The Words The Kwak Family
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The Words The Kwak Family |
Recently Father proclaimed the Day of the Love of God. Father and Mother have determined to overcome any difficult environment with true love. There is no difficulty that cannot be overcome with True Parents' love. Father and Mother wanted to pass on to us their determination, and so they created the Ae Chun Cho (Love of God Candles or Ae Chun Candles).
The Day of the Love of God was first proclaimed by Father and Mother to their own family at East Garden on May 16. The day was first officially proclaimed to the membership at the Belvedere Sunday service on May 20.
Father and Mother each carried a burning candle from East Garden to Belvedere. Following the sermon, they passed on the flame from their candles to those brought by the Blessed members present.
The Ae Chun Candles are different from other traditional candles we have used, such as the Shim Jung and Birth Dedication Candles. The Ae Chun Candles are a memorial gift from the live Parents commemorating the victory of the love of God, of the love dominion. Because of the victory of the love won by True Parents, Satan can never again accuse internally. On May 20, when Father asked Mother, the True Children, and the members to pledge to follow God's way, the strong affirmative response and pledge also created a very important condition with regard to these candles.
Ae Chun Candles are to be used during prayer, but they are only for Blessed couples. They may be used only when husband and wife are in harmony with each other, as Father said. Therefore, these candles are used on the family level, but the purpose of the prayer during which they are burned must be regarding the national, world, and cosmic levels. The Ae Chun Candles may be used by Blessed couples during their prayers every day; they do not have to be reserved for times of crisis only. Also, it is important to note that this tradition is linked with that of the Il Jeong prayer vigil; Father bequeathed both traditions to us at the same time.
All Blessed couples in our movement should obtain a pair of Ae Chun Candles. One candle is called the Father candle; the other is the Mother candle. Father asked that these candles be approximately three inches in diameter and from eight to twelve inches high, so they are quite larger than either the Shim Jung or Birth Dedication Candles.
White is the best color for these candles. Also, Father asked members to use a refillable lighter for these candles rather than matches, one that would last a lifetime.
Ae Chun Candles may be inherited in much the same way as our other traditional candles are inherited. A Blessed Couple may inherit them from a leader, from the Blessed Family Department director, or from another Blessed couple who already received the candles. Blessed couples should purchase candles which will become their Ae Chun candles and a lighter (matches will suffice until a lighter is obtained). Of course, it is best to receive the flame directly from True Parents, but if this is not possible, from any Blessed couple who has the candles.
For the inheritance ceremony, the original Father candle should be on the right and the original Mother candle should be on the left. The candles should be lit, and the new candles should be lit from the flame of the original candles -- the Father candle from the original Father candle, and the Mother candle from the original Mother candle. The two candles should be clearly marked so that they do not become mixed up. After the new candles have been lit, bring the flames together for a moment. Then they should burn side by side for forty minutes. Shortly before extinguishing the candles, briefly and carefully pass the new lighter through the flame, so that it, too, has received the flame.
A Blessed couple will use more than their original pair of candles during their lifetime; they can use their original candles to make as many new candles as needed for their use. This is not the same ceremony as inheriting the candles, and should not be used to pass on the Ae Chun Candles to another Blessed couple.
I suggest that couples never allow the original candles they inherited to burn down completely, but save those candles to multiply more as needed. Six new candles are made at a time: three with the Father candles and three with the Mother candle. The candles should be arranged in two four-position foundations, representing the positions of God, Adam, Eve, and child. The Father candle should be in God's position of one of the arrangements, and the Mother candle in the other. The Father candle is used to multiply Father candles, and the Mother candle is used to multiply Mother candles. The original candles should be lit first, and then used to light the new candles, transferring the light from the Adam to Eve to child positions_ After a prayer over the lit candles, they may be extinguished (in other words, they do not have to burn for forty minutes as in the inheritance ceremony).
More details about the purpose and use of these candles will be published soon in a book on our traditions.