecca and neighboring towns, finally bringing all Arabia under his power during the remaining ten years before his death.
However, none of these revered endured anything like what Father has been subjected to, in terms of the number of countries which have persecuted him and in the intensity of the suffering they have caused him.
During Father's student days in Japan, he was jailed by the Japanese police, accused of being a leader of the Korean nationalist movement. The Japanese police used an extremely severe form of torture, which included such techniques as tying his hands behind his back, stringing him up by the wrists and giving him severe beatings.
Father's second and third imprisonments occurred in North Korea, a country which represents a most extreme form of communism. Shortly after beginning his public ministry there, Father was arrested for not having a proper identification card and placed in prison for about 100 days. He was tortured so severely that his tormenters left him for dead. His followers found him and cared for him. For many days, he vomited blood, and it was feared that he would not recover. However, by force of his indomitable will, he recuperated and immediately resumed teaching. Then in 1948 he was denounced by jealous Christian leaders and again arrested, tried and sentenced to a concentration camp, where he did hard labor for two years and eight months, subsisting on a diet and regimen designed to work men to death. Even in those miserable circumstances, he often gave his food and clothing to other prisoners, and always volunteered for the most arduous tasks. In this most difficult setting, where it was forbidden for prisoners to converse with each other, he gained more than 12 disciples. Miraculously, he was saved from execution and escaped to the South, where he resumed teaching.
Father's final imprisonment occurred in his own country, South Korea. In 1955, he was arrested by the South Korean police on a series of trumped-up charges. He was imprisoned for the only one which had a shred of truth: for not fulfilling his obligation to do military service in South Korea. (During the time in question, he was in the North Korean concentration camp!) After three months, he was finally declared innocent and released.
Even after such ordeals, Father has continued to be misunderstood, maligned, restricted and harassed by Japan, America, Europe, and either directly or indirectly, by innumerable countries around the world.
The scope and intensity of persecution heaped on Father has set a historical record, not just in the category of founders of religions, but in all fields of endeavor.
Men have been persecuted for holding unpopular political views, but no one as much as Father. Even though Father has dedicated his life to educating fallen people to know truth, beauty and goodness and embody these ideals (supposedly the goal or pattern of all true education), Father has been labeled a brainwasher; no educator has been so harassed as Father. In his concern for the quality of our environment and for the future well-being of mankind, Father has no equal. His vision for developing industry for the benefit of Third World countries has no precedent; yet no industrialist has ever been attacked with such villainy. People with access to material wealth commonly appropriate it for their own benefit, and justly receive accusation in return; but Father has never made any decision based even on hopes for personal benefit. His entire life has been suffused with suffering.
People accuse our movement of cloaking itself in secrecy, insinuating some connection with intelligence organizations such as the KCIA. However, our activities are open, and anyone can research what we are doing. Father's teachings lay bare the nature of original sin, and he summons us to live by the highest moral standard and strive to form the ideal family. The high character of the Moonie lifestyle is so clear, but Father has even been accused of teaching the exact opposite.
Clearly, in terms of the quantity and character of persecution which he has endured, Father has no peer. The fact that under such serious circumstances Father has built such a high tradition is truly a miracle. Men may strive their utmost to fulfill their ideals; still, without God's help, even the most assiduous person could never have endured what has been heaped upon our Father.
Therefore, we can easily believe in him as a God-centered person, for without God's support he could never have persevered.
Father was born with style. If God chose to "improve" his looks for effect, He would probably hesitate to add anything or take anything away. Indeed, all his movements bespeak his style, flair or personal touch. When he preaches, his masculine voice, sonorous and deep, stirs the hearts of all his listeners, easily moving them either to tears or to cheers. In a small gathering, he often sings and shows us his interpretation of dance. I feel that everything he does could never be said to lack his beautiful and unique style.
The most distinguished characteristic is his big-heartedness. When he was invited to address members of the U.S. House of Representatives, he said:
During the last 14 months 1 have become an increasingly controversial figure for the mass media and have made headlines in the newspapers throughout the country. Some magazines have even had cover stories on my movement and have put pictures of me on the cover of their magazines. I am flattered that some of the pictures were even more handsome than I am and that, although I am not paying for one penny of advertising, they are making me very famous. 1 do not know how to thank them properly.
This brought the House down! His keen sense of humor, along with this human touch, instantly broke the ice with the tense audience. As their laughter subsided, they could be truly receptive to what he had to say.
When he sometimes goes out dressed informally, with an open-neck shirt and sunglasses, strangers stop him -- no matter if he is in a major department store of a large city or a small out-of-the-way town -- and invariably ask him, "Aren't you Reverend Moon?" Smiling enigmatically, he mumbles, "Maybe..." in a natural and charming tone of voice. There is a personal touch in the way he handles himself on all types of occasions.
As soon as he began to address the audience at the Madison Square Garden Rally in 1974, several loud and noisy hecklers near the podium set about deliberately harassing and taunting him in order to distract and disturb the audience. As the courteous policeman took his time in escorting these people out of the place, all Unification Church members felt reactions ranging anywhere from annoyance to fury. Yet, Father kept calm and collected. He merely announced that he was going to sing a song. "In the mountains, flowers bloom, flowers bloom and bloom...." With deep feeling he sang the Korean song, "Sun Yu Hwa." Call it his style, flair, cool, personal touch, showmanship, magnanimity, it somehow touched the right chord in the hearts of everyone. All 30,000 people in the audience were deeply moved. As silence descended, the audience was struck with awe and reverence. There was no member of our family who was not moved to tears at that point, seeing in the incident the providential hand of God moving to help the accomplishment of His will. The noble image of Father standing on that platform was indelibly engraved in the memory of every family member.
Spontaneous and free, Father is also a lover of nature. His intimate associates and followers know only too well how much he loves and appreciates nature and how often he seems enraptured by the beauty and mystery of God's handiwork . i.e is often observed sitting for hours in a meditative mood, admiring the grass and leaves that have just turned emerald green in the early dawn of April. Once, pointing to the delicate petals of a flower on the dinner table, he spontaneously exclaimed, "Are there fools who, seeing the exquisite beauty of a flower like this, still deny the existence of God?"
Anyone who comes in close contact with Father usually falls in love with his humanity and warmth. On countless occasions people have observed him listening to an old woman's testimony of faith with more courtesy and attentiveness than any other person present, even though he may have already heard her testimony several times. While he was on an inspection tour of
Unification Church local branches located in the rural districts of Korea, he was often seen in the company of an old farmer, talking and laughing with him for hours about various problems of farming in that particular district.
On the sandy beach of the Han River, he used to wrestle with the best student wrestlers. On a New Year's Eve, when our family members played the Korean game of Yute, he was more enthusiastic than any other participant. A friend to all during such festive occasions -- a strong, sensitive and humane leader always -- he is also a loving and understanding father to each of us.
Father, who has dedicated his whole life to the love and service of God, is also devoted to the well-being of his fellowman.
He is keenly aware of not only their suffering and their hunger, but their possible feeling of "emptiness" as well. While he knows only too well an infinite variety of masks which man may wear, he usually pretends not to notice. He has always been a consistent giver. There are countless numbers of people who have known and enjoyed his generosity, good will and love. It is his personal style, so to speak, to give a great deal more than the beneficiary would ever hope for, so that the latter's gratitude is deepened by his contentment. it is no wonder, then, that our family members never cease to feel truly heartfelt gratitude and to hold him in the position to receive their highest esteem.
I think of Father as a universal man, encompassing in his embrace all axes of human activity. For instance, his idea and principle comes basically from revelation -- that is one source of his insight. However, with his tremendous fount of practical knowledge, he embraces the opposite pole. Were he to content himself with merely sharing his revelation, teaching people just the ideal side, he would never have received such persecution. However, neither would he have ever accomplished very much. Father could have chosen this way, the easy course, one which many religious leaders have taken.
Even though God revealed to him the supreme ideal, Father began his mission from the most miserable reality of the human situation. He labored to build his foundation among fallen man, fighting the myriad evils and injustices hurled against him with his tears, sweat and blood.
We can use this polar structure of Father's character as a means of understanding him. Therefore, when we see him smiling and laughing, relaxed and easy-going, we have to look for the other pole, Father's seriousness and tearfulness.
Father's spiritual senses are finely tuned, and he can easily use his spiritual senses to check on people. This is one pole of his nature. But in his daily life he doesn't like to depend on spiritual power, preferring to share with us as an ordinary person. Similarly, Father prays for a couple of hours a day, engaging in deep communion with God. No one can be compared to him in this quality. But on the other hand, Father makes practical plans for external activities such as witnessing or home church or business. Spiritual leaders often concentrate on spiritual phenomena to the neglect of reality. More efficiently than even a computer, Father carefully maps out in detail the various necessary steps by which he means to actualize the ideal on earth. Therefore, we have so much to learn from him.
Based on his many experiences with God, Father has come to believe one hundred percent in God's power, support and grace. This confidence forms one pole of his character. But, unlike many of us, he never asks for God's aid before he himself has poured out a hundred percent of his own efforts. As leaders and members, we must understand this quality of Father's and repent for our lack of it. When we listen to Father's ideas, we often find them too distant from our own present standard. Therefore, because of this gulf between his idea and our reality, we sometimes give up and forget about our high calling. This is a big mistake. If we believe in his idea and direction and if we carry them out in our daily lives, then all good things will be fulfilled.
In other words, one mistake we make is not to believe in God's grace or power. The other error is not to follow Father's detailed directions in our daily lives. We have not been strong enough, often taking the lazy course instead of investing our very best in the task.
Many religious leaders have taught high standards and ideals. For a little while, they tried to embody their ideals and implant them in others. But when they encountered obstacles and persecution in their path, they gave up and devoted themselves to teaching just a few followers. For this reason, the ways of religious people and ordinary people have been divided. Father's ideal, however, is even higher than that of others, and the persecution he has received is more serious than what others have suffered. But never has he given up.
He is now 62. His whole life is actually one of blood, sweat and tears. Still he stands on the front line. Who on earth can say he has worked harder than Reverend Moon? Who among the Unification Church members can claim to have endured more than our Father? He is the owner of the ideal, the leader of the Unification Church, but his daily life and schedule is more rigorous than that of the hardest worker. This is another pole of his character.
With one hand, Father grasps God's ideal, and with his other hand he grips practical reality. He is the champion of perseverance. In his one self, he encompasses both poles; his orbit encircles heaven and hell. He could never refrain from sharing his ideal, from unraveling the evil of the world.
God's purpose is to fulfill the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, and our Father not only teaches this ideal but also has been putting it into practice, challenging and overcoming all negative conditions that stand in the way of building this Kingdom of Heaven on earth. Religious leaders have emphasized God's ideal, but most of them have devoted themselves mainly to spiritual affairs.
To look at Father's lifework in another way, let's consider what he has accomplished in dealing with God's three major concerns in today's world. Father has focused his educational task to deal with these three scourges of modern society: the decline of religion (especially Christianity), the decline of morality (especially among the youth) and the spread of international communism. Not only has he attempted to reach this "impossible dream," but he has actually solved these three major heartaches of God.
By raising up the Unification movement, Father is creating a model which religions should follow.
We remember well how Father has taught us about God's ideal and how often he has shared with us his love for God, while urging us to love God. What's more, although he emphasizes the importance of sacrifice and indemnity conditions, he has led us to devote ourselves joyfully to working hard for God's will. Even though as Moonies our activities and results are not adequate to meet God's standard, compare our devotion and hard work for the sake of the nation and the world with that of other religious movements. Our movement embraces people of all races, education, culture, religions and nationalities.
Furthermore, Father does not content himself with educating just us. Reflect on how much he has tried to communicate with the leaders of other denominations and religions. In the early days of our movement in Korea, Father began investing large sums of money in ecumenical work, even though in those days Unification Church leaders often went hungry. These were very serious circumstances. Sometimes he spent for the ecumenical movement more than three times the budget for all our national church activities in Korea. Even now, he is underwriting worldwide ecumenical activities in many directions, including the National Council for the Church and Social Action, theological dialogues, theologians' conferences and the "God" conference, which are forums in which men and women of all religions can meet together, for the glory of God.
Father envisions the Unification Church as the exemplary church, a model for the declining churches of our times. His conviction is that religious teaching is the main education which mankind needs. Through this kind of teaching we learn about God's existence, His ideal and heart, His providence. When we hear this, we come to understand about our situation. With this enlightenment, every Moonie should make a determination to devote himself to God and share His responsibility.
Father is summoning all religious people to be not just believing people but acting people. This is God's ideal and what He expects of mankind.
Father's mind is not limited to educating just Moonies, but all mankind, all races, all religions. His educational program involves 2-day, 7-day, 21-day and 40-day workshops. Furthermore, Father's vision is that all mankind will be educated through home church work. Through home church, Father wants to serve and give loving support to all mankind. Father doesn't just want to preserve the name of Unification Church, for the church name is not important. His ultimate goal is to educate all mankind to understand God, understand themselves and fulfill their own responsibility, by sharing God's love and becoming God's sons and daughters.
According to our Father's teaching, original sin is the misuse of God's love; after the fall, Satan's strategy has been to dominate all mankind in an immoral way. Thus, the effects of original sin have extended beyond the individual's personal immoral condition. Because man lost his moral standard and became weak spiritually, he has been unable to set a true family foundation; for this reason, an immoral society and immoral world have developed. Without a restored moral standard, this world has no hope for an ideal society and no guarantee of happiness.
This Unification theory and the moral standard of Unification Church members is the historical hope for all mankind. Therefore we cannot limit ourselves just to teaching this theory we have received from our Father -- all members must try to uphold the heavenly moral standard. Furthermore, we are building an ideal family centered on God's love.
In such a miserable world of moral corruption and decline young members of the Unification Church have the mission of sharing this ideal moral standard with the whole world. The fact that all the world's races, cultures and nations follow this kind of ideal family tradition is a miracle of modern society. Our Father is the one who has wrought this miracle.
Wanting to embrace all mankind, our Father has been praying throughout the years for all the people living in communist countries. However, he cannot embrace the communist ideology, because this ideology denies God's existence; it rejects the eternal Father of all mankind. Therefore, it is truly the enemy of God. Our anti-communism movement is a truth movement, rather than a militant movement; we are fighting against an enemy of God, standing up against communism because it is an untruth.
Twenty years ago, Father asked a group of leaders and scholars to construct a victory over communism theory, centering on our Principle. He has completely supported this mission, giving them the basic ideas which would serve as the core of their research work, concepts which they have developed and expanded upon.
Also, motivated as always by God's will and desire, he initiated anti-communist activity. This movement in Korea and Japan has stood on the front line against communist activities. Since the work he started is private and voluntary and not receiving any government assistance, not only has Father had to spend money to finance it, but also he has suffered damages as a result of communist attacks. Moreover, some of our missionaries have been killed because of this movement.
Our CARP movement in Japan has now completely overcome the communist movement in schools, but this result came only by going through an exacting and painful process. Our strategy in attacking communism is not that of violence or force, but of education: sharing love, offering a counterproposal, holding open discussions and giving public lectures. Through these methods we have won a complete victory. Some people may recall the tremendous strength of the communist movement on the Japanese university campuses from 1965 until the early 1970's. Our CARP movement's victory was like a miracle.
The American CARP movement is now following the pattern of the Japanese CARP movement, and here, too, miracles are taking place.
Father has shared his heart with people of all nationalities, races, cultural backgrounds, religions, etc., gathering them all into one family under one father, God. In harmony, love and cooperation, we are marching forward to fulfill God's will. On this kind of foundation, Father has solved these three crises in modern society. How wonderful is the result of his teaching! Who can belittle his efforts? Who can deny such amazing results? What's more, we can gain tremendous hope through his teachings.
In his lifetime, Father has set many world records. For instance, he holds the record for sleeping the least. Also, he holds the record for the most complete consecration of one's life for the public purpose; up until the present, 20 or more hours a day have been given to the public life. Often he does not even share his dining table with his family, inviting instead church leaders and guests, using mealtimes as yet another vehicle for educating mankind to live by God's love and ideal.
In addition, Father holds the world record for speaking the most about God's will. Of course, he gives sermons on Sundays, speeches on celebration days, etc. , but this accounts for only about a quarter of the time he spends speaking; he expounds on God's providence at the dining table, v hen he visits departments, during many kinds of meetings. Every evening he gives internal guidance to the leaders. In other words, almost all his daily life is devoted to speaking God's word.
Moreover, Father holds the record for connecting with the most scholars. Nobody has met so many scholars of so many different fields and nationalities and been received with so much respect.
All
the above is but a general and external portrayal of Father. The most
important aspect of his character is how he connects deeply with
Heavenly Father, through prayer and deep communion, and how he has
fulfilled the mandates of God's providence.
Our Father and Mother have sacrificed for us and mankind, producing miraculous external results. However, God does not really need missionaries in 127 countries or a given number of members. The most important thing God requires is a certain basic foundation on the earth, a foundation which has been set through the celebration days of our church. This is the basic, absolute content of God's providence.
Without Parents' Day, God has no foundation. What is the four-position foundation? It is a foundation upon which God can act and move. Our members sometimes ask God to help them, but God cannot work on earth just by invitation; even though we may send Him thousands of emissaries inviting His presence, unless He finds a basic foundation, He cannot come.
The establishment of the celebration days is the most important accomplishment of True Parents. After creating Adam and Eve, God was there at the top of the growth stage, waiting for them to fulfill their perfection. However, Adam and Eve fell into a bottomless pit. You may wonder why Father's Blessing could not take place before 1960, why he had to wait until he was 40 years old. Father needed a foundation. We will never completely fathom what Father went through in order to fulfill this first foundation.
After the fall, man's status was that of enemy of God. It is impossible to jump from the status of enemy directly to that of child of God. You may ask why God did not start over with a new Adam and Eve and through them restore the original Adam and Eve. However, God's ideal is love, and love needs one source, one fountain. God could not create another source of love, so He devoted Himself to restoring Adam and Eve, even though they were in the position of enemy.
The next step up was servant of servant. Noah's family is an example of the level of servant of servant; they were able to reach this stage of servant of servant by carrying out God's orders. There is a vast difference in level of heart between someone in the position of enemy and someone in the position of servant of servant.
The transition from servant of servant to servant is not an easy one. The master of the servant of servant is another servant. The former has no direct connection with the head of the house. The servant, however, can communicate directly with the master and receive his personal instructions. The difference between these two stages is not in the degree of effort or amount of work one does, but in one's heartle. From Abraham's family until Jesus, the highest level accessible to man was that of servant.
When Jesus came, man could become adopted as a son or daughter of God. A servant can receive some benefit from the head of the house, but he can never inherit anything from his master. Adopted sons and daughters, however, can receive the inheritance. The servant has no family relationship, but the adopted children do. Until our True Father came, however, man could not pass beyond this level.
Although our Father's position was at the top of the growth stage, he became the servant of servant, caring for the oldest grandfathers and the oldest grandmothers. He visited the beggars and tended to their needs. He looked for the people in the most miserable condition, and those he served. With the attitude of a servant, he would always ask for God's instructions and follow them to the letter, before making a plan or system on his own. In the position of an adopted son, he looked for people whom he could attend as his parents.
How can an adopted son or daughter become a real son or daughter? The difference is that of blood lineage; the true sons and daughters share the same blood lineage as their parents.
As a result of the fall, Adam and Eve had experienced two types of relationships, one with God and one with Satan. Therefore, the good and evil within them was represented in their two sons, Cain and Abel. In their family and throughout the history of restoration, the Abel figure must dominate and win over the Cain figure.
Jesus needed a minimum of three disciples who could obey him absolutely, and he devoted himself to serving them. With these three disciples, Jesus was to form a four-position foundation. Then each of the disciples was to connect with three others, each forming an additional four-position foundation, interconnecting 12 disciples in all. Surrounding them were the 70 elders, who were to center on Jesus, through the disciples, and form a further protective layer around Jesus. If this unity had been established, then winning over the Jewish religion and Jewish society would have posed no problem.
In a similar way, Father also had to gain the unconditional love and loyalty of three disciples. In 1955 Father was arrested, tried and thrown into prison. Four disciples were jailed along with him, but they kept their faith. Even though there were few members in those days, their faith was so strong, and they fulfilled the requirements for the Cain foundation. Father, as Abel, loved and guided the members, who were in the Cain position to him, and Cain obeyed Abel.
When there is a good relationship between Cain and Abel, then the parents can come down. The mission of Cain and Abel is to attend to parents, and they must unite completely in order to prepare for parents. (Therefore, you need three spiritual children as spiritual sons and daughters, to fulfill the requirements for the Blessing.) Father himself fulfilled this pattern, gaining the loyalty and obedience of the early members, centered on three disciples. So when this was fulfilled, the condition was made for parents to appear. Since there was no parent, then Father himself became the parent. This is the invisible pattern of indemnity conditions.
Many serious circumstances surrounded the holy wedding of our True Parents. The day before, Father had to go to the police station to respond to a suit filed against him. For 6,000 years, God had been seeking the heavenly family and the restored foundation of His love on earth. Parents' Day means that God finally found His first son and daughter. Father is the first person in history ever to be able to proclaim Parents' Day. Of course, Father and Mother were not yet in the perfection stage; they had to grow to that ultimate level. But based on Parents' Day, Father and Mother were able to build the eternal family foundation on earth.
Imagine, if you will, the whole earth covered with water, water being often used as a symbol of fallen mankind. Thousands of years ago, one rock was laid in the ocean depths. Far down on the ocean floor, one rock is piled upon another, slowly and painfully building the structure of the providence of restoration. Still, from the surface, nothing is apparent. In the course of 6,000 years, more rocks are gradually added to the pile. Finally, in 1960, the first glimpse of this massive labor of restoration broke through the ocean's surface. This was Parents' Day.
Centering on his family, Father could extend the holy family. Before his own Blessing, he first engaged his three disciples. His heart yearned to give everything to Cain, so he would have liked to bless his own disciples first, before even his own Blessing. However, first there had to be parents.
After his holy marriage, Father moved from the position of Abel figure to that of parent. Then he could begin to give the Blessing to others. So he blessed members as his Cain-type sons and daughters. True Children, then, become his Abel-type sons and daughters.
On April 17, 1960, Father proclaimed the day of spiritual resurrection, the day on which all Unification Church members could resurrect as spiritual sons and daughters. "If you believe in me:' he told us that day, "Spiritually you become my sons and daughters."
On October 1, 1960 (lunar calendar), Father proclaimed Children's Day. At the marriage supper of the lamb, the messiah took his bride. This event opened up the gate of resurrection for the entire spirit world and physical world. Neither a Nobel Prize or a million dollars, not even the presidency of a major country, can compare with the knowledge of the location of the Kingdom of Heaven's gate. Those who cannot find this gate, who cannot locate the True Parents here on earth, are poor people indeed. The messiah came to earth in flesh and blood and met his bride. Together they celebrated and declared the true sonship and parenthood under God. That is the day of resurrection, the day of hope.
True Parents are our source of life. The world will be reorganized into God's lineage by being grafted into the True Father, True Mother and True Children. The establishment of the True Family was the prerequisite for the declaration of Children's Day. Before we can declare ourselves to be True Children, we need the assent of three persons: God, True Father and True Mother. The day we make our covenant with God is Children's Day.
On April 17, 1960, Father proclaimed the day of substantial resurrection. "If you obey everything," he promised us that day, "you become my true Cain-type sons." The Blessing of the 36 couples took place immediately following that day.
On May 1, 1963 (lunar calendar), Father proclaimed the Day of All Things. The desire of all things is to see the day when they can receive true love of God through men. All things of creation are looking forward to the fulfillment of the three loves: the love of God, the parental love of Adam and Eve, and the love of the children who receive this perfected love of God and parents. Children are in the most ideal position to receive more of God's love, because everything is consummated in them.
Following our Father's example, we should fulfill our position as God's representatives and His children, and truly love all things.
Centering on Parents' Day, man can climb from the position of God's enemy, through the stages of servant of servant, servant, adopted son or daughter, real sons or daughter of God and receive God's grace.
In this way, Father symbolically restored everything God had lost at the fall: parents, ideal son or daughter, and all things. Why did God create children, parents and all things? So they could return joy back to Him. Therefore, on January 1, 1968, Father proclaimed God's Day. What is God's Day? The day of God's joy. God longs for His own sons and daughters, so God's Day became a day of exultation, in which He could rejoice at having found His sons and daughters.
Each country has its own holidays. Many memorial days are celebrated, such as Mother's Day and Father's Day, but never had anybody proclaimed God's Day. Religious leaders have made many proclamations, but none mentioned this obvious omission, the central holiday -- God's Day. Since 1968, we now have God's Day.
These were the absolute conditions with our True Parents had to establish. The victory of the national or worldwide levels are not really essential to the fulfillment of their mission, because the core, the establishment of the one true family, is the most important victory. From that central family, blessed families, blessed tribes, blessed countries and a blessed world can emerge. From these internal celebration days, a new world can take shape, history can begin anew, and the world acquires real meaning for the first time.
Before World War II, there were many important spiritual groups in Korea which were especially connected with preparations for the second coming. There was one group concentrated on the West coast of Korea and another on the East coast. In both of these groups, the founder passed his mission down through three generations of leaders. It was very significant that these spiritual groups predicted that the second coming would take place in Korea and, furthermore, that the Lord would come in the flesh. As a result, they received tremendous persecution from fundamentalist Christians.
Mother's mother was connected with one of the two spiritual groups which continued through three generations of leaders. Mother's mother completely devoted herself to God and received many significant dreams and visions, particularly during the time she was pregnant with Mother. She had only one child, our True Mother.
After Mother's mother joined the Unification Church, she dedicated herself to the movement and humbly served the members. Before the holy matching, nobody noticed Mother. Just a short time prior to the engagement, Mother was chosen through the guidance of spirit world.
Our Mother's way is not simple, not only because she is the wife of a historical leader but also because she is the mother of all mankind. Her internal pain and difficulty is the same as Father's because of their joint mission, which on the one hand is to restore the entire fallen world, and other the other hand to build the eternal ideal family, society, nation and world.
In her daily life she concerns herself first for everything which has to do with Father, who actually cannot limit himself just to being a good husband to her: he must totally invest himself as a leader of members in the public work. If Father were just in the husband's position to her, then she could support him as a wife, and they could have give and take; but because Father's life is completely devoted to public work, they cannot enjoy give and take just with each other and with their children.
I believe Mother holds the world record for having enjoyed the least private time over the years with her husband. She has set the record for sharing the fewest private meals with her husband and children, because normally their three meals per day are shared with their disciples, church leaders or outside guests.
I have so much respect for Mother and feel so proud of her. Under this kind of living situation, she sheds continuing tears for God and the members (instead of for herself) and invests her love and care for the members. Truly she wants to give many things to members with a real mother's heart. I believe that the attitude she exemplifies and the quality of her cooperation with Father are two very important conditions which have contributed towards the fulfillment of Father's mission.
Mother's smile and bright face touches each of us and remains in our minds and hearts. Because of her attitude, we feel so close to her, even though she rarely speaks publicly. My hope would be that you could have the same feeling about me.
Fallen history, fallen man, fallen society -- none of these has any meaning or value in front of God. God's feeling is that without Reverend Moon He has no foundation. In God's eyes, Reverend Moon is a treasure, a priceless jewel. God's glory, joy and pride come from our True Father.
On celebration days, God wants to come down and visit His museum. Father has told us that there is one display God will never miss: the beautiful love between husband and wife. Certainly, our True Parents are the most priceless displays in God's museum. But each of us as well should strive to become worthy museum pieces in God's treasure house. .
Father has truly opened a new chapter in history, centering on God. The kind of foundation he has established through these providential celebration days is an unchanging base for God and for goodness -- a foundation which Satan cannot destroy.
Human society is filled with so much confusion and struggle, and so many evil conditions beset us. This happened, we know, because of the fall. But think about the consequences of fallen man's motivations in the spirit world. How much confusion and struggle must exist in the spirit world because of Satan's dominion! How much darkness and evil! In the priority of Father's providential activity, restoration of society in the physical world is actually secondary; results in the physical world are not primary. Before being able to devote himself to physical restoration, he had to focus on the spiritual world, which is the motivation and source of this world. We can only imagine how seriously he must have fought with Satan and how difficult it was for him to overcome the evil spirit world which opposed him. Therefore, he can proclaim these celebration days as historical events, but we have no true idea of how much he had to overcome behind the scenes.
Throughout our Father's arduous search for the Principle, the spirit world was extremely complicated and under Satan's dominion. In the midst of this confusion he tried to find the source of evil circumstances. How laborious it was! Even though he has never explained the details to us, we should at least try to imagine how difficult it must have been.
Actually, a child never penetrates to the core of his parents' situation; he will never understand them completely. If children knew everything about their parents, they would no longer be children. Usually parents retain their own internal situation, beyond the child's reach, outside the limits of his imagination . Similarly, Father is our parent, and we cannot completely plumb his depths.
His way is a unique way, trod by nobody, before or since. He has overcome the barriers which have hindered people in the past. Even though we do not know how much blood, sweat and tears stain each step of his way, at a minimum, we have to recognize his internal and invisible parental heart and course.
Because of this basic foundation, Father could begin a ne age. Strictly speaking, Father's first 21-year course lasted through 1981, but by True Parents' Birthday 1977, he had fulfilled the basic conditions of his course, so he was able to proclaim the beginning of God's ideal: day one, year one of the Kingdom of Heaven.
On that day, Father proclaimed the victorious foundation for the ideal creation on the worldwide level and the birth of the true Adam's world. This Adam's world will bring dominion over the angelic world and remove both heaven and earth and the entire spirit world from Satan's accusation. From 1977 on, our Father said that whoever calls upon the name of God and the True Parents shall not come under the accusation of Satan.
Father's heart is so great. He pleads with Heavenly Father to give His special grace and forgiveness to those who are suffering in the dungeons of hell. He yearns for those people to be able to see the light and love of the True Parents and thus come to life. Father's determination is to liberate hell.
Furthermore, Father asks God's forgiveness for the Christians who have been opposing him and his homeland, Korea, which has caused him so much suffering. As our True Parents, he intercedes with Heavenly Father on our behalf.
On True Parents' Birthday, February 23, 1977, Father said that the Kingdom of Heaven was opened and we could all enter proudly into that realm.
When all that needs to be said about Father is said, the truth of the matter is that for all his greatness, he has not received the universal acclaim and plaudits due him. His great work goes largely unappreciated. Though he has suffered so much humiliation and abuse as well as many insults fit only for the worst of criminals, he has borne it all with superhuman fortitude. Master-originator of many lofty ideas, he sweats and toils like the lowest of the lowly slaves to actualize them. To do God's will -- to establish the Kingdom of Heaven on earth -- he has walked a long, lonely and miserable path, bearing the cross of unspeakable suffering.
No one knows for sure whether the day will come when his sincerity and determination to bring about restoration for all mankind will be appreciated, or whether it will be forgotten altogether when he is gone. Whatever we happen to know of him through our investigation is but a fraction of the whole. In his private as well as his public life, he has continued to walk through the thorny thicket of Satan's opposition. We do not yet know all of his joy or sorrow -- what elates or grieves him.
He was born a free man, yet he has led a shackled life. Wherever he goes, every move he makes -- the personage of Reverend Moon is watched. By nature, he is so active that he cannot breathe freely when he is cooped up in the house for too long. Although the United States is a big country, it feels too small for him, for if he could, he would like to go around the globe a thousand times a day.
Heavenly Father, hasten the day when our Father can be completely free and unshackled, once and for all.