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Preface
The minute I held this book, the thought, "It's so precious" took precedence over any feeling of regret because of its late publication. What would be the reason?
A lack of prudence to that extent? No. It is because the content of the word is so precious that we feel relieved in yet another aspect to say "Now we live."
That's right. This word truly is the torch of life that can remove the darkness. What's more, it is the true bread for all of us that can make us forget our fatigue in all circumstances and that can appease our hunger and let us restore our physical strength.
The life course of Teacher Sun Myung Moon shows too many great accomplishments to even count and yet it is, on the other hand, marked with a thorny path which is ghastly.
However, there is no doubt that the Teacher is our religious leader who is living with this generation and is the guide for all humanity. That is merely due to an illusion that any generation is unable to rightly recognize a great man.
The Teacher was born in 1920 in Chung-ju, Pyong-ahn bukdo Province, Korea, received heaven's calling when young and, after passing through the endless spiritual exercise and the numerous paths of suffering while growing up, is working today for the sake of humanity in the aspects of religion and culture and in the field of public welfare. He is an elder who is making strenuous efforts after taking on the work of saving humanity as his own responsibility and duty.
The Teacher delivered so many precious words. All those words are like gold and gemstones.
In the past, people would read the words or they heard them on audio-tapes. But these publications are limited in their effect; they quench the thirst from time to time. It is because they were either mere fragments or selected pieces of translation.
Accordingly, to publish a completed work has been the plan from the beginning. This aim has been a burden on the minds of the people in charge.
However, now that we have made a beginning of that publishing today, though it has been long delayed owing to its being such a voluminous work and that our system is inadequate, is a great delight matter despite some belated regret. I sincerely wish that readers fully appreciate this volume and the people who rendered utmost care to make it a precious treasure for eternity. I feel again ashamed before the Teacher for this volume being published so late.
Finally, I'd like to show my deepest appreciation for the efforts of the transcribers who listened to the old audio tapes, that are almost inaudible, and connected the words to make sense.
Jae-Suk Lee
President, H.S.A.-U.W.C. of Korea
June 21, 1984
Go to Table of Contents
Preface to the English Translation
We are pleased and humbled to carry on the process of translation into English of the collected sermons of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. This and the 200 succeeding volumes represent the core of the messianic thought which will bring the world to peace, freedom and happiness in our time. Although not recognized yet by the great and powerful of this world, these words of Reverend Moon's are the bedrock of God's eternal kingdom on earth, and will serve as the original point and center of true human understanding.
I make this tremendous claim with fear and trembling, because it is not the work of human beings but the work of God through His Word which will bring it to pass. Nonetheless, God allows us to resurrect ourselves as His sons and daughters by our participation in this great task. From the perspective of our contribution, we are sorrowful and repentant. But from the perspective of the glory of the Word which calls us, we are strong and triumphant.
There are uncountable inspirations which you will find in the words of this volume, but for the purpose of this preface I would like to highlight three of them.
The first is the further revelation of the deep oneness of Sun Myung Moon with Jesus Christ and the Christian path of sainthood and martyrdom. Even at this late hour, Christian leaders have not faced the fact that Reverend Moon's lifelong ministry began not of his own doing but by the personal call of their own Lord, Jesus Christ. It was Jesus himself, not an angel or passed-away saint, who called the Reverend Moon early in his life. And the call was not that the young man serve as an evangelist, or a theologian, or a missionary. Jesus called him to complete the messianic mission on the earth, that is, to inherit Jesus' own earthly mission which was cut short at the cross.
The depth of Reverend Moon's penetration into the heart and bone marrow of Jesus, which resulted from his total dedication to Jesus' call, is revealed in these speeches. Breathing through Reverend Moon's words is the living spirit of Jesus, who out of absolute love sacrificed his tortured life for sinful humanity. His message is not a rehearsal of traditional Christian themes. These words are spoken as if from the cross itself.
The second point brought forth in this volume is the consistency of these teachings with the entirety of Reverend Moon's fifty years of thought and ministry. Again, this is a sign of the perfection of the truth which he speaks. It is evidence that his words are not those of an individual minister, but are those of the Heavenly Father who has been waiting to disclose the fullness of His love and totality of His story.
Reverend Moon's theology is not the result of formal education, but of his day to day life of perfect attendance to God and to all people. And yet, these words capture the deepest essence of the eternal gospel, the essential Jewish and Christian truth. It is brilliantly consistent with the mainstream of Christian thought as, at the same time, it carries this thought forward to its fulfillment (John 16). The truth does not change, and the thoughtful reader will sense the one truth of God in these pages.
My third point is based upon my first meeting with Reverend Moon in 1957. Please do not even imagine that it was easy for him to deliver these sermons, that he was just receiving messages from God or the spirit world in a relaxed way. Reverend Moon delivered these sermons with incredible investment of blood, sweat and tears to save the people and liberate God. I remember his clothes completely soaked with sweat as he poured out his very heart and soul to us humble young members. To receive this priceless treasure of God's truth, the reader also must invest his complete heart and soul. You cannot appreciate the value in this book if you approach it with an easy relaxed attitude.
We pray that as the volumes of this series gradually appear, the foundation to receive them will expand, until the Christian world, the worlds of all faiths, and the hearts of all people are reborn into the Age of the Completed Testament.
The Unification Church Committee for the Compilation of the Sermons of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon in Seoul, Korea, has done a monumental task in producing Reverend Moon's sermons. Now we in the United States are undertaking an equally monumental task to translate them into English. I would like to express my gratitude to the translators and producers of this historical volume, and encourage the reader to feel him or herself to be a part of this vital project.
Reverend Joong Hyun Pak
Continental Director
Unification Church of North America
June 21, 1996
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