Judaism, Christianity, and Korea
 
>I am busy studying math at University. Now it is not very clear 
>for me, where I will use all this abstract models I am studying 
>now. Poor me. 
 
Now, Alik, as you know, you're getting into one of my favorite 
subjects. Because you are Unification Church member, and a 
Blessed Couple in good standing (I assume) therefore God can 
especially guide you in your studies, as long as you always 
connect it to Him, and bring Him joy. Then you will see that your 
math becomes very useful and helpful. Although it may take a 
while to materialize in that way. 
 
The Jewish religion is the first truly great religion. Why? I 
have been reflecting a lot on this. I came to realize that the 
purpose of religion and following God is not just to advance the 
providence as much as possible in my miserable lifetime. Not only 
that -- we must inherit soul, tradition, the culture of heart. So 
the big question comes: Do we Unificationists have within 
ourselves truly the culture of heart? It must be based on deep 
connection with God's Heart, and must be vertically extended 
through time. That becomes Tradition. Tradition is not only 
external things to be observed. Of course! Tradition, as every 
true Jew knows, involves the whole heart and soul, the whole 
family, the whole community, the whole religion, the whole 
history, the ancestors... 
 
Let us look at Purim. Tragically, the most significant thing I 
recall about Purim on this day is the barbarous bombings in 
Israel perpetrated each year by haters of Jews. What does this 
mean? Look at the time of the first Purim, the Original 
celebration: In Persia, Haman was persecuting the Jews, with the 
intention to kill all of them on a certain day. But Esther was 
righteous and appealed to the king and her father Mordecai 
supported this. By wisdom, prayer, and God's providence, the 
situation was turned around and Haman hanged instead of 
Mordecai. God was vindicated. 
 
Now the tragedy comes. What was God's purpose in liberating the 
Jews time and again? (1) Because He loved them, and their soul-
filled tradition. (2) Because they stood in God's providence to 
receive the Messiah. So, when the ultimate tragedy occurred, God 
wept, and His children wept, and the Jewish race and nation went 
through another interminable age of suffering, and more soul-
filled events to remember. 
 
There was a providential requirement, and that was based on 
heart. That required them to have the level of heart to recognize 
God's messenger, denying themselves. Of course, in that moment, 
he didn't fit in with the tradition and "soul" they felt. He 
contradicted it. They could have gone over the challenge. But the 
results came out tragically. Thus the providential requirement 
was not fulfilled. Then, no matter how much God loved, and 
continued to love, the Jewish people and culture, He had to 
watch as Satan invaded and claimed so much, so many beautiful of 
His most beloved children. Yet God was still with them through 
all of this, as you know. 
 
Now, when the time of Purim comes, in a way, God has a 
heartache. He remembers well when He liberated the Jews in Persia 
to uphold His name and Will. Yet that purpose was compromised 
severely when the historical tragedy occurred later. So, now, 
2,600 years later, when Purim is still celebrated, it is even 
more than ever a soulful event, as it is painted and layered with 
so many tears, mingling with the joy. Liberated, but then sold 
into slavery or scattered once again. I think it serves to recall 
all of that. I think you being of Jewish heritage must know that 
better than anyone. Yet, at the same time, all of us, weathering 
several hundred years of Western materialism and pragmatism, 
have suffered a loss of soul, and our seared soul needs to be 
wakened to our deep, rich heritage. I think Unificationists in 
the future can even serve to do this, knowing the true God, and 
being educated in the cultural tradition of religious people and 
suffering people. 
 
Father said, "The Unification Church is not the encyclopedia of 
unification, but the encyclopedia of suffering." (Way of God's 
Will). We have never understood that deeply, thinking instead of 
suffering in an ideological sense, busy running forward, scarcely 
entering such a realm of deep suffering which touches the soul of 
our being. 
 
>1. Did Rev. Moon mention Judaism in his speeches? What did he 
>say? 
 
Yes. Father always talks about Judaism. Let me mention one thing 
he said: Father said, after the end of the Second World War, "Now 
the sin of the crucifixion of Jesus has been indemnified, and the 
Jews need no longer be accused for the death of Jesus." 
 
Father always says, "There are three brothers in God's providence 
-- Judaism, Christianity, and the Unification Church." 
 
Now, regarding the identity of the Chosen People, Father speaks 
of (1) the Jewish people (Israel or the "First Israel"); (2) the 
Christians (the "Second Israel"); and (3) variously -- the Korean 
people and nation, or the Unification Church. 
 
Finally, Father says, "God cannot abandon or forget about Israel, 
because they were the first ones to serve Him." 
 
>2. On what foundation does God still work with Judaism? 
 
I will tell you from what I realized just in the last couple days 
in prayer. You indeed asked at the right time. This is a very 
important theme: Tradition. 
 
I am now adding the very important concept: "Soul". I always 
wondered, why is the term or concept of "soul" left out of all 
our discussion of Principle? Now I know. God has reserved this 
concept until we were ready for it and the time is now. This is 
my own realization, and for us Unificationists, it is truly 
revolutionary. 
 
What is "soul"? Basically it is heart. What is the difference 
between "soul" and "heart"? The vertical extension. Heart, the 
heart of man, and connected with God's Heart, is the foundation 
of religion, culture and tradition. When the heart is truly met, 
and absorbed within you, and within the culture, and passed down, 
then it becomes tradition. Soul is heart, extended vertically, 
and absorbed into the tradition and the culture, into the 
subconsciousness of the people. This is what must happen in order 
for Unificationism to become the culture of heart, which we 
always talk of. 
 
Why does God still work with Judaism? Because of this soul. God 
loves the Jewish people, Jewish culture and tradition, because it 
deeply contains, is filled with, this soul. Jewish people know 
this much better than I. 
 
The normal Unificationist explanation of the reason God still 
works with Judaism involves heart: God loves the Jewish people 
because they first served Him, they know His Heart, and because 
they are the first brother in His Providence. So, you see, the 
explanation cannot avoid speaking of Heart. 
 
>3. Bible. There are many differences in English and Russian 
>versions of The Bible. Also, exists Jewish way to translate the 
>Bible. What to do with it? I know this is a big issue, and that 
>members of Unification Church think that this is not good point 
>to discuss with other Christians. 
 
The first issue is internal versus external. Because people are 
always worshipping or fixated upon the external form or image of 
the thing, and not upon the essence or origin, therefore God is 
continuously frustrated with humanity. In the case of Christians, 
there are many denominations, but, in a typical distinction, the 
Protestants differ from the Catholics because the Catholics 
stress ritual, but the Protestants emphasize the Word. The Word 
is indeed more internal than the ritual. So in this sense the 
Protestants are good, but they tend to lose the soul or heart and 
become rather cold. Also, they worship the Word too much, and 
forget that God is the root of the Bible, and the Bible itself is 
relative to God, and in this sense not the absolute ultimate 
authority, as they believe. In other words, they worship the book 
instead of the true God and Jesus, who wrote the book. If they 
truly consulted God and Jesus, they might not persecute our 
Church. 
 
In Islam, this problem is solved in that there is only one Koran, 
and it cannot be interpreted or translated in any way, but is 
only in Arabic. But in this sense, the point becomes even more 
extreme than is the case for the Christian Bible. 
 
Because there are many translations, any one of them is 
relativized. So you can pick and choose. And there are very 
significant differences of interpretation reflected in the 
translations. Take for example: "In the beginning was God," "In 
the beginning was the Word," or "In the beginning was Jesus." 
 
It all points to the one fact: the true authority and root is 
God, and, after God, the Messiah, then, after the Messiah, the 
written Word. Yet God is invisible and you can't usually hear His 
voice, and Jesus isn't here... So, naturally, people fix upon the 
few words they have, and scour them diligently, just like the 
scribes and Pharisees, meanwhile, they keep right on sinning, and 
the world continues under Satan's dominion. 
 
With respect to other people's religious traditions, it is good 
to be familiar with them, and be very understanding, tolerant, 
respectful, and patient with them. Because of the historical 
problems, naturally there is much indemnity associated with the 
relationship between religions, races, and cultures. So we have 
to make an extra effort. It's like "affirmative action." That is 
the path of indemnity. Go the reverse course. 
 
>4. Divine Principle book says that amount of indemnity paid by 
>Koreans during 1905-1945 period and during the history allows 
>Korean nation to be chosen. Do you know Korean history from this 
>viewpoint, and can you clarify it for me? 
 
We may variously say that the Korean nation was chosen even from 
before the time of Jesus, or in other ways. Why I say so? Because 
it now appears, and Father has said, that Confucius came from a 
Korean origin, within the Chinese cultural sphere. The Jewish 
people originated the providential-centered religious way, and 
then the victory of uniting with the Messiah would have been 
carried to the Arabic peoples next, uniting them... (See how 
Islam was given to the Arabic peoples, showing their position 
also as Chosen People in the line?) ...subsequently to the 
Buddhist-Hindu cultural sphere of India (which was at that time 
still in India, not being separated yet) ...and finally to China. 
Chinese culture, centered upon Confucianism, which was already 
strong, was ready to embrace heavenly culture, completing it with 
the understanding of relationships -- the Four Great Realms of 
Heart, the Three Great Kingships -- very Confucian concepts. So, 
the religious path of the Kingdom of Heaven would have found its 
final, greatest fruition, probably in Korea, even 2,000 years 
ago! Another revolutionary concept for Unificationism. 
 
Indemnity payment alone cannot qualify the Chosen Nation or 
People. Not only indemnity as external, physical suffering, at 
least. But, the true concept of indemnity is, first, indemnity of 
heart: uniting with the heart of God and laying, internally, the 
foundation of faith (true, heartistic faith) and substance (true, 
heartistic unity as brothers). If this is done, that is, the 
foundation for the Messiah, then this is the true payment of 
indemnity. Has the Korean nation done that? To the extent that 
Father could be born there, yes. But see -- Father was not 
really received by the Korean people even yet, as of now. So, in 
this sense, Korea as a nation has not completely paid indemnity. 
But then again, no one else has either. 
 
There is another aspect of indemnity payment which qualifies 
Korea however. Not only providentially to receive the Messiah, 
but also culturally, to make the foundation for the model of the 
heavenly culture, the culture of heart, in image at least, 
likewise, terrific indemnity payment is necessary. God trained 
the Korean people through many ordeals and many teachers, just 
like He did with the Israelites, and not just for the last 2,000 
years! In fact, to create the heavenly culture, God suffered and 
labored for perhaps 100,000 years, and maybe longer. Let us just 
say, "6,000 years." To establish the peripheral aspects, the 
foundation of culture, required even more time than to actually 
send and receive one man, the Messiah. 
 
Thus, Korea, like Israel, is unique in being a Messiah culture, 
namely, the nation which is expecting and prepared to receive the 
Messiah, and, not only that, but the culture which is close to 
the heavenly ideal of culture. All of this had to be prepared, 
and God worked very hard all around the world to do so. 
 
Another point regarding the indemnity period of 1905 to 1945: 
Just as we say, "Jesus did not come to die, Jesus did not have to 
die"; likewise, we can say, Korea did not have to go through this 
brutal 40-year period in such a way. Why did it happen? 
 
The responsibility of Christianity was to be a people prepared to 
receive the Lord, and to make a worldwide foundation to do so. 
Because Christians failed to do so, therefore, special suffering 
came to Korea, to indemnify that. 
 
First of all, the Christians should have repented and united at 
the time of Luther, over 450 years ago. Because they didn't, so 
much blood was shed, and the providence moved to America. 
America should have "made the world safe for democracy", in 
Christian terms, and we should have protected Korea. Korea was 
the beloved spiritual child of America, Britain, France, Canada, 
and Australia. But, for self-centered economic interests, these 
Christian countries abandoned Korea in 1905, and handed Korea 
over helplessly to Japan. Then the tribulation began, 
representing not only Korea but all of Christianity. If we had 
fulfilled our responsibility, we would have even been waiting for 
the Messiah to be born in Korea between 1914 and 1930. There is 
enough evidence for this. Then Korea would be preserved as a most 
holy nation and people, and protected by the Christian nations 
and saints. Instead... they paid indemnity for us, while we 
enjoyed ourselves in the lap of luxury and self-indulgence during 
the "Roaring Twenties". Then we paid dearly in the Great 
Depression, the Second World War, and the Cold War following. 
 
The conclusion is: Korea suffered in the place of all mankind, 
because of the failures of Christianity since the very time of 
Jesus. Then, taking responsibility in this position for the cross 
and heart of Jesus, the Korean people showed themselves 
qualified to receive the Messiah, and so God sent him to them. 
And they had the adequate cultural foundation for him too. This 
was all God's preparation. 
 
Now, Korea is in a fearful position, because True Parents are 
worldwide victors, but for many reasons of fallen nature, Korea 
has not responded fully to them. In such a case, Korea once again 
faces calamity, as they did at the end of the Second World War. 
 
Yours truly, William Stoertz 
ITPN 




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