Pyeong Hwa Gyeong
평화경平和經
BOOK 5
Absolute Values
and a New World Order
1. The Role
of Unified Science in the Moral Orientation of the World 697
2. Modern Science and Our
View of Moral Values 705
3. Science and
Absolute Values 709
4. Harmony among
the Sciences and the Search for Absolute Values
714
5. God and the
Limit of Science 720
6. Absolute Values
and the Search for Peace for Humankind
724
7. Absolute Values
and the Creation of a New World 729
8. Absolute Value
Perspective 737
9. Unification Thought as the Basis
of a New Cultural Revolution 744
10. Professors World Peace
Academy and Our Resolution 752
11. Absolute Values and
the New Cultural Revolution 760
12. Leaping Forward and
Gaining Momentum 764
13. True Love and the
Unified World 770
14. Absolute Values and
a Reassessment of Contemporary Society
776
15. Absolute Values and
a Reassessment of the Contemporary World
781
16. Absolute Values and the New World
Order 786
17. True Knowledge, True
Family and World Peace 792
18. Problems
Confronting Society and the Responsibility of the Media 800
19. Media Credibility
and Social Responsibility 805
20. The Responsibility
of the Media in a Divided World 810
21. Media Standards and
Journalistic Accountability 815
22. True Unification
and One World 819
23. God’s
Strategy for Victory 828
24. The Mission of the
Media in the Twenty-first Century 836
25. Media in the
Twenty-first Century: Focus, Roles and Responsibilities 844
26. Globalization and
the Media: Looking to the Twenty-first Century
851
27. A United Direction
for the Media in the New Millennium
857
28. The Life of Jesus from the
Perspective of God’s Will and God’s Warning to the Present Age
862
BOOK 5
Absolute Values and a New World Order
1
The Role of
Unified Science in the
Moral Orientation of the World
November 26, 1972
Waldorf Astoria Hotel, New York, USA
First International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Distinguished chairman,
notable scientists and welcome guests:
The emergence of
Unified Science, with its tremendous potential for improving our world, is a
very important and historic event. I want to personally thank all of you for
the time and effort you have put into this conference to make this great
beginning possible. I am grateful to offer the concluding remarks for this
historic conference. I will speak on the topic, “The Role of Unified Science in
the Moral Orientation of the World.”
No matter who
they are, all people are always looking for happiness. To be happy is
humanity’s insuppressible desire and ideal. During the past several thousand
years of humankind’s cultural history, there has been no one who did not have
this ideal of happiness.
Human life and a
happy world
The ideal, of
course, has never matched reality, yet human beings have constantly tried to
achieve the ideal in their life. In this way, great progress has been made in
every field of human culture, politics, economics, society, religion, science
and so forth.
As you well
know, humanity has established a highly developed, affluent society that cannot
even be compared to those of ancient or medieval times, and there is no doubt
that science has been the decisive factor in this development. If science had
not developed, the economic prosperity we have today would not have been
realized.
This fact
suggests that the majority of scientists have made it their mission to aid
progress toward a happy, ideal society—that is, scientists developed science
and technology with a keen sense of mission to actualize the dreams of all
people. Sometimes men of power misused the results of scientific research for
unrighteous purposes, and still the fundamental spirit of scientists has aimed
toward the fulfillment of an ideal society for humanity.
The unity of the
sciences and a tendency for unification
In this way, the
purpose of science is to realize people’s dreams. However, in the past, even
when science made great strides, these advances could not always be immediately
used to better the lives of all humankind because of national and racial
barriers. This indicates that some people insisted on national boundaries for
science. However, science belongs to all humanity and must not be monopolized
by any particular nation or bloc.
This reminds us
that many scientists with a strong sense of mission fought against the
unrighteous forces that ignored the original purpose of science and hindered
the realization of a true, ideal society.
Among all
scientists there may also have been a few who forgot the spirit of serving
humankind, becoming too involved in their own immediate interests. Nonetheless,
the basic attitude of most scientists was to contribute to the peace and
prosperity of all people.
In science there
are many fields, yet there is none that does not aim at the realization of
human happiness. Physics, chemistry, medicine, biology, geology, astronomy all
have the same purpose. Of course, in the past several centuries, science due to
its analytic method has become divided and specialized into many small fields.
Recently a new and hopeful trend is appearing to consolidate and unify all the
divided knowledge by the synthetic method. The emergence of Unified Science is
the most conspicuous example of this tendency.
Up to the
present time science, despite its many divisions, has worked toward one goal,
in one direction. That is, each specialized field has worked for the
realization of a happy world in its own particular way, and there is no doubt
each field will continue toward the same goal in the future.
Yet when we look
at the present world situation, there are many deplorable circumstances.
Despite the development of science and economic prosperity, there is still so
much tragedy throughout the world.
Despite
scientists’ deep desire and diligent efforts, poverty, illiteracy and disease
still overwhelm developing countries. Various troubles, crimes and immoralities
prevail in the advanced countries. And tensions, wars and hostilities continue
among nations. Thus, humankind continues to suffer from sorrow, distress and
pain even in the midst of our luxuriously developed cultures.
Many leaders are
trying to eliminate this misery and to establish true peace and stability. Yet
the world is filled with empty words of peace, and humankind is sinking deeper
and deeper into unrest, anxiety and fear.
How has this
come to be? The main reason is that the standard of value that regulates people’s
behavior has been undermined. As ethics and morality have lost their power, the
standard of goodness has almost disappeared.
The standard of
behavior for human beings, which is based on God and Christianity in the West
and on Confucian ethics in the East, has become lost. That is why humanity is
in such a state of misery, despite great advances made by scientists working
for the betterment of humanity.
What does this
fact indicate? It shows that before the advances of science can be effectively
enjoyed, it is first necessary to establish a world of goodness. A world of
goodness means a world where the standard of behavior is clearly established.
It is a world of morality and religion. However, it will not work unless this
standard is newly established. There must be a new standard of behavior, which
can ensure that the logical and practical scientific world will go in the right
direction. This shows us that in today’s world, science has another mission. It
is not enough to improve the standard of life through the application of
science in the material world. Scientists must also be concerned with the state
of people’s spirits.
Now I am going
to explain why. No one can deny that every creature, including the human
person, is a unified being with two natures, a material nature and an
immaterial mind, as in the world of nature. The human being is a unified being
of body and mind; animals are unified beings of body and instinct; and plants
are unified beings of matter and directive energy.
From the standpoint
of ontology, the cosmos is a world of effect, and it must therefore have an
ultimate cause. Materialism says this ultimate cause is matter, and idealism
insists it is spirit.
However, because
the world of effect is made of unified beings with two natures, the cause must
be a monistic being with the essence of the two natures of matter and mind
unified into one.
In other words,
the ultimate cause must be an absolute, unified being with two natures that can
create the attributes of mind and matter respectively. Only from a unified and
monistic cause can a unified world of effect be brought into existence. That
is, the unified effect must have a unified, monistic being as its cause.
Therefore, we
must say that materialism, which takes matter to be the fundamental cause of
the universe, is incorrect. The cause cannot be matter, for matter is an
expression of only one of the attributes of the cause. This cause existed as
non-matter prior to its expression in matter.
Humans are also
unified beings brought about by the unified cause. Consequently, people cannot
be considered only material beings or only spiritual beings. Therefore, the
improvement of physical life or body alone cannot create happiness. Only by
improving both the spiritual and physical life at the same time can true
happiness be achieved. Science has put its efforts into improving material
life, because its domain is limited to the material world. Therefore, in spite
of the hard work and deep desire of scientists, humankind has not been able to
escape distress and chaos.
Here we can
conclude that scientists now must participate in the reformation of spiritual
life in order to secure the true happiness of humanity and to protect the
precious scientific work accomplished so far. The reformation of spiritual life
means creating a world of goodness—that is, a society of new morality, by
establishing a new standard of value.
Embodying love
to resemble God
Then how can we
create the spiritual reformation? For this we must set up a standard of
goodness, and to determine goodness we must decide the center of love. This is
because goodness is the practice of love. Then what can be the center of love?
It must be God,
who is a unique, eternal and unchanging being existing
since before the formation of the cosmos. Love is the flow of heart—that is,
the outpouring of deepest heart.
Therefore, the
essence of God is heart. This God is the unified being that is the fundamental
cause of the cosmos dealt with in ontology. The formation of the cosmos by this
fundamental cause is simply the creation of the cosmos by God.
Then how could
God create the cosmos and human beings? God could do it because God has heart.
Where there is heart, life appears; and where there is life, development and
creation can take place. For creation, there must always be purpose. This is
because heart directs toward purpose. The purpose of creation could only be
joy, which fulfills the desire of heart. This joy comes when the creation,
especially humanity, comes to resemble God. God’s goal of creation is to have
human beings and the world of happiness, that is, the kingdom of heaven,
reflecting the love and creativity of God, which relate to mind and matter
respectively. We know this is true from the fact that humankind’s ideal is
actually to realize such people and such a world.
The ideal is the
world that was originally given to human beings as their home. The fact that
people seek a joyful world as their ideal means a joyful world is the one God
planned for them. Such a world reflects God’s love and creativity and thus
becomes joyful.
Through our
amazing scientific progress we have begun to take after God’s creative power
but not yet His love. In order to take after His love, we must practice love
and lead a life of goodness, because the practice of love is goodness itself.
For the life of goodness, man ought to make God, who is the subject of love,
the center of his standard of goodness. Since God is both the center and the
essence of all things, His love is unchanging and everlasting, even though His
creation, the phenomenal world, is transitory.
Therefore, when
we take God as our standard of goodness, absolute value can be established, and
then the eternal world of peace and happiness will be realized.
The
world desired by God and humanity
Since the ideal
world is the realization of God’s purpose of creation and is the world that
reflects God, people always seek to have a harmonious and peaceful life filled
with God’s love and also seek to improve their environment by continually
creating new things.
Here creation
does not mean mere production; rather, it includes all creative actions, such
as originating new ideas, planning and improving as well as producing.
Since God is a
unified being, human beings and societal life must also be unified. This means
people must love while they live a creative life and must live a creative life
while they love. Such people are unified people, and the world they live in is
the unified world. As repeatedly mentioned, people have come to reflect God’s
creativity through outstanding scientific progress yet so far have not learned
His love. So this world is still filled with sorrow, pain and distress.
Since harmony is
the essential nature of love, harmony cannot exist where there is no love.
Likewise, peace and happiness cannot exist where there is no harmony. Thus,
humankind’s present suffering continues because of the lack of love.
Therefore, it is
natural that both God and humanity have been longing for the ideal life and
world that would resemble God. In other words, the ideal human being sought by
God and people’s original mind is a creative and good person practicing
God-centered love. The ideal world is the world filled with creative actions to
improve the environment and is one filled with love between individuals and
between nations.
When this new
type of person comes to live in this new, unified world, all the sorrows, pains
and hostilities that have plagued humanity throughout history will be
eliminated forever.
The
direction for all humanity
Human beings and
the world were originally supposed to have been good, resembling God’s nature,
but to date humanity and the world have not realized their original nature.
Therefore, to save humankind from distress and chaos, we have to restore the
original state of human beings and the world and manifest it in our actual
life. For this we have to find the absolute standard of goodness and practice
the life of goodness. The standard of goodness is the center of love, which is
God.
The fact that
all humankind is struggling so hard to escape the reality of pain and chaos and
is longing for peace and freedom shows that people’s original mind is seeking
the standard of goodness and the center of love. To find the center of love and
to establish the eternal world of happiness on earth is the universal desire of
all humankind.
Now, I mentioned
that the world both God and humanity desire is the unified world in which
creativity and love are practiced. In this world the desire of both God and
people will be fulfilled, but to practice love human beings must first find the
center of love.
To practice love
a norm must be set up, because a true life of love requires order. In a society
where order has been destroyed, a life of love cannot be practiced in harmony.
That is to say, a life of love needs order, and for order, norms are required.
Norms are laws and principles that regulate people’s behavior,
and these are embodied in morality and ethics. Therefore, to live a good life
centered on love, humanity must set up sound morals and ethics and must
practice them.
The morals and
ethics that apply to the unified world must be clear and applicable to
contemporary people. The reason past morals and ethics have
been undermined lies partly in today’s tendency toward materialism. It also
comes from the fact that the standards of value no longer satisfy the present
expectation for reasonable answers. From this, the establishment of a new
expression of morals and ethics based on the absolute standard of value becomes
inevitable.
Establishing a
completely unified world of goodness
Then how can
this absolute standard of value be set up? It can come only from an elevated,
unified system of thought that can unify all past philosophies and religious
doctrines.
Each of the
philosophies and religions of the past had their own views of value and ethics,
with strong points that are still beneficial. However, people have for the most
part left them behind, because they could not harmonize these views with the
coming age. Therefore, to establish the absolute standard of value, we have to
absorb the strong points of past views of value and develop new expressions
that can meet the needs of contemporary society.
Thus, because
the past views of value and ethics were based on the philosophies and religions
of their respective ages, a new system— Unification Thought—has to appear, by
which we can unify the past philosophies and religions.
When the new
expression of morality and ethics emerges, based on the Unification Thought
system, we will be able to create a unified world of goodness never seen
before. We can create a moral orientation of goodness never seen before. The
moral orientation of the world, then, which is the very theme of this
conference, calls us to share this new expression of value with the world in
order to build the new, unified world.
In conclusion,
I’d like to say more about the role of Unified Science. First, I am very
grateful to the organizers of Unified Science for their efforts to synthesize
the subdivided knowledge of science. The divisive specialization of science,
just like the dismantling of a machine, ultimately paralyzes the unitary
functioning of the whole and keeps science from fulfilling its mission.
Unified Science
should unite with Unification Thought
Here today, some
pioneer scientists are systematically integrating and unifying the truths of
past scientific discoveries into a new system of philosophical science. I think
this is noteworthy, worthy of high praise. It corresponds to the historic emergence
of a new system of Unified Thought that unifies past philosophies and religions
and establishes a new view of value for the modern age. As I previously pointed
out, the main mission of science is to improve humankind’s material life. I
expect Unified Science will contribute with a new effectiveness to that end.
However, just as
an original person is a unified being of spirit and body, true social life
unites both the spiritual and material, and the ideal world unites love and
creative action. Therefore, the true world of happiness cannot be realized by
the improvement of material life alone. By this we can come to the conclusion
that Unified Science has to unite with Unification Thought in order to
accomplish its mission.
When this
unification is accomplished, the long-standing problem of uniting science and
religion will be resolved and finally the unified world of prosperity,
happiness and goodness will be established. The outdated systems and ways of
thinking will pass away, and the ideal, unified world with new-age systems and
ways of thinking will be established on earth.
2
Modern Science
and Our View of
Moral Values
November 21, 1973
The Imperial Hotel, Tokyo, Japan
Second International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Allow me to
extend my heartfelt congratulations to you on the very successful Second
International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences, which has convened
eminent scientists of our contemporary age. I am greatly honored to have the
opportunity to make some brief remarks at the close of this conference held in
the Orient’s most modern city, Tokyo, Japan.
First of all, my
deepest admiration and gratitude go to the eminent professors of the executive
committee who rendered such painstaking efforts to hold this conference and make
it a success. Please allow me to express my profound respect and appreciation
to this committee, who decided to adopt the subject, “Modern Science and Moral
Values,” as the theme of the conference, and especially to the professors who
in response to the invitation have deeply researched the respective topics that
have been brought forth and discussed with enthusiasm.
The common
welfare of humanity and the way of science Once again, I want to extend my
deepest congratulations to and appreciation of the participants in this epochal
conference. I am going to express my views regarding the theme under the topic,
“Modern Science and Our View of Moral Values.” I suppose that the conference
adopted and dealt with the question of science and moral values because the
situation in today’s society urgently demands that we address such issues,
which, I am sure, have been thoroughly discussed here. I am not alone in the
awareness that modern science now shows undesirable side effects, even though,
so far, it has contributed tremendously to the welfare of humankind with
unceasing and exceptional discoveries and innovations. Men and women of today
are losing their subjectivity concerning science and technology. It looks as
though the agents of the rapidly accelerating scientific discoveries and its
myriad applications are gradually losing the ability to control and guide their
scientific work with a universal ethic and pertinent moral values. If this
situation persists, it could lead to undesirable and destructive consequences
and circumstances in the near future, which will be difficult for us to remedy.
I will explain the situation of how our subjectivity has been lost.
Science, it
seems, is apt to allow scientists to exclude the questions of ethics and moral
values in the process of scientific development. During the history of science,
scientific fields have gradually split into sub-disciplines, each becoming more
and more specialized. Today, science has become increasingly more analytical
and materialistic, utterly ignoring the questions of ethics and moral values.
The influence of our existential subjectivity over science seems to have
weakened and even evaporated. I am sure that ultimately the most important
among the many possible motivations for scientific research is the desire to
realize humanity’s common welfare, prosperity and peace.
Considering the
enormous progress of science and technology, we originally expected and
anticipated that it would facilitate the arrival of the common welfare and
happiness of humanity, that it would enhance our subjective position over our
natural as well as sociological, economic and political environments. On the
contrary, even though scientific achievements so far have focused on improving
and developing the environment and on offering new technologies for living, our
original desire for science to achieve the welfare, prosperity and peace of
humanity is being sidelined and even undermined. Our original desire is for
science to achieve the welfare of humanity, which is the subject partner.
Although scientific achievements have improved and developed the environment,
which is the object partner, science has not taken responsibility for the
negative outcomes disturbing the spiritual, mental and physical well-being of
individuals, families, societies and nations, and our natural environment. This
misalignment and discrepancy between our desire and our scientific and
technological achievements finally has caused the weakening and even loss of
our subject position concerning the scientific and technological enterprise.
However, it is
desirable for science to deal with both the ethical questions arising from our
human subjective nature as well as objective problems, such as the improvement
of the environment and the development of new technologies for living. I
fervently call on all scientists to develop their respective fields on the
basis of a solid ethical view of moral values, thus exalting human dignity by
adopting a spiritual and unifying methodology as well as a materialistic and
analytical one. If we had focused the underpinnings of science on human
dignity, the formidable problems of environmental pollution could have been
prevented. Here arises the question of human beings’
original image, that is, the design of our human nature.
The establishment
of a standard of value
My view is that
our original design is intended to achieve the harmonious oneness between mind
and body. The original human being was supposed to be a being of unity and
harmony between his or her spirit and body centered on the purpose of goodness.
I view the original purpose of science as embodying the aspirations of both
aspects of our existence, spirit and body. This means that such a unified
science also incorporates the fields of ethics and moral values.
It may be appropriate
to request of science to synthesize rationality and spirituality, to call for a
commitment of science to actively pursue the betterment of the world’s cultures
and peoples. However, in order to integrate ethics and moral values into
science, the question of what needs to be the standard of value arises. In
general, the standard of value has changed according to historical age and
environment. There is a vast difference between the standard of value in
ancient times and that of the contemporary age. Also, the standard of value in
the Orient differs from that of the Occident. Therefore, to establish a true
standard of value for the common benefit and welfare of all humankind, we can
only set up as the standard a universal and absolute element that can apply at
any time and any place.
The
establishment of this absolute standard signifies the establishment of a new
view of ethics and moral values. The essence of this absolute standard must be
the love that forms the basis of the ethics of the family system. True love in
the ethical relationship of the family is an absolute love, agape love, which
emits heartwarming joy to all humankind just as the sun emits its light to all
creation. This love alone has never changed throughout history, whether in the East
or the West. At this point we can think of the one Absolute Being as the one
subject of this absolute love. I believe it is most desirable for this Absolute
Being to become the ultimate standard of the new view of value.
This Absolute
Being is not a conceptual being but is a substantial entity who has revealed
Himself throughout human history. We know that in history, many sages and
saints, including many religious leaders, have appeared at different times and
in different places. Without exception, they appealed to the human conscience
and heart, urging the practice of love. When men and women responded and
followed their teachings, the peoples and nations enjoyed peace and prosperity;
when men and women were obstinate, the nations fell into confusion or decline.
Even today the whole of humankind is in confusion and chaos waiting either
consciously or unconsciously for the appearance of modern sages and saints to
make this love real. Considering all these facts, we can conclude that history
has taken a direction of development to realize this love. Therefore, we can
only recognize that there has been one central axis functioning in history,
consciously and in a certain direction.
I want to
identify this substantial being who has played the
role of the axis as the Absolute Being. We can see that behind the scenes of
human history, this Absolute Being has planned to establish the world of moral
values by actualizing love through saints, righteous people and conscientious
leaders. Accordingly, my conclusion is that if the whole of humankind will
accept this Absolute Being as the axis of human history, the world of moral
values will be realized without difficulty.
Finally, I
extend to you my heartfelt wishes that the valuable presentations of your research
and discussions at this conference will produce epochal results that contribute
to the true peace and prosperity of humankind.
Thank you very
much.
3
November 22,1974
Royal Lancaster Hotel, London, England
Third International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairman, distinguished scientists, eminent professors and scholars:
I sincerely
welcome all of you who are attending the third International Conference on the
Unity of the Sciences, sponsored by the International Cultural Foundation.
As I am sure you
are aware, two previous conferences have been held, the first in New York City
in November 1972, and the second in Tokyo in November 1973. As the founder of
the International Cultural Foundation, I have desired and done my best to
create and maintain throughout these conferences an atmosphere in which an open
and unreserved exchange of opinions could take place. And I have been greatly
pleased with the fruitful results of these conferences and with the participants
who have contributed so much to them.
The development
of science and the issues now facing humankind
At present, ever
more serious problems continue to develop and confront humankind. The solutions
to these challenging problems call for and indeed require both localized
approaches and a global approach. Therefore, we demand the wisdom and knowledge
of the many distinguished scholars who are gathered here at this conference.
As a scientist
myself, I have been observing with keen interest the development of science and
technology. I know that science and technology and what we call the “scientific
method” have had a far-reaching impact on human life. Through observation and
study of the world of reality, science has extended and expanded our perception
of this reality beyond our physical senses.
For example, we
are now cognizant of bacteria, which we can detect using a microscope. Some of
us journey to the moon, directed by computers whose astronomical speed of
calculation baffles the human mind, while others talk about making such travels
an everyday possibility.
To our naked
eye, the earth still appears flat, but science has compelled us to admit that
it is round. A diamond appears to be solid and we were once amazed to know that
in fact it is a scattering of particles in mostly empty space. On a more
abstract level, the transition from reality to extended reality is illustrated
by the transition from classical to quantum mechanics and from the
deterministic model to the probabilistic model, both of which are equally
confusing to non-scientists.
Although the
progress in science has provided us with a tremendous amount of information, we
still suffer from our inability to internalize this information and our
inability to fully comprehend its deeper implications. This inability has led
to much anxiety, confusion and uncertainty as we lose our firm reference
points. As a result, we feel we are in a state of imbalance with scientific
progress due to the suddenly expanded reality.
The necessity
for cooperation, with a global worldview
Meanwhile, when
we think of the strong probability of our finding in the spirit world the
answers to the disharmony and imbalance that attend the limited human function
of thinking, it does not seem accidental that Zen meditation and its practice
recently have become controversial objects of scientific research in the West
as well as in the East, where for centuries they have been practiced and
valued. The study of extrasensory perception has drawn the attention of quite a
number of scholars in the academic community. The discovery that a dolphin can
intelligently communicate with human beings deserves notice. Along the same
lines, it has been observed that plants respond to the love and other emotional
states of human beings. These discoveries suggest that our present view that
the animal and plant worlds are lacking in consciousness and reason may be
flawed.
Thus, we may now
envision a universe in which a harmonious coexistence is brought about between
human beings and other creatures, a universe where human beings, the center of
all things, turn the whole universe like a wheel in ultimate harmony and
oneness. Other issues worthy of notice are the roles of the educator and the
medical doctor. They may be drastically affected by the ability of the computer
to process enormous amounts of information accurately and promptly. Some
scientists have hinted that the future study of elementary particles and
cosmology may alter our concepts of space and time.
A study conducted
by the Club of Rome informs us of potentially disastrous events in the near
future due to pollution, population growth, scarcity of natural resources and
rapid industrialization. Recently it has been found that atmospheric ozone is
on the decrease, caused by repeated nuclear testing. As you all know, the
presence of ozone in the upper atmosphere is vital to the survival of life on
the earth, since damage to cellular molecules by the sun’s ultraviolet
radiation occurs in the absence of the ozone layer. Solutions to these problems
cannot be arrived at through the efforts of scientists alone or by the efforts
of any particular individual, group or country. The Club of Rome study clearly
indicates the finiteness of the world’s resources and ecosystems, and also
makes clear the absolute necessity of a global approach and cooperative effort
for proper and complete solutions to the world’s problems.
These problems
call for a worldview, accompanied by an attitude of sacrifice and cooperation
among all peoples of the world, transcending the interest of any one community
or nation. Such a spirit of cooperation will be attained only when all human
beings come to view themselves as members of the same human family. This
revolutionary change in human consciousness to embrace such a worldview has
long been needed and is vital to humanity’s survival today. In many educational
systems throughout the nations of the world, the merit of competition and the
survival of the fittest, achieved only by the winners in the competition, has
been overly stressed. This has long been a plague undermining the healthy human
endeavor to lead humanity into a world of peaceful coexistence by bringing them
to feel themselves as members of one human family.
Now humanity
somehow has begun to feel that in educating people the emphasis needs to shift
and that cooperation has to be taught as vital for survival. In light of this
viewpoint, the goals and philosophies of education will have to undergo a
profound transformation.
In the past, we
have accepted the contribution of science and technology to the enrichment of
human life without deep reflection. Now we begin to wonder. Some disquieting
questions come to mind. Are we happier in our technology-enriched world? Are we
more sound ethically? Are we becoming more humane with love and concern for one
another? Answers to these questions are not found simply by analyzing
statistics, because the human being has many aspects that are not discretely
quantifiable.
In any
discussion of quality of life, these non-quantifiable factors play a major
role. As illustrations, let me cite love, ideals, the
joy of creating, belief in God and numerous other value areas. The question of
the preservation and development of these humane aspects of life remains the
greatest theme of our research.
The way for
science to meet today’s challenges
In light of this
theme the question of interpretation and proper use of the vast amount of
information generated through scientific research and discovery becomes a
profound and serious one. Our attitude that tends to overemphasize the value of
science may need reexamination. After all, any scientific truth is
tentative—the truth in one generation can possibly be invalidated in the next.
Consistent experimental results, derived from a model built on the basis of a
limited investigation, constitute scientific truth. However, in the course of
building a model we go through the processes of idealization, simplification
and approximation. As a consequence, we may have an approximate understanding
of truth and not the absolute truth. Science has grown so big that it sometimes
seems beyond the realm of human beings.
Science needs to
be strictly thorough, accurate and detailed in determining facts. In the
process of utilizing its accumulated information and achievements, science
needs to remain positioned as one of the areas of human creativity. It needs to
stay within the human realm so it may be used, controlled and appreciated just
like works of art and music.
When we reflect
on the history of the human race, we see there have been new frontiers in every
era, some culminating in the development of literature and others in the
blossoming of medicine and the various sciences. Yet in the past, development
of science and technology has been aimed mainly at the conquest and
exploitation of nature.
Today this very
science compels us to set up a new ethical standard. The new ethic ought to
concern itself with the problems of love for nature and a reexamination of
human values and the need for cooperation among human beings. It must attempt
to set a new view of value and a new ethical norm that can bring about an ideal
world of harmonious coexistence among all creatures on earth.
The development of
science and technology has certainly raised issues that invite us to reflect
seriously on what is essential for us to remain human and to preserve
humaneness in our lives. I strongly believe that the aforementioned ideal world
can be made possible only when every field of science and technology is
mobilized for the benefit of humankind and when a cooperative spirit of human
activity guides those who work in those fields.
I ardently
desire and expect the answers to come from you. This will surely be realized by
assembling the results of your respective researches together with your
opinions and wisdom. From the very bottom of my heart I beg you to play the
role of the bridge that will connect and lead the present world toward a world
of higher dimension and absolute value.
Thank you for
your attentive listening!
4
Harmony among
the Sciences and
the Search for Absolute Values
November 27, 1976
Hilton Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Fifth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairman, distinguished scholars and scientists:
I would like to
extend my sincere welcome to all of you on this occasion of the fifth
International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences. I would especially like
to welcome those of you who have participated in these conferences regularly.
For the past several years, participants at these conferences have been
discussing the subject of “absolute values,” and this year you will deal with
the specific theme of “The Search for Absolute Values.”
The origin of humankind and all creation
To discover
absolute values, one needs to clarify the origin of the existence of human
beings and the universe. Here we run across the question of whether the
universe originated from something in existence or from nothingness. As you
well know, natural science, social science, philosophy and religion have not
been searching for truth in the world of nonexistence. Instead, they have been
trying to locate a causal being in the world of existence, and to discover the
principles that have led to the existence and operation of the universe,
including human beings, all proceeding from the origin itself. Ultimately, they
have wanted to discover the reason for and value of any existing entity by
clarifying its content or nature and by understanding the relationships between
different existing entities.
If we consider
the smallest unit necessary to constitute matter with a chemical identity, we
may call it an “atom” and describe it as something in existence. If so, it
would be logical to say that the atom definitely originated from something in
existence, not from nothingness.
Modern science
provides the view that the origin of the atom is a certain type of energy,
which again must have had an origin. We can then draw the conclusion that this
energy is also derived from some ultimate existence.
If we consider
the vast universe as an amplification of the infinitesimal atom, and therefore
also a result derived from an ultimate cause, we can clearly come to the
realization that a human being is a resultant being and not the causal
existence. Then there also needs to be a causal existence for human beings.
It is reasonable
to set up a system of logic whereby all things were generated from an absolute
causal existence and developed into more complex and higher beings. This system
would need to refute the systems of scholars who insist that existence was
generated from nonexistence. Thus, we can say that a certain Absolute Being
that has existed from the beginning is the cause of the universe, resulting in
all things from the smallest to the largest, connecting them and causing them
to interrelate organically and initiating a variety of actions.
From this
viewpoint, the established theory of evolution needs to be reexamined. In order
for anything to progress to a higher level of being, some activity has to
occur; and activity always requires energy. Can extra energy be created in the
process of this activity? No, because during this activity, energy is being
consumed. Therefore, it would be absolutely impossible for more energy to be
generated, which could be used to give birth to a being on a higher level. If,
theoretically, energy is consumed in the process of activity, then why have
living things evolved, instead of deteriorating? And why has the general tendency
of evolution been directed toward the development of things of greater value
and higher dimension? This is the question.
The development of the universe through interaction and counteraction
The theory of
evolution seems logical, but the process of the stage-by-stage progression of
all living things can never be convincingly explained by the theory of random
mutation. Without the addition of energy from outside the system, this
progression toward beings of greater value and higher dimension is absolutely impossible.
The evolution of animals has culminated in human beings, and we can say that
human beings are the ultimate purpose of creation by the first causal Being.
Here again we can establish the logic that the first causal Being existed from
the beginning.
Next comes the
question of which was first, existence or energy? No being maintains its
existence or activities without energy. There is energy that operates within an
individual being and energy that enables the interaction between different
beings.
The question now
is how this energy is produced. It is impossible to produce energy without the
prior existence of a complementary pair consisting of a subject partner and an
object partner. That is to say, the relationship between a pair of subject and
object partners is indispensable for energy to be produced. In the case of an
atom, for example, both the proton, which is the subject partner, and the
electron, which is the object partner, have to be
present before they begin to interact. There can be no flow of energy until
there is the purpose of uniting the pair of subject and object partners.
Therefore, if the question is raised whether energy or the subject-object pair
comes first, the answer is clearly the subject-object pair. Energy is the
phenomenon resulting from the process of the two becoming one.
According to the
variety of relationships between subject and object partners, the energy
generated differs in degree, intensity, direction and objective. This results
in the variety of beings in the universe. The reason why the particular actions
of subject-object pairs have directions and objectives is that the first causal
Being includes a fundamental subject-object pair that acts with a certain
direction and objective.
Consider a being
that has attained perfect unity between the subject
and object partners within its individual self. For that being to form a
relationship with another being, it needs to take either the subject partner or
object partner position to and unite with that other being. Thereby, the two
beings progress to produce a greater form of being with a direction and
objective of higher dimension. When a being in the subject partner position
wants to interact with a being in the object partner position, they have to
share a common interest or purpose. Then, by interacting, they can produce the
higher form of being.
The universe
provides protection against disease
The formation of
this vast universe is the common purpose shared by all subject-object pairs.
Thus, the universe protects itself and at the same time protects and promotes
those beings that have attained unity between subject partner and object
partner. Furthermore, it causes repulsion in those beings that lack harmony and
repels those that try to invade the beings that have attained unity.
This is how
perpetuity becomes possible. One may call the protective force the
“correspondence force,” and the other, the “repelling force,” or action and
counteraction, respectively.
This is true in
both the nonhuman and human worlds. When our mind and body are united in
oneness, we receive the protective power of the universe and consequently
experience happiness. However, when our mind and body are not united, the
repulsion leads to suffering.
The suffering
experienced in illness is produced in a similar manner. When the subject and
object components in our body fail to attain unity and harmony, they lose the
protective force of the universe, and the repelling force causes suffering. The
medicine administered after a doctor’s diagnosis is a way to restore the
harmonious relationship between the subject and object
components. The same principle governs the individual and the family.
For instance,
before marriage, a man and a woman enjoy being with friends of their own
gender. After marriage, as subject and object partners, they eventually attain
perfect unity and form a family, and thus receive the protective or helping
power of the universe and become happy. At this point, as soon as a third
party, another man or woman comes, potentially interfering with their marital
relationship, some repelling force starts to act, lest the perfection of the
relationship be hindered.
The repelling
power is not necessarily harmful to the third parties because it serves to
indicate that they too can act constructively to find subject or object
partners, attain unity with their partners, and thereby receive the protective
power of the universe and become happy. In other words, the repelling power
also serves as a stimulant for the third parties to attain perfection.
All existing
beings resemble the First Cause and multiply
For an electric
current to flow and complete its circuit, a harmonious interaction between
positively charged and negatively charged entities is needed, corresponding to pairs
of subject (plus) and object (minus) partners. However, if two entities have
the same type of electrical charge, namely, a plus and another plus or a minus
and another minus, they will repel each other. When all beings find their
counterpart and form a proper relationship, they experience stability and
happiness under the same law.
When a pair of
subject and object partners become one as a result of give-and-receive action,
according to the theory mentioned above, they come under the protection of the
universe. Since all the actions we observe in this universe are resultant
actions derived from the first causal Being, we can state that there exists a
central Being that is both causal and active. Just as children take after their
parents, results take after the cause.
Let’s look now
into the seed of a plant. We find that there are two complementary parts in
perfect unity within one coat. They interact with each other by their
give-and-receive action, and by doing this alone they can produce another living
organism. The development of a chicken egg is based on the same principle. Each
egg has a yolk and a white, with the embryo between deriving nutrition from
them; and they are all united in one shell. The human fetus develops in a
similar manner.
When the subject
and object partners of any species of living things, whether human, plant or
animal, become one through give-and-receive action, they multiply beings that
take after the form of their cause and eventually achieve that original form.
If we acknowledge
that all these beings take after the ultimate First Cause, we come to the
conclusion that the first causal Being is the basic model for all of them,
having the perfectly united subject-object pair within itself. Then the first
causal Being takes the subject partner position to all other beings.
The purpose for
creating all beings of creation on different levels
The objective of
the progressive creation of all things in the universe is the human being. A
human is the fruit, microcosm and model of the existing world. A human is the
highest being and contains elements from the mineral, plant and animal
kingdoms. Yet since humans are also resultant beings, one must conclude that
they were made to take after the image of the first causal Being.
In other words,
there has to be an absolute subject Being that takes
the human being as an object partner. Since humans are beings of personality,
with intellect, emotion and will, that absolute subject partner also must be a Being
of personality in order to relate with them. That Absolute Being is called
“existence” in philosophy and “God” in religion.
Today the world
is filled with confusion and contradiction in regard to evolution, dialectical
materialism, epistemologies, idealism, materialism and so on. Our immediate
historical task is to reexamine all of these and to find and establish absolute
truth. Only then will we be able to form a world of absolute value. The Being of absolute value is eternal, unchanging and unique. Then,
what principle in the universe is eternal, unchanging and absolute? It is the
cause-and-effect relationship, which involves the relationship between subject
partner and object partner.
When you apply
these principles to human society, the heart of the matter is the parent-child
relationship and the husband-wife relationship. The former may be termed a
vertical relationship, and the latter, a horizontal one. The unity of the
subject and object partners on the vertical plane plays the role of a greater subject
partner to the object partner that consists of the unity of the subject and
object partners on the horizontal plane. They conduct perfect give-and-receive
action to create harmonious spherical movement.
This action is
centered on love, forming the model of an ideal family, which is the basic unit
of human society. In this sense, one can recognize love as the most valuable
thing.
The world of
eternal happiness under absolute values
Since the
ultimate source of love comes from an absolute, unchanging and causal subject Being, and not from human beings, the family of love that
maintains the causal Being at its center is the basic unit for realizing the
ideal in human society.
To realize an
ideal of absolute value, we need to begin with this family of love and expand
in scope to the nation and the world, thereby reaching the ideal world of unity
where eternal happiness rooted in absolute value is promised.
I sincerely hope
that this conference will contribute to providing solutions for the various
problems present in human society and to straightening the path to the future.
I urge all of you to bring the results of your research freely and fully to
these meetings and discussions, so that the general welfare of humankind might
be better served. May your efforts become a decisive, contributing factor
toward the realization of an ideal world of peace, happiness and love.
Thank you.
5
November 25, 1979
Century Plaza Hotel, Los Angeles, USA
Eighth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Distinguished
chairman, eminent scholars, ladies and gentlemen:
Thank you all very much for attending this eighth International
Conference on the Unity of the Sciences. Each year this meeting has become
increasingly important because of your participation. This is gratifying to me
as the founder of the conference.
In connection
with this year’s theme, “The Responsibility of the Academic Community in the
Search for Absolute Values,” I would like to express a few opinions on the
topic, “God and the Limit of Science.” As science developed in recent years,
humankind had great expectations and believed that the advancement of science
and technology would bring relief from both spiritual and physical
difficulties.
Scientists who have a
sense that theirs is a crucial mission as contributors to humankind, have
continued on the one hand to pursue ultimate scientific truth and, on the other
hand, to apply technology in almost every field of human endeavor. The
resulting benefits have been fantastic economic growth, material affluence and
physical well being such as humankind has never before known.
However, for all
its great merits, today’s technology has equally great demerits, generating
such problems as pollution, resource depletion, depersonalization and
accumulation of formidable weapons of thermonuclear destruction. Thus, the very
science that originated with the intent to realize happiness for humankind has,
with its successes, brought fears and instability as well. What is the reason?
The reason is that science, in adhering to its position of scientific
neutrality, has excluded considerations of purpose and value.
I wish to
proclaim that human beings have value from their very origin. They are creations
of God. They are created to lead life with a definite value perspective in
accordance with the purpose of creation. In spite of originally being creatures
of vast value, people have disregarded this value perspective and, believing in
the omnipotence of science, taken it as a panacea. Consequently, technology has
become a source of increasing damage.
For human
beings, science can only be a means; it cannot be an end. The purpose of human
life is to realize God’s purpose of creation. Each person is a unified being of
both physical and spiritual entities. Hence, on the foundation of physical
life, we are to lead a life of value—a life of love, truth, goodness and
beauty. Science and technology are needed for the sake of allowing physical
life to become a proper basis for spiritual life.
Therefore, the
science that disregards or fails to emphasize the life of value actually brings
about the destruction of value perspective in human beings, leading toward
today’s reality of fear and insecurity. The deliverance of humankind from this
unfortunate reality can be achieved only by searching for and discovering the
true value perspective. Science, in turn, must abide by this value perspective,
which must be based on absolute value.
Where could this absolute value be found? It could only be found
in God’s love. In fact, the union of truth, goodness and beauty based on God’s
love is indeed this absolute value.
Accordingly, it
stands to reason that humankind’s liberation from the harms caused by the
misuse of science and technology can come only when science itself recognizes
God, and guides and applies its technology in the same direction as God’s love.
Next, I would
like to suggest that there is a limit to science in its search for truth in the
field of nature. In this twentieth century, science has finally found itself
pushed into the realm of philosophy in its own search for truth. It has had to
take upon itself the question of the origin of the universe, just as did
ancient philosophies, both Eastern and Western.
That is, science
itself, especially physics and biology, has been confronted with various
long-disputed and unresolved questions of ontology. Indeed, certain experiments
in quantum physics and molecular biology have been performed for the purpose of
exploring these ontological questions.
Thus, using
theoretical and experimental approaches, physics has dealt with the study of
ontology, with the question, “What is the true nature of matter?” The first
answer was “the atom.” A second was “elementary particles.” Finally, quantum
mechanics delivered an answer in which the elementary particles of matter are
related to energy itself. In the same way, biology approached a similar
ontological problem, “What is the true nature of life?” Eventually, the answer
suggested was, “The secret of life lies in the properties of DNA!”
Thus, in its
search for the truth about the universe, natural science has uncovered many
facts and accumulated an astonishing body of knowledge. However, these are
hardly ultimate solutions to man’s questions.
Even though
quantum physics affirms that the true ground of matter is energy, we do not
know from where energy comes, what the previous stage or state of energy is, or
why and how energy transfers from its previous state to the existing state. Why
did a variety of molecules come into being? Why does each molecule have its
characteristic pattern of positive and negative charges? There are many
questions yet to be clarified.
Similarly,
molecular biology maintains that the true nature of life is bound up in DNA
coding, yet significant questions remain. How did the four units of the DNA
code come to bear information? How did DNA come to possess the ability to
replicate itself?
In its pursuit
of truth, even though science has developed to a surprising degree, it still
leaves many of its own problems untouched. What is the implication of this? It
can only mean that these remaining scientific questions are not within the
direct realm of current natural science.
Up to now,
although science in its quest for truth has investigated immediate causes of
particular phenomena, it has not taken up the search for motives or reasons for
existence as a whole. Thus, the final challenge that science confronts is this
question of the ultimate reason for existence. The unexplored problem in the
question, “What is the true nature of matter?” is that of the reason for its
existence, and again, the untouched problem in the question, “What is the true
nature of life?” is that of the very reason for life itself.
I propose that,
in clarifying reasons, one must first admit purpose. Before admitting purpose,
one must first recognize the Will that made the purpose, namely, the cosmic and
universal Will that transcends all things. When you call this cosmic Will
“God,” then the initial step in clarifying unresolved questions is first to
apprehend God’s purpose of creation. The second step is to perceive that, along
with the physical or chemical factors in all material and life phenomena, there
exists a causal motive directing each thing toward a certain purpose.
In short, the
very science developed for the happiness of humankind is today a cause of
difficulty or even harm. The only way to be freed from these harms is to bring
science under the true value perspective that centers in God’s love. As more
and more scientists find themselves reaching the limit of science, they will
find that the key to transcending this limit is to regard that, behind all
material and life phenomena, there is a purposeful motive working in accordance
with God’s purpose of creation.
It is my
considered and confident belief that the points mentioned here are the most
important and pressing matters facing today’s science. It would be most
fortunate if they could serve as a reference for the topics to be discussed by
all the distinguished scholars who are taking up the theme of this year’s
conference.
In conclusion, I
wish all of you success in your research and pursuit of truth in relation to
the absolute truth. I am sure that the fruits of your efforts expressed in the
presentations at this conference will contribute in a significant way toward
world peace.
Thank you all
very much.
6
Absolute Values
and the Search for
Peace for Humankind
November 27, 1980
Fontainebleau Hilton Hotel, Miami Beach, Florida, USA
Ninth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairman, distinguished scientists and scholars, ladies and gentlemen:
I sincerely
welcome you to this ninth International Conference on the Unity of the
Sciences.
During past
years this conference has repeatedly dealt with the theme of science and
absolute values and has achieved great results. Furthermore, I feel that the
conference has made many contributions to humankind’s long and fervent search
for peace.
The theme of
this year’s conference is, “Absolute Values and the Search for Peace for
Humankind.” In regard to this theme, I would like to share with you my view of
how world peace can be achieved.
Today’s world yearns for peace
As you are no
doubt already aware, the more chaotic the world becomes, the more human beings
thirst for peace.
Then how can
peace be achieved? In today’s world, orderliness is
increasingly being disrupted in many countries and cultural regions. To establish
peace means to restore a true order. To restore a true order, subject partners
and object partners must find their positions and establish mutual, harmonious
relations.
People desire peace
not only on the world level but also on the level of nations, societies and
families. Even individuals yearn for peace between their mind and body.
Of these various
levels of peace, which should be established first?
It is easy to
think that if world peace were established first, then on that basis the peace
of nations, societies, families and eventually individuals would also be
established.
But this is
wrong. This is actually the reverse of the sequence necessary to establish
peace. It is individual peace that must first be realized. Then family peace
can follow, and only on that foundation can the peace of societies, nations and
the world be expected. This is because individuals are the basic unit of
families, and families are the basic unit of societies, nations and the world.
Frequently
leaders believe that through outstanding organization and superior policymaking
they can restore the order of society and create world peace. In reality,
however, the peace of humankind can never be realized through these two means
alone. International organizations such as the United Nations and thought
systems such as communism and democracy have all tried to realize world peace
in their own ways, but peace is still far from our grasp, and the world is
experiencing more confusion as the days go by.
True peace is
achieved only when people unite through absolute love
Unless the quest
for peace starts from the peace of the individual, it is bound to fail again
and again.
Then how can the
individual achieve peace? It is by becoming a person of absolute love and then
practicing this love. This is true because love is the precondition for all
unity. Unity can be established on the basis of love, and peace on the basis of
unity.
Both relative
love and absolute love exist. Relative love changes according to time and
place, but absolute love is unchanging and eternal. Because the former is
self-centered, it changes according to the interests of the moment. On the
other hand, because absolute love always exists for the benefit of others and
serves the whole, it is unchanging. Absolute love, because it is absolute, must
flow from an Absolute Being. Therefore, that love must be God’s love.
Through relative
love, unity can never be achieved. It is only through absolute love that unity
becomes possible. The mind and body of an individual can come into unity only
through absolute love. Then such feelings as tranquility, joy, satisfaction and
a sense of worth can be experienced. Only from such an individual can a
standard for peace be drawn.
When the parents
and children, husband and wife, and brothers and sisters of a family all
practice absolute love in a way appropriate to their own family position, the
unity of that family will be achieved. That family will be full of happiness
and harmony—and above all, peace.
Accordingly, the
society formed by such families of peace will be a society of peace. If the
families within a society become harmonious and help one another, the society
will undoubtedly be bright and peaceful, because order will be established and
unity attained. The nation formed by such societies of peace will also surely
become a nation of peace.
World peace based on God’s love
Moreover, a
nation is not merely an assembly of many societies. It is an organic
organization composed of and based on individuals and families of love. Within
it, perfect order and unity must be established, and then the true peace of the
nation can be realized.
In other words,
even a nation needs God’s love in order to realize and maintain peace. Even
though the families that are the basis of the nation may be centered on
absolute love, the nation as an organic body must also be able to practice
absolute love as a nation, on the national level.
The government
and people of the nation should attain unity internally, and the nation
externally should unite with neighboring countries, thereby realizing true
peace.
Needless to say,
the peace of the world comes into being only on the foundation of the peace of
all nations. When each nation ceases to place all its emphasis on trade and
other ways to secure its own national interest, when each nation begins to
serve other nations and the world with absolute love, and when each nation
maintains such an international posture consistently, the eternal peace of humankind
will have been secured.
The pursuit of
truth, goodness and beauty leads to world peace Thus, it becomes apparent that
world peace begins with individual peace and expands through families,
societies and nations to ultimately cover the world.
At this point I
would like to mention the relationship between absolute love and absolute
values. Love is the foundation for the values of truth, goodness and beauty.
For example, when a person practices love of others, society calls it goodness.
Therefore, it follows that when a person practices absolute love, which is
God’s love, absolute goodness results. This is to say, the actions of an
individual practicing absolute love for the sake of peace are absolutely good.
Likewise, the actions of a family practicing love for the sake of peace are
also good. The same is true for societies, nations and the world.
In other words,
in order to realize true peace, the individual, family, society, nation and
world must all practice absolute love and thus realize the absolute values that
are absolute truth, absolute goodness and absolute beauty. The world today most
especially and urgently requires the practice of absolute goodness to deter the
interference of evil that begets chaos.
Love, absolute
truth, absolute goodness and absolute beauty cannot be realized without
knowledge of absolute love—God’s love—since love gives rise to the spiritual
values of truth, goodness and beauty. And where these absolute values are not
realized, there cannot be true peace.
Thus, for the
true peace of humankind, we need to practice absolute love. But before we can
practice absolute love, we first have to understand it.
I have already
stated that absolute love is love that acts for the benefit of others, that
serves others and that is unchanging and eternal. Then why does absolute love
serve the whole and remain unchanging? And why can peace be
realized only through love? These questions require answers.
To achieve true
peace, we need to understand the Absolute Being For these questions to be completely
answered, the Absolute Being and His motive and
purpose for creating the universe and humankind must first be fully clarified.
The motive and purpose for creation particularly serve as indispensable
standards for the practice of love and the establishment of peace. Before any
plans can be put into action, there must first be a definite purpose. Any
action without purpose is meaningless.
If the Absolute
Being created humanity and meant people to practice His love, then it is
certain that there is a motive and purpose for the creation of human beings. In
order for that motive and purpose to be clarified, an explanation of the
Absolute Being, that is, a correct concept of God, must first be established.
Establishing the correct concept of God will clarify His motive and purpose of
creation .and, on that basis, the reason we must practice the Absolute Being’s
love in order to realize peace.
Thus, I submit
that for the true peace of humankind, it is necessary to understand the
Absolute Being correctly so we can practice His love and finally realize His
absolute values.
These points
conclude the ideas I wanted to share with you. In closing, I would like to wish
you all great success in this conference, and I hope you will contribute
greatly to the search for the peace of humankind.
Thank you very
much.
7
Absolute Values
and the Creation of a New World
November 10, 1981
Sejong Cultural Center, Seoul, Korea
Tenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable chairman,
committee chairs, distinguished professors, ladies and gentlemen:
I am deeply
grateful that you have come to Korea to attend the tenth International
Conference on the Unity of the Sciences.
Korea is my
native country. Here in Korea you may find reminders of the sacrifices made by
the sixteen nations that participated in the Korean War. As Korea is divided
into North and South, it is a sorrowful country, but one of great significance.
I sincerely hope that you will take a deep look at Korea and Asia and come to
understand them well. I also hope that the contents of the speech I am about to
present will be understood in a profound religious context and not in a
political context.
Unity between
all classes of society
There are many
confrontations and struggles in the world today. While confrontations exist
between what people cast as “higher” and “lower” races, nations and cultures,
the most serious problem of all is the confrontation between the upper and
lower social classes formed by differences in terms of wealth and poverty.
About eight
hundred million people living mainly in the Northern Hemisphere may be
considered the upper class of the world. On the other hand, in China, India and
other Asian nations, there are three billion people who form a middle class.
Finally, there are some five hundred million people residing in Africa, Latin
America and Oceania who comprise an economically poor, or lower class. This
difference in wealth presents a most serious problem in today’s world, and it
is dealt with repeatedly under the rubric of the North-South problem by various
international organizations, including the United Nations.
I believe that
the best way to solve the North-South problem is to unite the upper and lower
classes through the Asians, who can mediate between the Euro-American societies
and the Latino, African and Polynesian societies. All the important issues of
the twentieth century must be solved globally. To do this, however, the
greatest challenge is how to motivate the people of the upper class to humble
themselves of their own free will.
Throughout much
of history, various efforts have been made to diminish this gap between the
upper and lower classes. Communism is the most prominent example of this trend.
The ideal of communism is to eliminate exploitation by the upper class and to
construct a classless society. However, the biggest problem with communism is
its atheism, in other words, that it seeks to create an ideal world upon a
foundation that denies God. A further problem with communism is that in
practice all things take place according to the private will of a few
dictators.
To overcome
these problems and find a new solution, we must go beyond the humanism to which
we have been clinging tightly. The unity we seek requires a new God-centered
philosophy and a new central point. The only medium that can enable the upper
and lower classes to unite is religion. Religion’s original purpose was the
salvation of the world, not just the salvation of individuals or families. To
accomplish the task of uniting the upper, middle and lower classes requires a
new religion, one that can serve as a nucleus for global unity.
Then what is the
Unification Church? It is nothing less than the new religion destined to carry
out this historic mission. I have been pioneering the path toward that goal,
and it is inevitable that people of all races will want to meet me on that
path.
The Korean
Peninsula from the standpoint of civilization
The globe on
which we live is divided into land and ocean. If we look geographically, we can
see that peninsulas connect continent and ocean. Accordingly, since ancient
times peninsulas always have been significant sites for the formation of
civilizations. The ancient civilizations of both Greece and Rome, as well as
those of Spain and Portugal, began and flourished on peninsulas. Today a new
worldwide civilization combining the civilizations of the East and the West
needs to emerge. This is happening now in Asia, on the Korean Peninsula.
World
civilization has developed as it has spread around the globe. The continental
Egyptian civilization was succeeded by the Greek and Roman peninsular
civilizations, which gave way to the island civilization of England, and
eventually to the continental American civilization. From there, civilization
blossomed across the Pacific, with the island civilization of Japan, from which
it has extended to East Asia, concentrating on an emerging Korean Peninsula
civilization. The civilization focused here in Korea is one of a high
dimension, and it will play a central role in creating a new world.
Japan, an island
country, was the first to allow Western civilization to establish itself in
Asia. The next age will be that of a peninsular civilization, focused on the
Korean Peninsula, where the Eastern and Western civilizations are merging. The
historian Oswald Spengler pointed out that civilizations, like the four seasons
of a year, go through cycles of rising and falling. Today the age of the
Atlantic civilization is passing and the age of the Pacific civilization is
emerging.
If we look at
Korea’s geopolitical situation, we see that this small country is located
between the four great powers of the United States, Japan, China and the Soviet
Union. The United States is currently expending great effort to counter the
expansionist Soviet Union. In Europe, the Soviet Union occupies half of a
divided Germany, and in Asia, it has split Korea into North and South, keeping
the North within its sphere of influence.
It is primarily in
Asia, especially in Korea, and not in Europe, that these four great powers are
confronting one another. Because of this, America is obliged to pay attention
to Asia, a continent far larger than Europe. Considering this situation, Korea
will play a basic role in determining the outcome of the confrontations between
East and West and between North and South.
At this point,
let us take a look at the practical possibility of this occurring. Koreans have
a strong sense of justice and are quite religious by nature. They display their
capabilities in many different fields. If they reach a deadlock in any
situation, they cope with it and if necessary change direction boldly,
courageously and adaptively. These are some of the traits Koreans use to
achieve their objectives.
I was born among
these Koreans. The Unification Church has developed from such a background. We
of the Unification Church believe that, as the fruit of such a history, we are
to accomplish the worldwide mission of bringing the world’s upper and lower
classes closer together, with Asians as intermediaries. The Unification Church
has sufficient spiritual attributes to fully accomplish this purpose. To this
end, I am determined to do my best in all fields of endeavor and in all regions
of the world.
God’s love is
the absolute value
To bring unity
between the people of the upper and lower classes, we must encourage those of
the upper class to embrace those of the lower class and then to be elevated
together. In order to accomplish that, a central point of absolute value is
needed. That central point is God’s love.
What, then, is
the nature of God’s love? It can dwell with members of both the upper class and
the lower class. It is never one-directional. It is a force that moves in a
spherical manner, capable of revolving freely from the highest point to the
lowest. Wherever God’s love appears, it is welcomed by all people everywhere
and it creates harmony in all places at all times.
God’s love
always possesses absolute value, whenever and wherever it appears. If we have
God’s love, we are happy; we feel secure and fulfilled. With such love, though
one may be in a low position, he or she still can love those in the upper
class, and those who are affluent can love those in the lowest positions. In
this way God’s love is infinitely free.
The people who
have His love receive a great welcome wherever they go. This
is the reason people willingly and wholeheartedly follow Unification
Church members wherever they are.
The Unification
Church is proclaiming salvation through God’s love. As soon as people come to
realize that the new thought the Unification movement is introducing is far
more compelling than that of either communism or capitalism, and that the
kingdom of heaven on earth will be made a reality by the love of God, all
people will be only too happy to accept it.
In order to
comprehend truly the situation of the world today, we need to understand the
situation of Korea, where God has a special Will, and we need to recognize that
within Korea everything exists in a condensed form. For example, the two main
trends of contemporary thought, democracy and communism, exist in Korea, and
the four major religions, Christianity, Buddhism, Confucianism and Islam, all
have firmly established themselves.
As I said earlier,
the four greatest nations of the world are confronting each other here in
Korea. Thus, everything exists, or at least is represented, within Korea. In
God’s dispensation, Korea is responsible to harmonize and unite all these
aspects.
In conclusion,
Korea is called to accomplish four great tasks, centering on the Unification
movement. They are:
Uniting
religions through an ecumenical movement
Uniting thought
by overcoming materialistic communism through a “victory over communism”
movement
Uniting cultures
by establishing a new lifestyle combining the cultures of the East and the West
Uniting economy
through a new teaching
With God’s love
as the absolute value, we of the Unification movement will love all the people
of the world even more than our own parents, brothers and sisters, thereby
establishing a united world and realizing the kingdom of heaven on earth. With
this, the creation of the new world that God and humankind have been longing
for will be perfected. Only with God’s love can we achieve true and lasting
peace and happiness.
The future of
Asia centering on Korea
Through the
Unification movement, Korea is capable of bringing about unity in the four
areas just mentioned. Of them, the first three are well under way, and we now
are focusing on the fourth area, the economic problem. Korea is developing
economically at a rapid pace. Nevertheless, Korea still is striving to realize
an advanced international level in regard to its economic relationships.
How can this be
achieved? To see Korea accomplish this goal is also the mission of the
Unification movement. For this purpose, I intend to initiate cooperation
between Germany’s high standard of mechanical technology and the industries of
Korea. Spiritually, Korea and the Unification movement already have linked
Japan and the United States successfully. The United States and Europe already
are linked culturally.
God especially
blessed and helped Germany and Japan to recover economically after World War II
in order to accomplish His dispensation. In particular, Japan has become a
gigantic economic power. Even Germany has come to feel threatened by the
economic success of Japan. The only way for Germany to protect itself is to
join with Korea, produce superior goods at reduced cost and market them in Japan
and other places. Likewise, Germany needs to allow the Third World to
participate in equal profit sharing. Then if Japan is included in the
partnership, the road to global economic unity will be opened.
Realistically,
as long as the hegemonic policies of communist forces continue to exist in the
world, there can be no such thing as the advent of world peace, and economic
unity is also impossible. If Korea, the United States, Germany, Japan and China
could unite as one, they could stand against possible invasion by the Soviet
Union on a global level. Though it is a communist nation, at present China
wishes to maintain friendly relations with Japan, the United States and Germany
in the hope of modernizing itself as quickly as possible. Furthermore, viewed historically,
China never would choose to get close to the Soviet Union.
The United
States is strengthening its military preparations quickly to fight against the
Soviet Union. It also is trying to join forces with Japan, Germany and China.
However, Japan does not show any desire to build up its military capabilities,
due to its past circumstances and internal situation.
On the other
hand, from a national perspective Korea is currently very enthusiastic about
building up its military forces. The United States is considering whether Korea
could function as the axis. Because Korea is too small by itself, America would
consider creating an alliance between Korea and China so that together these
countries could serve as the axis in the defense against the Soviet Union.
However, China desires the development of its heavy industries. Because its
foundation is rather weak, such development will require a long period and will
not happen until some time in the future.
Even if China
tried to adopt the advanced industrial technology of a country like Germany,
this feat would be beyond its capacity because it is geographically too far
away and the differences between the two cultures are just too great. However,
there is a better way that China could choose at this point, which would be to
employ the service of the three million Koreans living in the northeastern
parts of China.
In this way,
China could make extensive use of the technologies of Korea and Germany, and
this is why the Unification Church is trying to connect it to Korea and
Germany. Korean residents living abroad link China, Japan and the United
States. Based on Korea’s historical record, showing that it never once has
invaded another nation, China would accept without difficulty Korea’s proposal
to act in concert with it. So even if Japan does not desire to strengthen its
own military preparations, these weapons could be produced by China, because it
possesses the technology and skills to make weapons.
We can now
arrive at a definite conclusion. If Korea could fulfill this role together with
the Unification Church, it could strengthen our defense against the Soviet
Union by transferring the technology of Japan, Germany and the United States to
China. Further, it could link the highest technologies to the Third World,
helping to pave the road to world peace.
All these
countries will realize that it is mutually profitable for them to join with
Korea as a mediator. The three East Asian countries could form an economic
alliance, with the United States and Germany connected to them. In this way, I
believe we can prevent the threat of Soviet communism and also pave the way to
victory. In this sense, Korea is becoming a new base for an East-West
civilization, and it is emerging as the center of the Pacific civilization.
My proposal
In conclusion, I
would like to make a proposal. It is to construct a Great Asian Highway zone
that would run through China, Korea and Japan and eventually link the world by
constructing a Great Free World Highway zone to connect the whole world. This
would be a great international highway, around which freedom would be
guaranteed. The highway would go through Mainland China, down the Korean
Peninsula from north to south, through a tunnel or over a bridge to Japan, and
north through the four main Japanese islands.
If this highway
were constructed, the three Asian countries would be linked through the highway
and become one. The economic and cultural exchange between them would be so
robust that it would enable them to form an Asian Common Community. China also
would agree to this, as would Korea and Japan, without a second thought. Then
the United States and Germany would come to take part in it automatically.
If this plan
were carried out according to the framework suggested here, free exchanges would
become the norm among all the people of the East
Asian countries
and, as a result, North Korea would give up any thought of unifying the
peninsula militarily. It would come to embrace peaceful ways of unification.
Thus, by uniting the Asians in this way, eventually it would become possible to
connect the upper and lower classes of the world, with Asians serving as
mediators.
In order to
realize such an ideal concretely, the Korean diaspora
in Japan, the United States and China could be connected to form a
technological development group. This automatically would align the policy
direction of Japan and the United States. Based on this new economic
partnership, a highway that guarantees freedom could be extended worldwide.
Through completing the unrestricted Asian highway and realizing the
long-cherished ideal of uniting the upper and lower classes, people could
migrate freely.
With Asia as its
starting point, a realistic, united economic sphere could be established,
connecting the East and West, North and South, in a new civilization. This
would result in peace and a new world centering on God’s love, which is the
absolute value. In this transitional age, when Western civilization joins that
of the East, meeting in a new Pacific civilization, I sincerely hope that all
of you distinguished participants, coming from more than one hundred countries
to this memorable International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences in
Korea, will gain deep insight into these matters and offer your concrete
cooperation.
Thank you very
much.
8
November 25, 1982
Franklin Plaza Hotel, Philadelphia, USA
Eleventh International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Distinguished
chairman, eminent scholars, ladies and gentlemen:
We have now come
to meet for our eleventh International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
in the historic city of Philadelphia. I would like to express my sincere
gratitude to our chairman, Dr. Morton Kaplan, to the committee chairmen and
group chairmen, to the International Cultural Foundation secretariat, and to
all you distinguished professors and other ladies and gentlemen who bring your
insights to this conference.
The world in
chaos and the need for an absolute truth
If we are to
characterize today’s world in one phrase, we can say that it is a world of
enormous confusion. Whether we look to the Orient or the Occident, the North or
the South, the advanced world or the developing world, all societies are filled
with contradiction, injustice and corruption. There is endless repetition of
conflict, collision and rebellion. While people in advanced nations enjoy
material affluence, many in the Third World, especially Africa, are suffering
from hunger and even dying from starvation. If this state of confusion worsens and
accelerates, humanity will face the danger of perishing, a danger from which it
will be difficult to escape.
What could be
the reason behind such worldwide confusion? The cause could be attributed to
many factors, but the ultimate reason lies in the conflict of value
perspectives. Confusion arises because standards of truth, goodness and beauty
differ from person to person, nation to nation, race to race, and one thought
system to another.
If, in the
opinion of person A, an action is good, but person B considers it to be bad, A
may persist with the action at any cost, but B would oppose it strenuously. In
such a situation, we see confrontation and disharmony, and conflict will
certainly arise. I cannot help but conclude that today’s confusion stems from conflict
and disagreement between value perspectives.
What, then, is
the basis for differences in value perspectives? It stems, first of all, from
egoism. Almost without exception, each individual is a prisoner of egoism, and
each nation and each race is selfishly pursuing its own interests.
Secondly, the
differences in value perspectives stem from differences in thought systems. The
world abounds with various thought systems, and each keeps many adherents
captive. Most significantly, communism and democracy have, through their
ideologies, now divided humankind into two major blocs.
Accordingly, we
cannot help but state that the way to save humankind from certain destruction
is, first, to eliminate egoism and, second, to solve the problem of differences
between thought systems. To liquidate egoism, we first need to know why people
fell into self-centeredness. Before we hope to resolve the differences between
thought systems, we have to discover how and why humanity came to have these
differences.
The origin of
our differing thought systems is that humankind, because of the Fall, lost God, thereby losing both God’s love and God’s
words. God’s love is the source of values—truth, goodness and beauty.
Accordingly, God’s love is the basis of absolute values, and absolute values
form the basis of all religious virtues. They are the unifying values. God’s
truth is the basis of all truths and therefore of absolute truth, which is the
unifying truth. As a consequence of the Fall, humanity
lost God and lost absolute values, including absolute truth, thereby losing
unifying values and unifying truth.
Absolute values,
including absolute truth, are the foundation for an absolute value perspective,
where “perspective” refers to viewpoint and theory. Accordingly, we arrive at
the conclusion that the way to resolve worldwide confusion is to find the
absolute value perspective.
God established
religion to convey His love and truth to humanity, in order to save humanity.
He established various religions, each in its own time and place. For example,
He founded Buddhism in India and Confucianism in China about twenty-five
hundred years ago, and Christianity in Judea about two
thousand years ago.
We can
confidently affirm that the absolute value perspective can be established only
through religions, which revere God. In other words, it would be valid to claim
that no solution to today’s confusion is possible through those thoughts and
philosophies that are not founded on God. It follows logically that only
through God-centered religion is it possible for humanity to be saved from
confusion. In history, we have such examples as Confucianism, Buddhism,
Christianity and Islam. Each one, in its own time and place, dissipated social
insecurity and confusion and, on the foundation of peace and security, brought
forth a flourishing of culture. This was true of the role of Confucian culture
in the Han Dynasty of China, Christian culture in medieval Europe, and Islamic
culture in the Saracen civilization of the Middle East.
Today,
unfortunately, religion is no longer able to dissipate confusion and lead the
human spirit. Religions today are gradually losing life, and faith is
progressively becoming a mere form or habit. With few exceptions, people are
increasingly losing interest in religion, and their original enthusiasm in
faith is waning. This is a grave situation, because if religion, which is
supposed to lead the human spirit, eventually loses its function, the world
will turn to complete lawlessness, and humanity will sink into an abyss of
violence and murder. Today, indeed, such phenomena are increasingly evident.
All this can be
readily termed a phenomenon of the collapse of the religious value perspective.
What then is the cause of this collapse?
First, with the
development of science and technology and growth of the economy, the human
spirit is drifting into a materialistic value perspective. Second, various
atheistic and materialistic ideas are spreading rapidly and widely. Third,
under national policies separating education and religion, religion is being
excluded from school curricula, resulting in the rise of atheistic thought.
Fourth, communists are using a strategy of intentionally destroying even the
fraction of the religious value perspective that remains, to promote their own
goal of communizing the world. Fifth, there is a woeful lack of ontological
theory adequate for supporting the religious value perspective.
The lack of an
ontology regarding the Absolute Being
Of these five
causes, the last one, the lack of adequate ontology, is the most significant.
By ontology, I mean the theory of Absolute Being. Each religion has an Absolute
Being as a basis for its theory. The Absolute Being of Judaism is Jehovah; that
of Christianity, God; and of Islam, Allah. Generally, no Absolute Being is
specified in Confucianism or Buddhism. However, “benevolence,” which is the
basis of teaching in Confucianism, is linked directly with heaven; therefore,
“heaven” may be seen as taking the place of the Absolute Being in Confucianism.
In Buddhism, phenomena are transient; truth, however, can be discovered from jinyo, which lies behind all
phenomena. Thus, jinyo may function as
an Absolute Being in Buddhism.
However, the
explanations of all these Absolute Beings have been consistently deficient on
such issues as the characteristics of the Absolute Being, the manner of
creation of things, and the motivation for creation—or whether God or an
Absolute Being exists at all. Each religion has been uniquely unclear on these
points, and therefore unclear about the basis for all religious virtues. Thus,
religion today has little persuasive power.
In order for the
virtues, precepts, commandments and teachings of all religions to be
appropriately honored, we need to have enough knowledge about the existence of
the Absolute Being, the characteristics of this Being, the purpose for which
this Being created things, and so on. In early times, people were not so
analytical or theoretical, and thus were willing to blindly obey such commandments
as, “Love your neighbor as yourself” or, “Be loyal to the king and filial to
your parents.” Today, however, such maxims are questioned. The unfailing
response to a “Thou shalt” is, “Why?” Unless and
until these questions are answered, the teachings remain unconvincing.
Such fundamental
questions as, “Does God really exist?” are raised. There are challenges to
descriptions of God as “almighty,” “omnipotent,” “omnipresent” and “Father of
humankind,” and to such ideas as utmost goodness, utmost beauty, utmost love or
absolute justice. Other fundamental questions include: Is there any way of
knowing or proving any of these claims? Why did God create a universe when He
does not have to do anything? What is His purpose for creating? By what method
did He create all things? If God is of utmost goodness, why do strong-eat-weak
phenomena prevail in His creation? It is being taught that the world became
sinful because of the Fall, but how did the creation
of a perfect God become capable of falling?”
These are but a
few examples of the numerous questions that are raised. Unless reasonable and
consistent answers are available and given, today’s intellectuals are not
willing to accept religions such as Christianity. Thus, most religious
commandments remain unpracticed, and much of the Christian teaching of
universal love, the Confucian code of family morals, the Buddhist code of
conduct, and the Islamic teachings of the Qur’an are generally ignored or even
rejected. The basic reason for the ambiguity of ontology is that in recent
years Europe, which has historically been the cradle of Christianity, has given
rise to materialism and atheism. We can cite the examples of Karl Marx, Lenin,
Stalin and Nietzsche, who were all raised in Christian families but turned atheist
and anti-Christian.
Even more
lamentable is the fact that the very religions that were supposed to serve as
the leading element of the human spirit and as the leading mediators between
conflicts are themselves becoming the reasons for conflict, further diminishing
religious dignity and authority. For example, there are clashes between Judaism
and Islam, conflicts between Catholicism and Protestantism, and contradictions
between Christianity and Buddhism. Even within a single religion, there are
disputes among different denominations.
The fundamental
reason for these religious antagonisms is ambiguity in the area of ontology.
There is only one Absolute Being, not two, but when each religion advocates its
own concept of the Absolute Being as the true one, it may seem that there could
be many different Absolute Beings. This leads to the view that the god of each
religion is only a god of relative status, and that there is really no such
thing as an Absolute Being.
Here we can see
that, although the absolute value perspective related to God’s love and truth
was to be enhanced through religions, it has not been developed. It has
remained relative instead of absolute. In other words, we can conclude that
religion until today has been incapable of establishing the absolute value
perspective that can dispel the prevailing confusion. This is the inevitable
result of all religions having been unable to explain the Absolute Being
clearly.
We can logically
say that, under these circumstances, if an absolute value perspective is to be
established, a new religion needs to emerge, with an ontology that can clearly
and accurately explain the unique, absolute God.
We have said
that because all religions are founded by God, their purpose has been to
realize absolute value. However, when we observe that so much religious
conflict prevails, we can confidently state that the god of each of the
existing religions cannot be understood as the absolute God, and therefore the
absolute value perspective cannot be established by these religions. Therefore,
we conclude that a new religion needs to emerge for the sake of establishing
the absolute value perspective.
A new religion and a new ontology
The ontology of the
new religion needs to make it clear that the Absolute Beings of the various
religions are not separate gods but are one and the same God. Since each
religion has revealed only a part of God, making that part its religious
perspective, the new ontology should make it clear that a complete revelation
of God will show that all religions originated from the same God and pursue the
same purposes, being like brothers. Furthermore, by explaining God’s
characteristics, His motivation for creating, and the purpose and rules of
creation, the new ontology needs to explain that purpose and law control the
motion of all things in the universe. In addition, it has to show that the
norms by which we humans should live spring from that same purpose and law,
namely, the heavenly way.
The
relationships between the sun, moon, planets and stars involve heavenly
patterns of vertical and horizontal interactions. Likewise, in the family there
are vertical relationships, such as between grandparents, parents and children,
and there are horizontal relationships, such as between brothers and sisters.
There are value perspectives corresponding to each of these relationships.
In explaining
things, this new ontology should not contradict the knowledge that has become
available through the natural sciences. At the same time, it needs to be in
accord with the human conscience, and it needs to be in resonance with
historical maxims such as, “Those who follow the heavenly way prosper, and
those who go against it perish.”
The value
perspective established through the new ontology is in the truest sense the
absolute value perspective. By establishing, understanding and practicing
absolute love, absolute truth, absolute goodness and absolute beauty, a new
reformation of the human spirit will be accomplished and the confusion of the
world will be dispelled.
After the new
ontology clarifies our understanding of God, and after it is shown that there
is one unique God common to all religions, each religion can retain its own
name. In effect, however, the unity of all religions will have been
accomplished, and all will be able to move forward together for the realization
of heaven on earth, which is God’s ideal of creation.
The new ontology
will remedy all the deficiencies and unresolved issues in religious doctrines,
and that will eventually lead to the unity of all doctrines. In this manner,
all religions will perfectly attain God’s very goal or purpose for establishing
religions on earth.
The Unification
Church has emerged to solve various problems by presenting the absolute value
perspective. This value perspective can resolve the great confusion in the
world. The Unification Church offers a comprehensive, logical and reasonable
system of thought. Its teachings, known as the Unification Principle and
Unification Thought, have the power to engender complete spiritual awakening in
all people of conscience and intellect.
May your
continued efforts and studies during your participation in this conference
deepen your understanding of the absolute value perspective, and may God’s
protection remain with you always.
9
Unification
Thought as the Basis of
a New Cultural
Revolution
November 25, 1983
Chicago Marriott Hotel, Chicago, USA
Twelfth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable chairmen,
committee chairpersons, distinguished scholars, ladies and gentlemen:
I wish to
express my sincere gratitude to you for coming to Chicago to participate in the
twelfth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences. Since the first
ICUS, these conferences have progressed greatly. The ICUS achievement is a
result of the coordination and dedicated work of many of you, performed in the
face of enormous negative peer pressure and persecution. Your work has created
in the ICUS a conference unsurpassed in the entire world. I would like to
express my deepest appreciation for your efforts and contributions and at the
same time congratulate you for what you have accomplished.
The new cultural revolution should be based on absolute values
The world is undergoing
rapid changes that correspond to the remarkable development of science and
technology. As a result the established values of society are being shaken to
their foundation, causing confusion and conflict on every level. This trend has
been accelerated by the growing influence of atheistic materialism. All of
these factors have driven many difficult problems to beset our world today.
Until now, people have not been able to find genuine solutions to these
problems.
It is clear that
neither democracy nor communism provides the means to cure the ills of society.
Originally both democracy and communism developed from the desire to solve
humanity’s common problems. Yet not only has democracy been unsuccessful at
this task, it has proved itself unable to resist and overcome the
destructiveness of communism. Communism on the other hand also is completely
unable to solve the world’s problems and ironically creates even more woes for
the human race. Thus the world is at an impasse; democracy and communism are faced
with a no-win situation leading to a dead end. This being our present reality,
the future of humankind seems bleak and unpredictable.
Why then are
democracy and communism not the answer? A careful analysis of both systems
shows that neither has a core of truth in the ultimate sense. Democracy may
serve as the basis for a political system, but it does not provide a clear and
comprehensive worldview. Communism offers an inclusive, systematic worldview,
but it is one based on false assumptions and distorted facts.
What is needed
then is a third alternative—a movement based on a new understanding of truth,
one that gives hope by presenting a new vision of world society. This is in
fact the Unification movement, with the Unification Thought system—a complete,
systematic worldview grounded in truth and absolute values. A new cultural
revolution is coming, and all scholars and professionals are called to
participate in creating it.
Learning from
the shortcomings of democracy and communism, we conclude that a new cultural
revolution can come only on the foundation of absolute values. These cannot be
relative values grounded in the changing world of phenomena. Rather they must
be universal and ultimate values, grounded in the unchanging world of essence
and cause, in the fundamental relationships between God, human beings and the
universe.
We initiated the
ICUS meetings for the purpose of resolving the present world problems and
developing this third alternative worldview. When I founded the ICUS
conferences twelve years ago, I established “absolute values” as their central
theme. I did so because I believe that unchanging, universal values are the
essential foundation for a true worldview. In addition to the ICUS meetings, I
initiated many other conferences and projects in order to prepare for the
building of an ideal society, society as it exists in the dreams and hopes of
all people. The Unification movement’s purpose, for which I have been working
all my life, is to create the new cultural revolution
based on this new systematic worldview. Our movement has expanded to over 130
countries. As a result many conscientious people now seriously consider our
guiding principles—the Unification thought system—as a new expression of truth.
Generally, there
has been openness to the Unification ideology in the democratic world and great
interest in its potential. The communist world on the other hand has been
consistently hostile toward the Unification movement, and communist elements
within democracies have used the democratic system as a tool to try to destroy
us. Communist leaders regard us as their primary enemy and have opposed each
and every project related to Rev. Moon. The ICUS organization is no exception.
Communists know that Rev. Moon founded this conference and has always
considered it to be of the highest importance. This is a major cause of the
accusation and persecution ICUS has received since its inception.
The communists’
work against the Unification movement
Communists use
deceit and terrorism to undermine the free world. You undoubtedly are aware of
communist slander and sabotage in your own countries, just as I am aware of
their work against the Unification movement. We cannot overlook this problem
any longer. Therefore, I have chosen this occasion to speak to you clearly
about the reality of the communist attack against the Unification movement and
the entire free world. I think it is necessary for you to know these things for
your own sake, for the sake of defending academic freedom and defending the
free world as a whole.
As the
Unification movement has developed worldwide there have been many incidents of
hostility and persecution from communists. As a result we have suffered many
setbacks everywhere. It originally was a mystery to us why we received such
opposition when our activities were so beneficial to society. To discover the
real source of the opposition, we began an investigation. Today I am going to
speak about the information we have uncovered in Japan, where the Unification
movement is successful and very well known. I believe this information will be
useful to people in all countries, since the communist effort to destroy the
free world as well as our movement is consistent worldwide. A more detailed
exposition of what I am about to say will soon be published as a book, which I
hope you all will read.
Like the United
States, Japan boasts great freedom for her citizens. Few people realize,
however, that in the midst of such an advanced society, the KGB and Japanese
Communist Party are attacking freedom by instigating “deprogramming” actions
against people who decide to join our movement. At times they even obtain help
from the courts. Our investigation reveals conclusively that communists have
organized to spread lies, distortions and unfounded allegations in a conspiracy
to destroy the Unification movement and me. Through the systematic spread of
disinformation, the communists work to mobilize allies and establish a “unified
front” against the Unification movement. This creates polarization, conflict
and struggle—a mix that communists always capitalize on in order to eliminate
all possible opposition.
The Japanese
Communist Party regards the Unification movement as its principal enemy. It has
publicly declared that the struggle against our movement is more important than
even the struggle against “Japanese capitalism” and “American imperialism.” At
the Japanese Communist Party’s National Leaders Conference held June 5-7, 1978,
Chairman Kenji Miyamoto stated that the destruction of the Unification movement
is a “righteous battle that will be remembered in history.” Furthermore he
urged all “democratic forces” to unite and launch an all-out effort to
accomplish this “historic task.” The communists in Japan have mobilized several
hundred groups to oppose us.
I founded the
Unification movement for the purpose of realizing the ultimate ideal of God and
humankind: the kingdom of heaven on earth. Ours is a movement to revive
religion and to educate people in all aspects of human endeavor. It is historically
inevitable that a spiritual movement such as ours encounter opposition from
established forces with different interests and directions. All religious
movements had to go through intense persecution and hostility at their outset.
Only by overcoming those difficulties were they able to enter the mainstream of
thought and become a guiding force for future generations. Judaism,
Christianity and even democracy and communism are examples of this pattern.
We need to defeat communist strategies
Likewise, from
the beginning, Rev. Moon and the Unification movement have endured tremendous
misunderstanding, accusation, persecution and tribulation, not only in the area
of religion but also in politics, economics, culture, science, technology,
media and education. We have been opposed and persecuted wherever we have been
by every segment of society, from the general public to governmental
authorities. In a sense, therefore, all people in the world are directly or
indirectly responsible for the fate of the Unification movement and are
accountable for their actions in front of God.
The worldwide
opposition, however, has been orchestrated in particular by communists. Their
target is anything with Rev. Moon’s name attached to it.
For most people,
it has been quite difficult to gain an accurate understanding of the
Unification movement. Most of what people have heard and read about us has been
the reflection of lies and sensationalism spread by our opponents and
compounded over the years. What people tend to believe about Rev. Moon and the
Unification movement derives mostly from the repetition of false allegations
made long ago. Following Lenin’s teaching that “A lie repeated one hundred
times will become a truth,” communists have repeated endlessly the same false
rumors in order to lend them credibility. For example, in the past twelve
years, the Japanese Communist Party has printed 1.6 billion pieces of anti-Unificationist literature in their propaganda organ Akahata and its affiliated publications. This
comes to sixteen pieces of malicious propaganda provided to every Japanese man,
woman and child!
This is but one
of the many sources of disinformation put forth in the communist attempt to
destroy our movement. Anti-Unificationist propaganda
also flows unceasingly from countries such as China, North Korea, East Germany,
the Soviet Union, Cuba, Nicaragua and Libya. These lies filter down to public
officials, intellectuals, religious leaders and the media, and eventually to
the general public. By then, the distorted facts have been heard so many times
people believe them to be true.
The most
despicable actions against us, however, are apparent in the inhumane treatment
of those who join the Unification movement. It is clear that the so-called
“deprogramming” movement is supported by communists. Judges and courts, the
supposed custodians of human rights, often collaborate in this infringement of
fundamental religious liberties. Ironically, the greatest violation of these
rights takes place in countries that loudly proclaim their regard for human
rights and the freedom of religion.
The methods
involved in deprogramming are like those used in communist concentration camps.
Using parents and relatives to entrap members, deprogrammers can commit grown
adults to mental hospitals, citing our members’ supposed “illness” of holding a
minority religious belief. Other typical deprogramming techniques include
kidnapping, illegal detention, violence, psychological harassment, sleep
deprivation, inducement to use alcohol and drugs, sexual seduction and rape.
Through such threats, harassment and manipulation, professional deprogrammers
force members to renounce their faith. Many victims are injured physically and
psychologically because of this criminal activity. You cannot imagine the deep
sorrow I feel when I see so many people I love suffer for their faith and
ideals. Incredibly, the deprogramming movement accuses us of using the
reprehensible tactics they themselves practice so wantonly.
You may wonder
why communists have so much fear and hostility toward Rev. Moon and the
Unification movement, and why they are trying so desperately to destroy us. As
you know, the ultimate goal of communism is nothing less than a Communist Party
dictatorship subjugating the entire world under the banner of atheistic
materialism. Actually, Marxist theories—such as the labor theory of value,
surplus value theory, dialectical materialism and historical materialism—are
inversions of the truth, put forward only to justify violent revolution. Until
now, nothing has existed that could give the world hope in light of the specter
of communist global domination.
Unification Thought is the basis by which to overcome communism
The Unification
thought system, however, exposes the fictions of communism. Communists know
this and therefore are trying to exterminate Unificationism
at its source. They are extremely afraid of anything that exposes their true
identity.
Communists
around the world have dominated millions of people because of their ignorance.
Some are courageous enough to fight them, but because they lack a strong
ideology and organization they are isolated, weakened and easily defeated.
Millions of people have been slaughtered without mercy by communist regimes.
Today hundreds of millions wait for liberation from communism with tears of
desperation. I myself spent nearly three years in a communist concentration
camp under the North Korean dictatorship of Kim II Sung. They sent me there to
die, but I survived and eventually was freed by the United Nations forces
during the Korean War. Part of my life’s mission since then has been
concentrated on how to establish the absolute truth, a truth superior to
communism that can bring about the world’s liberation from that ideology.
I now can speak
clearly about the crimes I witnessed. I now have a substantial foundation on
which to speak, to act and to surpass communism. Thus, you can understand why
the communists are afraid of Rev. Moon and his organization.
What the
communists find very difficult to understand is why Rev. Moon’s movement
continues to grow so successfully in spite of all their opposition, persecution
and slander. For instance, in Japan we have more than 3.5 million members in
the International Federation for Victory over Communism (IFVOC).
First, communists
do not realize God is alive and substantially working behind the Unification
movement. Second, they do not understand the true essence of religion and the
fact that human beings feel truly satisfied in their inmost heart only by God’s
truth and love. Finally, they do not realize that God’s laws, which govern the
spirit world and the universe, do not operate in accordance with dialectical
materialism.
The Unification
movement is sustained and motivated by the deepest religious experience and
discipline, based on the fundamental truths of the universe. For that reason we
can move the original essence of the hearts and minds of people the world over.
For that reason our members can overcome trials and hardships no matter how
severe. They have learned to forgive. They accept persecution and trials as
nutrition for their spiritual growth rather than resenting those who persecute
them. In short, the true members of the Unification movement have an unshakable
faith and power to persevere through any opposition. This is proven by the fact
that we have already established strong foundations throughout the world.
Lighting the
fire of a worldwide cultural revolution
Rev. Moon and
the Unification movement are involved in a life-on-death mission for the sake
of God and humanity. However, this mission is not the monopoly of the
Unification movement. The members of this movement desire to work with all
people of conscience and ideals in the new cultural
revolution. The people of the free world, especially Christians and all
religious people, ought to be the greatest friends of
the Unification movement. Tragically, these people have all too often been
ignorant of the communist strategy and unable to distinguish friend from foe.
As a result they frequently have attacked and subverted their true friends.
Lately, however,
the situation has been changing. People are becoming indignant about the
threats and injustices of communism. Recent events clearly expose the strategy
and tactics communists have used ever since their beginnings. Conscientious
scholars, professionals and religious leaders are beginning to join under the
general banner of Unificationism as they become more
and more concerned about the future of religion and the free world. Also,
people are attracted to the Unification Thought system because of its power to
combat moral decadence and its very potent counterproposal to communism.
Today you and I
stand together confronting a common destiny. Let us work with each other to
defend the academic world from communism and fulfill the task that history
presses upon us at this time. My Unificationist
family members and I are determined to meet this challenge. From this day
forward, let scholars throughout the world join together to take leadership in
every field.
On the communist
side, Marxist scholars assume leadership roles to manipulate students and
campus activities. In concert with labor and minority organizers they create a
formidable ideological and social front, which works ultimately to the
detriment of real human happiness. Thus, we are urgently compelled to establish
a systematic social foundation through the responsible cooperation of
professors and students. To my bones I have come to realize that a person who
advocates righteousness in this evil world can be eliminated easily if he has
no substantial foundation. Thus, a unified front of scholars and students must
work together with Christians and all other religious believers.
Living at this
most important time in history, we stand on the boundary of life and death. I
cannot but fervently desire that you, as ambitious and righteous scholars and
educators, will make substantial, constructive changes in the world. Let us
work together in a unified front embracing all areas of life! Standing at the
pinnacle of history, let us ignite the new cultural revolution reaching the
four corners of the earth!
May God’s
abundant blessing be with your countries, your families and every one of you. May God guide your discussions in this twelfth ICUS meeting.
Thank you very
much.
10
Professors World
Peace Academy
and Our Resolution
December 18, 1983
The Little Angels Performing Arts Center, Seoul, Korea
First International Congress of the Professors World Peace Academy
Honorable
chairman of this international congress, distinguished PWPA presidents from
seventy-two countries and respected members of PWPA- Korea:
I am pleased to
have this opportunity to share with you some of my convictions on the occasion
of this international congress of the Professors World Peace Academy.
First of all, I
would like to express my gratitude particularly to those PWPA chairmen who
accepted my sudden invitation, which I extended to you several days after the
conclusion of the meeting in Chicago of the International Conference on the
Unity of the Sciences (ICUS) at the end of November. I know that all of you
must have been busy with previously planned schedules and itineraries at this
time of year. Once again, I greatly appreciate your coming here, interrupting
your busy schedules. Ordinarily, no one is able to respond to such an abrupt
invitation, extended only a few days in advance. I believe you will come to
realize the historic and providential meaning of this congress and why it was
so urgent for you to come here at this time.
The ultimate goal
of PWPA
I have long
thought that, in addition to their scientific achievements, scholars need to be
pioneers in the realm of conscience, inspiring humankind through their bold and
determined actions. This is absolutely necessary in order to cope with the
problems of human history and to fulfill humanity’s ideals.
With this in
mind, I established the International Cultural Foundation in 1968 and convened
the first annual ICUS in 1972, despite the difficulty of financing it at that
early stage. Ordinarily, sponsorship of this kind of meeting is beyond the
means of an individual or religious group. It ought to be held under the
auspices of a government. Regrettably, no one seemed to be paying any attention
to this very important need. Therefore, I determined to assume the
responsibility and organized this international conference. Moreover, this year
marks the tenth anniversary of PWPA.
Humanity today
faces many dangerous problems. The greatest of these is the possibility of
global war and nuclear disaster, which could occur only too easily amid the
struggles, confusion and conflict of ideologies, owing to the absence of an
appropriate value system. This threat results from the misuse of scientific
knowledge by various political and economic interest groups, while religion,
which is supposed to guide the human spirit in the right direction, is not
fulfilling its appropriate role. Such dangers threaten the very survival of
civilization.
I founded PWPA
to be a trailblazing organization at this critical moment in human history, to
mobilize those intellectuals who have devoted their lives to the advancement of
human wisdom and to enable them to play a leading role in overcoming the
dangers of the age and opening new pathways to world peace. The ultimate goal
of PWPA is to help create a just and harmonious world order by encouraging
scholars to search for new ideas and methods of achieving peace and prosperity.
PWPA will provide scholars and other concerned leaders with the resources they
need to solve the fundamental problems facing humanity.
Mutual
cooperation and joint research transcending location
As you may know,
my path to the twelfth ICUS was not an easy one. It was an enormous task to
provide the extensive resources that were required. What was even more troublesome,
however, was that I encountered so much jealousy, unjust accusation and
persecution, although I was carrying out such a significant endeavor for
humanity at great personal cost. I am happy to say, however, that the sight of so many distinguished scholars like you from
throughout the world, who have responded positively to these initiatives and
who understand my genuine motivation, comforts me.
Throughout
history, all people have desired a peaceful world. Yet, conflicts persist.
Unfortunately, dictators and unscrupulous political leaders have frequently
misused the word peace, proclaiming their peaceful intentions but in reality
exploiting, manipulating and oppressing people both within and outside of their
own nations. The communists in particular are accustomed to using the word
peace while constantly fomenting violence and war.
Often the appeal
to peace has been employed as a tactic to achieve unrighteous ends, rather than
being viewed as an ideal to benefit all. True peace does not depend on such tangible
or external characteristics as intelligence, wealth, social status or political
power. As long as there is no absolute standard by which to evaluate such
worldly concerns, it will be impossible to forge a lasting peace amid the
conflicts of interest among men and nations in a continuously changing world.
Real peace can be built only on the foundation of true love, and loving
relationships can be experienced only when we recognize the absolute values
that place God at our center and bind us together.
I believe that
PWPA will be international, multidisciplinary, future-oriented and
action-oriented. No single discipline, no local prescription, can solve the
problems facing all of humanity in this century. Mutual cooperation across
national and regional boundaries and interdisciplinary studies that go beyond
limited specializations are absolutely necessary.
Science today
has become overspecialized. The challenges of our age can be met only by teams
of experts from diverse disciplines, cooperating to examine problems from
various perspectives. In light of the complexities of the modern world, the
resolution of problems needs to be approached from a more holistic, universal
perspective. Therefore, it is not easy to organize and operate a scientific
body that can meet these needs. Unfortunately, scholars have widely accepted
the disastrous notion of a scientific methodology that is somehow “value-free.”
As a result, evil people have often schemed to misuse the findings of
scientific research for their own selfish purposes, to the detriment of human
welfare and humanity’s highest ideals. Deeply troubled by this, I have been
trying to find alternative ways, with absolute values at their core, to solve
the contradictions of our time through ICUS.
What PWPA should practice to realize peace
Absolute value
is the axis of all sciences, as it is the standard of all other values. As long
as the specialized disciplines are pursued using supposedly value-free
methodologies, and as long as the standard of value differs from one individual
to the next, where can we find the common standard necessary to attain the
universal human community that human nature has long been seeking?
The concept of
freedom also varies among individuals with different standards of value, among
societies and nations, and among different economic, social and political
systems. Then who will remedy the manifold injustices committed in the name of
freedom? It is clear that human nature, in its pursuit of the good, requires a
fixed standard of absolute goodness.
Moreover, the
world is becoming smaller every day. As our world shrinks to a global village,
the world’s peoples are challenged to overcome national, racial and religious
barriers and learn to live together in harmony. Consequently, history demands
that we establish an absolute standard of value as the only possible foundation
for the unity of humankind.
If the world is
to solve its many problems, it needs leaders. I sincerely hope that the
member-scholars of PWPA will participate actively, not passively, in the search
for and realization of universal human ideals. PWPA exists not only for the
advancement of the sciences but also for the practical promotion of the well
being of humankind, thereby differing from most other scholarly institutions. Its
members need to become social activists, orienting their students in a positive
direction, seeking to influence public opinion and playing a leading role in
public affairs. I encourage you to grapple in a nonviolent manner with the most
difficult and pressing social and philosophical issues of the age, in order to
provide humanity with the leadership it needs to cope with the seemingly
insoluble problems it faces. The goal of PWPA is to put ideals into practice by
generating new ideas by which peace can be realized, and actively participating
in their implementation.
I have long been
planning to establish a World University Federation, based on the extensive
network of contacts already created by the International Cultural Foundation
and PWPA. The time has now come to accomplish this, by establishing first-class
universities in seventy countries on six continents, where young people of all
races and nations are educated as world citizens. I want to instill in them the
ideal of a peaceful world, where all people live as brothers and sisters, by
promoting regular and extensive international exchanges of faculty and
students, and by sponsoring numerous collaborative research projects with
international staff members.
I have already
informed the senior consultants of the International Cultural Foundation of my
plan to compile and publish a great international encyclopedia, based on a
clear concept of absolute value. Although many encyclopedias already exist,
this encyclopedia, based on absolute values, is an indisputable requirement for
the younger generation. I fully expect that it will take more than ten years to
complete. All members of PWPA chapters in the world are encouraged to
contribute to this historic work.
A separate
project I am planning to launch is a new monthly magazine, which is scheduled
to begin publication in January 1985. Its purpose will be to give people the
knowledge and guidance they need to lead better lives. Each issue of over one
thousand pages will feature articles of lasting interest. It will not be thrown
away after a glance, but it will occupy a cherished place on bookshelves
everywhere, being frequently consulted as a wellspring of wisdom and advice on
every facet of human life.
Another project,
which is already being implemented, is the publication of large quantities of
high-quality books to educate people about basic social problems. I understand
that the number of books of enduring worth is declining, because publishers are
more concerned with profit than with quality and content. This new project will
cost an enormous sum of money, but I am determined to have more than three
thousand books of the finest quality published in the next ten years.
The reason to host the international congress in Korea I will now
explain why I invited all of you to Korea to observe the National
Rallies for Victory over Communism and to attend the first international
congress of PWPA. ,
First, Korea has
often been the victim of foreign aggression during her long history. Located on
a peninsula, her geopolitical situation makes her a bridgehead between the
continent and the ocean, and a strategic point for expansion of the great
powers. Even today, the Korean peninsula is a strategic area of confrontation
between the Eastern and Western blocs and is playing a frontline role for the
free nations by holding off impending invasion by North Korea and Russia.
Korea is a
worldwide testing ground. The spotlight of world attention is focused on her,
waiting to see whether she will become a casualty of communism or whether she
will remain a member of the community of free nations. From the providential
point of view, I see the situation of Korea as a sort of microcosm, reproducing
in miniature the major developments and confrontations of the age.
Directly or
indirectly, all the major currents of world affairs, past and present, are
converging on this peninsula. Therefore, if these problems can be solved in
Korea, they can be solved worldwide. The resolutions and proclamations made by
the distinguished scholars from Korea and abroad on this occasion are related
to each of your nations. Because they represent the interests of the entire
world, they will certainly have international impact.
Second, Korea
has a long tradition of culture and thought that honors God, and it has enjoyed
a rich spiritual life for nearly five thousand years. Our ancestors created a
brilliant civilization based on Buddhism and Confucianism. Today, a scant one
hundred years after the arrival of Christianity, the Korean churches have
astonished all of Christendom with the ardor of their faith. What is more
important is that in Korea all the higher religions have been harmoniously
assimilated by the original spiritual culture, resulting in a social climate in
which all the different religions coexist and complement one another without
conflict. Korea is unique in this respect. Considering all these facts, we
cannot avoid the conclusion that it is impossible for communism to long
maintain a foothold on this peninsula. I firmly believe that, as surely as God
exists, He will teach a lesson to the world by destroying communism through the
Korean people.
Third, Koreans
are an energetic, keen-minded, righteous people. With such a national
character, they surely cannot fail to grasp the significance of historical
trends and respond appropriately. Once the Korean people come to realize
clearly the evil of communism, they will immediately rise up and demonstrate to
the whole world a model national movement for victory over communism.
Fourth, Korea is
a meeting point of Eastern and Western cultures. I think you will agree with me
that many leading scholars are rather pessimistic about the future of Western
civilization and are awaiting a great era of religious and spiritual
transformation to come. The increasing fascination that Oriental thought and
Oriental religions have for Westerners may be taken as evidence that the
harmonious unification of Eastern and Western cultures is an idea whose time
has come.
Atheism and
communism are obstacles to peace The very fact that distinguished scholars from
around the world have come together here in Korea, with the objective of
securing world peace and establishing an ideal world, illustrates this point
very well. The very existence of PWPA and ICUS, following the inspiration of
Rev. Moon, who was born in the Orient, would have been unthinkable in the past.
This signals a major turning point in the intellectual history of humanity. It
marks nothing less than the beginning of a new culture.
The best shortcut
to achieving harmonious unification between East and West may be by means of a
religious teaching that seeks to realize one worldwide family under God as our
Parent. If the goal of PWPA is to realize world peace, and if all of us as
brothers and sisters are truly serious about achieving this goal by uniting
intellect with conscience, we now need a reawakening and a redetermination. A
real and lasting peace for all humankind will never be achieved through
horizontal relationships between individuals holding different values. It will
be achieved only through universal recognition of the absolute values derived
from God.
The fundamental
obstacle in achieving this ideal of peace is atheistic communism. I have also
clearly taught that capitalism is not the ultimate ideology desired by God.
Communism, however, denies the very existence of God, and so it is the number
one obstacle to a God-centered thought system.
I already
proclaimed at the Chicago ICUS that scholars must actively protest against
communist ideology. Some people may have felt that this proclamation and my
advice on that occasion were expressed too strongly. Although one day may seem
very much like the next in the passage of time, there comes a time that serves
as a crossroads, watershed or crucial turning point in human history and God’s
dispensation. There is a time that will never come again. There is a time for
irrevocable decision and a time for crucial determination. That time is now. I
give you this solemn advice based on my serious consideration of the future of
humanity.
Urgency to
educate our youth based on clear values The National Rallies for Victory over
Communism that you attended in Korea can serve as a model that can be
duplicated in each of your nations. If the leaders of the free world remain
irresolute about communism, there will be no way to prevent the expansion and
world conquest that communism dreams of. If professors do not confidently
proclaim what is true and refute what is false, but remain aloof from the
struggle with folded hands, to whom can we entrust the future of the next
generation?
It is an
absolute requirement in this era that education of the next generation be
shaped by the firm moral convictions of their professors, who must communicate
a clear sense of values. This needs to be the basic attitude of educators. From
this point of view, the role of a professor is the same as that of a religious
leader. We educators have to assume the responsibility of not only transmitting
facts but also sharing with our students the meaning and purpose of human life.
I am convinced
that a resolute determination on the part of the participants of this congress,
grounded firmly on theistic beliefs, will enable PWPA to achieve its historic
goal and assure a decisive victory over communism in your countries. Once
again, I hope this congress will make a definitive contribution toward the
construction of a strong international foundation for an alliance of all
peoples for victory over communism.
May God bless
each of your nations, and may He bless you and your families as well.
Thank you.
11
Absolute Values
and
the New Cultural Revolution
September 3, 1984
JW Marriott Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Thirteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
(Given on True Father’s behalf)
Honorable
chairman, eminent professors and scientists, ladies and gentlemen:
Thank you for
participating in the thirteenth International Conference on the Unity of the
Sciences. Although we cannot be together physically, my heart is with you. For
thirteen years I have addressed this assembly of distinguished scholars and
have raised questions concerning the state of the world and the responsibility
of the scientific and academic communities to solve global problems.
Although the
specific contents of my addresses have varied from year to year, the underlying
thematic focus has remained unchanged. This focus is essentially twofold: the
need for unity of the sciences and of knowledge in general, and the need for
science to be guided by absolute values and purpose to assure the welfare of
humanity.
God is the
source of religious truth and scientific truth. God is the first in preaching
and the first in science as well. I firmly believe that this is a fundamental
truth of the universe, and I have based my life’s work on this viewpoint. As a
minister of the living God, I have sought to enhance, clarify and unite all
aspects of God’s essential being as manifested in the whole of creation, both
physical and spiritual. My lifelong work has been motivated by my search for
the meaning of life and my desire to enhance the material wellbeing of human
existence, despite the many obstacles that have stood in my way since I began
my mission at age sixteen. One of the greatest tragedies now unfolding in the
pursuit of knowledge is the fragmentation of academic disciplines. Such
divisive specialization of science and knowledge, like the dismantling of a
machine, ultimately paralyzes the function of the whole and prevents science
from fulfilling its overall mission.
Whether we
accept it or not, the world is one. It is erroneous to think that one
discipline has a more complete view of reality than another, or to think that
discoveries and advances in different areas are unrelated. All fields of
scientific and academic study are intertwined, each having a unique yet partial
view of the whole of reality. It is to the advantage of total human progress
and happiness that all fields of study work together harmoniously to form an
integrated view of reality. However, in my view of the unity of science and
knowledge, I am not advocating that we simply reduce all knowledge to a single
academic discipline. Instead, I am referring to unity grounded in a fundamental
purpose. There are many fields in science; however, all of them are seeking for
the realization of happiness for human beings. Although contemporary academic
circles are confronted with the problem of acute fragmentation and
divisiveness, human beings face an even greater menace: the lack of absolute
values. Thus, we need to turn our attention to the ongoing theme of ICUS: “The
Search for Absolute Values.”
Despite the
fervent desire and serious efforts of most scientists and scholars to establish
peace and prosperity, even in the most advanced nations problems such as
poverty, illiteracy, disease, divisions and even wars are still persisting.
Although science and technology are immensely developed in the modern world,
humankind continues to suffer from sorrow, pain and diseases.
Many leaders are
striving to eliminate this misery and secure true peace and stability. However,
the world echoes only with empty promises of peace. Neither democratic
capitalism nor communistic socialism has solved the world’s fundamental
problems. Both have allowed secular humanism to degrade human existence to
materialism and thus demean the value of life. The so-called free world brought
this situation through its incompetence and lack of vision in leading people in
the right direction; the communist world caused this condition through its
materialism.
Confusion and
anxiety grow as a sense of purposelessness permeates the world. How has this
come about? The main reason is that the standard of value that regulates human
behavior has been undermined. As ethics and morality have lost their power, the
standard of goodness has almost disappeared. Part of this disappearance is due
to a misguided foundation of science, namely its attempt to be value-neutral,
which has led science to ignore questions of humanity and moral values in the
process of its development.
Over time,
science gradually has become fragmented, with each field becoming more
specialized, analytical and materialistic, thus further ignoring the questions
of morality and values. Hence human dominion over science has weakened to the
extent that no one can be sure of the fate of human existence on this planet.
Another reason
for the undermining of values and morality is that many contemporary men and
women no longer find past expressions of value and morality to be convincing. A
new expression of morals and ethics needs to arise out of a new expression of
values that contemporary individuals will find clear and compelling. Only a
transcendent, united system of thought that unites past and present, secular
and religious thought can provide such a new expression of values and morality.
I have long been
interested in the relationships between the aims of religion, philosophy and
science. As I have stated on earlier occasions, these conferences I have
initiated stem from these concerns. While religion has concerned itself with
metaphysical and moral questions, science has marginalized this area, limiting
itself to understanding the regularities of nature and the structure and
behavior of matter and energy in the framework of space and time. It is true
that science has contributed to the tremendous advances in knowledge during the
last few hundred years. Nevertheless, science without a standard of value to
guide it could lead to global destruction. In my view, the whole range of
knowledge from theology to science has no meaning without a well-understood
purpose and a standard of value directing this knowledge. I believe this
direction and standard of value can come only from a radically God-centered
religion. This perspective ought to come as no surprise to those in the
scientific community who are familiar with the philosophical writings of many
great scientists.
In my earlier
addresses at ICUS, I have proclaimed that the Unification Principle and its
associated theology can be the foundation for a new, united thought system that
is radically centered on God. This teaching states that human beings have value
by nature of their very being. Each person is meant to have a unique,
parent-child relationship with God. Hence all people are created to lead life
in accordance with a definite value perspective and God’s purpose of creation,
which is the establishment of relationships of true love. In fact, I propose
that the absolute values we seek are grounded nowhere other than in the
absolute, true love of God. Absolute beauty, truth and goodness can be realized
based on the foundation of true love. It is my ardent desire that all
scientists and scholars advance their respective fields on the basis of a solid
viewpoint of moral values, and enhance human dignity by adding a spiritual
dimension with a comprehensive approach to bring unity to the currently
materialistic and analytical approach.
Solutions to the
world’s fundamental problems can come about only through such a holistic
approach to human existence. I call upon the many distinguished scholars
gathered at this conference to engage in a joint effort to create harmony and
unity through the guidance of collective wisdom and knowledge, rather than
engaging in clashing and fragmented approaches to the ideal of humankind.
I sincerely wish
and hope that this conference will contribute toward realizing the ideal that
God had envisioned in the beginning of creation. I pray that your endeavors
will become decisive factors in the realization of a revolutionary new world, a
world based on a culture of heart that culminates in building a world of true
love, goodness, peace and happiness.
12
Leaping Forward
and Gaining Momentum
November 29, 1985
InterContinental Hotel, Houston, USA
Fourteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairmen, eminent professors and scientists, ladies and gentlemen:
As we begin this
fourteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences (ICUS) meeting
here in Houston, I would like to express my appreciation to each of you for
your commitment to and support for this conference and its theme, “Absolute
Values and the New Cultural Revolution.” Since I was unable to be with you at
last year’s ICUS in Washington, I am particularly moved to stand before you
this morning.
The need for a
great awakening and breakthrough for humankind
As you know, I
was recently released from prison, on August 20, 1985, having spent thirteen
months in confinement in the United States. I thank you again for being
concerned with my situation caused by unfair treatment, for visiting me in
prison, for writing letters to comfort me, and for your tremendous efforts in
advocating justice and fairness on my behalf.
Those who were
so eager to fabricate a crime and have me imprisoned invested a great deal of
money, time and effort in the attempt to block the work God has called me to
perform. However, despite opposition, the Unification movement prospers
worldwide. Contrary to the expectation that my imprisonment would break up the
work of our church, people from all walks of life, including Christian clergy, have expressed their understanding and supported us
in an unprecedented way. Through such an experience I have learned once again,
as I always maintained, that victory comes through persecution countered with
God-centered righteousness.
My experience in
prison has sharpened my awareness of the critically dangerous state of the
world. It let me feel the urgent necessity of a worldwide great awakening and of
a new breakthrough. As a result, I have come out of prison with a renewed sense
of urgency and determination to commit myself and the Unification movement to
give everything for the cause of world peace and global prosperity.
In today’s
world, millions of people live in miserable circumstances in spite of
tremendous scientific progress, efficient technologies and economic abundance
in many places. Many nations live in constant strain and even in a state of
war. In most of the world such problems as poverty, illiteracy, disease,
violence and crime, drug addiction and mental disorders, social discrimination
and inequity, broken families and teenage immorality threaten the future of our
planet. Why do anxiety and agony increase constantly, even though many leaders—especially
conscientious, distinguished scholars—have been devoting themselves toward
realizing a pleasant and peaceful world? The reason is an ethical, moral and
spiritual crisis that brings with it mental exhaustion. Traditional value
systems are now inadequate for societies that are changing with unprecedented
speed. Time-honored ethics and morals are no longer persuasive. Criteria for
goodness have been disappearing. At a time when these problems are causing
self-contradictions, conflicts and disunity both in individual lives and on the
societal level, it is difficult to speak of moral standards or of eternal life.
Leaping forward through persecution
If in such a
reality there is no room for God, then we cannot expect to fulfill our ideals
or to substantiate happiness. We could conclude that to continue in such a
fashion would bring about our eventual demise. Nevertheless, if the absolute
God exists, we can be confident that He will conduct a
providence for changing this destructive reality. He will advance toward
a universal standard of ethics that establishes a reality of mutual joy and
prosperity. God is our Parent with only true love for all humankind. The
purpose of any calamitous events in God’s providence in the past was never to
destroy humankind. Such effects were part of a process for dramatic leaps
ahead; the unfortunate effects were to be followed by new and hopeful things to
come.
Throughout
history there have been numerous moments of leaping forward; there have been
numerous people contacting the transcendent God at moments of severe oppression
by the contemporary society and then leaping toward a better future. Ordinary
moments are not likely to be a springboard for such transformations. Pioneers,
through positively digesting paradoxical moments, have been able to surge
forward and create new ways of living.
Loving your
enemy, as Jesus practiced on the cross, may not be easy to understand. But
Jesus showed us God’s providence by dramatically changing that moment of being
completely denied by the world into a leap of complete positivity. As a result,
a new page of resurrection providence was opened.
I think the
Unification Church has set a new record in the history of persecution. However,
such persecution has never been detrimental for the Unification Church. When
the Unification Church is not overwhelmed by suffering but overcomes it and
lives God’s Will through advancing with this momentum,
the suffering itself becomes a preparation for eternal life centered on the
Absolute. By practicing such faith, we recognize that the reality of today’s
world is not a cause for despair, but can provide momentum that permits God to
advance us toward a new world.
The initial
motive for humans to develop science was the desire to realize world peace and prosperity.
However, the methods employed in the specialized fields of science have not
brought results that meet that original expectation. Though our expectation of
science was focused on the well being of humankind, science has mostly been
concerned with developing the material environment, which is the object partner
of human beings, who are its subject partners. The scientific pursuit of higher
living standards and the application of theories of politico-economic equality
have not produced true happiness for humankind. Therefore, scientists should
become newly aware of their mission.
Contemporary men
and women ought to look inside the depth of their being and establish a
universal ethic built on the natural order of existence. This new ethic
requires us to love nature, to reconsider the dignity of human beings, to seek
love among all humankind, and to search for God as the origin of love. Scholars
need to take on the mission of accomplishing a cultural-spiritual revolution,
which ought to realize ideals such as human perfection and world peace, along
with the external, technological revolution.
Creating a new
culture centered on God’s truth and love
Long before the
first ICUS, I became convinced that scientists should play a decisive role in
building a good and hopeful future society. My support and enthusiasm for ICUS
for the past fourteen years has come from my respect and my expectation for
scholars’ potential to solve the world’s problems. I hope that such a potential
can be developed and mobilized through ICUS and that responsible scholars will
actively contribute to the realization of the new cultural revolution.
This is the
fourteenth ICUS. The number fourteen is twice the number seven. According to
Unification theology, the importance of the number seven, like the number
three, is that it signifies perfection. Up until now, ICUS has been committing
itself to relating scientific studies to the discovery and realization of
absolute values. In addition, it has been concerned with the integration of knowledge,
that is, with an interdisciplinary and integrated approach to the understanding
of reality. Yet an integrated approach is not possible without establishing
absolute values, and the criteria for absolute values come from God, the origin
of absolute love. Many people have now come to recognize the necessity of
absolute values. I am grateful that the chairmen and the members of the
planning committee have resolved misunderstandings and become pioneers on this
new path.
From now on,
where is ICUS supposed to head? Should we be satisfied with annual conferences
carried out just as before? My answer is based on my recent emphasis on the new
cultural revolution. I think that the potential and
foundation for realizing the original ideals and happiness of humankind are
greatly endangered, because evil is now challenging humankind most seriously
and essentially.
We, as the ICUS
family, should stand up and take on the great mission of creating a new culture
in this world. We need to invest everything for its establishment. The
exploration of absolute values for its own sake is meaningless. Truth has
eternal direction, and the ideal world founded on absolute values must be
concretely realized. This realization requires that we act determinedly and
rise above the difficulties we encounter in the present reality.
Today, the world
should change. Now is the time for scholars to responsibly come to the
forefront, advancing a new cultural revolution based on God’s truth and love. We orient this new cultural
revolution with God’s ideal for humanity and all creation. In order for
this ideal to be accomplished, each of us needs to fulfill our responsibility
in realizing true love, not only knowledge, as an absolute value.
Humankind should
now leap forward. The creation of a culture of new dimension, enabling us to
overcome the limits of our present reality, is necessary. We should wake up
from the illusion wrought by arrogant beliefs that the power of human reason
alone can bring about the perfection of individuals and the world, and the
laxity it engenders. Our effort will remain in vain if we fail to relate to
God’s expectations for the original human character and to God’s providence
behind the turmoil of human history. Humbly recognizing our limitations as
human beings, we are called to fulfill the ideal of unity with God through
leaping forward, in sync with the historical momentum introduced by God’s
providence. God’s ideal for the creation was meant wholly for human beings. We
naturally conclude, therefore, that the ideal has to be fulfilled through our
human response to God’s comprehensive concern.
Let us become
pioneers who practice absolute values
Respected
scholars! I have been committing my whole life to fulfilling God’s Will by
fulfilling human responsibility. As a pioneer, I never tried to avoid even the
most rugged path. For instance, I determined to offer an alternative to the
existing biases of the news media. I have closely watched the process of how
the news media offer information, the good points and bad. I know through my
experience, as many of you know, that the misuse of the news media’s power can
undermine and destroy the foundation of goodness. Therefore, for years we have
been sponsoring at great cost The Washington Times. Recently, I
inspired the publication of the weekly news magazine, Insight.
Further, in this coming month, we are going to release a monthly magazine
called The World & I. These projects will offer alternative
media for education and mass communication that will contribute to the promotion
of truth and the common good.
I ask you to
become pioneers in a new cultural revolution through participating in the
continuous pursuit of truth, and by contributing articles about your findings
to The World & I. Furthermore, I envision the publication of
dictionaries for the different specialized fields of science, with the help of
our worldwide Professors World Peace Academy (PWPA) and Paragon House Publishers. All this is in preparation for the
publishing of an encyclopedia of human events, which will, under the guidance
of absolute values, contribute constructive educational material based on keen
insights into original human character.
Respected
scholars! We would not fulfill our leadership and social responsibility by
remaining indifferent to the existing world of contradictions and presenting no
alternatives. We have to show a new standard, not missing this precious
historical and global momentum. It has come not by chance; God has granted it
to us. We should set an example by leaping ahead and firmly awakening all
people to fight against injustice. Leaping ahead involves risks and adventure.
A full-fledged adventure on a false foundation would result in greater
difficulties. However, where there is truth, practice is always bound to follow
in its wake. We need to become champions in the practice of absolute values and
actively lead the world.
I hope this
conference will not only become a forum for free and open discussions, in which
useful conclusions are reached, but also a historic event through which we
determine to energize this suffering world, that it may give birth to the world
of a new culture.
I deeply thank
the members of the planning committee for their very hard work for this
conference. May God bless all of you and your families!
13
True Love and
the Unified World
November 28, 1986
JW Marriott Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Fifteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairman, committee chairmen, distinguished professors, ladies and gentlemen:
I would like to
express my sincere appreciation to you for coming to this, the fifteenth
International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences. Thank you for
accommodating it in your busy schedules.
My topic on this
occasion is, “True Love and the Unified World.” The fundamental cause of
confusion in the world today is the conflict between idealism or spiritualism
on the one hand and materialism on the other, which is the conflict between the
side of goodness and the side of evil. This conflict in turn can be expressed as
the confrontation between the good God and the evil “god.”
The hope of
humankind is peace, and peace can be realized only through unification. This
means unification not only on the world level but on many other levels as well:
unification within each nation, within each family and within each individual.
Of these, the most important is unification within the individual. In
considering all current unification movements of the world at any of these
levels, I would like to invite your careful scrutiny of my contributions.
In order to
realize the world of peace God desires that the following must be accomplished.
First, the unification movement must achieve preeminence in the realm of human
thought. It needs to challenge and surpass all narrower philosophical and
religious views.
Second, this
unification movement must rise to the summit of technology and then distribute
that technology evenly throughout the world. Up to the present day,
technologically advanced North America has dominated
South America, while
Europe has held sway over Africa. In order to correct this, the level of
technology needs to be equalized among all countries.
Third, this
movement must resolve global economic problems. Today the world is confronting
an international monetary crisis. This can be managed if numerous conglomerates
buy stock in and establish a supranational bank.
Fourth, it has
to become preeminent in the realm of media. With The Washington Times
at the core, we are rising toward preeminence among the American print media, a
field of more than 1,750 American newspapers. By doing so we
can become peerless in all fields of information gathering. Today we
have surpassed the liberal New York Times and Washington
Post in this area and are continually gaining important and sensitive
information not only from America but also from governments all over the world.
However, even if
the ultimate unification movement stands on the summit in all the realms of
thought, science, technology, economy and media, there remains yet another problem:
how to guide through education people who can go beyond their nation and race.
The problem is illustrated by the fact that, for example, when an American
takes responsibility for a project, he tends to employ all Americans for the
task; if the manager is English, he tends to employ only English people; the
French employ only French people, and so forth.
Therefore,
before the peace and unification of the world can be contemplated, one must
know how to educate people so they can completely overcome their own sense of
nationality in favor of embracing the world. Even communism, which rules half
the globe, cannot rid itself of its own nationalist and racist inclinations,
and is reduced to “racist communism.”
Turning to the
question of God, in the latter half of the twentieth century much of the
world’s population has inclined toward a humanistic outlook that denies God and
has turned toward the worship of mammon, while much of the rest of the
population has fallen under communism, which is mere materialism. Philosophy,
whose task it is to find God or absolute truth, has failed, and religion, which
is supposed to connect humankind with God, is now on the verge of losing God
and becoming spiritless.
In the
unification of the world, the crucial problem is the individual person. Before
the unification of the world is possible, we must achieve the unification of
the nation and the unification of the family, and the unification of the family
must be preceded by the unification of the individual person— which means the
unification of mind and body. When the individual suffers inner conflict, the
family suffers. When the family suffers, the nation cannot help but suffer; and
when the nation suffers, the world cannot but suffer.
After all is
said and done, a true person must be found, a true person whom humankind and
the universe can cherish and whom God can trust. People like things that do not
change. Hence they like jewelry. People value the hardness of diamonds, the
luster of gold and the iridescence of pearls, all because of their
unchangeableness. This is also true of people. The unchangingly good person is
precious and true. Therefore, all people want unchangingly good parents,
unchangingly good teachers, unchangingly good leaders and unchangingly good
nations.
Today, the
increase in the number of people who do not recognize God is disturbing. This
is because as individuals their minds and bodies are in conflict. But if even
those who do not recognize God realize that something must be wrong in human
beings, they will come to have a different outlook and see that there may be a
God. Then, encountering such religious concepts as the Fall
and salvation, they may discover God.
When we discover
God, it becomes clear to us what is public and what is private. That which is
public means that which is for the whole, and that which is private is for the
self. When we reflect on ourselves objectively, we find ourselves in a quandary
over what is public and what is private. Because of this, religion teaches us
restraint through spiritual practices such as fasting, sacrificial service,
modesty and humility in order that the body, which is very much inclined toward
the private way of behaving, may be restrained in favor of the mind, which is
more public. ,
God certainly
exists. True people are those who resemble God. To realize the world in which
true people abound, not a social or political revolution but a revolution of
character must take place in human beings. This character revolution is to
transform people into true people who will come to resemble God. This character
revolution is to uplift human beings’ character and bring it closer to God’s
own character. God, who is already omniscient and omnipotent, does not need any
more knowledge or power, but even He needs His object partners of love, man and
woman.
The sixteenth
verse of the third chapter of the Gospel of John says, “God so loved the world
that he gave his only Son.” (John 3:16) This means that God sent Jesus for the sake of all humankind, not just for one
particular denomination or segment of believers. Therefore God embraces sons
and daughters who love the world with their very life, as does He Himself. What
God loves most is a culture of love. What He wants every man and woman to be is
not a person of wealth or a scholar but a person of love. In the Bible we
encounter innumerable teachings concerning love: “Love your enemies,” “Love
your neighbor,” of “faith, hope and love, ... the
greatest of these is love,” to name only a few.
Do wives truly
love their husbands? Do students truly love their teachers? Do citizens truly
love their countries? Ladies and gentlemen, do you know what is most precious
to a man? It is a woman. Likewise what is most precious to a woman is a man.
The purpose of life for a man is a woman and for a woman is a man, and we are
all born into it. Man and woman are born to live for each other. The harmony of
their body shapes and of their organs of love reflects this.
If you truly
understand this, you have mastered more truth and precious wisdom than an
entire encyclopedia. Reflecting this mutual preciousness of man and woman, God,
the great King of wisdom, has placed our reproductive organs in each other’s
custody. Thus the true master of the reproductive organ a man or woman
possesses is not the individual at all but his or her loving spouse. Those
husbands and wives who are ignorant of this and misuse what they have in an
indiscriminate way will surely meet judgment.
By realizing this
truth, husband and wife can attain harmony, and their children will develop
filial piety. The children of such a marriage will grow up to be loyal patriots
and faithful husbands or wives. Such couples will grow further to become saints
and eventually will become holy sons or daughters who are one with God.
Without finding
mutual love between husband and wife, which is a horizontal relationship, we
cannot receive God’s love, which is a vertical relationship. If humankind had
not fallen, heaven would have begun in a family, and all the people populating
the world would be the expansion of that family. Thus the family is the
training ground of love to qualify men and women for heaven.
Only those who
possess God’s love can inherit the right to heaven and earth. In this regard,
which comes first, life or love? The answer is love. Love is the universe’s
first existence, and life, which only begins as a result of love, is the second
existence. In a family, children are born out of the love of their parents. Thus
children inherit life from their parents, having been a part of their parents’
love.
Once two parties
are bound together in a relationship of love, they come to stand on an equal
level. Since love comes from the other, “live for the sake of others” is the
highest philosophical principle. God created human beings to be His own object
partners; thus He created them for the sake of the object partners, human
beings themselves. God likewise made humanity to exist for the sake of Himself. However, as a result of the Fall,
people have become self-centered, living for the sake of themselves rather than
for the sake of others.
Today’s human
society is growing corrupt, and philosophies are becoming self-centered. To
sweep away these philosophies, only God’s love, true love, can suffice. True
love is the love to give and give without expecting anything in return. Thus we
have to give and then forget what we have given.
Once we
actualize such a relationship of love with God, He gives us the privileges of
dominion, independence and inheritance. When we establish God’s realm of the
object partner and realize the glory of unchanging love, we can establish an
eternal ethic centering on human love.
God, who is
truly in a miserable and pitiful position, is still seeking His realm of the
true object partner. I am humbled to say that God has recognized me as such an
object partner of love, and most recently visited me in prison, out of so many
clergymen in this country of America, to tell me to work on Nicaragua’s crucial
situation.
The unification
of the world, including that of divided Korea, can never be accomplished by
military power. Unification becomes possible Only with God’s love, a love that
embraces enemy countries as well.
I have practiced
this ideal up to this day. In my ministry in America, I have been teaching
people of the mutually hostile countries of World War II to love each
other—Japanese and Korean, Japanese and American, and American and German.
Without establishing a firm tradition of being able to love the people of enemy
nations more than our own countrymen, the unification of the world will not
become a reality. Only God’s love will enable us to love enemy countries more
than our own.
To repeat,
before the unification of the world can be achieved, the unification of the
country, the unification of the family and the unification of the individual
must take place. The unification of the individual, as I mentioned before,
means unity between the mind and body in love. On this foundation husband and
wife can achieve unity in love—and the unification of the country and the world
will follow. Also, this is the only way to realize a world with a new
civilization.
It is therefore
my fervent wish that all you professors gathered here will also strive for the
unity of your mind and body. Love your wife or husband deeply, and thereby
contribute to the unification of the world and the building of a world of new
culture.
In closing, I
hope this conference will be a very fruitful one for you.
Thank you.
14
Absolute Values and
a Reassessment
of Contemporary Society
November 27, 1987
Stouffer Waverly Hotel, Atlanta, USA
Sixteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairman, committee chairs, distinguished professors, ladies and gentlemen:
As founder of
the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences (ICUS), I sincerely
welcome you to the sixteenth meeting of ICUS. This year our theme for
deliberation is, “Absolute Values and a Reassessment of Contemporary Society.”
Why reassessment
of the contemporary world is necessary
Today there is a
real need to reassess the world in every field. I do not know any group better
suited to make such a reassessment than ICUS— this gathering of distinguished
scholars representing all fields of knowledge as well as all cultures,
religions, races and nations. I think that among all academic groups in the
world, ICUS alone is striving to discover, on a fundamental level, the true
purpose and unity of the sciences. You should know that, among all gatherings of
scholars in today’s world, ICUS has a historic mission.
The complicated
problems of the world cannot be fully understood simply within the narrow
perspectives of individual fields of knowledge. Their solution lies beyond the
capability of any single specialized society of scholars. This is because the
problems of the world are essentially problems of the human being. Each person
has both a physical body, with material desires and physical senses, and a
spiritual self, with spiritual desires and spiritual senses. The world is
nothing but an extension of the human being with these twofold aspects. In
other words, the interrelationships between people with their twofold aspects
determine the order within societies and among nations. This is the reason why
multidisciplinary research to solve the world’s problems needs to give
significant consideration to such factors as religion, culture, art and so on.
Reassessment of
the contemporary world by ICUS should certainly include a reassessment of the
systems of the eastern and western blocs and, at the same time, a reassessment
of what the role of science in these two blocs has been and how close the
sciences have come to attaining their ultimate ideal. Today, regardless of how
many excuses the leaders of these two blocs make, no one can deny that the
world’s existing systems and orders have failed to guarantee the true happiness
of humankind. They have already reached their limit, and they are going to
decline.
A unifying
standard and its central position in reassessing the world
For ICUS to
reassess today’s world, there should be a unifying standard with a central
position. This central position should relate with the desires of both the
physical body and the spiritual self of the human being. I recognize that, in
the Middle Ages, God-centered thought and religious dogmatism blocked
scientific exploration and limited human fulfillment in the physical realm.
Yet, since the Age of Enlightenment, humanistic thinkers have made the major
error of maintaining that religious belief is inferior to human reason and that
a person’s spiritual needs are in conflict with human reason.
The emphasis
that the Enlightenment or humanism placed on rationality has been the great
driving force for the sciences as they have pursued the discovery of rational
laws in nature. With reason alone, however, we become separated from the
ultimate purpose of the human being, who has a twofold nature. Without this
ultimate purpose, a person cannot stand independently or even discover the
right direction. While ignoring spirituality and being satisfied with reason
and intellectual accomplishment, people have not been concerned about solving
the urgent problems connected with their own ultimate purpose. As a result,
they have become enthralled by materialism and consequently have lost their
dignity.
There is only
one ultimate truth, and it is a principle governing both nature and the human
world. In nature, this principle is the root and source of all things of the universe.
In the human being, this principle is the absolute value of love, which guides
us to complete our personality by harmonizing our spiritual and physical
aspects, realizing truth, goodness and beauty.
I do not believe
that the claims made by theism, humanism and materialism have been in
irreconcilable conflict with one another. Rather, I think they have been
partial, not-yet-mature expressions of one principle. They are
not-fully-accurate claims about this principle, which is the basis of absolute
values. In order to solve, on a fundamental level, the various problems faced
by people in the modern world, we should identify the set of absolute values,
or the one principle that can cope with the whole, transcending all existing
ideologies and claims.
Absolute values
bring us ultimately to the fundamental inquiry about God. To accept that God
does exist is to recognize that there exists a universal principle that
operates consistently in nature and the human world. On this foundation, values
that appear to be relative can be understood as interrelated with one another
on the basis of absolute values.
I know that
“absolute values” is not a popular theme among scholars today. But I hope, first
of all, that scholars do not make the mistake of confusing absolute values with
absolutism. I have emphasized at several ICUS meetings that absolute values are
based on God’s love. God’s love is not sectarian. It reaches deep into human
hearts and becomes the source of true love gushing out into the everyday lives
of people. Therefore, God’s love is the fundamental element needed to form one
harmonious realm, based on a heart that embraces all people and encompasses all
relative values. Thus, absolute values based on God’s love are deeper, broader
and more enduring than values based on rational presuppositions or relative
ideologies or beliefs.
Absolute values
do not contradict rational thinking. Rather, they enable the discovery of its
ultimate purpose. It is not merely our faculty of reason that makes us human.
Intellectual analysis is deficient if it does not fully value emotion, will and
spirituality in human life. Rational exploration will contribute to the true
happiness of humanity only when guided by absolute values based on true love.
I urge ICUS to
begin a comprehensive reassessment of today’s world. Conventional mental habits
and attitudes have been inadequate to deal with the profusion of problems in
our world today. Furthermore, the solution of problems faced by contemporary
society will not come from a consideration of human factors alone. We should
also consider that human history has been proceeding toward the fulfillment of
God’s Will. Therefore, the contemporary world should be reassessed from
viewpoints based on absolute values, which transcend nationalism, ideology and
even global perspectives, and which originate from God’s love.
Unity of the
sciences is possible when we discover absolute values As long as today’s
intelligentsia is swayed by relativistic viewpoints, there can never be unity
of the sciences, nor can there be unity and harmony among races, cultures or
religions. Courageous pioneers are needed who, in promoting the absolute values
perspective, are willing to take risks and receive bitter persecution.
Difficult and daring decisions are necessary if the many existing limited
viewpoints are to be unified into one coherent principle.
Today we should
acknowledge that scientific and philosophical approaches have failed to solve the
world’s problems. The great promise of natural science has too often been used
for evil purposes, not for the true happiness of humanity. The fields of social
science have often been corrupted under the influence of egoistic, sectarian
political power and so have played a dysfunctional role on many occasions.
Philosophy, too, has given up its great pursuit of the ultimate ideals of human
beings and hence has lost its life. Such a trend is becoming increasingly
serious because of the passive attitude of most scholars. I think that scholars
should not be satisfied merely with the outcome of their research but should
respond to the call of the world, which is in need of active guidance.
The world
requires responsible action by scholars who enlist their capabilities for the
good of humankind, in accordance with a proper perspective on values.
Conscientious intellectuals should protect the fruits of scientific research
from being misused. Furthermore, the sciences should not serve only relative
values that are limited in scope, but they should concentrate on absolute
values for the benefit of the universe and all of humanity.
The urgent need
to promote discussion of the unity of the sciences
Scholars should
not be passively influenced by political, economic or social currents, but they
should play an active role in leading society with wisdom gained through
historical insight and with the feeling of mission. The contemporary world,
more than ever before, is burdened with problems that can be solved only though
cooperation among nations and races. In international and pluralistic
societies, cooperative action by many intellectuals is no less important than
individual research in specialized fields.
Among the many
scholarly conferences in the world, ICUS alone has as its theme the ultimate
issues of absolute values and unity of the sciences. No issues are more urgent
than these. Without identifying absolute values, unity of the sciences is not
possible. I have entrusted this mission to you. Therefore, I hope that this
meeting will lead to a proper reassessment of contemporary societies and to the
accomplishment of the historic task of opening the path to creating a new
culture.
May God’s
blessing be with your work and your families!
15
Absolute Values
and a Reassessment
of the Contemporary World
August 24, 1991
Sheraton Walker Hill Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Eighteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
Honorable
chairman, vice chairmen, committee chairmen, distinguished scholars, ladies and
gentlemen:
It gives me
great pleasure to greet you again in my home country of Korea. Already ten
years have passed since we held our discussions here in Seoul on “The Creation
of the New World.” At that time I proposed the building of an international
highway system extending from East Asia and connecting all regions of the
world. We also began a project to publish the results of your research in a
manner that would influence constructively the younger generations around the
world. Ten years ago such plans seemed like impossible dreams. Today, however,
we have established the necessary foundation for their realization, and we can
see that they are beginning to take shape. For example, preliminary plans have
been completed for an undersea tunnel connecting Japan and Korea, and an
exploratory tunnel is now under construction.
For the
publication of your papers and books, we now have the publisher Paragon House
and the magazine The World & I. In addition, the Federation
for World Peace and the Interreligious Federation for World Peace are to be
established here in your presence. I proposed these two organizations last
year, and I believe you later received mailings with further information.
Esteemed
scholars of the world! The world around us is in a period of transition and is
in need of critical reassessment. In hindsight, the consistent emphasis on
values in past ICUS conference themes seems prophetic. Today the cry for a new
expression of values can be heard around the world, and the work of this
conference has become an important means for dealing with current realities.
The dramatic changes occurring in the Soviet Union and in Eastern and Central
Europe underscore this fact.
Following the
collapse of the communist world, there are those who speak with self-assurance
of the superiority of the West’s existing values and institutions. We must
critically examine, however, the societies of the free world and other
non-communist countries that until recently stood in opposition to the
communist bloc. Where are these societies going? Does their progress reassure
us that the future happiness of the world’s peoples is guaranteed?
We can see that
even after the collapse of the communist bloc, many problems remain in our
world. To develop the necessary solutions, we need to look for the deeper
origins of these problems. Our task has to be a fundamental reassessment of all
the institutions and lifestyles of our contemporary world. Such a reassessment
will enable us to identify those aspects of our world that can be considered
suitable and fitting for an enlightened and awakened humanity possessing a
renewed consciousness.
Fundamentally,
the confusion in the value systems of today’s societies derives from a break in
the original vertical order between God and humanity. The various institutions
and values we have today lack clear direction and are inherently unstable and
mutually contradictory. This is because they are devised by humans and
established only horizontally, that is, without a vertical axis connecting them
to God.
The universe does
not exist merely on the basis of the individual material substances that are
its component parts. Our world is not a mere sum total of isolated individual
substances. Material substances derive their primary existence from the energy
created through their relationships with other substances. And societies exist,
develop and prosper within the context of mutual give-and-receive
relationships. Behind such relationships, that is, behind each relationship
between material substances and behind each give-and-receive relationship
between individual beings, there is a preexisting vertical order of a higher
dimension that endows these substances or beings with a common motivational
drive and purpose. For example, the Creator has endowed human beings with free
will in order that we may experience the highest levels of joy and love for God
and for our fellow human beings. Thus, if we are to fulfill the purpose of our
existence, we need to inherit first the true love of God.
In an ideal
human society, true love, which involves living for the sake of others, is the
basis for all relationships. For each individual, such true love is motivated
by the experience of true love from one’s parents. The true love of parents,
which in turn is rooted in God’s true love, is the means to nurture children to
become perfect, that is, fully mature in their individual character. Then, a
man and a woman who have become fully mature in character are to form a family
as an ideal husband and wife and convey true love to their children. This is
the original order of God’s creation. The ideal world on earth is built when
one individual who is fully mature in character is able to expand true love to
form a family, society, nation and world based on true love.
However, our
world today is different in its origin from the ideal world I have just
described. It is a world in which human beings departed from the proper order
of true love, the most important principle for God’s creation. Having turned
against the order of God’s creation, our world today places value in
human-devised organizations and structures and in the order of law. Such a
world cannot produce ideal individuals, families and peoples. If that is so,
how can we secure a truly bright future for all humankind?
Respected
scholars, you are highly educated in fields dealing with the developmental
aspects of nature and human society. The natural world around us and our social
order are suffering violence and injury every day. With each passing day the
air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat become more polluted.
Despite advances in science and technology and the increasing conveniences
added to daily life, we find growing cause for despair. If humanity in the
twenty-first century continues to place itself outside the fundamental
principles of God who created the universe, we never will be qualified to be
stewards of planet Earth.
Closer human
relations, even if some may not want them, are necessary for the future of
humankind. We are entering the age of one global family, in which we will have
no choice except to live in much closer proximity to those whose religion,
nationality and skin color are different from our own. In such a world we will
need to develop a genuine appreciation, as opposed to simple acceptance, of the
wide variety of religions, cultural traditions and lifestyles around us. It
will be impossible for any individual or group to selfishly choose to withdraw
to a separate haven. Society no longer can be allowed to despoil nature for its
own selfish purposes. It needs to husband and develop nature in accordance with
the larger purposes of the world community and future generations.
What will be the
underlying order of this new age and new society, and how are we to raise up constructive members of such a global society? This
question can be answered only in terms of the order of God’s creation, with the
discipline of love as its central axis.
Respected
scholars, perhaps the points I have raised here will help explain why I, as one
who has sought consistently to realize God’s Will, have sponsored eighteen
sessions of the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences for a
period of almost twenty years. Decades ago I foresaw the future toward which
society was heading. Despite the inability of some to appreciate my efforts, I
have maintained my spiritual and material support for this series of
conferences with conviction. It is because of this ardent desire to serve the
future of humankind that, beginning with the first session in 1972, ICUS has had an unconventional structure that brings
together scholars in the natural sciences, humanities and social sciences in a
common forum that emphasizes interdisciplinary harmony and unity.
I recognize that
each academic discipline has its own specific characteristics, and I understand
the need for specialization in research. However, research conducted in the
various individual fields ultimately needs to be brought together through
mutually cooperative and complementary relationships in order to serve more
fully the common good. This is also the reason I have continued to place the
term “absolute values” in the theme of each ICUS conference, although
scientists frequently find this concept objectionable. So I am grateful that
you and many other scholars around the world have come to share my vision and
are cooperating to organize and continue the work of this conference.
The time now has
come for ICUS to develop to a new level. With absolute values continuing as our
central axis, we need to begin an aggressive effort to teach and apply the
results of the comprehensive research of this conference in ways that will
benefit the future of the world. With this in mind, the ICUS structure already
has served as a medium for establishing branches of the Professors World Peace
Academy in ninety-five countries, in order to involve scholars in these
countries in a worldwide cultural effort.
Many have
expressed great hope in such a practical movement of conscientious scholars.
For intellectuals such as yourselves, who form the most respected group in our
society, taking the lead in conveying proper values to young people of the
world is no less important a task than your work as researchers and theorists
in your specific fields. I believe it is important for scholars from around the
world to form teams that visit various countries to give instructions on a wide
range of topics. A program of this type already has been conducted with
significant success in Japan and Korea. There is a need for the worldwide
participation of scholars in a movement to give new vision to the people of our
contemporary world, particularly young people, in order to save them from the
snares of drugs, hedonism, violence and war. Given your ingenuity and practical
experience, and using ICUS as the parent body, I know we can build a new world
culture.
Finally, let me
say I am confident that many valuable discussions and conclusions will emerge
from this conference being held in my home country. I am proud of Korea for the
fact that it has maintained a beautiful culture, including a robust family
tradition, in spite of its long history of suffering. I also believe that Korea
can be commended for having risen from the ashes of successive wars to rapidly
achieve its current level of economic prosperity.
I hope you will
have a fruitful stay here, and I pray that God’s protection and blessing will
be with you and your families.
Thank you very
much.
16
Absolute Values
and
the New World Order
August 20, 1992
InterContinental Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Nineteenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
and Fifth International Congress of the Professors World Peace Academy
Honorable
chairman, distinguished scholars, respected guests, ladies and gentlemen:
It is my pleasure
to speak to you at this opening plenary session of the nineteenth International
Conference on the Unity of the Sciences and the fifth international congress of
the Professors World Peace Academy. I wholeheartedly welcome you to my homeland
Korea.
God is the
origin of the principle of the universe
Last year, in
addition to the International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences (ICUS),
we had two very special conferences: they were for the Inter-Religious
Federation for World Peace (IRFWP) and the Federation for World Peace (FWP).
These two organizations were inaugurated to establish a new order for the
world. The Inter-Religious Federation for World Peace, in particular, will
devote itself to bringing unity among the world’s religions for the purpose of
establishing world peace.
In the recent
Gulf War we witnessed how the world came to be involved in a religious war.
Such global disasters caused by religious differences will continue taking
place in the future as well.
Up until the
present, many politicians have exploited religious conflicts for their own
selfish purposes. Faiths have been powerless and confused, not clearly
recognizing their responsibility in relation to world peace. Now, through the
IRFWP, leaders of the world’s religions will cooperate harmoniously and become
leaders for world peace.
Religion must be
the conscience of every culture, setting the standard of public righteousness.
Each religion takes pride in upholding its own traditions without ceasing.
Every person believes their own religion to be better than all other religions.
However, religious teachings not only have universal factors, but also they all
stem from God. After all, the one God is the God of all religions. Therefore,
religions need to emphasize their universal principles and, by doing so, purify
and elevate themselves. The central value in each religion is God’s true love,
which can be described by the teaching, “Live for the sake of others.”
According to this teaching, the individual lives for the sake of the family,
the family lives for the sake of the community, the community lives for the
sake of the nation, the nation lives for the sake of the world, and my religion
lives for the sake of other religions. This principle is so very true.
The source of
the universal principle is God. In creating the universe, God invested Himself
totally for the sake of His creation. Throughout history, it is God who has
been continually sacrificing Himself in order to save fallen human beings, who
have been living just as they pleased. The prophets, saints and sages who knew
God’s Will have followed His principles in their own
lives.
Not content to
keep the truth to themselves, they walked the way of sacrifice in order to
teach others. Moses, Confucius, Buddha, Muhammad, Socrates and Jesus are saints
who suffered hardships and were persecuted, even as they taught many other
human beings. They sacrificed themselves in order to enlighten and liberate
humanity.
The Federation
for World Peace is a cooperative federation of politicians and governmental
organizations. Today’s world cannot be maintained by nationalism. The current
flare-up of ethnic violence in Eastern Europe only demonstrates nationalism’s
destructive nature. National pride and self- determination are good and right
only when they are dedicated to serving the world community. Patriotism that
places one’s own nation first, while promoting enmity toward other nations,
goes against the universal principle of living for the sake of others. All such
“isms” that go against the universal principle are destined to decline.
Now we are
seeing a trend in which nations are joining to form multinational associations,
such as the European Economic Community. This trend will intensify in the
coming years. Throughout the world, nations will unite in regional communities,
such as the European Union, the East Asian community,
the community of Islam, the community of African nations and the community of
North and South America.
Religious
harmony and unity are necessary preconditions for peace
In order that
politicians may transcend their own national self-interest, they must share the
common values upon which they can unite as nations. Then, what can unite the
European nations? Economic policies alone are insufficient. Many conflicts
still exist between industrialized nations and agricultural nations. Even in
the European Union, social policies are another source of contention. If we are
to find a single common factor to unite all nations in Europe, it is that they
are based mainly upon the Christian cultural sphere.
When compared
with people from the Middle East or Asia, it is evident that Europeans share
many things in common: a common culture, common social customs and, most
important, a common way of thinking and worldview. The root of this common
European culture is the Christian spirit. Christian culture is the foundation
for the intellectual, social and political life of Europe.
However,
throughout history European Christianity itself has struggled with serious
divisions. As can be seen from the strife in Northern Ireland and in
Yugoslavia, we can realize that their conflicts stem from unresolved religious
struggles among Protestants, Catholics and Orthodox Christians. Therefore,
religious harmony and unity are the necessary preconditions for political and
social peace and unity.
A future ideal
world will consist of communities of nations, with each community bound
together by a common religion and culture and united through economic and
political relationships. I foresaw this trend many years ago. That is why for
more than forty years I have been promoting interreligious activities, pursuing
dialogue and harmony, despite the many sacrifices I have had to make.
For an ideal
world to be realized in the future, we need to be able to prevent religious
war. To solve this problem, I have been laying with painstaking care the
foundation that can embrace all religions. Before I began my ministry, I took
the Principle that was revealed to me and presented it before Jesus, Buddha,
Confucius and the Prophet Muhammad in the spirit world, and they attested that
it was true. Leaders of every religion now recognize that, to realize a world
of peace, all religious people must focus on their faith’s universal teachings
and take positive steps to generate harmony with each other. It is my
God-ordained mission to bring the world into unity under God.
The
Inter-Religious Federation for World Peace and the Federation for World Peace
will work together as do mind and body. To this day, fallen people have allowed
the body to dominate their individual life, creating a world of selfish
individuals oppressing others for their own pleasure.
This is hell on
earth. Only a few people have followed the voice of conscience, emanating from
the mind, which spurs them to pursue religion and to resist the temptations of
the body. Only these people can meet God and find heaven on earth. Likewise,
few national politicians have listened to the voice of religion. Amid the
clamor of politics, the voice of moral and spiritual values has been heard only
faintly.
In the West as
well as the East, politicians have tried to establish prosperity on economic
and political policies without God. Their efforts have been and will be in
vain. No nation can prosper without God’s blessing. God blesses those nations
practicing faith, morality and the principle of living for the sake of others.
Yet politicians
still look only to the earth, blind to Heaven’s influence. Communist leaders tried
for seventy years to establish prosperity without God, and now their nations
are bankrupt. Likewise the West is plagued by recession, crime and social
decay.
However, these
problems will not be resolved until religious leaders open their eyes and discover
their true cause. When religious leaders unite for the sake of world peace
under God, the politicians will obey the teachings of religion. Then and only
then will we be able to solve our social and economic problems. Only then will
the nations of the world naturally unite on the path of peace. The
Interreligious Federation for World Peace and the Federation for World Peace
will succeed where the United Nations and many other organizations have not,
because these federations are based on the foundation of the Principle.
The greatest task of our generation
Respected
scholars! The role of scholars in developing the future ideal world is
exceedingly important. This role is necessary to ensure a well-rounded
education for all the world’s citizens and dynamic communication between all
segments of society. People learn to build their character through their
families, churches, schools and social organizations. These need to cooperate
with one another continuously in order to raise individuals of integrity who can
nurture a civilized society. The greatest task of our generation is how to
implement this well-rounded education in our pluralistic global village. You
scholars are the treasure house of knowledge in society. However, your students
learn more from the person you are than from the knowledge you teach.
Students imitate
the teacher’s habits, inherit the teacher’s attitudes about society and are
influenced deeply by the teacher’s sense of values. You should always stand in
the position of a teacher and strive to be inspiring examples for the future.
Your mission, which is to set up a new cultural
tradition rooted in the absolute value of true love, which originates in God,
is precious indeed.
As you know,
this conference has been organized as part of the first World Culture and
Sports Festival. This is a historic event that is endeavoring to guide the
spiritual culture of humanity, search for true values for humanity’s happiness
and lead the way to a new world of peace and harmony among God, people and nature.
It is a festival that is gathering key members of the global community,
scholars, religious figures, journalists, politicians and youth leaders, and
combining their collective wisdom and practical experience regarding the unity
of humankind.
On August 25,
approximately thirty thousand couples from all regions of the world will
receive the holy marriage Blessing, pledging to establish a new family
tradition centered on God. The family is the most fundamental building block of
society. The solution to all social problems begins with the solution to
problems in the family. The ideal of “one world family in true love,”
transcending races, is related directly to the fulfillment of a peaceful world.
People pledging to become exemplary, God-centered couples, creating blessed
families, will provide a substantial model of ethics and morality. In this way,
ideal families, societies, nations and an ideal world, representing the fruit
of true love, will be realized. The fact that sixty thousand people of the
world are gathering to receive the Blessing symbolizes unity under God and True
Parents.
I invite all of
you to attend this historic Blessing ceremony. In conclusion, I would like to introduce to you three projects that I am planning and
promoting. The first is a book of scriptures, which I already have published,
that strives to unite ideologies and the religious world. The second is an
encyclopedia bringing together the wisdom and cultures of humanity in the
twenty-first century, which the International Cultural Foundation has begun
composing. Third and last is the University of Bridgeport, which I acquired for
the World University Federation to promote the exchange of knowledge and the
worldwide exchange of professors and students. These three new projects will contribute
greatly toward creating and advancing a world of the new culture in the future
global village.
Once again, I
want to express my gratitude to all of you for attending this meaningful
conference in Seoul. I am grateful especially to Dr. Tor Ragnar
Gerholm, who has worked very hard as the ICUS
chairman, and to Dr. Morton A. Kaplan. May your discussions at this conference
be extremely fruitful. I pray that God’s protection
and blessing will be with you and your families.
Thank you.
17
True Knowledge,
True Family
and World Peace
August 22, 1995
Sheraton Walker Hill Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Twentieth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences
and Sixth International Congress of the Professors World Peace Academy
Respected
scholars from 120 nations across the world, distinguished guests from home and
abroad, and ladies and gentlemen:
Dr. Hak Ja
Han Moon and I are delighted to welcome you to Seoul, Korea. You are gathered
here to discuss the most serious problems our world faces today.
Development of
science and the human crisis
The twentieth
century has seen tremendous improvement in the conditions of human life, made
possible through remarkable advances in science. However, it has also been a
century of worldwide conflict and moral confusion.
The development
of scientific knowledge and civilization has on the one hand allowed people to
enjoy an abundant life. On the other hand it has resulted in such global
problems as the abuse of nature, global warming and the depletion of the ozone
layer. Serious problems have also arisen in relation to the human condition.
Industrialization and modernization are destroying the family, and serious
problems such as drugs, AIDS, violence and crime warn us that humankind is
facing a crisis.
People have
continued to pursue peace and happiness in many ways, but satisfaction remains
elusive. World peace has not come even through the worldwide efforts of the
League of Nations and the United Nations, established to prevent further
conflict following the First and Second World Wars. Nor has a world of
happiness been realized through the efforts of religious organizations. The
ideals of international communism and the dreams of fascism have likewise
failed to bring about an ideal world. Even the highest levels of technical skill
and political effort have failed to bring peace and happiness to humankind.
Even now, tragic
conflicts rage in many areas of the globe. A few recent examples include Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Chechnya, Somalia and Laos.
Peace and human
happiness depend on the moral and spiritual development of individual people.
This is because a world or nation of peace is composed of individuals and
families. Science and technical skills can be used for good—for the improvement
of human life—only when they are utilized by good individuals.
Throughout
history, the saints and great teachers have devoted themselves to guiding
families, societies and nations toward a peaceful and happy world. But to take
on the challenges of the twenty-first century, we need to go a step higher: we
need true parents of humankind, true teachers and true owners who can raise
impeccable leaders on the basis of morality and spirituality.
It is my
absolute belief that, since God exists as the original embodiment of true love,
He created this world and humankind to be the substantial object partners of
His love and joy. God is the Parent of humankind. Human beings are God’s
children. God, as the Parent, shares their joy and suffering. So God wants
human beings to inherit true love.
God’s true love
is the source of joy for humankind. Human beings are meant to become perfect
through experiencing this true love—which happens through our life experience.
The growth period for human beings on earth, then, is a precious time of
experiencing this love, stage by stage.
Human beings
come to know God’s love through stages of growth. First, they experience the
heart of children; second, the heart of siblings; third, the heart of husband
and wife; and fourth, the heart of parents.
The smallest
unit in which God’s love can be realized is the family. Accordingly, the family
is the foundation for human happiness, ideals and life. Throughout my life,
therefore, I have taught the importance of the family and have held marriage
Blessing ceremonies around the world for the sake of forming ideal families.
Today the world
needs a model for an ideal society where people can peacefully coexist,
embracing all nations, cultures and religions. In March and April of this year
I issued the Sao Paulo Declaration and the New Hope Farm Declaration. With
these, I initiated the establishment of a model society in Brazil and I will
work toward its gradual expansion to other nations.
A community of true
love and coexistence, mutual prosperity and universally shared values
Representatives
from forty nations have begun the task of building this model society. In a
harmonious society, there is a balance in the quality of life among its
citizens. Such co-prosperity develops naturally through love on the basis of
mutual responsibility. There can be no crime, discrimination or corruption in
an ideal family. The realization of this comes about only on the basis of the
practice of true love. This is a historic movement of people with different
nationalities, skin colors and traditions, with the goal of establishing
communities of true love.
Our world today
is facing a serious environmental crisis. Abusing the natural environment
desecrates the beautiful and holy world God created. People who lack true love
simply regard the natural world as something to be used for their own selfish
purposes. A serious result of the Fall is that Adam
and Eve could not inherit God’s true love and people could therefore not properly
love each other—or love the animals, plants and the earth. All things of
creation are longing for the true love of human beings. Therefore I would like
to establish this model, ideal society in South America—a model demonstrating
the right relationship of love between human beings and nature.
I am working
toward the realization of a world with no starvation. In these days of
scientific advancement, we cannot just be observers or remain indifferent when
we see something so terrible as millions of people falling victim to famine. In
the past twenty years, I have allocated tens of millions of dollars for the
development of ocean-related enterprises, through which we have developed a
high-protein fish powder. Through our International Relief Friendship Foundation,
we are helping countries in areas of Africa and Eastern Europe. Furthermore,
the earnings generated from foodstuffs produced by our farms in Brazil and
Argentina will be invested into solving the problem of starvation worldwide.
I have advocated
the establishment of a society of coexistence, mutual prosperity and the common
good. An ideal world means coexisting politically, prospering together
economically, and creating an ethical society of goodness.
The essence of
the ideology of coexistence is co-ownership based on God’s true love. By
co-ownership I do not mean ownership merely in relation to material possessions
but ownership based on God’s love. For example, in a family, which is the basic
unit of a society of coexistence, even though all property is legally held in
the parents’ names, in practice it is jointly owned by the whole family—parents
and children alike—but each family member would have his or her own room,
clothes and personal money. In this way joint ownership among family members is
based on love and trust in the family, with individuals still responsible for
their own property. Thus the purposes of the whole and the individual are
harmonized. In a system of co-ownership, this ideal, love-based pattern of
ownership in a family expands to the society, nation and world. This is the
type of ownership that exists in an ideal society.
Ideal world based on true love
The original
relationship between God and humankind is based on true love. There are many
instances of co-ownership between God and the individual, between the whole and
the individual, and between the neighborhood and the individual. When
co-ownership is based on God’s true love, therefore, it is something for which
we can be grateful.
In an ideal
world realized by humankind having perfected God’s love, the purposes of the
whole and of the individual would be naturally harmonized. As human beings have
the desire and need for material things and a natural inclination toward love,
an ideal society would permit individual ownership and individual purpose. Even
so, citizens would not seek to have unlimited personal belongings or to fulfill
an individual purpose detracting from the whole purpose. Human beings perfected
in true love would wish to own an amount of property commensurate with their
conscience and original nature.
In particular,
economic activity by ideal human beings who have become true owners of all
things based on true love would manifest love and gratitude. There could be no
greed or corruption. Similarly there could be no emphasis on national or
regional interests inconsistent with the purpose of the whole. The aim of
economic activity would be the overall welfare, rather than the mere pursuit of
gain.
This worldview
based on mutual prosperity is rooted in God’s true love.
Mutual
prosperity allows mutual participation in society and pursues a politics
wherein the ideals of freedom, equality and happiness are realized.
Public
participation in politics is for the purpose of electing representatives.
However, when we understand that the ideal political model is an extended form
of the love-based family, we realize that antagonistic relationships would not
exist between candidates for public office. Their candidacy would be rooted in
a calling to serve others. Groups of neighbors who attend one God and Parent,
and relate to each other as brothers and sisters, would field candidates.
After a due
electoral process, voters would accept the final decision as being the Will of
God. Improper considerations would not influence the result. Citizens would
choose a representative through prayer and solemn deliberation. As people would
see a representative as having been elected according to the Will of God and
heavenly fortune, everyone would come to accept the decision with gratitude and
joy.
Important
organizations and ministries within a nation of the ideal world would harmonize
through reciprocal give-and-receive action centered on a common purpose. This
is similar to the organs of the human body, which work together for a common
purpose according to the direction of the brain.
The ideal of the
common good characterizes a society in which people, under the absolute values
of God’s true love, observe universal ethics and morality centered on true
love. All members of such a society pursue a life of goodness and
righteousness. An ideal world would exist on the basis of ideal families and
perfected human beings. The harmony of ideal parents, ideal husband and wife,
and ideal sons and daughters all practicing true love is the indispensable condition
for an ideal family. Furthermore, a perfected person is one whose mind and body
are harmonized through true love.
When perfected
people practice goodness and righteousness voluntarily within the family, on
the foundation of true love, they will realize the society and world of the
heavenly way and of righteousness—that is, the ideal world.
However sophisticated our knowledge might be, when compared with true
love it is found wanting. We need to know that human beings are truly happy
when they understand the Will of our omniscient and all-powerful God. True
knowledge is the knowledge of God’s Will. We need to understand and see world
history and humankind in the way God understands and sees them. It is wrong for
a scholar to be arrogant or to behave as if he were God and take control over
others by means of his partial knowledge of the world God has created.
Distinguished
guests, ladies and gentlemen, your goal cannot be just to discuss the latest
discoveries in physics, biology and chemistry. You need to understand and
discuss how such discoveries and academic achievements can benefit each
individual and society as a whole, and how harmonious relationships among
people, countries and the things of creation can be realized.
Too often, new
scientific knowledge has been misused for the gain of one individual or for one
nation’s conquest of another or to secure a country’s own prosperity. Academic
knowledge and innovation are great blessings that God has bestowed on
humankind. God has given these blessings for the sake of the entire human race
and the world. But if the academic achievements resulting from such blessings
are used only for selfish purposes, a potential good actually becomes an evil.
Expectations of
the Professors World Peace Academy
Professor Gerholm, I would like to thank you sincerely for the
efforts you have devoted to the twentieth International Conference on the Unity
of the Sciences. You have worked together with ICUS since its founding days and
have come to represent the highest level of the ICUS vision.
For this
conference we have assembled experts from around the world to discuss the
latest research in genetics, the biological sciences and the issue of human
aging. These areas of research have opened new possibilities for humankind, but
they are accompanied by new moral and social challenges. I will be praying that
the ICUS conference discussions will be fruitful and will have a positive
impact on our world.
The Professors
World Peace Academy was established in 1973 to serve the academic community in
the quest for world peace. In particular, PWPA has tried to create
opportunities on university campuses for active research and concrete
activities for the sake of world peace. The accumulated problems of the world
are waiting for the guidance of conscientious scholars.
Professors not
only teach theory but also instill character and values in students. As
academics have an important influence on the character formation and
development of their students, they need to actively guide and help them onto
the path of goodness.
Through PWPA, my
wife and I have established the World University Federation for the purpose of
educating the young people of the world to become excellent leaders of a future
society that reconciles nation with nation and religion with religion. I
believe this vision can be realized centered on Sun Moon University in Korea
and the University of Bridgeport in the United States, under the discerning
guidance of President Se-won Yoon and President Richard L. Rubenstein respectively.
Through the
activities of the World University Federation, students from around the globe
will have access to the teachings of the world’s preeminent scholars, and
professors will be able to guide many students—beyond nationality—to make a
greater contribution to the future of humanity.
While professors
have a great deal of influence on young people, students are influenced even
more by their parents. It is the family that exerts the most influence on the
formation of an individual’s character.
In life, the
family is the most important school of love. Through education in love and
spiritual sensitivity, which only parents can accomplish, a child develops his
capacity of heart. This is the cornerstone of the formation of the child’s
personality. Moreover, the family is the school for the education of children
in virtue. The heavenly way is for people to receive academic education,
physical education and technical education on the foundation of having received
education in heart and virtue. Even though parents may not be aware that they
are true teachers, children naturally learn from and resemble their parents.
The role of parents is that important. Children’s loving personalities and
spirituality develop as they emulate the true love and loving lifestyle of
their parents.
Throughout the
world today, the family is changing. The traditional family is being challenged
from all sides. With the acceleration of industrialization and modernization,
the value perspective of humankind is being eroded and standards of ethics and
morality are being shaken. Furthermore, individualism, hedonism and materialism
are destroying human character. Free sex and immorality are being promoted and
the family is being corrupted.
We need to take the lead in establishing true families
Respected
scholars, what a miserable trend this is! If it continues, humankind has no
hope for the future. Therefore to whatever degree social conditions may change,
the parent-child relationship and the family must not waver.
I will say again that love is the source of human happiness and peace, and the
family is the foundation for that love.
The historic
Blessing ceremony of 360,000 couples that I will officiate in a few days is one
result of my lifetime of teaching about the ideal family. Those who attend the
Blessing ceremony are people who have already vowed to God they will realize an
ideal family, and through the Blessing they receive the grace of unchanging
love. They are people who will become true husband and wife and true parents
centered on God’s true love and who will build ideal families.
The Blessing
ceremony is not merely the marriage rite of a particular religious
organization. It is the ceremony to give new life to a sick humanity, restoring
the order of love and saving families from crisis. That is why the Unification
Church chose “World Peace through Ideal Families” as the motto of this Blessing
ceremony.
I am grateful
for Professor Morton A. Kaplan’s leadership and hard work in convening this
sixth International Congress of the Professors World Peace Academy, which will
examine the future of the family. Scholars participating from 120 countries
need to establish the parameters of what is a true family and challenge this
modern era of corruption and immorality.
You must not
only clarify and analyze the problems but also take responsibility to actually
create and guide ideal families. It is my hope you will guide society toward
building ideal families and help realize a glorious future.
Thank you.
18
Problems
Confronting Society and
the Responsibility of the Media
October 4, 1982
Lotte Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Fifth World Media Conference
Honorable
chairman, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen:
I am very
pleased and deeply grateful that you have come to Korea to attend this fifth World
Media Conference.
This conference
brings together prominent communications professionals from all parts of the
world to seek a greater understanding of the responsibility of the media in
today’s society.
The Korean
Peninsula is the microcosm of the world
The scope of the
conference is global, and the understanding we seek is international. It is,
therefore, particularly appropriate to hold this event in the nation of Korea,
for it was here, thirty-two years ago, that twenty-one nations of the free world
joined forces to turn back the unprovoked North Korean communist invasion of
the South. This is certainly one of the noblest examples in history of
unselfish international cooperation. The people of Korea will never forget the
tremendous service the United Nations rendered in the face of such a serious
violation of international peace.
It is also
particularly appropriate for this gathering to take place in Korea, because it
is here that the great cultures of the world are coming together today. Korea
is unique among Asian nations. Here the ancient culture and ways of life have
been preserved largely unchanged for five thousand years. The purest Asian
culture in the modern world is to be found here. At the same time, many of the
major religions of the world came to Korea and flourished here. Christianity,
the spiritual core of western culture, took deep root and thrives in Korea.
While Christian churches stand empty in many parts of the world, Korean
Christian churches are alive with prayer and worship at all hours of the day
and night.
Korean
Christianity bears the fruit of the western tradition of Hebraism. Hebraism
consists of the tradition of spirituality and faith in God, passed down from
the Hebrew prophets through the Christian saints and into the world of today.
This Hebraic tradition confronts the external, Hellenic tradition in its most
extreme form, materialistic and God-denying communism, across the thirty-eighth
parallel of Korea. A world that denies God is opposing a world that accepts
God, and Korea is the place where these two worlds collide.
The Korean War
was the embodiment of the clash between these two worlds. It was not merely a
local conflict; it was global war involving the forces of world communism and
the forces of the United Nations. Thus the Korean Peninsula is a microcosm of
the world. It could be said that the problems of the world are encapsulated in
the Korean Peninsula. This being the case, the solutions developed and
successfully applied in Korea are not merely local solutions; they become
solutions for the world.
What type of
solution is necessary? The struggle between communism and the free world is a
struggle of ideas—a struggle of belief, philosophy and ultimately of ideology.
If God exists, then atheism must be wrong; if there is no God, then materialism
must be correct. Since two contradictory beliefs cannot both be true, there
must be a showdown in which the truth will prevail. We believe God exists. It is
therefore our most important duty to make that God real in our lives and make
that God indispensable in our world. By doing so, we bring the ultimate
solution to the problem of communism. I established the Unification movement
for this task. Korea is the logical place for this movement to have begun.
Solutions to
social problems and the responsibility of the media
I would like to
take this opportunity to share with you some of the experiences that led me to
establish the Unification movement. When I was sixteen years old, living in the
northern part of Korea, I began to have a series of extremely significant
experiences. It is difficult for me to describe these experiences to you in
words. I can say that the spirit world was opened to me, and I was able to freely
communicate with the saints of that world. In the solitude of the mountains of
northern Korea, I communicated many times with Jesus and with God Himself. The
truths revealed to me at that time now constitute the core of the Unification
teaching.
Recently, in a
United States courtroom, I testified that I met with Jesus, Moses and Buddha.
The media of the world were shocked, and found it difficult to believe, but I
must tell you that these were my true experiences. I want to proclaim that the
spirit world does exist and that human life is eternal.
After having
these experiences, I established the Unification Church, the inspiration for
the Unification movement. This movement will bring solutions to the gravest
problems facing humanity today.
The Unification
movement will bring about a positive solution to the problem of communism. To
solve communism, a spiritual awakening must occur. This spiritual awakening
will provide the necessary foundation for the solution to the physical problems
that people face worldwide.
The Unification
movement will bring about cooperation among the religions of the world, and the
unification of all religions into one God- accepting family. The original mind
of humanity recognizes the common Creator and Father. Under this common Father,
we can and must unite into one human family.
The Unification
movement will bring about a moral world. This is especially important for
today’s young people. In the absence of an absolute moral standard, immorality
is becoming rampant. A greedy, self-centered way of life, now approved and even
encouraged, sees others merely as something used for personal gain. If this
continues, it will certainly lead to the destruction of society.
To bring about the
establishment of a good world, an absolute standard of universal value must be
recognized and understood. Such a standard can only be based upon the eternal
and unchanging Creator, God. God must become a daily reality in human life.
When men and women live in daily communion with God, there can be no
immorality.
This is the
truth, and I am sure that no matter what, the truth shall ultimately prevail.
Truth’s destiny shatters all lies, even if there is great economic, political
or social power behind them. Lies cannot overcome truth.
In my bringing
the unique message of Unificationism to the world, I
realize that the media has often misunderstood me. If anyone could justifiably
feel unkindly toward the media, it would certainly be me. I feel, however, that
rather than be offended by the attacks of the media, I
ought to be flattered that you have given me so much attention. Of course, I
have consistently provided the media a most valuable service: I have given you
a lot to write about. Keeping track of Rev. Moon, the media has never had time
to become bored.
In fact, I bear
no ill will toward the media, for I have great faith that the tremendously good
potential of the media will ultimately be fulfilled. Up until this time, I have
not been properly understood. Ignorance invites misunderstanding, and
misunderstanding invites distortion. The reason why I am speaking to you today
is to improve understanding between us. I don’t avoid speaking to you because
it is my duty to communicate the truth, no matter how impossible this task may
seem.
Purpose for making the film Inchon
Most recently,
there has been a great surge of interest regarding me and the movie Inchon.
The film cost almost $50 million to make and features a cast of famous
Hollywood stars. Many people ask why Rev. Moon, a religious leader, would focus
on producing a Hollywood movie. I would like to give you my own personal
explanation.
I had two
reasons, and neither one of them involved making money. The first was that I
wanted to document the historical fact that the North invaded the South in the
Korean War. Over the course of the past thirty years, communists have
persistently worked to cover up this historical fact. Their deception
effectively convinced many young people to believe that the United States and
South Korea were the aggressors in the war. Yet in fact, the
North Korean communist aggressors, backed by Soviet Russia and communist China,
attacked millions of innocent victims. This must be clearly portrayed,
and the true nature of the communist aggression must be documented. Inchon
does this.
The second
reason is that I wanted to pay tribute to Douglas MacArthur. Gen. MacArthur
loved God and loved humanity, and he understood and hated atheistic communism
precisely because it is the cruel enemy of God and all people everywhere. In
the desperate moments following the North Korean invasion of 1950, the very
existence of Korea and of the Korean people remained in great jeopardy. Gen.
MacArthur fought, motivated by a deep desire to do God’s Will and to stop the
communist aggression.
Through
remarkable faith in God, he planned and executed the Inchon landing, a
masterpiece of military strategy, and an impossible mission became a great
victory.
Gen. MacArthur
was not just a military genius; he was a great humanitarian as well. Following
Japan’s surrender, Gen. MacArthur was in the position of supreme commander of
the conquered empire. He could have been a tyrant, but instead he ruled postwar
Japan with benevolent, fatherly care.
Gen. MacArthur
had a clear vision of how to gain victory in the Korean War, and how the
problem of communism in Asia could be completely solved. If the free world had
followed his advice, there would not be a divided Korea today, and communism
would not have caused the suffering that it has caused throughout Asia. There
need not have been a defeat in Vietnam, a defeat that brought complete disgrace
to the free world.
I want the young
people of today to understand the greatness of Gen. MacArthur. I would like to
see them take him as a hero and give themselves as he did, for the sake of God
and the world.
There is also a
very personal side to my involvement in making this film. When the Korean War
broke out, I was being held in a communist prison camp in North Korea. I cannot
begin to describe the horrible conditions of that camp. Most prisoners died
within six months, but with the help of God I endured the life in that camp for
almost three years. Following the Inchon landing, as the United Nations’ forces
were fighting northward up the peninsula, the communists began to execute all
the prisoners in the camp. Just hours before I was to be taken out and
executed, I was liberated by the U.N. forces. Inchon is my way of
expressing gratitude to Gen. MacArthur.
1 never had the
opportunity to meet Gen. MacArthur, but this morning we have the good fortune
to have his nephew, Ambassador Douglas MacArthur II, with us as our keynote
speaker. I feel the general’s presence in the person of Ambassador MacArthur,
and I am very happy to have him here.
The
participation of Ambassador MacArthur, Chairman William Rusher, and the others
here at the head table, as well as that of all of you, gives me the highest
hopes for this meeting. Please work hard these next few days, and when the
conference is over, I want you to have a chance to relax as my guests. I would
like to show you my country and have you feel, when it is time to leave, that
what you want to do most is come back for another visit.
Thank you for
coming and may God bless you.
19
Media Credibility
and
Social Responsibility
November 20, 1984
New Otani Hotel, Tokyo, Japan
Seventh World Media Conference
(Given on True Father’s behalf)
Honorable
chairman, distinguished co-chairmen, ladies and gentlemen:
It is my
pleasure to welcome you all to the seventh World Media Conference here in
Tokyo, Japan. I am sorry I cannot be in Tokyo to welcome you in person.
However, please be assured that my spirit is with you.
I hold the
Japanese people and their nation in the highest esteem. They are setting a standard
of excellence in the modern world. I am sure that everyone can learn a great
deal from this Asian nation, which has achieved an economic miracle in our time
and has become one of the great powers of the world.
As members of
the electronic and print media, you represent the most powerful, influential
and select group on the face of the earth today. In contrast to every other
comparable profession in the world, most free nations have very few laws
governing the conduct of the media—and that’s good.
People who are
blessed to live in freedom know that a free press can be the strongest
deterrent to dictatorship. More than political, economic or academic measures,
the impact of the press is the most immediate in our society. This is certainly
the belief of the World Media Association. But when there is little outside
control, the only person standing between yourself and the abuse of your power
is you.
Freedom is
indeed one of the most precious gifts of the Creator. Human beings are created
to be free spiritual beings, but when God created human beings free, He also
gave them responsibility. Freedom requires self-discipline and self-control.
Freedom is bound
by law. There are natural physical and spiritual laws at work in the universe
and they are the ultimate limits of freedom. You are free to go to the top of
the New Otani Hotel and jump off. That is your
freedom, but your free act will bring your own destruction because you are
going against the laws of nature. You are free to go into the ocean and breathe
water instead of air, but the laws of nature will again be operating. Your
lungs cannot bear it, and your life will be destroyed. No one can dispute this
fact.
Spiritual laws,
however, are not so obvious, yet they are as absolute as the laws of nature. To
recognize spiritual law, we must recognize human beings as spiritual beings,
created by God, the first spiritual Being in the
universe.
God alone, being
the Creator, determines the purpose of creation and sets the spiritual law. All
value begins with God. God has already determined the purpose of human life and
how human beings can fulfill that purpose. This is the foundation of absolute
value. From this absolute value foundation, moral principles emerge and these
moral principles comprise the spiritual law.
Human beings,
created as spiritual beings, are bound by this spiritual law. We are here on
earth to fulfill the fundamental human purpose as determined by the Creator.
Our spiritual well-being is served as we fulfill our individual purpose in accordance
with the moral law established by God. When we violate this law, we invite
self-destruction, just as we do when we violate the laws of nature.
All of us,
before we are journalists or any other kind of professional, are first human
beings. The first responsibility of a human being is to exercise freedom in
accord with basic moral principles. For the journalist, freedom of the press
must be exercised according to certain moral standards .that are the common
ground for all free men and women. This is where the importance of
responsibility in media comes in. For this reason, as founder of the World
Media Association, I emphasize and fight for freedom of the press as well as
the moral responsibility of the media.
Thomas Jefferson
wrote, quite correctly: “The press is the best instrument for enlightening the
mind of man and improving him as a rational, moral and social being.” Jefferson
went so far as to say our very liberty itself depends on freedom of the press,
and that press freedom could never be limited, not even a little bit, without
being lost entirely. There is a great deal of truth in this.
Yet, how can we
become an instrument for enlightening the mind of man and inspiring him as a
rational, moral and social being without ourselves first being rational, moral
and social beings? We must understand the basic principles determining what is
moral and what is immoral. We must come to a basic understanding of the
spiritual law of God.
Democracy cannot
be exercised without a free press. And a free press cannot be truly free unless
exercised with moral responsibility. I believe that a free press is a moral
press. We who are media professionals take special pride in this. This is why
we can say that journalists hold a special place in our society. They are the
guardians of freedom and fighters against injustice.
In recent years,
however, has our press been a moral and responsible press? Let us take the
example of the press in the United States. The United States is considered to
be the best example of a democratic system. The United States Constitution
guarantees freedom of the press. Nevertheless, it is clear that the media’s
credibility and esteem are declining.
Studies show
that in increasing numbers, people do not believe the newscaster as much as
they used to. There seems to be floating through the fabric of society a
growing perception of media arrogance and untrustworthiness. Last year, when
United States troops were sent to Grenada, journalists were excluded from the
scene. An NBC Nightly News commentator said what many members of
the media were feeling. He said, “The American government is doing whatever it
wants to, without any representative of the American public watching what it is
doing.”
The response
that quickly poured into the offices of NBC in the form of letters and phone
calls was that viewers supported the government’s action five to one. An ABC
newsman said that 99 percent of his mail supported President Reagan’s decision
to keep the press out of Grenada. Time magazine received many
letters on the issue, running eight to one against the press.
In 1976, the
National Opinion Research Center conducted a poll, which determined that only
29 percent of the American population had “a great deal of confidence in the
press.” Public esteem was already low, but eight years later that number has
fallen even lower: to 13.7 percent in a recent survey, and it continues to
decline.
Why is this? Why
is the public refusing to believe the media? The public suspects selfish
motivation behind news reporting, and people see that media practice has become
increasingly irresponsible, sensationalistic and unprincipled.
The media cannot
be apathetic to the trend of decreasing credibility. We cannot close our eyes
to our responsibility for the future of the world. We, as founders, owners,
writers and broadcasters of the media, must squarely face the judgment of
public opinion, the judgment of history and the judgment of God.
Our job at the
World Media Conference and the World Media Association is to restore declining
media credibility to a wholesome level of trust and confidence. This is why our
theme this year is, “Media Credibility and Social Responsibility’’ We must
recover the public trust, draft an accurate account of history, and gain the
approval of God, the Creator and final judge of us all.
The media, along
with the future of the free world, is at a crossroads. On the one hand, if you
try to limit press freedom by legal means, you will most likely destroy it
altogether. On the other hand, a media that can rampage at will, out of
control, will always be in danger of losing its sacred public trust, with the
same resulting loss of press freedom.
The only
workable answer to this dilemma is self-imposed integrity and discipline. You
have to be strong and free enough to resist tampering on the part of
governments, and you must be moral and righteous and stand up for justice, or
you will abuse the faith of the people and eventually lose press freedom. The
lesson of history is that the result of the abuse of power is the loss of
freedom. To be a great journalist, you must be a great human being, living in
accord with the moral law of God. Therefore, the challenge of journalism starts
from the challenge of being a moral and righteous person.
At this seventh
World Media Conference, I propose to begin the work of a Media Ethics Committee
as a way to help bring about a greater media awareness of the need to be our
own watchdog. This type of committee must be free from any government
influence. It must be made up of distinguished representatives of the world
press to serve the following purposes:
To monitor
specific cases, issues and prevailing trends in journalism.
To seek
realistic standards of practice from representatives of the media that could be
explored for adoption into the media’s common ethic.
To speak out
strongly on specific instances of abuse by the media, to call into question our
own actions before the public does, and to recognize contributions by
individuals and organizations to the cause of journalistic responsibility.
To create the
Media Ethics Award, to be given at each year’s World Media Conference to the
person or organization anywhere in the world whose work best embodies the
highest ideals of journalism in action, and whose work contributes the most to
elevating public trust in the media profession.
If this
conference can become the birthplace of this new endeavor, which will
contribute to the protection of the free media and promote and enhance media
responsibility, then we will have done a monumental good in history.
It has been my
firm belief that the media is the guardian of freedom and upholder of the
truth. There is no better way to fight totalitarian systems than by promoting
free and responsible media. I echo the historical maxim, “The pen is mightier than
the sword.” In our modern day, this includes the microphone and camera as well.
I know that the
gathering of the World Media Conference is a gathering of the mightiest forces
on earth. I am confident that with this mighty force properly exercising its
power, we can secure freedom for all humankind and peace for the entire world.
Ladies and
gentlemen, I am writing this message to you from the United States federal
prison in Danbury, Connecticut. More than anybody else, I understand the
preciousness of freedom but I cannot bend my principles for the sake of my own
freedom. I am fighting against injustice and government encroachment not only
on my freedom, but also on the freedom of millions of oppressed people on the
face of the earth.
May God bless
you and your conference in Tokyo.
Thank you very
much.
20
The
Responsibility of the Media
in a Divided World
September 21, 1987
Lotte Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Ninth World Media Conference
Distinguished chairman, esteemed guests, ladies and gentlemen:
Thank you for traveling such great distances to attend the ninth World
Media Conference. I am grateful for the opportunity to address this gathering
once again in my home country of Korea. I should tell you that I have a special
personal interest in bringing you to Korea, one that goes beyond the World
Media Conference.
As you know, we
are preparing to host the Olympic Games here exactly one year from now. This is
the first time this honor has come to Korea, and every Korean citizen is busy
cleaning and preparing everything in anticipation of a great many visitors who
will be arriving soon, most of them for the first time.
It was my
recommendation that the ninth World Media Conference be held in Korea, because
I wanted you distinguished ladies and gentlemen of the press to see our Olympic
preparations ahead of time and be eyewitnesses to the world. We Koreans are a
very determined people who are doing everything possible to assure the success
and safety of the 1988 Olympic Games.
Given that our
conference theme this year is, “The Responsibility of the Media in a Divided
World,” it is appropriate that Korea be the location for this conference. Just
thirty miles to the north, democracy and freedom confront the communist
dictatorship of Kim II Sung—the most repressive, regimented society existing
anywhere in the world. Two separate worlds, one that accepts God and one that
denies God, stand face-to-face in adversarial positions.
There is no
better place to find such striking and vivid differences than Korea. The peninsula of Korea is a microcosm of the worldwide struggle
between freedom and tyranny, good and evil, democracy and communism.
Today, whether
we like it or not, these two worlds are already at war. You might call this the
Third World War. Although it is an entirely different form of warfare from the
previous two, it is nonetheless a total war.
This is a war
between two ways of life, or two worldviews. Two conflicting value systems
confront each other on every level of society. It is a war in which everything
takes on strategic importance, not only militarily but also in the realms of
politics, economics, culture and sports.
One side
advocates every individual’s right to life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness—sacred rights endowed by the Creator. The other side holds that man’s
destiny is determined by the state. One side holds human life as sacred and
sees every human being as a child of God. The other side sees a person as no
more than matter in motion. One side recognizes eternal existence and absolute
values. To the other, all things are material—temporal, transient and relative.
These two worlds
are locked in a deadly struggle, like ancient gladiators fighting to the death.
Many people believe these two worlds can coexist peacefully. I am afraid I
cannot share their optimism. I wish I could, but I know that some things simply
cannot coexist.
Light and
darkness cannot coexist. Light dispels darkness. Truth and lies cannot coexist.
Truth must prevail. A person cannot be both alive and dead. The dead need to be
buried and the living need to continue with their lives.
The worldwide
conflict today between democracy and communism is a fight between light and
darkness, truth and lies, life and death. As you know, in its brief,
seventy-year history, the death toll of communism has exceeded 150 million. The
killing continues even today, in North Korean concentration camps, in the
Soviet gulag, in the jungles of Southeast Asia and in many other parts of the
world.
I experienced
the cruelty of the communist system when I was imprisoned in North Korea before
the Korean War. More than a prison, it was a death camp, where the average
prisoner survived only six months. It was only by the grace of God that I was
liberated from this terror by Gen. MacArthur’s forces on October 14, 1950—the
day before my scheduled execution.
During my two
years and eight months in the camp, I experienced the evil of that system to
the depths of my soul. I saw the worst of the inhumanity of Marxism in action,
and I knew it could annihilate the world if left unchecked. From that time, I
dedicated myself to fight and be victorious over communist ideology.
An ideology can
be defeated only by another ideology, fighting fire with fire. Therefore, the
deadly struggle we are engaged in today is a war of ideas.
This war cannot
be fought by military means alone. Furthermore, the communists cannot be bribed
into giving up. Communism can be confronted and defeated in only one way: the
false idea must be overcome by a true idea in the way light overcomes darkness.
In my search for
truth, I came to realize that the core evil of communism stems from its
militant denial of the very existence of God and a denial of the eternal life
of man. When you deny God, you are responsible to no one. You can take the law
into your own hands. The ends justify the means. Man tries to take the place of
God. On the basis of a complete denial of God, the doctrine of communism was
born.
When we identify
militant atheism as the very essence of communism, it becomes clear that the
superior ideology that can put an end to communism has to be a God-affirming
one. We call this ideology Godism, or headwing thought. As an absolutely God-centered worldview, Godism is the most effective weapon in the war to liberate
people from communism. God alone overcomes godlessness.
The communist
world, based on atheism, has failed to fulfill the human dream. Likewise, the
free world has become materialistic and has forgotten God. It is falling into
the same pit as communism, and it is helpless in the face of this great world
crisis. In a world that is dark with confusion, Godism
brings a new vision. '
Many have noted
that my teaching and movement have made a constructive impact on the world—not
just in religion, but also in every area of society.
I believe it is
the duty of free people everywhere to unite together with compassion to
liberate the people suffering under the yoke of communism.
Our goal, then,
is not just anticommunism but liberation of the communist world. In 1976, we held
a rally of three hundred thousand Americans at the Washington Monument. This
was the culmination of my public speaking in America. The very next day, I
announced that the next rally of this type would be held in Moscow. It is
compassion and love for humanity that motivates us. We are committed to the
freedom of all people—to let freedom ring in every corner of the world.
I know that
nearly 2 billion people living under tyranny are waiting for this day of liberation.
While free people hesitate, uncommitted and ambivalent, many perish today and
every day.
In this war, the
media is a crucial factor, maybe even the deciding factor. As journalists who
express ideas, you play a major role in the struggle between democracy and
totalitarianism. Those who recognize this can make a huge difference in the
outcome. Those who do not can be manipulated. More than ever before, the pen is
mightier than the sword; and the mightier the power, the greater the
responsibility as well. The enormous power of the media carries with it the
enormous responsibility to be a guardian of the ideals of an open and free
society.
I have always
believed that the media should be free, and that a free press should also be a
responsible press. And a responsible press is a moral press.
What do we mean
by a moral media? We recognize that human beings have God-given rights and
dignity. The preservation of human rights and human dignity needs to be the
standard of all ethics and morality. Therefore, the media should stand at the
very forefront in the defense of freedom and the crusade against injustice. The
media must lead in the fight against totalitarianism. Furthermore, in the
service of morality, the media should oppose corruption and racism and vindicate
the unjustly accused. A moral media needs to lead the fight against drug abuse,
pornography and many other destructive vices of our society. A moral media
forms the conscience of society.
I founded the
World Media Association to promote free expression in the media wherever there
is oppression and to encourage responsibility in the media wherever freedom of
the press already exists. Furthermore, I founded this important organization to
promote the spirit of truth so that all media professionals can become
uncompromising champions of truth.
We have held
this type of conference annually and have conducted numerous fact-finding tours
with media professionals all over the world, including the Soviet Union, China,
South Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Cambodia and Central American countries.
These tours are
a search for truth, giving journalists an opportunity to experience the world
firsthand. I am proud of what the World Media
Association has
accomplished in the past nine years.
Many of you may
be seeing me in person for the first time, although I am sure you have seen
many stories about me on television and in your own newspapers. You might agree
that some of the more exciting stories about Rev. Moon have even helped sell
more newspapers or attract a larger audience to your newscasts.
So, because I
have helped you all these years, I would now like to ask you for one favor.
Find out what I am teaching and what kind of life I am living. Conduct your own
open-minded, thorough investigation, and draw your own conclusions. Korea is a
good place to begin.
If our
deliberation here can make substantial progress toward the realization of a
free world, then we should commit our total effort, our resources and even our
lives toward that end.
I wish you well
in this worthy project.
Thank you for
coming, and may God bless you.
21
Media Standards
and
Journalistic Accountability
March 23, 1989
Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Tenth World Media Conference
Distinguished
chairman, esteemed guests, ladies and gentlemen:
It is my great
pleasure to welcome all of you to the tenth World Media Conference, in
Washington, DC.
It was reported
to me that the participants and speaker selection this year are by far the most
distinguished in the history of the conference. I am delighted to meet you all,
many of you for the first time. I hope you are as happy to see me as I am to
see you.
As you all know,
I am primarily a religious leader. And yet my work has not been limited to the
field of religion. I have a tremendous interest in the media. Since 1975, I
have created many newspapers and publishing enterprises in different parts of
the world. In 1975, I established a daily newspaper, Sekai
Nippo, in Tokyo. In 1976, I founded the The News World (later renamed
the New York City Tribune), in New York. I have started a chain
of Spanish-language dailies, called Noticias
del Mundo, in
several major cities of the United States. In 1981, I began the daily Ultimas Noticias
in Montevideo, Uruguay. In the Middle East, I started The Middle East
Times.
But I am best
known as the person who provided the alternative voice in Washington, DC, the
nation’s capital. After the demise of the 128-year-old Washington Star,
the city was left with only one newspaper.
The Washington
Times in
less than seven years has become a respected newspaper and has won many awards
for design and editorial content. It is recognized by the Associated Press as
one of the three most-quoted newspapers in the United States. The
Washington Times Corporation also publishes a weekly news magazine, Insight,
and a monthly academic journal, The World & I. Furthermore, I
have just returned from Korea, where we launched a new major daily newspaper, The
Segye Times, which has achieved a circulation
in excess of 1 million in less than two months. In addition to these
publications, in 1978 I founded the World Media Association to explore issues
related to media ethics and responsibility.
The question
arises, why does a religious leader expend so much effort and resources in
media enterprises? My reason is quite simple. It is because I recognize the
power of the media. The latter half of the twentieth century is an age
dominated by communication. The electronic and print media are the most
powerful and influential means of communication the world has ever known.
In a world of
conflict and differing ideologies, the media play a large role in determining
whether we live in peace or at war. My ultimate goal and desire is to achieve
lasting world peace—a peace based upon a system of true values. The achievement
of this goal is far more likely to be determined by the work of the media than
by military might. So perhaps it is accurate to say that this room contains the
most powerful people on the face of the earth—those who have the power to
shape, for better or worse, the future of humankind.
In spite of the
media’s great power, most free nations have very few laws governing the conduct
of the media—in contrast to the great majority of professions in the world. Given
this situation, when one considers the tremendous power wielded by the free
press, it is clear that media professionals must continuously exercise their
own powers of self-examination. We created the World Media Association as a
forum for that self-examination. Our purpose is to promote the free press
wherever freedom of expression does not exist and to promote responsible
exercise of the media where the free press is already established.
Freedom is one of
the most precious gifts of God to humanity. Human beings are created to be
free—and also to be responsible for how we use our freedom. To use freedom
properly requires self-discipline and self-control based on a fundamental
understanding of right and wrong. When asked to define right and wrong, the
answer is often given that anything is acceptable as long as it causes no one
any harm. But clearly, even to determine what constitutes harm requires an
absolute standard—a standard that must derive from the purpose of life itself.
God, being the
Creator, has already determined the purpose of human life. We realize our
spiritual well-being as we accomplish our life’s purpose in accordance with the
moral laws established by God. When we violate these principles, we invite
self-destruction, just as we do when we violate the laws of nature. I say this
because, before one is a journalist or a scholar or a clergyman, or even a
husband or wife, each person is a child of God. We are the sons and daughters
of our Creator. This is where our sacred nature and unique human dignity
originate. The first responsibility of a human being is to exercise freedom to
preserve our God-given value. In order to do this, we must live in accord with
basic moral principles given by God.
America is a
nation that has put a high value on individual liberties. Americans and anyone
living in America may worship as they wish, assemble at will and print or speak
just about anything. At the same time, the American founding fathers stressed
the concept of self-government. In America today, we find an abundance of freedom
but a shortage of self-government.
Certainly the
media must be free and self-governing. But self-governing media must also be
moral media. What do we mean by moral media? Moral media use their freedom to
protect, preserve and promote God-given human rights and dignity. The
preservation of human rights and human dignity must be the standard of all
ethics and morality.
Therefore, the
media has to stand at the very forefront in the defense of human dignity and
freedom and in opposition to all forms of injustice. Doing this is the best
possible way to cultivate world peace. The media has to lead the fight against
all forms of oppression. Furthermore, in the service of morality, the media
needs to oppose corruption and racism and vindicate the unjustly accused. Moral
media must lead the fight against drug abuse, pornography and many other
destructive vices of our society. Thus the media has to become the conscience
of society.
At this year’s
conference, we have two firsts: delegations of journalists from the Soviet
Union and from the People’s Republic of China. We are very pleased to welcome
you. The communist world is rapidly changing. I encourage the new policies of glasnost
and perestroika in the Soviet Union and the reforms being enacted
in China. The media of both countries are playing a leading role in these
changes. The World Media Association, in its commitment to free and open
discussion, is happy to serve as a forum with your participation.
Both the democratic and communist worlds are searching for solutions
to the problems of corruption, greed and exploitation. And both worlds are
still far from achieving the ideal. As I see it, there are fundamental problems
with both societies. They are both excluding God from their search for
solutions. God has been forgotten.
Forsaking God is
the most serious problem of this century. When you forsake God, either in the
name of totalitarianism or a godless secularism, the result will be the same:
self-destruction. Both East and West are struggling with this fundamental
issue.
As I said, I
founded the World Media Association to promote free expression in the media
wherever it is suppressed and to encourage a responsible media wherever freedom
of the press already exists. Furthermore, I founded this important organization
to promote the spirit of truth so all media professionals can become
uncompromising champions of truth. We have held this conference almost annually
and have organized numerous fact-finding tours for media professionals to
important areas all over the world, including the Soviet Union, China, South
Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Cambodia and Central American countries.
These tours are
searches for truth, giving journalists an opportunity to experience the world
firsthand. As an excellent old saying goes, “Seeing is
believing.” Journalists must always have their finger on the pulse of
the world in order to report accurately. The work we will undertake in these
next few days is important—an examination of the
performance of free and moral media.
Finally, I am
sure you have seen many stories about me on television and in your own
newspapers. You might even agree that some of the more exciting stories about
Rev. Moon have helped sell more newspapers or bring a bigger audience to your
newscasts. So, since I have helped you all these years, I would now like to ask
you for one favor: find out what I am teaching and what kind of life I am
living. Conduct your own open-minded and thorough investigation, and draw your
own conclusions. This conference is a good place to begin.
I hope you will
enjoy your stay in Washington and will enjoy the conference.
Thank you for
coming, and may God bless you.
22
True Unification
and One World
April 10, 1990
Sobin Center, Moscow,
USSR
Eleventh World Media Conference
It is a great
honor and pleasure to convene with you this historic eleventh World Media
Conference in the city of Moscow, the capital of the Soviet Union. The theme of
this conference is, “The Advancement of Global Communication and Cooperation,”
and I feel there is no place more appropriate to gather for these discussions
than right here in the Soviet Union.
Furthermore, it
is an added pleasure for me to open these proceedings because we are
simultaneously conducting the third conference of the Summit Council for World
Peace and a gathering of the Association for the Unity of Latin America. Both
of these excellent organizations are also committed to the quest for world
peace.
For me to come
to Moscow is an emotional experience. I would like to express my appreciation
to the Soviet government, especially the officials of Novosti
Press Agency. You have welcomed us to your great capital in a most hospitable
manner. My wife and I, and our entire family, are moved by your kindness. I am
sure that all of the guests in this room, who have come from every corner of
the world, including former heads of state and government, will join with me in
expressing deep gratitude to our hosts in this country. Would you join with me
in giving them a round of applause?
I was recently
asked by members of the Soviet media regarding my views on the importance of a
spiritual renaissance as a precondition to social, economic and political
progress. I would like to take this opportunity to elaborate on some of those
views. I believe that such a spiritual renaissance is vitally important. To
achieve it, we need to deepen our understanding of the human condition. This
calls for some reflection on philosophical and religious topics. It may not
directly concern either communications or media, but for me it is the
fundamental understanding necessary to secure true peace in our world.
Furthermore, it is the essence of what I have discovered through my lifelong
search, and the core of my teaching.
When we observe
our universe, we recognize that every being exists through the union of paired
elements. This is true on all levels, beginning even with the mineral realm.
Molecules are produced from the harmonious interactions of positively charged
atomic nuclei and negatively charged electrons. In the case of flowering
plants, existence and reproduction require the union of male and female
reproductive cells produced within the stamen and pistil.
The pair system
is even more obvious on the level of animals. Fish, birds, mammals and other
types of animals exist as male and female. Finally, human beings, the supreme
creations of God, are either men or women. The first man, Adam, and the first
woman, Eve, were the original ancestors of humankind. What is the purpose of
the pair system? Why did God create in this way? The Creator divided all things
into male and female so that they might unite through their give-and-receive
relationship of love. Through the action of love, each species multiplies and
extends its lineage.
Human ambition
is limitless and infinite. Then what is the true goal of this infinite desire
of a human being? For woman, it is man. For man, it is woman. Man and woman can
find true love only through each other. In history, differing views of life,
the universe and God have presented unresolved problems. The solution to these
problems can be found when a true man and a true woman unite with God in true
love, creating absolute oneness. This is the source of absolute values. Man
exists for the sake of woman. Woman exists for the sake of man. Each is to be
the other’s object of love.
God is a being
of absolute love. He wanted to create human beings as His object partners of
love, to whom He could pour out His love. In so doing, He would naturally look
forward to the return of that love from men and women. In this way, God would
feel infinite joy. In order to become perfect objects of the love of God, Adam
and Eve needed to be united in love first. Therefore, before Adam and Eve could
stand as a mature human couple resembling God and receiving and returning His
love, they needed to go through a period of growth and reach maturity.
The principle of
true love is not one of being served; it is to serve others. When God Himself
initially created His objects of love, He invested every ounce of His
energy—100 percent of His being. This established the pattern of true love. In
other words, God established the tradition of true love in the form of total
investment. At that point, true love became the center of the universe, and
even almighty God chooses to be obedient to it.
When God
created, He totally spent Himself, creating a vacuum within Himself. In the
earth’s atmosphere, when a low-pressure area is formed, air at higher pressure is
automatically attracted to it. Whenever someone serves others to the absolute
degree, energy rushes in to fill that person up. Therefore, all the love that
God has given to create His perfect object partners ultimately has to be
returned to Him by men and women.
Only love
transcends all barriers. When you are united with God in true love, you have
dominion over all of God’s creation, both physical and spiritual. When you live
completely for others, you are reaching the very essence of God’s own being. God’s
vibrations become your vibrations. God’s feelings are naturally transmitted to
you. Living this way, you become a body in resonance with God’s heart and love.
Just as two tuning forks can resonate together, you and God can always be in
mutual resonance.
That is the
ultimate, original state of the human being. When you achieve that state, the
love of God becomes your love, the life of God becomes your life, and the
lineage of God becomes your lineage. The world that God created becomes your
world. We are to share the love of God with all things in heaven and earth. We
are to be citizens of the kingdom of heaven, with the heart of parents.
The law of cause
and effect is clearly evident in history. Whatever you have sown, you will surely
reap. Adam and Eve, the first human ancestors, abused love as
they engaged in immoral sexual relationships while they were still growing.
This was the human Fall. God wanted them to grow in
purity until He blessed them in heavenly matrimony, to become the foundation of
God’s true love, true life and true lineage. All people, having descended from
this perfected and blessed Adam and Eve, would have naturally become the sons
and daughters of God, enjoying the love of the Creator and living in the kingdom
of heaven on earth and in the spirit world.
However, while
Adam and Eve were still teenagers, before they had matured and received God’s
Blessing of marriage, the archangel tempted Eve and engaged in fornication with
her. In this way, the archangel became Satan. By engaging in premature sexual
relations with fallen Eve, Adam also fell. This is how the beginning of human
history was sown. Today, we are reaping the consequences. Immorality is
rampant. Teenagers in particular are the victims of widespread sexual
degradation. Modern society in advanced nations is virtually the same as Sodom
and Gomorrah of biblical times. God abhors this immoral behavior. We need to
fear the wrath of God. His punishment is imminent.
The struggle between good and evil
God is at the
center of goodness. Satan is at the center of evil. The history of humanity has
been the history of struggle between good and evil— between God and
Satan—working through men and women. But the respective strategies used by God
and Satan have been diametrically opposite each other. Satan, being arrogant
and greedy, always attacks the side of goodness. God’s camp is always hit and
suffers, but this gives God the opportunity to bring justice. The side of good
is vindicated and occupies new territory. Satan’s side has to withdraw and
decline.
For example, in
World War I, the belligerent nations were ultimately defeated. The same was
true in World War II, where the Axis powers, after initially attacking, were
finally defeated by the Allies. Every exploiting power will ultimately decline,
while whoever suffers persecution for the sake of goodness will ultimately be
raised up by God.
My own life
exemplifies this. I have been struggling for the sake of goodness and the cause
of God, but the opposition has been relentless. Years ago, I was tortured and
beaten, and I have been imprisoned numerous times. One would think that my
movement would die out and be forgotten, but the opposite has occurred. I have
built a worldwide foundation and have continuously advanced and prospered.
Conscience: teacher and parent
Within every
person there is a most precious and lifelong teacher. That teacher, however,
has been mistreated, trampled upon and abused. That teacher is the human
conscience. Your conscience always speaks out for your own benefit, trying to
connect you to true love. Like a parent, your conscience urges you to be a
good, unselfish individual, and guides you to do the Will of God. But within
each person there is also a rebel that always goes against the conscience. That
rebel is the physical body.
The body has
trampled on and abused the conscience miserably. When you become aware of this,
can you take the side of your body, which has been the enemy of your
conscience, and which has greatly damaged your life and personality?
Your conscience
must be your constant internal teacher and parent, leading you to complete
unity with the ultimate Parent of humankind, God. The conscience, then, is the
agent of God within you and may even be called a second God. Do you think you
need to be sympathetic toward and protective of your body, the enemy of your
conscience? Or do you think you need to restrain and discipline your body in
order to vindicate your conscience? Your body pursues only carnal desires. When
it is hungry, it steals and satisfies itself. It always seeks comfort and wants
to take advantage of others. The body has its own realm. To conquer the realm
of the body is an awesome responsibility that every person needs to undertake.
When this is
achieved, the mind as the vertical self and the body as the horizontal self are
completely harmonized into oneness, and a person reaches perfection, united in
love with God for eternity.
God is the
source of true love, true life and true lineage. Since we humans originate from
this source, we too must experience true love, true life and true lineage.
However, because of the Fall, tragically, we never
achieved the position of being God’s children. Instead, men and women have received
love, life and lineage from Satan.
Due to the Fall, love today is basically self-centered. That
self-centered love does not originate from the mind but is centered on the
body. The body is where Satan’s activities are conducted. The body is Satan’s dancing
place, his mooring post. The mind represents God’s position, or the plus
position. The body, which ought to assume the object or minus position, tries
to make itself another plus; continuously teasing or fooling the mind. In our
lives, it is crucial to correct this relationship.
Therefore, God
established religion to rehabilitate fallen people. Through religion, God is
teaching people how to strengthen their God-centered mind and reverse the
body’s dominion over their life and personality. That is why religion often
demands fasting, sacrificial service and a meek and humble attitude. These are
methods of reducing the body’s power and causing the body to submit to the
mind. Normally, in religious life, it takes about three to five years to change
from the habit of a body-centered life and create a new, spirit-centered way of
life.
Furthermore, as
the Bible says, you must pray without ceasing. This is vitally important
because Satan controls the environment of the fallen world. Satan tempts and
distracts fallen people from all directions twenty- four hours a day, while God
is able to work from only one direction, the vertical direction of the mind.
The restoration of God’s ideal
In the eyes of
God, the fallen world is a world of spiritual death. His Will is the
restoration of that world of death into a world of life. Restoration is another
way of saying salvation. When the original, ideal state has been lost, it needs
to be restored. When a healthy person becomes sick, a physician has to come and
bring the person back to original health. By the same token, the original,
ideal condition intended by God was lost. Therefore, the work of God has been
to restore this fallen world to the original, sinless state.
To accomplish
that task, God sends the Messiah. However, before the Messiah comes, God
prepares a chosen group of people to be ready to receive the Messiah. That is
what the Bible calls an orchard of wild olive trees.
The orchard of
wild olive trees represents a certain sphere in the fallen realm that God can
still direct and control. After it has been prepared, the Messiah comes. The
Messiah then cuts down all the wild olive trees in God’s orchard and grafts
into them the true branch of life. In this way, all the wild olive trees become
true olive trees. In other words, human beings are returned to their original
state.
The religious
people of today are these wild olive trees in God’s orchard. Even the most
devout religious person must still seek the Messiah because he has not yet
received the true lineage of God. The Messiah comes as the True Parents of
humankind, restoring the positions of Adam and Eve. Therefore, to be connected
to God’s true lineage, each person needs to unite with the True Parents and
become a recipient of true love. By so doing, each person can become a true son
or daughter of God. In this way, the Messiah brings salvation to humankind.
The Messiah, in
the position of True Parents, must root out the trees that have grown from
false seeds, subjugate Satan and connect humankind into oneness with God in
true love, making all people true sons and daughters of God. In this way, the
kingdom of heaven on earth can be created, where men and women will finally be
able to enjoy true freedom.
What is the way
of unification? Let us consider the first human family. First of all, there is
God. Second, there are the human beings, Adam and Eve. Adam is masculine and
Eve is feminine. They compete with each other to be the first to secure God’s
love. If they are selfishly motivated, there will be no unity. However, if they
are unselfishly motivated, Adam will say, “I want to reach God first solely for
you, Eve.” The woman will be overjoyed. She, in turn, will say, “I want to
reach God only for your sake, Adam.” Then the husband will be fully satisfied.
There is no struggle; there is unity even in their competition.
That is not
simply a way for a husband and wife to be happily united; it is more than that.
It is the very key to the unification of all people.
Throughout history,
God has been working through the human conscience. In spite of God’s efforts,
however, every attempt made thus far to restore people to the original starting
point—the heart of God—has failed. It still remains for someone to liberate
humankind from this Satanic environment and lead a
successful search for truth and true love. That is the mission of the
Unification movement.
Godism is a
God-centered worldview, the essence of which is the ideal of true love. Godism has two distinct missions: to bring unity between
God and human beings, and to bring unity between mind and body.
Since I have
discovered the solution to these two fundamental problems—the unity of mind and
body, and the unity of people and God—I have to proclaim this truth as clearly
and effectively as possible, without hesitation.
If you follow
this teaching, I assure you that you can definitely conquer your body’s carnal
desires. Your body can become 100 percent united with your mind. You will then
be eligible to become the true object partner of
God and
establish a true love partnership with God.
Whenever two
people are bound together by true love, they are entitled to three important
rights: first, the right of inheritance; second, the right of dwelling
together; third, the right of participation. Take, for example, the
relationship between husband and wife. The husband might be the president of a
great nation, while his wife might be a woman of very humble origin and little
education. If they truly love each other, however, they are equals. They own
all things in common, live together and participate on an equal level.
In the same way,
when a man and a woman are connected to God through true love, they will also
enjoy the rights of inheritance, participation and living together eternally with
God. When you reach this depth of heart, you will constantly experience the
presence of God, and God will truly dwell among people.
True love always
travels the shortest distance at the fastest speed. Therefore, true love coming
from God to earth travels the shortest distance, forming a vertical line. The
love between man and woman also travels the shortest distance, forming a
horizontal line. When the vertical true love meets with the horizontal true
love, the crossing point absolutely has to be at a ninety- degree angle. There
is no other way these lines of love can intersect.
Who is God? God
is the vertical True Parents, with true love at the central position. Being our
vertical Parents, God is intimately close to each of us. When we welcome the
perfected human ancestors—perfected Adam and Eve—as True Parents, we create a
ninety-degree crossing point between the vertical true love of God and the
horizontal true love of True Parents. We thus have two sets of True Parents.
From them we receive true love, true life and true lineage. This creates one
world that completely resonates with true love.
Ladies and
gentlemen, I am very grateful to have the opportunity to share with you these
reflections on the nature of God and humanity. I am also very happy to be here
in the Soviet Union. My heart truly goes out to the people of the Soviet Union.
Many of you have gone through unbearable suffering, and that saddens me. I love
your country and your people very much. I clearly envision a moral and economic
renaissance for the Soviet Union that will dramatically affect the entire
world. I will do all I can to encourage and support that renaissance.
You are
undertaking a new Soviet revolution, but this must be a revolution without
blood or bullets—a revolution of the heart and soul.
I have been
speaking about the importance of the family. But I want to tell you that in the
depths of my heart, I feel that the Soviet people are a part of my family. I
assure you that my wife and children feel the same. Also, I assure you that
members of the Unification movement worldwide will do their utmost to work
together with you for the future prosperity and wellbeing of all humanity.
I believe the
Soviet Union will play a key role in God’s plan to build a world of true and
lasting peace. This vast union of nations, which stretches from the Far East,
bordering my country of Korea, to the very heart of Europe—the birthplace of
western civilization—has a natural destiny to be a bridge between Europe and
Asia. We have to regard ourselves as being members of one global family living
in one global house.
May God bless
the Soviet Union and all its people. Thank you for
coming and participating in this historic conference.
Thank you very
much.
23
May 21, 1992
Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Tenth Anniversary of The Washington Times
Distinguished
guests, Freedom Award recipients, ladies and gentlemen:
As the founder
of The Washington Times, I would like to extend my congratulations
to the Freedom Award recipients.
You richly
deserve recognition for your service in the defense of freedom. Tonight, as I
look back, I remember the day in 1981 when I decided to create this newspaper.
A decisive role in the downfall of communism
I ask you to
recall the situation at that time together with me. When The Washington
Star collapsed, Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States of
America and the world’s inspiration for freedom and democracy, was left with
just a liberal newspaper, The Washington Post. That situation was
completely unacceptable.
At that time,
the idea of starting up a new, conservative paper to challenge the Post
was unthinkable. I assure you that if I had sought political, influence,
religious propaganda or personal wealth, The Washington Times
would have been the wrong project indeed. The fact is that I have invested
close to a billion dollars in this newspaper during the past decade. I founded
this newspaper only because I understood that this enterprise was the Will and
sacred plan of God, who loves America and its Judeo-Christian heritage.
God looks to
America to assume the central role in saving the world from the collapse of
traditional values and in defending the free world from the threat of
communism. That is why I, who have dedicated my entire life to the fulfillment
of His Will, created The Washington Times, to provide America
with responsible leadership in fulfilling this providential role without any
hesitation.
This tenth
anniversary celebration commemorates the decisive role played by The
Washington Times in the downfall of communism, and it anticipates the
hope of America and the world for a bright future. In speaking of the future,
allow me to share with you my hopes for a world of peace and harmony.
The basis of peace and unity is true love
Ladies and
gentlemen, what is the most precious thing in the world? It is true love, with
God at its center. If there is anything that you cannot gain with money or power,
it is true love.
True love is
unique in that it cannot be actualized except within a relationship. A
relationship requires giving and receiving between two beings, a subject
partner and an object partner. Love between husband and wife, love between parent
and child, and love between brother and sister are all experienced within
relationships. In the same way, for God to fulfill the ideal of true love, He
created the universe to be in the object partner position.
Among all of
God’s creations, humankind, consisting of God’s sons and daughters, was created
to be God’s primary object partner of love. It is only through true love that
we can experience true unity between God and human beings, between men and
women, and among all the creatures in the world.
True love is the
ultimate center of all united and absolute values. This love originates from
the act of sacrificing oneself for the sake of others. Give of yourself to
others and forget your giving, then give again; this is the nature of true
love. That is why when God created an object partner of love, He gave of
Himself for the sake of that creation. He invested everything He had. God
invested one hundred percent and then invested again and again.
In nature, when
air moves, a low-pressure area is created. Then in a cyclical motion air rushes
back to fill the area of lower pressure. In human life, when we give our love
until we have no more to give, God’s unlimited love rushes back into our hearts
to fill the void. This is the fundamental truth about the mind.
Absolute giving
for the sake of others, therefore, will bring us unlimited energy. God stands
in the position of subject partner, giving love to humanity.
God’s original
nature of giving love again and again generates a perpetual dynamic motion
characterizing God’s eternal existence. It is logical for this to occur. Thus,
eternal life is the natural consequence of living according to the way of true
love.
The special
qualities of love include the right of inheritance, the right of equal status,
and the right of participation. There may have been occasions when men who
became presidents of the United States had wives who had not even graduated
from high school. However, when a husband and wife are engaged in mutual true
love, what belongs to the husband belongs to the wife at the same time. And
since they live together, day and night, they both have the right to live in
the White House as president and first lady, and both can participate in
affairs of the state.
Since love has
these three important qualities, if you can stand in the position of having
God’s absolute and unchanging love, you can be where God is. You will have the
right to live together with God all the time.
When you have
accepted this true love of God one hundred percent into your body and mind, the
roots of God’s love will begin to grow in your heart. Then you will be able to
sense everything He feels, and your body automatically will resonate with that.
Therefore,
filling yourself completely with the true love of God is the essential condition
for uniting your mind and body and becoming the eternal object partner of God.
If we, as human beings, resonate with God’s love and enter a sphere of oneness,
then God’s love will be our love, God’s life will be our life, God’s lineage
will be our lineage, and God’s creation will be our creation.
The life of
human beings takes after the life of God. The core of His life is true love,
which is living for the sake of the object partner. For this reason, God
created us according to His principle of living for the sake of others. By
living and sacrificing for others, we can realize the ideal of love.
With this in
mind, we cannot expect world peace to result from the contemporary philosophy
of individualism, in which each person lives for himself or herself. It is the
intention of evil to destroy the sphere in which the individual dwells as God’s
object partner. When that occurs, what remains is the individual living only
for oneself. This is the fundamental cause of family breakdown, racial
conflict, economic disparity and conflict between religions.
1 came to America to awaken her youth
America was
founded on the Judeo-Christian spirit of love. Then how did it develop this
culture of individualism? While fighting communism, I have tried continually to
awaken America’s youth and I have repeated my warnings to people in the free
world so that they would not be affected by this degenerating pattern. Yet
America is still suffering from a variety of social ills. Drug wars, AIDS and
increasing criminal violence still plague this great country. Even the
considerable military, economic and intellectual might of America did not and
cannot cure these diseases.
This is the very
reason for my coming to America. I am like a doctor who has been called to
treat a wound. Even when I was indicted wrongfully in America, I willingly came
back from Korea to answer that summons. That was because I believed that the
truth would prevail. I was indicted and imprisoned unjustly. However, I still
wish to save America.
I even made the
decisions that led to the creation of The Washington Times while
sitting in the courthouse during my trial. Moreover, I gave instructions to
start Insight and The World & I magazines while
in Danbury prison. I am proud of the fact that The Washington Times
played a decisive role in heightening America’s awareness of the threat of
communism. Although this country has rejected me repeatedly, I have continued
my best efforts to awaken America to its providential responsibility.
Insight magazine
publicized the results of its polls on a weekly basis to inform the general
public about the direction taken by the congressional leadership. And The
World & I, by publishing words of guidance from world-renowned
scholars, has attempted to widen the ideological horizon of the future of
humanity.
It was while I
was in Danbury prison that I helped to found the American Freedom Coalition,
due to my anxiety regarding the decline of the United States. Through a
nationwide network the American Freedom Coalition is educating the general
public on building a better society. I also recently launched the International
Christians for Unity and Social Action (ICUSA). This organization is carrying
out the mission of awakening and uniting Christianity through the true love of
God.
Although America
continues to rebuff me, I have persisted in doing my utmost to awaken this
nation to the realization that it bears providential responsibility. God’s
strategy to save humankind is to absorb the first blow and suffer the loss but
then, through the course of time, to regain even more than what was lost.
Evil, on the
other hand, always strikes first and claims initial victory, but ultimately
loses everything. As you know, during the First and Second World Wars, and even
in the Cold War, the countries that struck first eventually lost. The life of
Jesus is an example that best illustrates this principle. ’
Jesus was
persecuted severely, and he died under wretched circumstances. However, as a
result of that, billions of people have been following Jesus and returning to
God. If righteous individuals endure persecution, their commitment to suffer
for their faith plants a seed of respect and admiration in the conscience of
their oppressors. Eventually, that seed will grow and transform the hearts of
many for generations to come. This quiet revolution of the heart is Heaven’s
secret weapon. I have undergone immense hardship in my efforts to pioneer the
way to a world of true and just peace.
When I founded The
Washington Times, very few people comprehended my intent, let alone
offered to help. Nonetheless, because I knew God’s winning strategy, I went
forward. I foresaw that this newspaper would be an instrument to save America
and the world, even if it meant sacrificing the Unification movement and myself.
The love between
God and humankind forms an axis that is a straight, vertical line. On the other
hand, the love between Adam and Eve forms a horizontal axis that intersects the
vertical one. Therefore, to inherit the love, life and lineage of the two sets of
parents, God and Adam and Eve, humankind needs to serve God as the vertical
Parent and Adam and Eve as the horizontal parents. Moreover, the mind, which is
the vertical self, and the body, which is the horizontal self, unite through true love. At that point, humankind becomes
the eternal object partner of God. God and human beings, like a father and his
children, need to unite in true love.
Each person's
mind and body also need to unite as one through true love, just like the mind
and body of God. However, due to the Fall, humankind
came to inherit the love, life and lineage of Satan. Therefore, even though our
mind stands on God’s side, our body is under Satan’s control. Consequently, our
mind and body are fighting ceaselessly on account of their internal
contradictions.
Now is the time for us to awaken America
During our
lifetime we have to fulfill the task of overcoming this situation. Knowing
this, God established religion as the repair shop to repair us. Religion
teaches us ways in which our mind can recover its natural control over our
body. Herein lies the reason why the ascetic practices
of believers—such as fasting, self-sacrifice and service to others—are always
essential requisites among the various forms of religious penance.
The Bible says
that Adam and Eve fell because they ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil. Then what did Adam and Eve do after eating that fruit?
Instead of covering their mouths or hands, they covered the lower parts of their
bodies. This action signifies that Adam and Eve formed their family centering
on Satan and not on God. The seed of evil was sown at that time, and it became
the origin of the evil lineage that has multiplied generation after generation.
The first human ancestors
drifted away from God and fell in their adolescence, before reaching perfection
in His love. That is the reason why today’s youth in various parts of the world
have continued to violate the morals of love, engaging in illicit sexual
intercourse just as Adam and Eve did. That also was the cause of the inevitable
destruction of obscene and immoral civilizations in history. From the
historical viewpoint, Sodom and Gomorrah, and even Rome, were ruined because of
immorality. If America follows this path, it too will meet with its
destruction.
We need to
awaken America now. In the next ten years, our task will be more difficult than
ever. We cannot relax just because the fight against communism has ended. Look
around you and see what is happening in the most advanced and civilized
nations, such as the United States, European nations and major Asian nations.
Who can halt the
surging wave of immorality that is sweeping the globe? This is becoming a world
that worships hedonism and seeks only to stimulate carnal desires. The war
against drugs in this country has been a complete and utter failure. The
distribution of drugs is increasing continuously, flooding the world. This is
not the way that the mind is seeking. It is the way pursued by the body. It is
also the way that leads to death. Someone has to step forward and save humanity
from this fallen environment and guide people to the path of salvation.
Ladies and
gentlemen, do you know who the Messiah is? The Messiah comes as the True
Parents of humanity. The True Parents are meant to eradicate the false roots
originating from the false parents and build the kingdom of heaven, where
everyone can be free in true love. True Parents are the ones who are coming to
fulfill this important task.
When we have
found the origin of God’s true love, when our mind and body are united as one,
and when we truly wish to live for the sake of others, the eternal and
unchanging world of peace will come upon us. That will be the day of glory.
Moreover, the
riots that occurred in Los Angeles a few weeks ago confronted us with issues
that cannot be solved merely with more police, more laws, more money or more
political negotiations. Without the true love of God on earth, that is, without
people living and sacrificing for the sake of others, we will not be able to
solve such problems.
World peace
through the true love revolution
What we need is
a revolution, that is, a moral revolution. I call this the true love
revolution. And this revolution is needed everywhere. My wife and I currently
are establishing organizations to carry out this work in Korea.
Respected
leaders! As community leaders, it is important to realize that giving and
sacrificing for the sake of others is the only way to establish yourself as the
true head of your family and society, and to become a true leader of your
nation. When your family, society and nation follow you in practicing the great
principles of true love, you will become a champion in the establishment of
world peace.
As you may know,
I visited North Korea in November of last year. That event shocked the world.
It was considered impossible, due to my lifelong stand against communism. As
early as 1985, I predicted and proclaimed the downfall of communism and the
economic disintegration of the Soviet Union.
In many
communist countries I was considered an enemy of the state. My trip, therefore,
was a life-threatening venture for my wife and me. Yet I went to North Korea
out of love for my country and out of a fervent desire for the reunification of
my homeland. I met with President Kim II Sung, and we had a meaningful
dialogue.
Even with
differences of opinion, dialogue is always useful. Isolation is always
dangerous. One outcome of the meeting was that he promised me to settle the
nuclear issue to the satisfaction of the United States. The moment of truth on
this issue is coming soon. All in all, I feel that my visit contributed
tremendously to easing tensions in Asia and the world.
In that
atheistic country I preached that God and true love must be the basis and
spirit for national unity and permanent peace. The Reverend Billy Graham is
well known for his great work, and he was the first to preach in several
communist countries. This time, however, it was my privilege to be God’s
instrument and to speak God’s words in communist North Korea.
Today, The
Washington Times and its magazines begin another decade of service to
America and to God. Even greater challenges lie ahead of us. To meet these
challenges, I need every one of you to be a champion. In the next ten years,
let us build a moral America, a moral world and a better world for our
children. You can surely count on my support.
Ladies and
gentlemen, The Washington Times is your newspaper as much as it
is mine. Together we will make this great newspaper even greater. May God’s
blessing be with you and your family.
Thank you very
much.
24
The Mission of
the Media in the
Twenty-first Century
August 22, 1992
Hilton Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Twelfth World Media Conference
Respected
Chairman MacArthur, honored guests, distinguished ladies and gentlemen of the
media:
I would like to
express my deep gratitude to each of you for coming to my homeland, the
Republic of Korea, to attend the twelfth World Media Conference.
Activities for substantiating world peace
This conference
is a part of the World Culture and Sports Festival, which has been established
to gather together all the projects and accomplishments of my lifetime and
offer them as one to God.
Coinciding with
this media conference, several other meetings are taking place. Scholars and
scientists have come to attend the International Conference on the Unity of the
Sciences, a gathering with a nineteen-year history; major religious leaders
representing the world’s many expressions of faith have gathered at the
Interreligious Assembly of the World’s Religions; and statesmen, including
former heads of state and government, are here to attend the Summit Council for
World Peace.
At the same
time, woman leaders from around the world are here to attend a symposium of the
Women’s Federation for World Peace, an organization headed by Mrs. Moon. In
addition, young athletes from many nations are competing in a Sportsfest connected with the Convention of World Students,
sponsored by the Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles (CARP)
to discuss the qualities required of future leaders in the twenty-first
century.
The realization
of world peace is the ultimate purpose of all I have tried to accomplish during
my life. For the same reason, last year I founded the Federation for World
Peace and the Interreligious Federation for World Peace. I have found that the
center of world peace is in the family, and have consistently promoted world
peace through ideal families.
Three days from
now, on August 25, the largest international wedding ceremony in history will
be held as a concrete expression of my philosophy of peace. Good men and women
from 130 countries, transcending their different nationalities and races, are
to be united in holy matrimony in the name of God’s true love. They are
determined to build ideal families and become advocates for world peace. This
solemn ceremony, therefore, signifies their dedication and commitment to a
peaceful world.
I cordially
invite you to observe this ceremony as special guests because I think that as
journalists, you are eager to witness and report about this unique event. Since
I am granting you an exclusive, a front-row seat for this most historic event,
you may be thinking I might expect something from you in return. All I request
of you, however, is that you not look upon this as a spectacle, the greatest
show on earth, but that you seriously examine it as the creation of a force for
peace, and that you extend your sincere congratulations to these couples.
The time has
come for the media and journalists to completely understand and appreciate the
comprehensive vision of peace I am outlining here, and become completely one
with this vision, so that you may participate in fulfilling the ideal of world
peace that is our common hope.
Last May, I
traveled to Washington and spoke at a dinner commemorating the tenth
anniversary of The Washington Times, which I founded. I was
reminded that when I first announced the founding of The Washington Times
in 1982, there were many people in America who ridiculed me. Some experts
predicted, even if I founded a newspaper of acceptable quality, that I would
run out of funds in six months. And even if that did not happen, the paper
would degenerate into nothing more than a mouthpiece for the Unification Church
and would end up as a marginal weekly, read by almost no one.
Now ten years
later, among the 1,750 newspapers published in the United States, The
Washington Times ranks among the top three papers in terms of
influence. It is the first newspaper read by the president of the United States
when he rises each day. On August 13, 1992, President George H.W. Bush gave an
exclusive interview to Wesley Pruden, editor in chief
of The Washington Times. It was President Bush’s first such
interview with a daily newspaper during the presidential election campaign
season.
Year after year,
The Washington Times earns awards for its excellence in editorial
design. In 1989, in the American Newspaper Society’s annual design competition
in the United States, it received Best of Show honors, the award of highest
excellence granted only by the unanimous vote of a jury of twelve judges.
Furthermore, in the category of editorial writing, The Washington Times
received the jury’s highest award for two consecutive years, something that had
never before been achieved by any newspaper in the United States.
A decisive role in the demise of communism
During the past
ten years, I have invested a billion dollars in this newspaper. If I were
pursuing political influence or personal wealth, or if I were trying to promote
my religious beliefs, I would not have invested such a sum in a newspaper.
Simply put, I founded The Washington Times in order to fulfill
the Will of God.
I know that God
loves the United States of America. The United States is a center of
traditional Judaism and Christianity. It is the cradle of the spirit of modern
Christianity. God’s desire is that the United States maintain
its traditional values, which have fallen into confusion in recent years, and
play a central role in rescuing the entire world.
During the Cold
War, God placed the United States in a position to block communism’s attempt to
gain global dominance. In the context of God’s Will, it was most important that
there be a newspaper that had the intellectual and philosophical capacity
needed to strengthen the American people and political leaders. I certainly
could not leave Washington, the capital of the United States, under the sole
influence of the leftist Washington Post.
So where are we
now, after ten years? The bells heralding the collapse of communism rang out
loud on November 9, 1989, when the Berlin Wall was torn down. And on Christmas
Day 1991, the Soviet empire founded on atheism vanished from the earth after
having held the world in fear for seventy-four years.
I am not saying
that The Washington Times takes exclusive credit for these
developments. They were the result of God’s providence. God, however, works His
Will on earth through human beings. I do not have the slightest doubt that the Times
played a decisive role in bringing about the demise of communism. God used the
newspaper as His tool to help bring an end to the most pernicious worldwide
dictatorship in history and give freedom to tens of millions of people. Even if
I had spent $10 billion instead of $1 billion, I could not have made a better
investment.
The mission of The
Washington Times, however, is not yet finished. The demise of communism
does not automatically lead to the coming of world peace. Nor does it mean that
the ideal society of God’s desire will establish itself without any further
effort on our part. It is still too early for the free world to be toasting its
victory, because the world is still faced with too many urgent problems that
strike terror in the hearts of those who love humanity.
The societies of
the free world today are exhibiting a phenomenon that is every bit as evil as
communism: the spread of materialistic humanism and the extreme individualism
and selfishness that are the offshoots of this philosophy. We find that money
and material possessions have become the “gods” of our culture.
I do not condemn
humanism altogether, but the humanism we see today is based on a thoroughly
atheistic outlook. When we deny the existence of God and the
significance of His creative acts, we reduce human beings to just a handful of
dust. From such a perspective, human beings are considered no better
than mere complex machines. This is precisely the fallacy at the basis of Marxism-Leninism.
If we say there is no God and that human beings are no better than machines or
animals, then there is no basis for morality. Without a belief in the spirit
and eternal life, people take no responsibility for each other and can commit
terrible atrocities.
In this context,
let’s look at the situation of the advanced free countries of the world, which
we would expect to be feeling a sense of victory over the recent downfall of
communism. Extreme selfishness and individualism have given rise to hedonism.
Corruption has pervaded all aspects of social life, and marriages and families
are breaking up. The problem of political corruption is becoming worse, and
economies are struggling.
Many young
people, whom we normally expect to become future leaders, are losing touch with
their conscience, swept away in a flood of immorality, drugs and crime, to such
an extent that it is difficult for us to have hope in them as leaders of the
twenty-first century.
I have said in
the past that the next century is to be an era of spiritual civilization. The
era of material civilization is nearing a dead end. If we are to turn back the
darkness that is closing in upon our world and begin to live again, then we
must first fill the void in the former communist countries that has resulted
from the demise of Marxist-Leninist ideology.
Furthermore, we
must bring about a revival of a spiritual culture that will rescue the free
countries, which now seem to be heading for the day when they will either
destroy themselves or receive the judgment of God. Thus, we need to produce a
new thought system capable of bringing about a spiritual revolution in human
society.
God is the Father of humankind
Ladies and
gentlemen, during past World Media Conferences, I mentioned the providential mission
that I have been called to fulfill. I have been called to be a pioneer of a new
spiritual civilization for the twenty-first century. I have already declared to
the world a system of thought for the new age that God has revealed to me. That
system of thought is Godism, which is neither
left-wing nor right-wing, but rather is a philosophy that could more accurately
be called head-wing thought.
As scientists
delve deeper into their areas of research, they find themselves increasingly
unable to deny the truth of God’s existence. I proclaim His existence and teach
a view of life in which we attend God and experience His reality in our daily
lives.
God is not an
abstract God. He is alive in each of our lives, and we can feel His touch. I am
constantly hearing the beat of God’s pulse. I breathe as He breathes. I can
feel the warmth of His body against my own. I have come to know the heart of
God, and have shed rivers of tears from the knowledge that His heart is
bursting with the sorrow of having lost humankind through the Fall. I also know clearly what God desires of His children
in our era.
Most important,
the almighty God is my Father. He is your Father as well. He is the Father of
all people. The heart of God, as He looks down upon humankind, is the heart of
the Parent. Even in human society, the love of the parent is the most
passionate, the most ardent and the most unconditional.
The essence of
God is true love. God’s desire is for all people to follow the example of His
true love. He wants to practice true love and view the world with the love of a
giving Parent. We can achieve eternal life only by practicing such selfless
true love, a love that gives and then expects nothing in return. God invested
himself one hundred percent when He created the heavens and the earth and then
created humankind. He has never expected anything from us in return. The same
is true of human parents. Because of our love, we want our spouses and children
to become something greater than ourselves. That is why we can invest
everything of ourselves in them and never expect anything in return.
Until now, human
history has unfolded in the “era of brothers,” during which it was expected
that brothers fight. Human history began with a fight between brothers, and
ever since, it has been an era of struggle and war. Cain and Abel, the sons of
Adam and Eve, the first human ancestors, fought each other until finally the
older brother killed the younger. This was the beginning of sinful human
history.
Up through the
First World War, the Second World War and the ideological battle of the Third
World War or Cold War, history has been a succession of fights among brother
nations. Today, now that we have lived through these three world wars, human
history is entering a new dimension. Now, the era of brothers has ended, and we
have entered the “era of parents.” The era of parents is the era of true love.
As God looks upon us and loves us with the heart of a Parent, so each of us
needs to look upon every other person and love all people with the heart of a
parent. There may be tears in such a love, but never a fight to the death. The
concept of struggle does not exist in the context of true love. I am declaring Godism as the philosophy of True Parentism
and the philosophy of true love.
On November 30,
1991, I visited North Korea, a staunch communist country that considered me an
enemy. The world was shocked that I, a person who has devoted his entire life to
overcoming communism, had entered North Korea. I received a warm welcome from
President Kim II Sung. We embraced each other heartily. Kim II Sung had always
looked on me as an enemy. He had once imprisoned me for nearly three years and
later even attempted to kill me.
This was the
enemy that I embraced. I could never have done this, however, if I had held
even the slightest thought that he was my enemy. I went to North Korea and
embraced President Kim with the heart of a parent. I went to North Korea in an
act of true love. In true love, there is no concept of struggle, only the heart
of compassion. In true love, there is only the heart of the parent who gives
continuously and then wants to give even more.
Godism and True Parentism, which I have declared here today, is the source
of true peace that will lead the way into the twenty-first century. We can
build a harmonious world in the twenty-first century by practicing Godism and head-wing thought. The core of this philosophy
is the heart of the parent and true love. The twenty-first century will be the
era of True Parents, the era when people will mature spiritually through the
development of heart, to the point that everyone will become true parents.
I have always
emphasized that we need a responsible mass communication media. I founded the
World Media Conference to foster press freedom in places where this freedom has
not existed, and to bring about a responsible press in places where freedom
already exists.
Recently, I have
identified still another mission for the media: The media needs to be a moral
voice. I have given The Washington Times the task for its next
ten years to contribute to bringing about a moral society. By fulfilling that
task the Times will impact the world. The Times
ought to cultivate family values, because a peaceful world is only possible
based on harmonious families.
The media’s
mission is to realize a world of peace
The media wields
such power and influence that it is often described as the Fourth Estate,
alongside the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. This
power of the media must be exercised for the purpose of good. Through its
influence, the media needs to contribute to bringing about greater
understanding between cultures and nations.
You journalists
are specialists in your field, but before that, you are all God’s children. You
are all champions of peace, specially called by God to help bring a new ethical
standard into the world.
The World Media
Conference provides a forum for free discussions by members of the media with
the ultimate purpose of bringing about a principled media. At this time, when
all of humanity is advancing toward the ultimate, true world of peace, please
understand that God is calling the media to fulfill an important mission in helping
to realize this world. The media needs to add its efforts to all those who are
working for peace, and it needs to exert its tremendous influence for bringing
about the ideal of a humanity united as one family. The media needs to boldly
lead the way in realizing an ethical world.
I hope that
through your discussions and research over the next few days, you will have the
opportunity to think more deeply than ever about the media’s mission.
In closing, let
me assure you it is my constant prayer that God’s abundant blessings will be
upon your work and your families.
Thank you.
25
Media in the
Twenty-first Century:
Focus, Roles and Responsibilities
August 22, 1995
Shilla Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Thirteenth World Media Conference
Honorable
chairman, Dr. Paul Johnson, distinguished speakers, conference participants,
ladies and gentlemen:
I would like to
extend my deep appreciation and welcome to all of you who have come from many
different countries to attend the thirteenth World Media Conference, part of
the World Culture and Sports Festival, here in Seoul, Korea.
I think this
conference is both meaningful and timely, as it has as its main theme, “The
Responsibility and Role of the Media.” In only five years, the world will enter
the new age of the twenty-first century. As we usher in the third millennium,
we need to understand it as a historic turning point.
An era
emphasizing the role and responsibility of the media Throughout history, people
have been striving to make their lives more comfortable through improving
material conditions and seeking to create the best social system. However, the
more people enjoy freedom and comfort, the more aware they become that these
external developments are not sufficient. We need a new spiritual awakening.
This is the time for humanity to turn its attention to discovering the
fundamental value of human life and pursuing a new and deeper dimension of
living.
Our era has been
one in which the media’s role and responsibility have become highly significant
in the following respects: First, as democracy has expanded throughout the
world, freedom of the press has continuously grown as well. In the modem
political system, which elects its leadership through the democratic process,
the media’s role and influence are great, since organs of the media relate
directly to the public at large.
Second,
communications technologies that convey information throughout the world have
become highly developed. Electronic and print media, especially, have developed
technologies that allow far-reaching communication instantaneously. For
example, communications satellites and the Internet, which connect all the
countries in a global village, permit any individual’s idea, whether right or
wrong, to be conveyed to everyone in the world. This free, high-tech
environment creates countless channels for today’s media to influence public
opinion.
Consider the
impact on the political arena. The media at times can create an environment of
public opinion in which a government can either be highly respected or be put
in such a difficult position that it can collapse. Also, media can lead a
society to maintain a high level of moral standards or mislead it into moral
confusion and chaos.
Furthermore,
consider the viewpoint that history is not an objective record but is a
selective record of historical facts. In this light, the media, more than any
other human endeavor as we enter into this historical transition period, has a
significant responsibility to record the day-to-day facts of history
objectively, as they occur. From this viewpoint, the media absolutely cannot
separate its role and responsibility from its historical context. The media
needs to conduct its various functions, ranging from factual reporting to
review and criticism, based upon the proper understanding of the direction of
history and our historical responsibility.
As a religious
leader, I believe there is a definite direction behind human history. God
created humankind and He has been seeking throughout history to accomplish His
providential Will and purpose. Therefore you, as journalists who are recording
the facts of history, need to clearly understand God’s providential Will and
align with this understanding as you record history.
Honorable
journalists, in this half-century following the end of World War II, the
media’s role and responsibility have come to the forefront. During this time,
the media’s first task was to expose the false doctrine and strategy of
communism and awaken the free world to this threat. During this time period,
however, most media practitioners were confused by a very liberal viewpoint.
The fact that Washington, DC., the capital of the leading nation of the free
world, had only the liberal viewpoint represented, led me, thirteen years ago,
to make the very serious and important determination to create The
Washington Times.
Since that time,
I invested my entire heart, spirit and effort to overcome communism. As a
leader of conservative journalism, I have borne enormous financial burden and
prevailed against false accusations and persecution. I have even been called a
false religious leader and suffered imprisonment in America over trumped-up tax
charges. But the force of worldly concerns cannot overcome God’s Will. I’d like
to praise The Washington Times highly for its decisive
contribution to the collapse of communism and the protection of global freedom.
I believe The Washington Times will be honored throughout history
for this contribution.
The media should
take the lead in uniting the world
In the past
half-century, the media had another mission: to restore fundamental values and
construct a moral society. In 1991, when the Cold War ended and the tension
subsided between East and West, we all expected a period of peace. But in fact,
since the Cold War ended, social conflict and instability have increased. In
America, for example, sexual immorality in the form of free sex and
homosexuality is threatening to destroy the family.
An increasing
divorce rate is putting more and more young people on the street. These
children tend to get into drugs and criminality. For too many it is a path to
suicide. In fact, the teen suicide rate has doubled over the past thirty years.
Sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS have their origins in a corrupt
social life. Some states in America and countries in Europe have legalized
homosexual marriages. We take seriously warnings from ecologists and
environmentalists about the potential extinction of certain plants and animals,
but the phenomenon of the destruction of the human species is not taken
seriously. We have given little thought to ways of preventing the extinction of
our society.
We are well
aware that these problems are not limited to one area of the world. Further,
this moral destruction is a crisis not only for us humans but also for God.
Love, which is the most precious element of human life, is losing its
foundation in the family. And as the family is destroyed, the very foundation
upon which God’s love stands is also collapsing.
For this reason
I emphasized the necessity of True Family Values at the celebration of the
tenth anniversary of The Washington Times, and strongly urged the
paper to focus on restoring the fundamental value of the human being. This
advice was not intended only for The Washington Times; this was
God’s revelation given to all the world’s journalists and leaders. The
Washington Times is standing on the frontline to save America and the
world by acclaiming and supporting, more than anything else, the need for a
restoration of true families and a reconstruction of moral life.
This is a new
spiritual revolution, of which The Washington Times has become
the standard-bearer in America. People everywhere in the world consider the
role of family values a very important and serious issue. It is not just a
matter of changing some social statistics; it impacts the areas of education,
religion, culture, politics and economics.
When I
established the World Media Association in 1978, my purpose was to support the
effort to solve these fundamental problems by providing a forum for the
discussion of media ethics and responsibility. So I would also like to
emphasize that the media must be in the vanguard leading the world into unity.
Modern
developments in transportation and communication have allowed people to
overcome the obstacles preventing human interaction. It is as if the world has
been shrunk to the size of a basketball. It sounds reasonable to call the world
a global village. However, even though science and technology have eliminated
the spatial obstacles, it is premature to call humanity one global family. We
human beings ourselves keep many barriers of our own design in place.
Every day we
receive news of racial and cultural wars in parts of Europe. It is no longer
unusual to see long lines of refugees leaving their beloved homes, sadly crying
over their lost families and struggling with pain and disease. Even in small
geographical areas, war and conflict arise out of differences in race,
religion, languages, culture, and political and economic systems. Millions and millions
of people die of starvation and disease every year, and we have no solution.
How can we
overcome the many barriers rooted in self-created, conflicting interests that
keep us apart from each other? The solution is to inform humankind that we
originally come from one root. Even though we appear to be different by race,
culture, language and other aspects, the root of humanity is one, and that root
is God. God’s true love, true life and true lineage are the origin of all human
beings. In front of God, we are all His children who
can share our love together. All people are brothers and sisters having one
origin.
The true family
is the starting place of a truly peaceful world
Three days from
now, on Friday morning, Mrs. Moon and I will conduct a worldwide holy wedding
ceremony for 360,000 couples. The Blessing ceremony will be held in Seoul
Olympic Stadium. This stadium is the largest facility in Korea, but can
accommodate only one hundred thousand people. The other couples are gathering
in major cities around the world to participate in this great event via
satellite.
Since 1960, Mrs.
Moon and I have blessed more than fifty thousand couples. So the holy wedding
ceremony on Friday will be the largest by far. It is highly significant that so
many people will gather in one place and, by transcending race, nationality,
religion, culture and traditional customs, will bond together in this holy
wedding. Marriage is the most meaningful event in a person’s life. The fact
that so many people have come together for this purpose proves that it is
possible to have one shared view of human value respected by everyone, rooted
in the fact that everyone wants to have a true family centering on the true
love of God.
Although the
couples may come from different racial and cultural backgrounds, when they
unite as one family centering on the true love of God, there cannot be any
racial or cultural conflict between the children. If your father is black and
your mother is white, or if your father is Arab and your mother is Jewish, can
you as a child have any prejudice against one race over the other, or one
culture over the other? Surely you will love and wish to protect both cultures
and traditions even more than you love your parents.
When we expect
to solve worldwide racial conflict through political or economic means, the
inevitable result is failure. Racial distinctiveness is evident from the
cradle, so without the ideal of true family centering on true love, the
fundamental solution to the problem of race will be impossible. Thus even
though the size of this holy wedding is huge, the central idea is focused on
the creation of each true family experiencing the true love of the one God.
My dear
distinguished journalists, if man and woman had united with God from the
beginning, they would have established true families centering on true love.
Further, these families would have expanded to create a true nation and a true
peaceful world by realizing true love, which is continually giving for the sake
of others. However, Adam and Eve, our first human ancestors, fell and united
with Satan.
Ever
since, God and Satan have been fighting over humankind. Within
ourselves, our mind is always directed toward God while our body is on Satan’s
side. Mind and body are always in conflict. Perhaps the world could have
avoided World War I, World War II or the Cold War, but it cannot avoid the
fight between mind and body. Conflict between mind and body has expanded
throughout history from the individual to the family, society, nation and
worldwide levels. In order to end the historical fighting, humankind has to
return to God.
To do so, men
and women have to form true families centering on God. They have to invite God
back into their homes. A true family centering on true love will become the
base on earth where God can dwell. This will become the starting point for the
establishment of a true nation and a true, peaceful world. From this, the world
of true freedom and true happiness will be opened.
Media people
should be leaders in fulfilling their responsibility
Throughout
history, humankind’s earthly dream has been to realize the ideals of freedom
and equality simultaneously. But pursuit of the ideal of freedom makes the
realization of equality extremely difficult. Similarly, under the banner of
equality, the ideal of freedom has been limited in the extreme. This has been
the lesson of history. However, neither ideal by itself can completely satisfy
human desire. This is an ideological, fundamental contradiction that can be
resolved only through the ideal of a true family centering on true love. Only
by true love will true freedom be preserved. And only by true love will true
equality be possible.
Therefore, we
will realize a truly peaceful world of both freedom and equality only when we
find God, the origin of love, and unite with Him. This fact ought to send a
serious signal to atheists who claim there is neither a God nor a need for God.
At this turning point in history, when the world is seeking a new dimension, it
is extremely important for all journalists to emphasize God-centered values.
Today polls all
over the world reveal a growing distrust of the media. This arises when
practitioners of journalism and mass media stubbornly persist in thinking only
of their narrow self-interest. They believe only they have the truth and fail
to understand the value and importance of preserving the family and society.
From this perspective, it is understandable that the public is critical of
them. This implies that there is a big gap between the absolute standard of
value humankind commonly recognizes and pursues, and the various perspectives
typical of the media.
The true family
centering on God’s true love, in which there is mutual respect, needs to hold
sway as an absolute standard of value shared by the media and society. The true
and peaceful world pursued by humankind cannot be created from the top down,
nor can it be created from the bottom up. Rather, centering on God, all
individuals can form true families and live together with God. Then at last we
can establish an eternally free and peaceful world.
Respected world
journalism leaders: a new history is dawning. This is the time for God and
humankind, who have been divided since history began, to meet together in this
ideal of the true family. I hope that you journalists will become the pioneers
in this precious, historic period and take a leading role and responsibility.
The future will be the age of a common life, common prosperity and common
righteousness. I expect all journalists to come into accord with God’s Will,
even ahead of others, and remain as historical victors. I hope this conference
will be successful and most fruitful.
May God bless
you and your families. Thank you very much.
26
Globalization
and the Media:
Looking to the Twenty-first Century
November 26, 1997
JW Marriott Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Fourteenth World Media Conference
Honorable
chairman, distinguished speakers and participants, ladies and gentlemen:
I would like to
express my deep gratitude to you for your participation in the fourteenth World
Media Conference, which is being held as part of the third World Culture and
Sports Festival here in Washington, DC.
Rapidly changing media environment
I find it
particularly meaningful that you will be discussing various issues faced by the
media as it seeks to respond to the age of globalization in the twenty-first
century, which will arrive in just a few years.
We live in an
age when the global environment is undergoing exceptionally rapid change. It is
incumbent upon the media to respond to these changes more quickly and wisely
than other sectors of society. Otherwise, humanity faces a future of even
greater confusion and instability.
Right now, the
most significant factor bringing about change in the world is that our means of
communication increasingly function at the speed of light. Every day, new
technologies are developed that seem to transcend time and space and connect
even the farthest comers of the world in a matter of seconds.
In the past,
newspaper editors would demand that reporters gather local news and publish it
more quickly than anyone else. But what is the situation in 1997, just three
years prior to the beginning of the twenty-first century?
Today, when
reporters consider their local community, they do not think merely about the
physical and geographical region in which they live. They also think about
their associates and neighbors around the world with whom they are connected by
e-mail.
When a reporter
gathers information concerning this or that issue, he or she uses the Internet
to find relevant material from around the world. For those who gather
information, the local community no longer refers just to the region in which
they live but to the whole world.
As recently as
one hundred years ago, at the start of the twentieth century, news often
traveled by train, ship or even at times by carrier pigeon. People had to wait
days or weeks even for such important news as the battlefield situation in the
First World War.
In the latter
half of the 1990s, however, the Internet and telecommunications have made it
possible to transmit news in a matter of seconds. The entire world can receive
information about major news events almost simultaneously. It can be said today
that the entire world is our local community and that local news has come to
mean news about the whole world.
Because
electronic communications technology is bringing the world together in this
way, economic and cultural exchanges have already entered an age without
borders.
The age has
arrived when all the world’s citizens influence one another’s lives. The
economy of any particular country or region cannot but be influenced by the
world economic situation.
For these
reasons, we need to think of the world as constituting a single community. We
have to pose the question, What must be the content
and form of the media in a global age?
Responsibility
of the media in the age of globalization
I hope that in
the course of this conference you will have a great deal of discussion on a
variety of topics related to this question, and that you will obtain valuable
results. Also, I would like to take this opportunity to present some of my
views on globalization and the media in the twenty-first century.
First, I think
the media in a global age needs to move beyond “functional journalism” and
toward “value journalism.” The news media do not entirely fulfill their mission
by simply giving their audiences a factual account of the news. Rather, through
commentary and criticism, the media have to awaken their readers and viewers to
an awareness of truth and lead the way in elevating society’s spiritual and
moral values.
In the global
information age of the twenty-first century, the citizens of different nations
will exercise tremendous influence on one another across national boundaries.
Thus, the immoral aspects of any one major country’s culture can easily have a
corrosive influence on the people of other countries. The coming of the
information age, which itself is a result of advances in industries that apply
communication and information technologies, is the fundamental factor hastening
us into a world in which information is shared by all humankind. In such a
world, merely reporting the facts of the news will be much too simplistic. The
media will have the important role of determining how to interpret and evaluate
the facts, thus providing the direction that guides the audience.
Here it is
important to examine the worldview, or the philosophical and historical
outlook, held by media organizations and journalists themselves.
In other words, journalists will need to share constructive and idealistic
values regarding humanity and world peace and prosperity. In this manner, we
need to develop a global perspective.
If the kind of
media that satisfies people’s base desires and interests based upon purely
commercial motives sets the trend, then the world will become an even gloomier
and unhappier place in the twenty-first century.
We have been
through the most difficult ideological war during the twentieth century. Isn’t
it true that during the ideological struggle of the Cold War, communism’s
dialectical materialism was on the ascendant in many parts of society? Only a
few years ago, even many intellectuals and journalists in the free world came
under its influence and were totally confused.
I met the
challenges of that age with the greatest seriousness. Consequently, I was
subjected to much misunderstanding and criticism. On
the one hand, I led the Unification Thought movement and the campaign to
realize ideal families. On the other hand, I worked to liberate the communist
bloc and to teach students and intellectuals in its countries a system of
values to prepare them for the world after communism.
In 1982, at a
time when the free world was confronting its greatest challenge of the Cold
War, I founded The Washington Times. It was a time when
Washington, DC, which in many ways is the capital of the world, had only one
newspaper, The Washington Post.
At the time, I
observed the world not merely from the standpoint of the international power
relations of the Cold War but from the standpoint of the history of God’s
providence of salvation. I had already warned that the Soviet communist empire
would soon come to an end. During preparations to hold the second international
congress of the Professors World Peace Academy in Geneva in 1985, I told
scholars from around the world that the theme of that conference must be, “The
Fall of the Soviet Empire.”
The scholars,
who viewed the situation from the perspective of U.S.-Soviet relations at the
time, were stunned to hear this and were at a loss. In the end they were
persuaded, and the conference was held under the theme I had suggested.
When the
eleventh World Media Conference was held in Moscow in April 1990, I met with
then-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. I was accompanied by a group of free
world journalists whom we had come to know primarily through The
Washington Times. In my meeting with President Gorbachev, I told him
that the future of atheistic materialism could be nothing other than self-destruction,
and that he must repudiate materialism and attempt to revive spiritual values
rooted in religion.
Within two years
of that meeting, the communist Soviet empire collapsed. My prediction in 1985
concerning the end of the Soviet empire came true, and many scholars who were
aware of that were again amazed.
The greatest
problems will be immorality and corruption
Where do you
think Rev. Moon gets this ability to predict historic changes in the world
situation? I would like to tell you quite honestly the reason. Without any
doubt it is that, as a religious leader, I stand in close communion with God. I
have an absolute commitment to bring about God’s plan and God’s Will for the
future of humankind.
I have
consistently appealed to leaders in all fields of life—those entrusted by God
to prepare to build the future world—so that they may fulfill their
responsibilities.
The age of the
Cold War is coming to a close. Humankind is at a critical point. We need to
prepare for a new millennium in which we can live on earth as brothers and
sisters under one God, based on the principles of interdependence, mutual
prosperity and universally shared values. We need to ensure that the world of
the twenty-first century and beyond will be a world of peace, in which all humankind
will be able to live in freedom and prosperity, sharing in love and happiness.
The issue of
ideological confrontation between East and West has ended. We now need to
resolve the issue of the difference in economic standards between North and
South. I have previously advocated the sharing of technology and the
construction of the International Peace Highway. This arises from my insight
that humanity needs to be united as one family and live in a state of
interdependence.
Now, as the
East-West Cold War has ended and science and technology are advancing day by
day, the world can grow into a single community. But do you think that
humankind will automatically live in peace and happiness? Absolutely
not. During the twenty-first century, human society will face issues
even more fundamental and more dangerous than those of the Cold War.
According to
what I have perceived, the most serious problem that will beset
humankind in the future world will be the issue of immorality and moral
decadence destroying family values. Moral decadence is truly the original sin
that pushes humanity into the abyss of suffering and despair. Whether the world
of the future will resemble heaven or hell will be determined by whether we can
establish a moral code that sustains the purity of the family and protects
family values.
Is it possible
that issues faced in common by many countries throughout the world—such as the
moral decline of young people, endless drug-related crimes, rising divorce
rates, family breakdown and the spread of AIDS and illicit sex—can be resolved
by means of political power? Until now, we have been unable to solve these
problems even through education in schools or religious instruction.
What good will
economic prosperity and political freedom do a society if it is unable to
resolve the issues that cause all its families to live in agony? Humankind has
come to a point where it has to find a teaching that protects and uplifts
family values, and a method to put such a teaching into practice. In the
post-Cold War age, we need to protect and uplift family values.
This is the most
important message that I would like to give to you journalists who are
participating today, representing all journalists around the world.
The global Blessing
movement is the twenty-first century revolution
Currently, the
third World Culture and Sports Festival is taking
place here in Washington, DC, and the international Blessing ceremony will be
on November 29, at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium and around the world.
Initially, it was planned that 3.6 million couples would participate in the
Blessing event. Surprisingly, though, the number of participating couples will
exceed 36 million, ten times the original goal and even a few million beyond that.
This celebration, encompassing all humankind, will surely be the foundation for
a magnificent beginning, encouraging all people of the world to determine to
protect and uplift family values.
I ask you
journalists assembled here, as well as the leaders who have been participating
in this festival, to give us your enthusiastic cooperation on the national
level. Let us develop this event into a global festival involving 360 million
couples. Expanding and solidifying this movement for true families, so that it
becomes a worldwide phenomenon, is surely the most important spiritual and cultural revolution for humankind in the twenty-first
century.
Last June, in
remarks commemorating the fifteenth anniversary of the founding of The
Washington Times, I announced my intention to establish newspapers in
185 countries and to start a news service to link the entire world as a local
community. This enormous project is founded on my conviction about the future
that I described above. Springing from my dedication, it is a gift to the
people who will live in that future world. I would like to request
participation and cooperation in this project on the part of the many
distinguished journalists gathered today from around the world.
I hope that you
will have very fruitful discussions and debates during this conference.
Thank you very
much.
27
A United
Direction for the Media
in the New Millennium
January 15, 2001
Keio Plaza InterContinental Hotel, Tokyo, Japan 2001 World Media
Conference (Given on True Father’s behalf)
Most respected
present and former heads of state, leaders in the field of media, ladies and
gentlemen:
We have all
taken our first steps into a new age at the beginning of this new millennium.
Only a decade ago, humanity was living in fear in the midst of the Cold War
era. At the time, the entire world faced the threat of the annihilating power
of nuclear weapons.
In the present
day, however, barriers have been broken down in almost all fields, including
politics, economics and culture, and the world now is transforming into a
single global community. Through the development of mass media, which has
collapsed time and space, we are experiencing a wider range of changes than
ever before in human history. The relationship of the individual with the
world, and the world with the individual, is closer
than at any time in the past.
For example, the
Internet, as you well know, is changing the way in which we obtain news and
information. It allows anyone to convey the most trivial opinion to the entire
world. In the same way, important ideas and global issues appear on everyone’s
computer screen.
At the beginning
of the twentieth century, the power of electricity was the decisive factor in
the development of science and technology. Nowadays it is the speed and
capacity of the computer, and our access to a vast highway of information, that drives such development. The amount of
information you can obtain in one day through the different forms of
media—radio, television, newspapers and the Internet—is immeasurable. The problem
is whether humanity has sufficient will and ability to digest all this
information, and to use the power to convey it for a good purpose.
The world is
overflowing with news and information, and at the same time we are witnessing a
trend toward the expansion of commercialization. Information and images are
being sold on the market as commercial goods. Rather than evaluating the
ethical, social and moral influence of these “goods,” their producers emphasize
marketability, that is, what consumers will pay for their information or
images. We need a critical eye in order to rightly assess the influence of the
information highway. We need to look beyond the external aspects of this era’s
amazing development of science and technology and focus on the internal
aspects, on what is being, or can be, conveyed through the media.
We need to
examine, from a more essential and candid standpoint, how the information age
is affecting the human mind and spirit, and evaluate whether it is a positive
or negative influence. Now that we have ushered in the era of the global
village, the time has come for us to ask ourselves what kind of media we
desire. In the present age, we need to clearly perceive the responsibility of
the media from a historical vantage point.
Let us reflect
on the influence of the media on the essential aspects of human life: on our
institutions, our families, our nations and our world. The core problem is who
dominates the transmission of information. At present, the forces that utilize
the ultramodern information technology most actively are those of commercial
advertising, political propaganda and pop culture.
The fact that
information technology has developed by leaps and bounds does not mean that we
have become better people, or that our societies have become more
sound. Though there are positive aspects in what has emerged, there also
are highly negative aspects.
Parents often
witness their children neglecting their studies and chatting all night online
or accessing the Internet, which can be a very immoral and sexually corrupt
environment. Violent and sensual recreational videos are found in abundance in
the popular culture. They promote a world far removed from reality and make
viewers insensitive to the pain and suffering of real people. They even make it
impossible for viewers to engage in the original act of love in healthy
relationships, as God intended.
In the
twenty-first century humanity will face problems that are more fundamental and,
in some ways, even more dangerous than those of the Cold War era. These
problems will no longer involve confrontation between East and West; instead
they will be a worldwide conflict of values. In short, there will be a global
war between morality and immorality.
Excessive
commercialization is already having a negative impact on our basic human
dignity. It makes it difficult for God to be with us in our lives. The media is
attempting to uphold its own standard of morality by emphasizing justice and
fairness. However, those in the media are exposed to the temptation of
succumbing to those with authority and power, who control the competitive media
market and pursue their own business interests, with no regard for moral
values.
Unfortunately,
the contemporary social and cultural environment is already morally corrupt.
The dignity of the family is being destroyed; in some countries whole families
are being devastated due to the AIDS epidemic; in every nation on earth people
are being driven into the swamp of suffering and despair.
If the mass
media does not recognize its social responsibility to help avert these problems
by upholding moral norms, how can it prevent our societies, especially our
youth, from self-destruction? How will such blind mass media impact issues such
as drug abuse, the increasing divorce rate, family breakdown, the AIDS
problems, illicit sex and so forth? You already know the answer to my question
without my saying it.
Modern
communication technology expands our freedom of speech. The Internet turns
everyone into a publisher. This may sound strange, but nowadays we have so much
freedom of expression that we are drowning in it. Therefore, how we exercise
our freedom of expression is a vital issue.
The main theme
of this conference is, “A United Direction for the Media in the New Millennium.”
I believe that among you there will be different opinions with regard to this
subject, since you may think that freedom of speech means there is no need for
a central principle to guide the media. However, what I mean by a united
direction is that we need to consider the quality of the information we are
disseminating, rather than striving for quantity for commercial purposes. That
is, we must consider our responsibility to promote correct social norms based
on human dignity, true families and faith-based values, rather than striving to
expand our business in the name of free speech.
The value and
dignity of an individual rise and shine all the more on the stable foundation
of a true family. The family is the best place for a man and a woman to learn
to respect each other and to live together in harmony. It is there that people
learn about true love—which, with respect to family, is the most important
factor in life.
Our parents and
our brothers and sisters are the primary influences on our perception of values
with regard to the world. The family is the first and best school for learning
about love. The family is indeed the cornerstone of an ideal society and a
peaceful world. That is why the media need to respect and protect the value of
the true family.
A society may be
affluent and free, and it may create an environment wherein
every family can have computers with fiber-optic Internet access. However, if
this society cannot prevent the breakdown of its families, it is not a sound
society that can bring happiness to its citizens.
Where is the
basis of human dignity? Humankind was created by God, originally as His
children. This is the reason we commonly call Him our Heavenly Father. And our
goal is to grow up as children that resemble Him, inheriting His divinity. When
God-centered individuals come together as husband and wife, they form families
that are also God-centered. When such families come together, they form the
true human family in which everyone comes to inherit the life, love and lineage
of God, our True Parent.
In human society
the role of religion is important in that it advances the relationship between
people and God. In this regard, having a solid faith is vital. Whatever
religion you believe in, at its core is the relationship between you and God.
When, through religion, humankind becomes one with the absolute, unique,
eternal and unchanging God, our internal value also becomes absolute, unique,
eternal and unchanging. That is why religion is indispensable in protecting the
dignity of humankind.
In this regard,
the freedom to believe, the life of faith, and activities based on faith are
the pillars upon which the ideal society is built. Such religious values will
guide humanity to the world of God’s true love through the practice of living for
the sake of others. When all religions practice true love with faith as their
basis, the world’s peoples will come together as brothers and sisters under
God.
The World Media
Association, which I founded in 1978, has made efforts to promote freedom of the
press in regions where it is suppressed, and has contributed toward the
responsible use of that freedom where it is guaranteed. I hope that during this
conference you will all participate in coming up with guidelines for the
responsible conduct of the media in today’s new environment.
Outstanding
members of the press have sometimes displayed great courage in conveying truth,
enlightening people about what is important in human affairs, and endorsing
sincere efforts to realize world peace. Through your efforts as members of the
media, you can ensure that the future will be a time in which the absolute,
unique, eternal and unchanging dignity of humanity will be upheld; in which
true families will thrive; and in which world peace will ultimately be realized.
From this
viewpoint, today is a very significant day. I hope that you leaders in the
field of media, from nations across the world, will engrave what I have said
tonight deep in your hearts. The mission of constructing sound families, ideal
societies and a peaceful world was not given to me alone. God desires that you
also take part in this great enterprise.
In the
information age, no matter where you are, it is possible for you to communicate
instantly with anyone, anywhere in the world. However, in order to fulfill
God’s Will for you, your nation and the world, you need to have a sense of
responsibility about the values your communications convey, and the influence
they have in the world. Moreover, you need to be bold in asserting true values
in your own life, as an example to others. If you do so, you will return glory
to God and bring hope and happiness to humanity.
I expect that
your serious efforts at this conference will bear wonderful results. We already
have secured the technology necessary for effectively conveying all kinds of
news and information to the world. It is my hope that you now will take an
interest in the values of the heart and the original nature of true human
beings, and connect with God as you make use of this technology.
May God’s blessing
be with you and with your families. Thank you.
28
The Life of
Jesus from the Perspective
of God’s Will and God’s Warning to
the Present Age
May 21, 2002
Washington Hilton Hotel, Washington, DC, USA
Twentieth Anniversary of The
Washington Times
Respected guests
from America and abroad:
Celebrating the
twentieth anniversary of The Washington Times has a particularly
gratifying meaning for me. The memory is still fresh in my mind of how, in May
1982, I made the final decision to publish The Washington Times
in response to Heaven’s direction. This took place while I was being unjustly
tried in a New York federal court, in a prosecution motivated by both racial
and religious bigotry.
At that time,
communism was sweeping the world like a giant, angry wave. Even America had no
effective means to deal with it. I followed the supreme Will of Heaven, which
told me that America, the final fortress of the democratic world and a
Christian country representing the Second Israel, must be protected from
communism. It is also the Will of Heaven to build the ideal world of peace that
God is seeking, the kingdom of heaven on earth and in heaven, through
Christianity. It was certainly not my intention to set up a newspaper company
to make money. More than a billion dollars has been invested in The
Washington Times alone. I have never regretted this nor felt enmity
toward anyone, because this is a way to practice true love toward God and
humankind.
More than thirty
years have passed since I came to America. I have reached the age of eighty-two
years, and the time is coming for me to return to my homeland. Before leaving,
I would like to clearly convey to America, the nation in the realm of the
Second Israel, and to all humankind a message concerning the actual situation
of God and the spirit world. This is not just a message given by me as an
individual. Heaven is sending the message that humankind needs to receive in
this age. Until now, humankind has been living in a state of ignorance about the
Will of Heaven. First, humanity has not known about God, and second, we have
not known about the spirit world, where we all must go eventually, whether we
like it or not.
Now we have
entered the Last Days of human history. In the spirit world numerous religious
leaders, beginning with the founders of the four great religions, have accepted
the Unification Principle, which is my teaching, as the truth of the highest
dimension. They have mobilized their disciples and descendants completely and
are returning to the earth to resurrect by bringing them to form new, true
families through the Blessing of marriage.
Particularly for
the sake of America, a Christian country that represents the Second Israel, the
four great saints, centering on Jesus, have each chosen 120 of their
historically eminent disciples in order to establish a united front. Now,
through their spiritual return to earth, they are furthering the work of the
Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace and the World
Association of Non-Governmental Organizations in order to bring about complete
peace on earth.
They are
proclaiming that humankind has no future unless we practice true love, or a
life lived for the sake of others, which is the True Parents’ philosophy.
Accordingly, I would like to take this opportunity to give a commemorative
address today. It is a valuable message to America and humanity on the topic,
“The Life of Jesus from the Perspective of God’s Will and God’s Warning to the
Present Age, the Period of the Last Days.”
If we examine
Jesus’ providence of the cross, we see that Jesus, the thief on his right, the
thief on his left and Barabbas sowed the seeds of history. It is a principle
that what is sown will be reaped. Thus, the right-wing world and the left-wing
world have appeared, represented today by the democratic and the communist
realms, reflecting the right-thief type and the left-thief type. After that,
centering on Jesus’ cross, Islam, the Barabbas type, has appeared. Reflecting
Barabbas, who received good fortune because of Jesus, Islam appeared as a force
standing in an ambiguous relationship to Christianity.
History thus
sown entered the age in which the form of the world was bound together in four
major blocs. Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt dreamed of
forming a united Islamic Arab state. Christianity, meanwhile, is leading a new
worldwide trend proclaiming, “Let’s unite all religions.”
As we observe
these currents, we see that history, which was sown in tragedy, now finally is
appearing as a good fruit centered on God. In the Last Days such phenomena will
become even more pronounced, as that which was sown in the beginning reaches
fruition in its exact original form and is harvested. It is inevitable that
this will come about, because of the laws of the providence. Unity will be
accomplished in accordance with True Parents’ philosophy of true love.
The thief on the right and Christianity
If the
democratic world is internal, then the communist world is external. If the
right wing is internal, the left wing is external. The Messiah who is to come
has no choice except to appear upon the internal foundation of the democratic
world, which respects God. The Messiah will build a movement that absorbs the
external environment and unites the various cultural spheres centering on the
mainstream Christian cultural sphere. Such a movement is to be carried out at
the end of history and cannot be looked upon as coincidence. Because such a
motive was planted, it leads to such a result.
When Jesus was
crucified, he died along with the man on his right, who was a thief and a
murderer. If the thief had not been there, Jesus would have lost his
relationship with the earth and humankind. Even though he himself was near
death, the thief on the right defended Jesus. In human history, who was the
last to take Jesus’ side? It was not Peter, not Jesus’ father or mother, not
the nation of Israel and not Judaism. It was only one person: the thief on the
right.
One individual
alone maintained this relationship. While facing death, one man transcended
death and placed all his hope in Jesus. That was none other than the thief on
the right. You need to know that were it not for the thief on the right, Jesus
would not have been able to resurrect and resume his providence on earth.
As Jesus was
bringing to a conclusion four thousand years of history and more than thirty
years of his own life, there was only one person who connected with Jesus and
attended Jesus as the one who embodied his most fervent hopes, even as he
accompanied Jesus on the path of death. That was the thief on the right. The
fact that the thief on the right had this position means that he surpassed the
disciples. He was superior to Peter.
Although the
thief did not know Jesus’ teachings, his heart directed and empowered him to
attend Jesus at the moment of death, until he breathed his last. Peter, James
and others of the twelve disciples, by contrast, knew Jesus’ teachings and even
pledged to become new persons. Ultimately, they were not able to achieve this.
You have to know that, for this reason, the thief on the right became a central
character in human history, a man who represented the earth and salvaged the
future.
Is there any
account in the Bible that depicts Jesus as having prevailed completely against
Satan by setting conditions on the individual, family, tribal and national
levels? He did not prevail completely on all these levels. That being the case,
do you think Satan will submit to someone who believes in Jesus? Do you think
that Satan, the supreme king of false wisdom who has accused God, violated His
Will and ruined His providence for six thousand years, will go away just
because he is told to do so? Those words need to be accompanied by the right of
inheritance.
We need to gain
the right to inherit this history. We must inherit the tradition and foundation
of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Jesus and beyond, and represent
the historical sacrificial offering. Only then can we confront Satan, shouting,
“In the course of history you lost to Noah; you lost to Jacob; and Moses
subjugated you! I stand on the foundation of all their victories and have
inherited the entire tradition of providential history. So be gone, Satan!”
Only then will Satan retreat.
If you simply
pray, “Be gone, Satan!” it will avail you nothing. Do you think that Satan, who
has been accusing people for six thousand years and has trampled upon God’s
providence and devastated the providence of restoration, is going to retreat
just because you say he has to do so and that you believe in Jesus? Not at all. You need to have the ability to say, “I am
without a doubt a person whom God has sought with a heart connected with His
history. I am a person who has been grafted into the sacred and holy body of
Jesus.”
You need your
name recorded on the book of inheritance that Jesus received from God. God’s
book of inheritance records those who inherited God’s heart as experienced
through the four thousand years until He could send Jesus to this earth.
Instead of defeating Satan on the cross, you need to be able to subjugate Satan
and be victorious over him without being hung on the cross, take on a body of
flesh and be resurrected in substantial form. Those who thus are recognized as
substantial inheritors can enter the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus built the foundation for spiritual salvation
Until now,
Christianity has not been able to pursue the kingdom of heaven both in the
flesh and in the spirit. Christianity has had no choice except to yield the
physical world and attend Jesus as the spiritual Messiah, setting spiritual
salvation and a spiritual kingdom as its goals. The people of Israel had a
nation and possessed national authority as the chosen people. Worldwide
Christianity today is in the position of the Second Israel only as a spiritual
nation and has no national authority. Christians have no country. We stand in
the realm of the Second Israel with only a spiritual foundation, not a physical
foundation. Because Christianity was not able to accomplish the original Will
of God by bringing the kingdom of heaven on earth in both spirit and flesh,
there is no other way except for the Lord to come again.
I want to make
one declaration to you here today. The crucifixion was not God’s victory.
Instead, it was Satan’s victory. You will remember that Jesus said to those who
arrested him in the garden of Gethsemane, “But this is your hour, and the power
of darkness!” (Luke 22:53). The cross was the place where the nation that God
had prepared for four thousand years was lost, the place where the messianic
calling of Israel was lost, and the place where the followers of John the
Baptist, the twelve disciples, the thief on the left and everything else was
lost.
Christianity was
not there on the cross. When did Christianity begin? Jesus resurrected after
three days and spent forty days meeting the disciples he had lost, who in his
hour of passion had turned against him. The Holy Spirit descended on the
disciples, and it was then that Christianity began. Christians for the past two
thousand years have believed in Christian teaching without knowing that it came
into existence not by the principle of the cross but by the principle of the
resurrection. If you realize this fact, then you must repent. Because it began
on the foundation of Jesus’ resurrection, Christianity has been strictly
spiritual.
Let us consider
this based on Jesus’ words. If God’s Will was to be fulfilled by Jesus’ death
on the cross, the prayers he offered in the garden of Gethsemane would not have been appropriate in his position as the
Messiah. This would be truly astounding. How could he, as the Messiah, pray
three times, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not
what I want but what You want”? (Matt. 26-39) If Jesus
had come to die, wouldn’t Judas Iscariot have been rewarded? How, then, will
you interpret Jesus’ words, “It would have been better for that one not to have
been born,” (Matt. 26:24) which he spoke in regard to Judas Iscariot?
What would have
happened if Jesus had not died on the cross? The nation of Israel would have
followed the teachings of Jesus and would have stabilized and endured. Judaism
also would have remained. Jesus knew that if he died on the cross, multitudes
of people in future ages would have to follow him on the way of the cross, and
they would not be able to do so without shedding their blood. Many Christians
would have to suffer and, even when the Lord came again, he would have to go
the way of suffering.
This is the
reason why Jesus had to pray as he did in the garden of Gethsemane. Christians
today say that Jesus prayed for deliverance because he had a physical body and
feared the pain of death. Was Jesus such a trivial Messiah?
Ladies and
gentlemen! What, then, did Jesus mean by saying, “It is finished,” when he died
on the cross? Jesus had come with the mission to save both spirit and flesh,
although he realized that he could not complete the perfection of God’s Will in
a world in which there was no foundation. He made of himself a perfect offering
in order to establish a condition for spiritual salvation and allow that
providence to begin. Having completed that, in the end he said, “It is
finished.”
This is not the age of blind faith
You probably
never even imagined this. Christianity and Judaism need to realize even now
that the Lord who tried to demolish Satan’s nation and do away with Satan’s
kingship, and who tried to accomplish God’s Will and restore humanity, died a
tragic death. When they realize this, they will repent and become one. They
must become one and prepare to receive the Lord on his return.
Truth must
conform to reason. The time has come for all Christians to free themselves from
the age of blind faith, move ahead into a new age united as one, sort out this
world and bring it to salvation. Therefore, you need to know that the time has
come in which the word unity has become necessary.
What does it
mean that Jesus suffered pain during the three days following his death?
Heaven, the earth and hell all remained in the realm of death. For Jesus to
gain authority over heaven and earth, he needed to encompass the depths and
heights of the realm of death. In order to pursue the connection of life and go
the path that could comfort God, Jesus needed to prevail, even if it meant descending
into the lowest environment in hell and suffering pain.
Because Jesus
passed through hell, he prepared a path by which a new beginning toward heaven
is possible. Though he was cast out and isolated on earth, and finally forced
to go the way of death, he was able to leave a path of hope for future
generations. That is the reason Jesus had to go on his three-day course.
Jesus did not go
to hell for three days just to look around. He already knew about hell. He
needed to go there, pass judgment and pave the way to rise from the world of
death to the world of life. In this way, he laid a foundation of victory on
earth, which is a hell-like world of death, and established a starting point
from which it is possible to reach heaven.
In the eyes of
the religious establishment Jesus was a heretic, and in the eyes of the nation
he was a destroyer of the religious law. His own clan rejected him and chased
him out of his home. The group surrounding John the Baptist rejected him. He
went into the wilderness and there even Satan pursued him. That was not all.
Eventually the entire country mobilized to force him to go the way of death on
the cross, the path of Golgotha.
Jesus
nonetheless shed tears for the nation that was rejecting him as a traitor. The
religious establishment treated Jesus as a heretic, yet he shed more blood and
tears for them than any priest did. Not a single person of that age would stand
at his side, although Jesus was a friend of that age. He was rejected as a
traitor, yet he was the greatest patriot. He was rejected as a heretic,
although he was the most devout believer.
Jesus walked a
wretched path, the path of the cross, where people ripped his clothing, drove
him on, and forced him to the ground. That was not all. Evil men whipped and
beat him. In this situation, if Jesus had been like Elijah, he might have said
to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord.” (1 Kings 18:22)
When Jesus left
his disciples in the garden of Gethsemane, he went to pray, “My Father, if it
is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what You want.” (Matthew 26-39) This was his greatness. Though
his own situation was dire, he understood that his body was a sacrificial
offering for the nation, a sacrificial offering for humanity and a sacrificial
offering for Heaven’s providence.
Jesus’ grief and God’s heartrending sorrow
Jesus understood
his role and did not avoid his own suffering. He was more concerned about how
great a sorrow God must have felt. Because Jesus had appeared for the sake of
the nation, he was concerned for how great God’s sorrow was to see him rejected
as a traitor. Jesus was the prince of heaven, the central person of the entire
universe, and the Messiah. If he chose, he could have fallen prey to self-pity
and asked why he had to go the miserable way of the cross. He could have set
the entire universe in motion to breathe a deep sigh of despair with him.
However, Jesus understood that his position was not to sigh in despair.
Instead, he went so far as to feel apologetic toward God for having been
rejected.
Jesus bore the
responsibility to rally the religious establishment, rally the nation, build
the kingdom of heaven and return the world to God’s bosom. Yet when he was
forced to abandon that mission and walk the way of the cross, he did not feel
enmity toward anyone. He did not pray, “Let this cup pass from me,” out of a
fear of death. Rather, he prayed this because he knew that his death would add
to the grief of the nation and to God’s grief.
Jesus knew that
if he died on the cross, there would be an even heavier cross remaining for
future generations of humanity. It would mean that the sorrowful history would
not end. He knew that the path of Golgotha and the path of death would not end
with him. He knew that if he went the way of Golgotha, those who followed him
would have to go the same way.
Jesus knew that
an even more difficult course lay beyond the cross. As he was made to wear a
crown of thorns, and nails were hammered into his hands and feet, and his side
was stabbed with a spear, Jesus knew that these events would have impact far
beyond his own death. When he turned to Heaven and said, “It is finished,” he
did not mean that the path of the cross for the world was finished. He meant
that Heaven had received his heart’s tearful plea of concern over the cross. We
need to know that Jesus comforted Heaven by taking upon himself all the
mistakes committed by the prophets and patriots and offering himself as a
living sacrifice.
What, then,
would God’s heart have been like at this point in regard to Jesus? As He looked
upon the dying Jesus, crossing the hill of the cross with concern only for
Heaven, if He felt resentment toward the human world, His resentment would have
been greater than any seen on earth then or at any time in the course of the
four thousand years of the history of Heaven. However, as he neared death,
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke
23:34) God had a mind to pass judgment immediately, judgment that was even
stronger than that at Noah’s time. Jesus died holding on to the nation, holding
on to the religious establishment, holding on to the cross, and for this reason
God did not abandon humanity; He held on to us. Because this bond of heart
existed between Jesus, the future generations of humanity and the remaining
people of Israel, God has been unable to abandon the religious organizations
and peoples of succeeding generations who turned against Heaven, and instead
has clung to them.
God, who had
been carrying out the providence of restoration for four thousand years, could
not complete this Will in heaven and on earth simply by the providence of
Jesus’ resurrection. God established His Word as the New Testament and through
it worked to bring together His Will on earth as it is in heaven and establish
the promised original garden, as you may well know.
Jesus said the
bread and wine that he gave us were the promise and the new covenant. After
Jesus departed the earth, we received his flesh and blood. These represent the
life of perfected wholeness that we must accomplish and, at the same time, the
providence in its entirety. What does the fact that we received Jesus’ flesh
and blood symbolize? This is not just the flesh and blood of Jesus as one
individual. In a larger sense these signify heaven and earth, and in a smaller
sense they signify the core, the individual body. The flesh symbolizes the
truth and the blood represents the Holy Spirit. Jesus gave us all of this
without condition.
What has been
blocked between God and human beings? Heaven’s Will
must manifest on earth, and everything on earth ultimately must connect to
Heaven’s Will. In this way, heaven and earth will move toward a single goal.
However, that way is blocked.
Jesus
established a new promise before he departed, the
promise of connecting the spirit world and earthly world. That promise remained
as a condition to be fulfilled by the disciples who followed Jesus. Had Jesus
not died, heaven and earth would have been connected through him. Because he
died as he did, Jesus came to represent the conditions in heaven and the Holy
Spirit came to represent the conditions on earth.
Now is the time
to establish God's kingdom of Cheon II Guk
Respected
guests, the time has come. Heaven’s time, for which God has been waiting six thousand
years and for which Christians have been waiting two thousand years, has come.
It is the time to build the kingdom of heaven on earth and in heaven on an
interreligious, international and inter-NGO footing. The time of heavenly
fortune finally has arrived. Jesus, Peter, James and the other disciples, plus
thousands and even tens of thousands of religious leaders in the spirit world,
are now of one mind and one body, and they are descending freely to the
physical world to attend True Parents. Without a doubt, Cheon
Il Guk, the kingdom of
heaven in which heaven and earth can be as one in eternal peace, will settle on
the earth.
Now is the time
for America, the Christian country representing the Second Israel, to stand in
the forefront. I declare to the world that America has the responsibility to
guide all the world’s people, not with weapons but
with truth and love and by living for the sake of others upon the foundation of
true love, true life and true lineage.
In conclusion, I
hope The Washington Times, United Press International, and other
major media outlets will accept this lofty command from Heaven and take up the
task of educating humankind, taking a stance that transcends religion and
ideology. Please note that I have distributed to you a pamphlet containing
messages from leaders in the spirit world. I ask that you read this carefully.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
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