'As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen'

the Autobiography Text

CHAPTER SEVEN 

FUTURE OF KOREA

FUTURE OF THE WORLD

Global Harmony Starts on

the Korean Peninsula 

(Page 276)

I miss my hometown so much

that I visit it often in my dreams.

My hometown is far beyond Seoul,

in Jeongju, North Korea. 

It is an area that

has both mountains and sea.

Wherever I am,

and whatever time it may be,

my heart is always reaching out

to that place where there is

love and life.

All of us are born into

our parents' lineage, and

as we grow up we are nourished

by our parents' love.

We cannot forget our hometowns

because that is where the ground

is soaked with our parents' love.

That is why, the older we get,

the more we miss our hometowns.

It is where our roots are

and where we must return.

It is difficult for people

to cut themselves off from things that

are fundamentally important to them. 

In 2004, I ended my activities

in the United States

after thirty-four years and returned to

the Korean peninsula,

where heavenly fortune resides.

We are not aware of the exact time

when morning becomes noon.

Neither are we aware of the exact time 

that evening becomes night. 

In the same way,

human beings have no way of knowing

the moment when Heaven does its work.

That is how it is

with our lives as well.  Our moments

of success and failure all pass us by

without our being fully aware of

exactly when they began to unfold.

The same is true with nations.

We cannot know the moment

when good or evil comes to a nation.

Heavenly fortune is a force

that moves the world; it is a principle

that makes the universe go around.

Though we may not know it,

there is clearly something called

heavenly fortune, which

the One who created this world

uses to conduct His providence.

(Page 277)

The universe

moves in perfect accordance

with its own order.

All beings in the world

bear within them a certain principle

that is put there even before they exist.

When a baby is born,

no one has to teach it how to breathe

or to open its eyes.

The baby does these things

without being compelled.

Things that happen on their own

hold within them important keys

to the secrets of the universe.

Many natural phenomena

seem to just happen on their own.

In reality, though,

they don't happen in this way.

Hidden within

natural phenomena in the universe

is a directional force that

we are not aware of and

do not understand.

This is the same with the forces

of fortune in the universe,

or heavenly fortune.

As the universe turns, it is certain

that there will be

a period of powerful fortune.

If we understand the principle

of the universe whereby

spring follows winter and

is then followed by summer, then we can

foresee a bright fortune for Korea

after a long winter of misfortune.

Those who are wise

will align themselves with the laws

and rhythms of the universe.

When I was in America I would often

fish in the Hudson River near my home.

I have been a very skilled fisherman

since I was a young boy, but there were

days on the Hudson when I could not

catch so much as a tiny minnow

and had to return home disheartened.

Fish have paths that they travel and

certain times

they pass along those paths.

If we don't know where these paths are

and what times they are on these paths,

we won't catch any fish.

Just because there is water,

it does not mean that

there will always be fish passing by.

A person who doesn't understand this

could keep his line in the water

all day and all night,

and it won't do him any good.

(Page 278)

The same is true with heavenly fortune.

If we don't have an eye to see the future,

we will not see heavenly fortune,

even if it is staring us in the face.

That is why it is important

to have a keen understanding

of heavenly fortune and

an ability to sense its movements.

Human civilization

developed throughout history

in a westerly direction.

Egypt's continental civilization

gave way to the peninsular civilizations

of Greece and Rome and

then developed

to the island civilization of Britain

 before moving on

to another continental civilization,

this time in America.

Civilization continued its westerly move,

crossing the Pacific Ocean to Japan.

The movement of civilization

didn't stop there.

The force that raised Japan up

to such a great position

is now moving to the Korean peninsula.

Civilization is about to come to

its fruition on the Korean peninsula.

For Japan's island civilization

to link up with the continent,

it must pass through a peninsula.

Asia, of course, has other peninsulas,

but only Korea possesses

sufficient foundation to inherit

contemporary civilization.

The Korean peninsula is in a most

exquisite geopolitical position.

It faces Japan and the United States

across the Pacific Ocean.

This is the reason that Korea has been

a focal point in the power struggles

among the world's great powers and

has suffered a great deal as a result.

During the cold war,

we fought for our very existence

in a war against communism.

Even now, the concerns and interests

of the world's great powers continue

to involve the Korean peninsula, so

Korea remains a divided country

unable to be completely at peace.

(Page 279)

The time has come

when the Korean peninsula, where

the interests of the great powers collide,

will take on an important role in preventing

conflict between these countries.

As a result it will be in a position

to lead the rest of the world

into prosperity and peace.

Heavenly fortune

comes with tremendous responsibility.

Now that the Korean peninsula

has come into its heavenly fortune,

it must play a role

similar to a ball bearing, making sure

that these countries

not only do not collide with each other

but instead cooperate closely

for the sake of

the prosperity and peace of the world.

The functions of a ball bearing are

to hold the axle of a machine in place

while also

allowing the axle to rotate freely.

Korea needs to maintain

smooth relationships with the great powers

and thus become a ball bearing that

allows peace

to rotate freely throughout the world.

For a long time I have been making

intensive preparations

for Korea to play this role.

I supported the glasnost policies

of President Gorbachev

and pushed the goal of improving relations

with the Soviet Union.

I also supported the reform

and openness policies of Deng Xlaoping

in China, starting in the late 1980's.

I began my work in China by supporting

Yanbian University

to establish a college of engineering.

Even after the Tiananmen Square incident,

when foreign capital was leaving China,

we remained in China and invested

hundreds of millions of dollars

in Huizhou, in Kwangtung Province.

I did not

do this just for economic reasons.

I am a religious person,

not a businessman.  A religious person

is someone who sees into the future

and prepares for it.

Russia, China, Japan, and the United States

must earn to cooperate with each other

while using the spiritual bearings

of the Korean peninsula.

The Korean peninsula is destined to become

the axis for world peace.

(Page 280)

When I began working

to improve relations between Korea

and the Soviet Union and China,

I discovered that Korea did not even have

something as basic

as a Russian or Chinese dictionary.

Very little was going to get done

as long as we could not understand

each other's languages.

When I heard that there were groups

of academics who had the foresight to begin

work on a Chinese-Korean dictionary

and a Russian-Korean dictionary,

I supported these two projects.

The Chinese-Korean Dictionary Project

was led by Professor Il Shik Hong

of Korea University's Institute

of Korean Culture,

and several professors in the university's

Russian Studies Department were behind

the effort

to publish a Russian-Korean dictionary.

These dictionaries

are playing crucial roles in the exchanges

between the two Koreas and China and Russia.

When a rock sits

atop the highest mountain peak,

once it begins to fall

it will fall all the way to the deepest

part of the valley.

This describes the changing fortunes

of Western civilization.

It is common knowledge that the West

achieved incredible development

through the use of science, but

now moral decay is sending it down

to the depths of the valley floor. 

The valley floor is the East, which

has been developing a spiritual culture

for thousands of years.

In particular,

the Korean peninsula is the place

where Eastern and Western cultures meet,

as well as the place where

continental and oceanic cultures meet.

The historian and philosopher

Oswald Spengler

put forth a cyclical theory

of the rise and decline of civilizations

that took dim view of democracy

and described it as

the type of government that is leading

Western civilization into decline.

He argued that

Democracy is driven by money

and that Democracy's corrupting power

and its signs of moral decline

include the rise of materialism and

cults of science.

(Page 281)

Looking at today's Western culture,

it appears that some of his thoughts

were prophetic.

The Atlantic civilization

that has prospered until now

is clearly facing a new era, the era of

a Pan-Pacific civilization

that is on the rise.  Asia,

with Korea poised to take a central role,

is becoming

the lead actor in a new world history.

Two thirds of the world's population

lives in Asia.

All the world's major religions

began in Asia.  It has long served

as humanity's spiritual root.

It is inevitable

that the Western and Eastern civilizations

come together in harmony

on the Korean peninsula.

As the world rapidly changes, heavenly fortune

is moving in Korea's direction

at an ever-increasing speed.  However,

if the Korean peninsula is to properly

perform its important role

in leading the world to harmony and peace

during an era of chaos, then

it must prepare itself well.

It must do away with a past marked

with prejudice and selfishness

and greet the new age with clear eyes

and a new heart.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

From Suffering and

Tears to Peace and Love

(Page 282)

There is deep meaning in

the tragic history that the Korean people

have experienced up to this point.

Korea has suffered a great deal because

it is destined to become the foundation

from which world peace will emerge.

Because it has endured suffering

and difficulty for such a long time,

Korea can now become the central nation

from which God brings peace to the world.

Even though Koreans have experienced

countless hardships, we have never

made anyone our enemy or hated anyone.

Several of our neighbors have caused

difficulty for us, but we have never

made them our irreconcilable enemies.

The Korean people have developed

a culture of heart that enables us

to forgive our enemies.

It takes mastery over oneself

to love and accept an enemy.

The ability to love one's enemy comes

only after an individual is victorious

over his own internal conflicts.

People who are persecuted are the closest

to God.  To understand God's heart,

one must experience His tearful heart.

Even a person who

normally would not shed tears

will do so if he loses his family

and his country.  He would desperately

plead with God in tears.

(Page 283)

Suffering difficulties causes one

to have a heart that sheds tears and cries,

but it is through this type of heart

that one can receive God's blessing.

God comes

to a heart that is soaked with tears.

Korea has

become a land of heavenly fortune

because so many tears have been shed

within the hearts of its people.

Korean people honor their ancestors.

No matter how hungry we may be,

we will never sell the land where

our ancestors are buried

in order to buy food.

Historically we have maintained

a way of thinking that respects Heaven.

We are a modern, civilized nation that

still honors the world of the spirit.

When we accepted Buddhism and Confuscianism,

they gave rise

to a beautiful religious culture.

More recently

Christian and Muslim traditions

have begun to thrive here as well.

All these religions

live without conflict within Korea.

They blend together and coexist peacefully.

What is it that

has made us such a unique people?

From ancient times

we have always had religious minds

and our hearts have always been open

to receive the Word of God.

In addition, Koreans

have always placed a high priority

on education and excellence.

As a result, the Korean language and

the Hangeul alphabet are considered

teasures handed down by Heaven.

Our language is rich with adjectives

and adverbs that can be used to express

the human heart.

I love the alphabet that we use.

I am very fond

of the term Hunminjeongeum, which means

"correct sounds for the instruction

of the people."  This is the original idea

of Hangeul (Korean letters).

It has such a beautiful meaning.

The excellence of Hangeul has survived

for centuries and continues to

contribute beauty to human communication,

even in this digital age. 

(Page 284)

To me it is truly amazing that

through a simple combination of consonants

and vowels

humans can communicate and even imitate

all the sounds of creation.

For the past thirty years, I have been

telling the members of our church

in other countries to prepare

for the future by learning Korean.

Recently, the term hallyu,

or "Korean wave", was coined in China

by journalists to describe the rapid spread

of Korean popular culture throughout Asia.

The popularity of Korean pop music,

TV dramas, and movies has generated

a large increase in the number of people

learning the Korean language.

There are now people in Japan,

Mongolia, Vietnam, and even Africa

who can speak Korean.

This is certainly not a coincidence.

The soul dwells within language. 

The reason the Japanese tried so hard

to eliminate the Korean language

during their forced occupation was

to destroy the soul of Korean people.

The fact that people around the world

now speak Korean means that

the heart and soul of the Korean people

are thriving in today's world.

It is because of heavenly fortune

that Korea's cultural influence

continues to grow.

The Korean people

never want to burden others.

When I was in America, I saw

the stubborn character of Korean people.

The United States is a country that

has many types of social safety nets,

but Koreans almost never

want to take advantage of these.

Rather than relying on

the support of the government,

they find ways to earn money in order

to raise their children and take care

of their older parents.

This is how Koreans show self-reliance.

I also see this in the missionaries

that we have sent across the world.

They don't fear going to a country

they know little about.

This is true not only for missionaries

but also for businessmen.

Once they are given a mission,

no matter where that mission may take them

in the world, they drop everything and go.

They are not indecisive or reluctant.

(Page 285)

Koreans have such an enterprising spirit

that they can go anywhere in the world

and live a productive life.

Our suffering history has taught us

that no obstacle is too great.

We have learned to face the worst kinds

of situations and overcome them.

When there is a neighborhood celebration,

people compete for the best spot

to view the celebration.

This is a very self-centered kind

of behavior.

The person who quietly sits down

in the worst seat

will be the leader of the coming age.

Anyone who worries first

about putting food in his own mouth

will be a failure in the coming age.

Even if we

are going to eat only one spoonful,

we must think of others first.  If we are

to receive the heavenly fortune

that is coming to the Korean peninsula,

then we must be aware

in the deepest part of our hearts that

"others" are more valuable than "myself."

In the past, everything we loved

was taken away from us.

During Japan's forced occupation,

our country was taken away. 

Our country was split in two, and

we were forcibly separated

from our loving parents and siblings.

So Korea became a land of tears.

Now, however, we must cry for the world.

From now on, rather than

shedding tears for ourselves, we must

shed tears more sincerely and more

desperately for the sake of the world.

This is what we must do

on the Korean peninsula if we want to

continue to receive heavenly fortune.

When we do this, the heavenly fortune

on the Korean peninsula will then 

spread out to the world.

Korean people have a great opportunity

to be at the center of an era

of world peace.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

The Goal of Twenty-first

Century Religion

(Page 286)

The twentieth century

was a time of tremendous change.

More happened in that hundred-year period

than during the past two thousand years.

It was the century

when there were two world wars and when

communism rose to great stength

and then disappeared.

It was also the century

when humanity turned its back on God

and buried itself in material things.

What about the twenty-first century then?

Some say that advances in science

have proven that many religious beliefs

are mere superstition

and irrelevant to the modern world.

I contend, however, that

the role of religion will always

be relevant as long as

the spiritual aspect of human beings

remains a reality and a world

of peace has not been established.

What is the purpose of religion?

It is to bring about God's ideal world.

The reason religions evangelize is because

they desire to increase the number

of citizens under God's sovereignty.

If everyone were to live

under God's sovereignty, we would have

a world of peace where there would be

no war or division.

The ultimate destination of the path

followed by religions should be peace.

(Page 287)

God created this world out of a desire

for love and peace.

If we create division by insisting

that our own religion

is the only path to salvation,

we go against God's desire.  God wants

everyone in the world to work for

peace, reconciliation, and co-existence.

If people say that coming to church

creates division in their family,

then I do not hesitate to tell them

that they should put their family first.

Religion is only a means

to bring about God's perfect world,

it is not an end in itself.

Humankind's destiny

is to bring together all the points of view

that are now divided against each other. 

The philosophy that will lead humanity

in the future

must be able to bring together

all religions and philosophies.

The days have ended when one country

stands at the forefront and leads humanity.

The era of nationalism has also ended.

If we continue

the era of people congregating together

only by religion or race, then

humanity cannot avoid a repetition of war.

The age of peace absolutely cannot come

unless we transcend

cultural customs and traditions.

No ideology, philosophy, or religion that

has influenced humanity in the past

is capable of bringing about

the peace and unification that is needed

for the future.

We need a new ideology and philosophy

that goes beyond

Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam.

For my entire life, I have

called on people until my voice is hoarse

to transcend their religious

factions and even their religions.

 There are close to two hundred countries

in the world,

and each has its own national borders.

A border separates one country from another,

but countries

separated by borders cannot endure eternally.

(Page 288)

Only religion can overcome national borders.

However, religions

that should be bringing people together

have instead divided themselves

into many factions

that are busy fighting each other.

They have fallen

into a selfish thought process that

puts their religion or faction first.

They are oblivious to the fact that

the world has changed

and a new era of selflessness has dawned.

It will not be easy to tear down

the religious walls that have stood

for thousands of years, these walls must

come down if we are to advance

into a world of peace.

Religions and their factions must

stop their meaningless fighting,

find a middle ground

for their differing opinions,

and develop concrete ways

to advance the world of peace.

For humanity to be happy in the future,

material affluence

alone will not be sufficient.

It is urgent that the struggles

of modern ideologies, cultures, and races

be overcome

through interreligious understanding and

spiritual harmony.

All my life I have made

the following appeals to the wide variety

of religious people I have met

around the world.  First, respect

the traditions of other religions

and do everything you can to prevent

conflict and discord among religions.

Second, all religious communities

should cooperate with each other

to serve the world.

Third, the leaders of all religions

should work together to develop

a structure that will let us accomplish

our mutual mission

of establishing world peace.

The right eye is there for the left eye,

and the left for the sake of the right.

The two eyes together exist

for the sake of the whole body.

The same can be said

for every other part of the body. 

Nothing exists for its own sake.

Religion too

does not exist for its own sake

but for the sake of love and peace.

Once world peace is accomplished,

there will be no further need for religion.

The ultimate purpose of religion

is to bring about the reality

of a human community

filled with love and peace.

This is God's will.

(Page 289)

It is not easy to create an environment

where people's hearts

are filled with a craving for peace.

Continuous education is the only solution.

This is the reason why I devote myself

to projects in the field of education.

We founded the the Sunwha Arts School

even before our church had developed

enough to stand on its own.

A school

is a holy place where truth is taught.

What are the most important truths

that should be taught in school?

The first is to know God and recognize

His existence in the world around us.

The second

is to know the fundamental origin

of human beings, our responsibilities,

and how to fulfill our responsibilities

for the sake of the world.

The third

is to realize the purpose

for the existence of human beings

and to then create an ideal world

for that existence.

These things can be understood

only after they have been taught

with sincerity and dedication

over a long period.

Education today is focused on creating

a winner-take-all society

where those who finish first are rewarded

with a monopoly on happiness.

This is not

the right way to educate children.

Education must be a means for creating

a world where all humanity

can live well together.

The philosophies and methods of education

that have dominated us until now

must be changed to ones that let us

advance toward humanity's common goals.

If the United States

were to educate only for the sake of

the United States,

and Britain only for the sake of Britain,

then humanity's future would be dark.

Educators

must not teach how to live selfishly

but instead impart the wisdom needed

to resolve the myriad social problems

we face today.

(Page 290)

The role of religious scholars

is even more important.

Religious scholars do not need to be teaching

complex theories and the superiority

of their own religions.

Instead, they need to give their students

the wisdom to love humanity and

build a world of peace.

They need to teach

the principle of selflessness.

We cannot expect a future of happiness

for humanity if scholars do not

take the lead in teaching our descendants

the principles of peace.

Humanity is one brotherhood and sisterhood,

and the world is one family.

The most important wisdom needed

by humankind comes

from knowing God's heart and His ideal.

For this reason the role of religion

continues to be important,

especially in the twenty-first century,

when science and technology seem to be

replacing the role of religion

in understanding how the universe operates.

Religions around the world

must understand the destination

of the human journey

and immediately cease

all major and minor struggles.

They should not be fighting for

the purpose of protecting their own honor. 

Religions must pool their wisdom and

combine their energies and work diligently

to build the ideal world.

They must forget the past struggles

filled with hatred

and work out peaceful solutons.

No matter how much

we have done for world peace,

there is always more to be done.

Religious people,

whose mission is to lead humanity

into the ideal world,

must not forget for a moment that

truly their only mission

is to be apostles of peace.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

Cultural Projects Express

God's Creativity

(Page 291)

In 1988, Seoul hosted the Summer Olympics.

I saw this

as a potential festival of peace

in my own backyard

and had many of our members

from around the world come to Seoul

for the event.  The members helped guide

the international atheletes and officials,

cheered the athletes, served them food,

and presented them with mementos

of their visit to Korea.

Since China and the Soviet Union

were both participants in the Games,

I saw it a an event that could

critically alter the Cold War era.

Seeing the Olympic Games as

a festival of peace

gave it the potential to create harmony

between the communist bloc and

the free world.

On the day of the opening ceremony I sat

in the general seating area

of Jamsil Main Stadium

and watched with great joy.

After the Olympics, I carried on

the energy of the Games

by founding the Ilhwa Chunma

professional soccer team in Korea.

The Ilhwa team has won

several championships and built up

a strong fan base.

We have since founded the soccer teams

Clube Atletico Sorocaba

and Centro Esportivo Nova

Esperanca (CENE) in Brazil,

the home of Samba football,

and continue to operate them today.

(Page 292)

The reason I chose to create soccer teams

is that I enjoy the sport.

I have enjoyed sports since I was young,

and for a time I did some boxing

and some traditional martial arts.

Soccer, however, is the one sport

that I continue to enjoy into my old age.

In my school days

I use to run around the schoolyard

diligently kicking the ball,

but now I enjoy watching it.

When the World Cup was held in Seoul,

I had three television sets set up

side by side

so that I could watch all the games.

I never missed a game that Korea played.

Soccer is a microcosm of life.

No matter how well

I might dribble the ball down the field, if someone

from the opposing team is faster and more skilled

comes along and steals the ball away from me, then in

an instant everything I did until then is for nothing.

Also, even if I might dribble all the way down

the field, and take a shot at the goal, if the ball

hits the goalpost and bounces back, that's the end.

It's up to me to dribble the ball, but it takes

more than one person to get the ball into the goal.

I need a teammate like Ji Sung Park,

who will assist me as the critical moment, or someone

like Young Pyo Lee, who will adroitly draw the other

team away from me.

The most important person on the team is the coach,

who watches over the entire team from the sidelines.

The coach doesn't run or score goals, but his power

is greater than that of all the players put together.

Similar to a coach who sees things that the players

cannot see and gives signals,

God sees things we cannot see and gives us signs.  If

the players follow the coach's signs well, they will

almost always win.  But if the coach sends signs and

foolish players either don't understand them or

ignore them and play according to their own thinking,

the team can only lose.

(Page 293)

Soccer is a sport where competition takes place and

someone wins or loses, but it also has

the potential for significantly influencing countries

and increasing their cooperation toward peace. 

I was told that twice as many people

watch the World Cup as watched the Olympics.  This

provides an idea of how many people around the world

love soccer.  Therefore, just like the Olympics, it has

the power to become a force for harmony between

countries, races, religions, and cultures.  I see

soccer and peace among countries as potentially

powerful partners.

Pele, who appointed as Brazil's Extraordinary Minister

for Sport in 1995, once visited Korea and spent time

in Hannam-Dong neighborhood of Seoul. 

People remember him as the greatest soccer player in

the world, but the Pele I met was a peace activist.

He wanted to bring world peace through soccer.

When I met him, he laughed as he told me the story

of a game in Africa.  He said, "I once played

in Nigeria, but the country was at war then.

How do your think we were able to play in a place

where bombs were exploding all around?

Thankfully, there was a short ceasefire called so that

the game could be played.  That's when I realized deeply

that football was more than just a sport.  Football is

a means shared by all people in the world as a means

for creating world peace.  After that, I decided that

I had to carry out a movement for world peace through

football."

I was so impressed with Pele in that moment that

I firmly grasped his hand.

We live in a competitive society where there is

a great deal of stress.  Stress creates tension

in our lives and takes away our peace of mind.

When stress accumulates, people can become irritated

and sometimes fight each other.  Sports and the arts

are examples of things that help us to lower

our levels of stress.  These things help us to vent

our pent up urges and bring humanity together.

  The reason for my devotion to soccer teams,

symphony orchestras, and ballet companies is that

these activities are means to bring world peace.

(Page 294)

Pele understands this kind of thinking.

Finding ourselves in agreement, Pele and I created

a new competition of international dimensions

called Peace Cup, and tournaments have been held

every two years since 2003.  We brought

famous soccer teams from around the world to Korea. 

A corresponding women's tournament

called Peace Queen Cup is held in alternate years.

In the summer of 2009

we held the first men's tournament outside Korea. 

The 2009 competition

was held in Spain's Andaluia region.  All profits

from the tournaments are used to support soccer events 

for children and youth in developing countries.

In particular, we use soccer to help children with

physical disabilities keep their dreams alive.

Working with the office

of the U.N. High Commissioner for refugees,

the U.N. refugee agency, we held a soccer tournament

for young people in Liberia.  This is a country where

fifteen years of tribal warfare

have left its people exhausted.  It receives special

protection from the United Nations because of

its precipitous drop in population.  The children of

this war-torn country gathered together to play soccer 

and sing songs of peace. 

In the process of kicking the ball around, they were

learning skills of teamwork and fairplay

that are necessary for bringing harmony between tribes.

The Peace Cup organization

also has a goal of building a peace stadium in the

Israel-Palestine Jordan region, as close as possible

to the Israel-Palestine border.  The stadium would be

freely available to all as a peace-building venture. 

We want to bring famous coaches from Europe and

start a soccer academy for the children in the region. 

The adults may want to point guns at each other, but

the children will want to come to the soccer stadium

and kick the ball around.  People say it is unrealistic

and shake their heads, but we will do this.

(Page 295)

Already a member of the Israeli cabinet has said

the stadium should be built in the Israeli area, and

a member of the Palestinian cabinet says it should be

in the Palestinian area.  I am determined, however,

to build it in a way that connects the two sides.

I am not one to be pressured into giving up my dreams.

I have a bullheaded strength of will that I use

to pursue dreams that will lead to a world of peace.

The creation of our ballet company

is another example of the same stength of will.  

People said it couldn't be done.  We established the

Universal Ballet in 1984.  Today more people in Korea

are enjoying ballet than ever before.  

When we first created our ballet company, Korea was

like a barren wasteland as far as ballet was concerned. 

Korea now has its own world-renowned ballerinas.

Every time I watch ballet, I feel that this must be

what art in the Heavenly Kingdom is like. 

When a ballerina stands on her toes and holds her head

toward the heavens, this stance strikes me as a perfect

pose for how we should hold God in awe.  It has the look

of ardent desire.  In ballet, human beings can use

the beautiful body given to them by God to express

their love for Him.  It is the highest form of art.

The Universal Ballet began by performing Swan Lake and

the Nutcracker Suite.  It has added Don Quixote, Giselle

and its own original creations

Shim Chung and The Love of Choonhyang.  It has developed

to the point of being internationally acclaimed. 

The Universal Ballet receives invitations from

the world's most famous venues.  Its dancers are credited

with adding a uniquely Korean beauty to the energetic moves

of Western ballet.  They are praised for the way they

harmonize Eastern and Western styles in their performances.

The Univeral Ballet has an academy in Washington, D.C.

I also created the New York City Symphony Orchestra and

the New Hope Singers.

(Page 296)

The arts enable humankind to reflect the high ideals

embodied in God's own creative work.  God poured His

entire heart into human beings and the world He created,

just as artists invest their entire being into their works.

The Book of Genesis makes it seem as though

things came into being simply by God speaking a word,

but that is absolutely not how it was.  God invested all

His energy into creating the waters and the land.

In the same way,

the movements of the ballerinas on stage are fruits of

a creative process that requires total investment.

The same thing can be said about soccer. 

A successful soccer team will invest it full energies

into a ninety-minute game.  In making a single run

for the goal, a player will invest every bit of energy

that he can call up, as if his life depended upon it.  This

is similar to what God went through as He created the world.

To pour out everything we have,

to offer ourselves up completely, for the sake of one moment

in time---this is how greatness is achieved and how humankind

comes to resemble God.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

Master of the Seas and

the Future of the World

(Page 297)

History has shown that

the country that controls the seas will become a

world leader.  Consider Britain.  It was once

invaded by Vikings from Norway and Sweden.  In the

sixteenth century, soon after she was crowned,

Queen Elizabeth I realized that if Britain didn't

have control of the sea it could lose everything.

She strengthened her country's maritime policy,

and through her dedicated effort, Britain became

a powerful maritime country.  She mobilized capital

and technology to have strong ships built, manned

the ships with brave sailors, and sent them out to sea.

They did not know what was waiting for them

beyond the seas, but they risked their lives to go.

As a result, Britain, a small island nation

in the Atlantic, came to possess colonies on all

the continents and oceans and built an empire.

Western civilization centering on Britain saw

tremendous development in science and technology.

With the aid of the compass, British ships

journeyed to many different places in the world. 

The country's highly developed material knowledge

and technology gave it abilities

with which it sought to conquer the entire world.

Korea, and most of the rest of the East, has taken

a different approach.  The Eastern world does not

discard the spirit in pursuit of the material.

If there is a conflict between the material and the

spiritual, the East would rather discard the material.

(Page 298)

So, generally speaking, life in the East

has been more difficult than in the West because it is

less materially developed.  In the West, however,

spirit will not be dominated by the material forever.

As a totally materialistic culture brings degradation,

the opportunity presents itelf

to learn from the more spiritually oriented East.

Civilization developed from Egypt to Greece and Rome to

Britain and the United States and is now moving toward

the Pacific region surrounding the Korean peninsula.

The era of a Pacific civilization

is opening, bringing together Western science and

Eastern spirituality.  The leaders in this new era

will be nations like Korea and its Asian neighbors.

It is not by mere coincidence that Korea and Japan

have been able to rise to international prominence

in a short time.  This development was

a historical inevitability pointing to the Asian era.

The United States and Russia, however,

will not stand by and watch as our country rises to

a leadership role in the world.  It is possible that

there could be a major conflict

involving the United States, Japan, Russia, and China

in the vicinity of Korea.

We must prepare for this contingency in two ways.

First, we must create a strong bond between Japan and

the United States and link this to Russia and China

so as to protect Korea.  How can we do this?

With a philosophy and a heart that create oneness.

The only philosophy that can prevent wars

between religions and open a path to a peaceful world

is one that proclaims that humanity is one,

transcendent of race, nationality and religion.

To protect itelf from the dangers of war,

Korea must plant a philosophy of onenes in the world.

(Page 299)

Second, we must prepare ourselves

for the new oceanic era.  The Pacific era is at hand. 

Anyone who cannot rule the ocean cannot become a leader

in the Pacific age. 

If heavenly fortune comes and we are not prepared,

we cannot take advantage of the opportunity.  If we know

that an oceanic era is about to begin and Korea

wants to be the leader of that era, then Korea must

make the necessary preparations.

There are more resources than fish in the ocean.

A greater treasure is its ability to provide energy.

As crude oil reserves decrease,

a sense of crisis over sources of energy is growing

day by day.  If the world runs out of oil, humanity

will immediately find itself in the dark.  There is

an effort to develop alternative energy from corn,

but this does not seem realistic

when there is not enough food being distributed to

feed the world's population as it is.

The true alternative energy source is the ocean.

Energy from the hydrogen in the sea represents

the future of humanity.  Two-thirds

of the earth's surface is water.  This means that

two-thirds of the raw materials that humanity needs

for the future are contained in the ocean.  A new

future for humanity cannot be accomplished without

the ocean's resources.  Developed countries are

already extracting oil and natural gas

from the ocean and selling it at high prices.

The world has only begun to discover the resources

in the ocean.  The day is at hand when humanity will

find itself dependent on the ocean.

The oceanic era will not begin without human effort.

We must first go out into the oceans.  We must go out

on boats and fight the waves.  Without such courage

we cannot prepare ourselves for the oceanic age.

The country that conquers the oceans will become a

dominant power in the world and find the world eager

to study its culture and language.  Korea must become

the champion steward of the Pacific Ocean. 

It mustunderstand the will of the Creator and manage

His resources well.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

Great Opportunity

in the Oceanic Era

(Page 301)

The oceans can become

a central point for bringing the world together.

To take ownership over the ocean, we must be trained

to live on it with the same ease we live on land.

When I train people to fish, I send ten small boats

out with one large boat. 

Once they are out on the open sea, however,

the small boats are responsible for themelves. 

They must know the direction of the wind, what is on

the ocean floor, and what route the fish are taking.

They must learn all this on their own.

I like to use the phrase "Alaska spirit."  By this

I mean the habit of getting up at five o'clock

in the morning, going out to sea, and not returning

until well after midnight, when in the summer

it is still light.  The person with "Alaska spirit"

stays out on the ocean until he catches the

daily allowance.  One cannot become a true fisherman

unless he learns how to endure this way.

Catching fish is not a pleasure cruise.  Now matter

how many fish may be in the ocean, they are not

going to just jump into the boat. 

It takes specialized knowledge and much experience. 

A person must know

how to mend a net and how to tie an anchor rope.

(Page 302)

Once a person receives intense training to become

a fisherman, he can go anywhere in the world and

become a leader of people.  Learning

to be a fisherman is good leadership training.

Dominance at sea will require ships, including

submarines, that can go anywhere in the world. 

Korea is already

the largest shipbuilding country in the world.

It has the ability to become a great sea power.

What Korea need now is more people willing

to go out to sea.

Koreans are the descendants of Chang Bo Go,

that wealthy man of the ninth century who ran

an international maritime trading business and

was called "Ocean King."  We have a long tradition

of going out to sea on ships, fighting the waves,

and winning battles.

People naturally fear the waves. 

When waves catch the wind, they become swells.

Waves and swells are needed for oxygen to be mixed

into the sea.  If the ocean is calm

for an extended period, without wind or waves,

it begins to die.  When we realize the value of waves,

they are no longer something to be feared.  Even if

a strong wind blows and the waves become fearsome, we

understand that this is the way to help the fish live.

Then the waves become

part of the attraction of the sea.  A hundred feet

below the surface of the ocean there are no waves.  If

we were to take a submarine to the bottom of the ocean

it would be so cool that

there would be no need for air conditioners.  The fish

choose the depth that has the temperature that

is right for them and then perform wonderful dances

as they swim in schools in their favorite waters.

Similar to our Little Angels dance troupe

with their fans, the fish have their colorful outfits

and gently wave their fins.  It is a beautiful and

peaceful environment that they live in.

The world, too, will soon be as peaceful as this.

(Page 303)

The fact that an oceanic era is coming means that Korea

will soon have the opportunity to change the world. 

People who live in peninsula countries have had to

contend with invasions from both land and sea

throughout history.  To survive they had to be brave

and develop a steely national character. 

It is not by coincidence that civilization developed

in peninsula countries such as Greece and Italy. 

Civilization could blossom in these countries because

they had the enterprising and tough, adventurous spirit

needed to spread their influence across both continent

and sea.

Have you heard about the Black Stream, a boundary

current in the western part of the North Pacific Ocean?

It travels four thousands miles a year, based on the

gravitational pull of the moon.  It is an oceanic gyre

that revolves all the way around the Pacific Ocean. 

To describe it

simply as "tremendous" is not sufficient.

All the oceans of the world move by the same power

that moves the Black Stream and other ocean currents.

If these currents did not exist,

the waters would not move, and would die.  Just as

even the largest and mightiest rivers eventually must

flow into the sea, even the largest oceans must move

in accordance with currents like the Black Stream.

The Korean people must become like the Black Stream

and cause the flow of their peace-loving culture to

influence the whole world.  We must become a source of

strength in the world, the place where all of life's

forces come together in a peaceful concentration.

I have visited Korea's southern coast many times

in an effort to find the place that could become

the center of a Pacific civilization, and I believe

that Yeosu and Sooncheon are suited to the task.

The sea off the coast of Yeosu is as tranquil and

clear as a mirror.  It is where Admiral Yi Soon Shin

dealt the Japanese a heavy defeat in the late 1600's,

and it is also where he died in battle.  Yeosu has

a great history of sea battles, and it is also

the point where Youngnam and Honam regions meet.

(Page 304)

It is at the end of the foothills of Mount Jiri,

where leftists and rightists fought each other

following the Korean War.  In this sense, it is

a land imbued with the pain of our people.

Sooncheon Bay, famous for its reed beds,

has a beautiful and world-famous coastline.  Out

on the sea, with its clear waters

that shimmer in the sunlight, we can catch many

different types of fish.  Abalone and brown seaweed

grow in the tranquil waters of the bay. 

The large tidal flats are filled with cockles

and other types of shellfish and small octopus.

I have been out on the seas in that area

and also climbed the mountains, and it is clear

that this is a beautiful land that has everything

necessary for the coming Pacific age.

I am now developing Korea's southern coast, with

the focus on Yeosu.  As a part of the preparations

for this, I have been to Geomun Island

and other islands in the area and lived there for

several months.  I consider people who live there,

farming and fishing for the past several decades,

to be my teachers.

I ate and slept in humble inns as I studied

everything in detail.  I didn't just study books.

I went everywhere, using

my eyes and feet to check everything.  As a result,

I now know what kinds of fish can be found

in what area of the ocean, what kind of net needs to

be used to catch them, what kinds of trees grow

in the mountains, and which home on the island has

an old man living alone after having suffered a stroke.

(Page 305)

The day I finished my studies of the southern coast

I took the village mayor, who had been helping me,

on an airplane to Alaska.  He had taught me everything

he knew, so I wanted to return the favor by teaching

him what I knew about Alaska.  I went fishing with him

in Alaska and told him about the different kinds

of fish and how they can be caught. 

Even if I know only a little about something,

I don't feel comfortable unless I share it with others.

Very soon after I began developing Yeosu, it was chosen

as the venue for an international maritime exposition

to be held in 2012.  Together with the Olympic Games

and the World Cup, international expositions are among

the three largest festivals on a global scale.  During

the six months that Expo 2012 will be held in Yeosu,

the one-hundred-fifty-four member countries of the

International Expositions Bureau

will operate various exhibits.  This will focus

the world's attention on Yeosu, and the technology and

culture of developed countries will flow into Yeosu.

Have you ever looked up at a summer sky and seen clouds

blowing by at an amazing speed?  Once clouds catch

the wind, they move quickly over mountains and oceans. 

Now is not the time to be hesitating.  In a way

similar to those clouds, heavenly fortune will be

blowing the world toward Yeosu and the Korean peninsula.

I plan to connect

all the islands along the southern coast with bridges

and build condominiums where boat-loving people from

around the world can come and stay. These will not be

resorts just for play.  Americans, Germans, Japanese,

Brazilians, and Africans will all come.  They may go

out on different boat to catch fish,

but I will encourage them to stay under the same roof

to show that humanity is one family.

The coming era will also be one of aeronautics and

even space travel.  The time is coming when possessing

a well-developed aeronautic technology will be

an absolute necessity.  It will be too late for Korea

to prepare its space industry if it doesn't start now.

(Page 306)

For this reason,

I am preparing an aeronautic industrial park in Gimpo,

in Kyeonggi Province.  I plan to produce world-famous

helicopters as fine as Sikorsky.   

Soon the day will come when helicopters bearing the

Taeguk symbol of Korea will fly through the skies

all over the world.  (The Taeguk is the red and blue

symbol on the Korean flag.)

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

A Single Dandelion Is

More Precious than Gold

(Page 307)

Three of the greatest challenges of modern society

are solving pollution problems, creating

a consciousness for protecting the environment, and

increasing food production.

The earth has already been extensively damaged.

Our endless greed for material possessions

has brought about serious air and water pollution

that is destroying nature, including

the ozone layer that protects us.  If present trends

continue, humanity will find itself unable to escape

the consequences and traps of the wreckless pursuit

of material goods.

For the past twenty years, I have been working

to sustain Brazil's Pantanal region, The Pantanal--

a region that lies in Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay--

is the world's largest wetlands area.  It is listed

with UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. 

I am carrying on a worldwide environmental movement

to preserve the living creatures of the Pantanal in a

pristine state of natural purity, as God intended at

the time of creation.

The Pantanal, where

the water, land, animals, and plants exist in harmony,

is truly a magnificent place.  Simple words such as

beautiful and fantastic

cannot begin to describe its value.  Photos of the area

taken from the sky are so beautiful that a collection

of these photos is one of the best-selling nature photo

collections in the world.

(Page 308)

The Pantanal is one of humanity's treasure troves,

where rare species such as the white-throated capuchin,

red-howler monkey, macaw, jaguar, anaconda, the ostrich-

like rhea, and the caiman live.

The flora and fauna

of the Pantanal and the Amazon basin seem to exist as

they might have on the first morning of Creation.

The Pantanal is like a modern-day Eden.  Human beings

have destroyed a great many beings that God created.

Too many species of plants and animals have become

extinct because of human greed.  In the Pantanal, 

though, the original forms that God created still remain.

I am planning to establish an aviary

and an insect preserve in the Pantanal to save some of

these unique species from extinction.

In addition to being a habitat for many plants and

animals, the Pantanal is also an importatant source

of oxygen for the earth, and it is also a storehouse

to absorb greenhouse gases. 

The Pantanal is changing rapidly, however, due to

industrial development.  If the Pantanal, which

along with the Amazon provides such a large amount

of oxygen for the earth, is destroyed, the future

of humanity will be dismal.

Hundreds of species of fish live in the Pantanal. 

One is a gold-colored fish called the dorado, which

often reaches a weight of more than twenty-six kilos

(forty pounds).  When a dorado first took my hook,

it felt like my body was being sucked into the river.

As I reeled in the line with all my strength, it jumped

out of the water several times.  After several jumps it

still had plenty of strength left to fight.  It was so

strong it seemed more like a bear or a tiger than a fish.

(Page 309)

The lakes in Pantanalare almost always clean. 

No matter what is put into the water, it quickly becomes

clean again.  The water is cleansed quickly because

the wetland environment filters

sediments and pollutants, and this is why there are

so many species of fish living there. 

Each species feeds on something different. 

Living together in a complex system they also devour

organic wastes the dirty the water.  Even their act

of feeding has the function of keeping the water pure.

In this respect, fish are very different from

human beings because they never live for their own

sakes, but as part of a larger balanced system.

They help clean their environment and make it better.

The back of a water hyacinth's leaf in the Pantanal

wetlands is black with bugs.  If all the bugs would

remain there, the hyacinth would not be able to live,

but there are fish that eat those bugs off the leaves.

So the bugs live, the hyacinth lives and the fish live.

That is what nature is like.  No creature lives for

itself.  Instead, they live for each other.  Nature

teaches us this tremendous lesson.

No matter how many fish there are in the Pantanal,

if people are given the freedom to fish there,

the population is bound to decrease. 

To protect the fish we need to develop fish farms.

Because the fish in the Pantanal are so precious,

we need to develop many fish farms.

Similar facilities to protect insects, birds and

mammals are also needed.  Raising insects will help

increase the bird population. 

The Pantanal provides a perfect environment for all

these creatures, and by focusing on how to increase

their population humankind can continue to enjoy them

for centuries to come.

It is not just fish that are plentiful in the Pantanal.

The riverbanks have pinapples, banana trees and mango

trees.  Rice grows so well there that it is possible

to have three harvests a year, even without irrigated

fields.  That's ow rich the soil is.  Crops such as

beans and corn can be grown just by spreading the seeds

over the ground.  Very little human labor is needed.

(Page 310)

Once while taveling down the Paraguay River on a boat,

we stopped at a house sitting near a bank. 

The farmer who lived there realized that we were hungry,

so he went into his field and dug up a sweet potato.

It was the size of a watermelon!  He told us that

as long as he leaves the root in the ground

it will continue to produce potatoes for several years.

The thought that potatoes can be harvested without

annual planting left me with a strong desire

to take them to countries where food is lacking.

People who advocate developing wetlands stress the

economic benefits of such developments.  The Pantanal,

however, provides plenty of economic benefit just

as a wetland.  The area has vast tracts of virgin

hardwood forest, and natives claim that a person could

drive a spike into one of those trees and it will still

live more than a hundred years.  These massive trees

produce woods such as brown ebony which do not rot

and are said to last longer than iron.

Imagine what it look like to have forests

with such precious trees.  I had some seedling of these

trees planted on four hundred hectares (nine hundred eighty-

eight acres) on land in the Pantanal.  The trees our members

planted have made the Pantanal even more beautiful.

Human selfishness is destroying nature.  Competition for

the shortest route to economic success is the main reason

that the earth's environment has been damaged. 

We cannot allow the earth to be damaged any further. 

Religious people must lead the way in the effort to save

nature.  Nature is God's creation and His gift

to humankind.  We must work quickly to awaken people

to the preciousness of nature and the urgent need

to restore it to the rich and free state it enjoyed

at the time of Creation.

Because it has become widely known that the Pantanal is

a treaure trove, a struggle over its future has begun. 

The place that we should be protecting is about to become

a battlefield for greedy human beings.

(Page 311)

For the past ten years, I have been taking leaders

from countries around the world to the Pantanal and

sponsoring discussions on how to protectthis region and

the rest of the world's environment.  I am gathering

the world's environmental experts and scholars

and encouraging them to take an interest in preserving

the Pantanal.  I am working to stop the Pantanal from

being destroyed by merciless material desires of

human beings.

As the environment issues grow more serious, many

environmental groups have sprung up.

The best environmental movement, however, is the one

that spreads love.

People generally take care of things that belong to them

or people they love.  They do not, however, take care

of or love the natural environment that God created. 

God gave this environment to humanity.  It is His will

that we use the environment to obtain food, to have it

in abundance, and to experience the joy of living

in the beauty of nature.  Nature is not something

to be used once and thrown away.  Our descendants for

many generations to come must be able to rely on it

just as we have.

The shortcut to protecting nature

is to develop a heart that loves nature.  We must be able

to shed a tear at the sight of even a blade of grass that

we see as we walk along the road.  We must be able

to grab hold of a tree and weep.  We must understand

that God's Spirit is hidden inside a single boulder or

a single gust of wind. 

To care for and love the environment is to love God.

We must be able to see each creature created by God

as an object of our love. 

With our spiritual eyes opened we could see that

a single dandelion by the roadside is more valuable

than gold crowned of kings.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

Solution to

Poverty and Hunger

(Page 312)

If you are never hungry, you cannot know God. 

The times when you are hungry are opportunities to be

nearest to God.

When you are hungry and able to look humbly at each

approaching person as if he were a close family member

and want to help him,

then you are more likely to be fed.  In such situations,

it is important

to maintain a sympathetic heart for goodness.

Hunger is not an issue

relegated to less-developed areas of the world.  Even in

the United States, which enjoys one of the highest

standards of living in the world, there are millions

of people who are undernourished and hungry. 

When I went to the United States, one of my first

projects was to purchase trucks to be used for the

distribution of food to the poor.

The situation in impoverished countries is far worse.

When I look at the world situation, I feel that

securing sufficient food supplies is the most pressing

problem.  Solving the food crisis cannot be put off

for even a moment.  Even now, some twenty thousand

people around the world die of hunger-related causes

every day.  We cannot afford to be apathetic

just because we and our immediate families are not

facing hunger.

(Page 313)

Simply distributing food supplies by itself will not

resolve hunger, though. 

A more fundamental approach to the problem is needed. 

I am considering two fundamental and concerete methods.

The first is to provide ample supplies of food at low

cost.  The second is to share technology that people

can use to overcome hunger on their own.

The issue of food will present humankind with a very

serious crisis in the future.  We cannot build a world

of peace without first resolving the food issue. 

Sufficient food supplies for all the world's population

cannot be produced on the limited amount of land area

that is currently available. 

We must look to the oceans for a solution.  The oceans

hold the key to solving the food crisis in the future.

This is the reason I have been pioneering the oceans

for the past several decades.

In Alaska pollack smaller than fifteen inches long

are used for fertilizer.  They would make wonderful food,

but people don't know how to prepare them so they use them

just for fertilizer.  As recently as twenty or thirty

years ago, we could ask Westerners to give us the tail

of an ox and they would let us have it for free. 

Koreans are very fond of food prepared with the bones

or intestines of cows, but some Westerners do not know

that these are edible.

The same is true with fish.  About twenty percent

of the world's fish catch is routinely thrown out. 

Whenever I see this, I think of the people who are dying

of hunger, and I feel pain.  Fish is a much more reliable

source of protein than beef.  How wonderful it would be

if we made fishcakes or fish sausages to give to people

in impoverished lands!

Once this thought came to me, I started projects to

process and store large volumes of fish.  It does not

do any good to catch large amounts of fish if you cannot

handle them properly after the catch.  Even the best fish

cannot be kept well for more than eight months. 

Even if they are frozen and placed in refrigeration, air

gets in through the cracks in the ice, and water escapes.

(Page 314)

You could pour water on the fish and freeze them again,

but by then the best flavor is already gone and the fish

might as well be thrown out.

We gathered fish that were being thrown out and

researched how to turn it into fish powder.  We sought

to do something that even advanced countries like France

and Germany have not done.  Fish turned into powder

could be transported and stored easily, even in hot and

humid climates.  Fish powder is ninety-eight percent

protein, among the very highest protein content

of all food products.  For this reason it can be used

to save people from dying of hunger.  Fish powder could

also be used to make bread.  We are still searching

for ways to make it available to impoverished countries

around the world.

The oceans contain limitless food supplies, but the best

method for saving humanity from the food crisis is

fish farming.  I foresee that there will be buildings,

similar to the skyscrapers we see in our cities today,

devoted to fish farming.  By using water pipe systems,

we can farm fish in tall buildings or even on the tops

of mountains.  With fish farming we can produce more than

enough food to feed all the world's people.

The ocean is a blessing bequeathed to us by God.

When I go out on the ocean,

I am completely absorbed in fishing.  I have caught

all kinds of fish in different countries.  One reason

I fish is so I can teach

people who don't know how to fish.  In South America

I spent several months showing local people my fishing

methods.  I took in tangled fishnets myself and spent

three or four hours showing them how to untangle them.

To secure adequate supplies of food at low cost,

humankind will need to develop the ocean.  This and

the great grasslands that are still in their

prehistoric state are our final storehouses of wealth.

(Page 315)

This task, though, will not be easy.  It will

require us to go to places that are so hot and humid

that moving around and working hard with a strong sense

of dedication become very difficult.  Developing the

grasslands in tropical regions cannot be done without

a love for humankind that is passionate and dedicated.

Jardim, in Brazil, is just such a place.  It is a quite

difficult place to live in.  The weather is hot, and bugs

that have not even been named yet are continually biting. 

I lived in that place and made friends with all its

various creatures.  I walked around barefooted, feeling

the red soil of Jardim beneath my feet, I looked like

the local fishermen.

It is only when the local people look at you and say,

"You really are a farmer," or "You really are a fisherman," 

that you are qualified to receive their knowledge and

share your own knowledge with them.

It is not something that can be done by someone

who needs to sleep eight hours a night in a clean and

comfortable bed, eat three square meals a day, and

take naps under a shady tree.

When we were developing a project in Paraguay,

a group of our members and I were living in a small hut

in Olimpo, close to the Paraguay River. 

There was only one toilet, and each morning we had to

take turns using it.  I would get up each morning

at three o'clock, do some exercises, and then go fishing.

Because of this, the members who were with me

went through some very difficult times.  They were not

used to cutting bait

early in the morning before they were completely awake.

When we took the boat out,

we had to cross through a number of other properties

in order to reach the mooring site.  Unlocking the gates

to these properties in pitch darkness was difficult.

One morning when the members were fumbling with a lock,

unable to open it, I yelled at them,

"What are you doing?!"  I shouted so loudly and fiercely

that I surprised even myself,

so I am sure it must have been difficult for them.

(Page 316)

But I feel that I cannot afford to waste so much as

a single second.  I don't have any time

to be idly standing around.  I can clearly see a list

of all the things I must accomplish before there can be

a world of peace, so my heart is always in a hurry.

When I fished there on the river before dawn,

the mosquitoes would swarm like a dark cloud.  Their

stingers were so sharp they would pierce through

a pair of jeans.  In the predawn darkness we could not

see the floats on our fishing lines, so we had to

attach white plastic bags to them.  I could not wait

for the sun to come up.  I was in too much of a hurry.

I still miss Jardim.  I miss everything about it. 

When I close my eyes, I can still feel the heat

of Jardim air pressing against my face.  The minor

inconveniences to my body were nothing.  Bodily suffering

passes quickly.  What is important is that this place

can one day play a significant role in serving the world.

Being in Jardim brought great happiness to my heart.

(CHAPTER SEVEN)

Going Beyond Charity

to End Hunger

(Page 317)

To solve the problem of hunger we must

have a patient heart that is willing to plant seeds.

Seeds are planted and wait unseen under the soil until

they are able to germinate

and break through their outer cover.  Similarly, it is

better in the long run to teach a person how to plant and

harvest wheat and then turn it into bread than it is

 to give a piece of bread to a person who is about to die.

The former may be more difficult and not result in

as much public recognition, but it is the only way

to arrive at a fundamental and sustainable solution to

world hunger.  We need to begin now

to study the climate, the soil and the character of

the people in areas that suffer from hunger.

There is a species of tree called the moringa. 

The people in Congo feed the leaves of this tree, which

are high in nutrition, to their children to supplement

their diet.  They also feed them to their cattle to

fatten them up before taking them to market. 

They pound the leaves of this tree on a stone mill,

add some oil, and fry them in batter to eat themselves.

It may be a good idea to plant many moringa trees

and make powder out of the entire tree

after throwing out the root, which is poisonous.

The powder can be used to make bread.  Many countries

could follow this example and plant moringa trees.  Also

Jerusalem artichokes, which look like sweet potatoes,

grow very quickly once they are planted in the soil.

(Page 318)

The amount that can be harvested is three times greater

than that of other famine relief crops.  Planting a lot

of Jerusalem artichokes is another way to contribute to

resolving the hunger problem.

In Jardim, a large earthworm is used in farming, and

this makes the soil quite fertile.  This earthworm

exists only in South America, but perhaps we can

study its ecology and use it to help agriculture in

other areas.  Koreans are working in the Mato Grosso

region to study silkworms.  If the cultivation of

silkworms is successful there, it will be possible

to make silk cheaply and sell it to buy food.

There is no quick fix to the problem of world hunger.

People in each country have different tastes for food

and different customs, and the plants and animals are

different.  The important point is

concern for our neighbors.  We first need to develop

the heart that, when we are eating enough to fill our

own stomachs, we think of others who are going hungry

and consider how we can help them.  True peace will not

come as long as humanity does not solve the problem

of hunger.  If the person next to me

is about to die of hunger, peace is a mere luxury.

It is as important to teach the skills

needed to become self-sufficient in producing food

as it is to distribute food directly to those in need.

To teach such skills, we need to build schools

in remote areas to combat illiteracy.  Technical schools

will need to be established in order to give people

the ability to support themselves.  The Westerners

who conquered Africa and South America did not do

enough to provide technology to the people who were

already there.  They only used the people as laborers

as they sought to dig up and take away the resources

that were buried in the ground.  They did not teach

the people how to farm or how to operate a factory. 

This was not right.  Our church has,

from the early stage of our foreign mission work, 

established schools in places such as the Congo

for teaching agriculture and industrial technology.

(Page 319)

Another problem faced by people suffering from hunger

is they cannot afford proper medical treatment

when they become ill.  On the other side of the world,

developed countries are seeing an overuse of drugs, but

people who are hungry often die because they cannot afford

simple medicine for diarrhea.  Therefore, as we work

to eradicate hunger we must also provide medical support.

We must establish clinics

 and care for those who suffer from chronic illness.

For example, centering on the New Hope Farms

in Jardim, Brazil, I donated ambulances and medical

equipment to over thirty surrounding small towns. 

I created the New Hope Farm as a model to show how

humanity can live together in peace.  We tilled a wide

expanse of land to make farmland,

and there is a cattle ranch in the higher elevations.

Although New Hope Farms is in Brazil, it does not

belong only to the people of Brazil.  Anyone who is

hungry can go to New Hope Farms, work and be fed. 

Some two thousand people from all races and from

all over the world can always eat and sleep there. 

We will establish schools

all the way from elementary levels to university.

People will be taught how to farm and

how to raise cattle.  We will also teach how to plant

and raise trees and how to catch, process, and sell fish. 

We do not have only a farm. 

We use the numerous lakes in the vicinity of the river

to create fish farms and fishing grounds.

Paraguay's Chaco region occupies sixty percent

of that country's territory,

but it has been a neglected land.  The Chaco region

was formed when the sea rose to cover the land, and

even now you get salty water gushing up when you dig

into the ground.  I was in my seventies when I first

went to Paraguay.  The lives of the people living in

this long-neglected land were impoverished beyond words.

It caused me great pain in my heart to see them.

I sincerely wanted to help them, but they were not

prepared to eaily accept me, a person of different

skin color who spoke a different language.

(Page 320)

I did not give up, however.  I traveled the Paraguay

River for three months, eating and sleeping with people

from the area.  At more than seventy years of age,

I was taking on a task that people said was impossible.

I taught the people I met what I know about fishing,

and they taught me their language.  We were on the boat

like this together for three months and became friends.

Once they began to open their hearts, I talked to them

again and again about why the world must become one.

At first, their reaction was indifferent.  Year by year,

though, the people of Paraguay began to change.

After ten years, they changed so much that they held

  a global peace festival with great enthusiasm.

Resolving the food situation does not mean that peace

will follow immediately.  After the hunger issue 

has been resolved, it is important to carry out

education programs on peace and love.  I have built

schools in places such as Jardim and Chaco.  At first

people didn't send their children to school but instead

had them help raise their cattle. We worked hard to

convince them that the children and young people needed

an education.  As a result, we now have many students. 

We built a light industrial factory where they could

produce items using simple technologies, and

the students became more interested in attending school

so that they could work in the factory.

We are all responsible for the people around the world

who die of hunger.  We need to take action to help them.

We need to feel a clear sense of responsibility and

find a way that they can be fed and saved.  People who

live well should come down to a slightly lower position

and raise up those who live poorly, to bring about

a world where all people live well.

(end of Chapter Seven)