Belvedere, Tarrytown, NY
Translator: Bo Hi Pak
When we speak of the providence or dispensation we are not referring to man-centered activities; we are talking about a God-centered plan or schedule. We can see two kinds of people living in the world, those who say there is no God and those who say there is a God. Imagine some kind of creatures on earth who would debate among themselves about the existence of man, some saying, "Yes, there are men on earth with us," and others saying no. As humans looking at those creatures, you would say, "Aren't you stupid debating whether we exist! We are here."
In the same way, there is a God and a spirit world. What would they say to men who are debating their existence? We must realize that on this planet there are many people whom God has no way to deal with. There are some people who deny God, some who say there is a possibility of His existence, and some who insist that there is a God. Proportionally, those who say there is no God are in the majority. Even agnostics are a smaller percentage, and those who insist there is a God are utterly in the minority.
Those who admit the possibility of God and those who believe in God are further divided into different religious spheres. Of all those people, the Unification Church is the smallest minority of all. If we classify all these people according to the intensity of their belief in God, where would the Unification Church belong? You say we would be number one, but what would other people say? Many august elders and deacons would intone that they are sure there is a God, sounding as if they had personally seen God. The tendency of most religious people is to start out with conviction but lose their certainty year by year.
God, the absolute reality of existence, needs someone here on earth to work with. What kind of champion does He need? One person may start with vital, living faith but then sink down, while another person may start with an obscure faith but grow in his conviction and burning zeal. Which kind does God need? There is another classification-the person who has a fun-loving faith, and the person who has a serious faith and asks God what He needs him to do. Which kind does God need?
Which group do you belong to? Can you prove that you are the second kind simply because you gathered together at 6 a.m.? Can you show to God and other people that you are the second kind? Even though man has recorded only several thousand years of history, God's investment for human salvation is actually millions of years long. God has been known as Almighty God and has worked for man many millions of years, and yet the majority of people still don't even recognize His existence. If after working for so long the end result is still like this, how would you feel? Does God sound very successful?
Common sense would say He is a failure, and ask why the omnipotent God has accomplished so little with man all these millions of years. This is a big question and because of it many people conclude that there could be no such thing as a God Almighty. Some religions know the God of law, but don't really know the God of existence and reality. Christianity is supposed to be the highest religion in terms of understanding God because it talks about a personal God of heart and emotion. Yet even Christians today are often not so sure about God. God placed His best hope in Christians, yet they are not so sure of His presence.
This is the reality of the twentieth century into which the Unification Church has emerged. Someone must defend this God who is seemingly helpless, and explain to the world why God looks like that. The Unification Church is great in this respect, for we are God's defense counsel and can give a clear, convincing explanation of why Almighty God appears so helpless. It is because God's dispensation needs man's participation and cooperation. Men must be the foremost soldiers in order to fulfill God's dispensation, and no matter what God does well, His will appears unsuccessful as long as men fail.
Religions have always explained God as though He were a locomotive pulling everyone and all religious people had to do was get on the train. But we can see that men are the locomotive and that God is the fire pushing from inside. God is waiting for the one day when the entire world is pulled by the locomotive of the Unification Church. How do you like that idea?
Some people might wonder how we could know that this is more than just my own assertion. Christians might scoff at the thirty years of Unification Church history in comparison with the 2,000 year old traditions of Christianity, and ask what we could possibly know about God. Yet look at the athletes who win gold medals in the Olympics; it's always the younger athletes who win, not the old timers. The new world records are always set by younger people. That's the trend.
The Renaissance began the trend of human thinking which in effect kicked God out of the universe; men wanted to feel that they didn't need God. Now five hundred years later we can see that from Satan's point of view that trend was very successful in chasing God out of the world. Today people are trying to oust religion altogether. Those people who believed in God used to have great dignity, but now their voices are smaller and smaller and they are practically a helpless minority. Things are totally upside down. Christianity has been backed into a corner by the ungodly ideology of Communism, which sneers, "Show me God and then I will believe." But Christians have no way to show God because they are not sure themselves.
Communists are completely confident they can take over churches and use them as their tools. They send their young people to the churches and even make many contributions; as a result, the churches are like greenhouses for the Communist infiltration. The Christian churches have thus become a stage for the people who don't really believe in God. You have heard of the "God is dead" theology; this has entered the mainstream of Christianity. The Christians who follow such leaders like little lambs are greatly confused now, and turn to God, asking, "Where are You, God? Answer me. I am helpless." But there seems to be no answer. Meanwhile the God-denying people appear to be showing a great deal of confidence and enthusiasm, talking about utopia and heaven on earth.
As a result, all of Western civilization is rapidly crumbling. Who is helping to accelerate that decline? The America that you love the most is spearheading that decline. What will be the end result? Where will that civilization eventually land-in a flower garden, or dashed on rocks? It will be shattered into pieces. While God-denying people are running rampant, dominating more and more of the world, there is one little brake trying to stop that crumbling world. That is the Unification Church. Does the power of that brake have to be greater or weaker than the power of the tumbling world? Even if the entire world says there is no God, we have to be 100% committed, not just 99%. This trend cannot be reversed otherwise. We know that there is only one solution to save this crumbling world, and that is to be stronger than the force which is causing it to crumble.
With that kind of understanding, heat and fire will be generated when we apply the brakes. Not only will sparks fly, but all kinds of struggles and strange phenomena will begin there, such as parents kidnapping their own children, insisting they cannot go in this direction. When your conviction is strong and you apply the brakes hard, sparks will really fly. When we insist that powers like Congress and the Presidency must stop and turn around, they come upon us, saying, "There is no God. Show us God." We reply, "Stop right there and we will show you God."
I am willing to bet that 90% of you who are drivers don't even know what a brake looks like. The brake pedal isn't the brake; it is only a signal to the brake, which is hidden in the wheel. The Unification Church is a brake to the world and the world can't see us too well. Some people are sometimes fearful because they feel that the brake is affecting them when they feel its heat and see all the controversy start, but that's a healthy sign that we might turn this world in the right direction.
To prevent accidents you need a sensible driver, good brakes and a good steering wheel. We are behind the wheel and because we know the right direction to drive in we will never relinquish it. There are two kinds of drivers here -- those who think about nothing but the goal, and others who are distracted by all kinds of attractions, like Christmas or the girl they used to date. In the meantime, the car is swerving all over the road. Are your eyes focused on the goal or are they looking elsewhere?
If you are a brake and I push the pedal will you stop the car? New York is a desolate city and it needs to be turned upside down and then right-side up. If you really want to turn America upside down, should you work in the West or South or here in New York? If you really want to influence this country do you need to apply the brake to the laborers or welfare people, or to the leaders and educated people? You know the answer.
"America" sounds like "a merry car," and it is like a good looking 1979 Lincoln Continental, but the driver is drunk and the brakes are broken and the steering wheel doesn't work. What can you expect from that car? Nothing but accidents. If that car drives over the cliff, tumbling over and over and bursting into flames, the entire world will be amazed. This is the critical moment; the world is watching America and anticipating that the fancy Lincoln will have trouble. Someone must take it to the garage and wake the driver up. The driver needs a shock treatment and we must take emergency measures.
The moment you understood Divine Principle you received a shock that woke you up. When you turn around and go in the direction opposite your accustomed way of life, you find that everything is different. Formerly when you were hungry you went to eat, but here you just keep on working. When you became tired you took a nap in the good old days, but now you cannot rest just any time. Why is that? Because we realize that we need to be brakes for America and the world, and if the brake is weak and vulnerable, there is no hope it can do the job.
No steering wheel has complete freedom; it has to be responsive and direct the car. Is a superhighway smooth and well laid-out, or is it a crooked, unmarked mountain road? When you are driving on crooked mountain roads how can the wheels be allowed to go in different directions? When you go to Disneyland and ride the roller coaster, you have to pay 100% attention or you will be thrown out. At that moment there is no division in your mind; you are thinking of one thing-survival. Is anyone likely to try to win the dozing championship when he is riding on a roller coaster? Even a dozing champion will be wide awake and holding on tight because he knows if he slips he will end up in spirit world. People who are wide awake will give their 100% attention during the ride and enjoy the ups and downs.
The Unification Church is like a roller coaster trying to wake up every dozing passenger. Are you a dozing passenger, or are you concentrating 100% and enjoying the tour? Do you know what an incredible roller coaster this is?
There are always speed limit signs and radar on the highways and I don't like that at all. I would like to see signs that say to go as fast as you want. When I am driving on the highway I always wish I could fly. I really enjoy take-offs on a jet, with the engines roaring and ready to go, but some planes hesitate and bump around and don't want to fly. I don't like that. What kind of plane would you like?
God is the same way, and since you are the same, we are all alike. Do you think God would like to play sometimes? Where would He go, riding on an airplane or riding on man? Would man like to have God come on his back? God is quite old and heavy, you know. Would you say, "God, You are light as a feather; I can fly with You"? When you really love God you can travel easily as though carrying a feather. If you really love God you must feel that.
What kind of man is God looking to ride upon? One who wants to lay down and go to sleep, or one who is enthusiastic and ready for an enjoyable trip? Belvedere is like Cape Kennedy and everyone is sitting on a launching pad. Is the moment of take-off a moment to sleep or to be wide awake? There are some people who have come many weeks to Belvedere and are still waiting, so they think it will never happen. Who knows what the moment may be? Some people are still sleeping, and if the take-off suddenly comes they will end up in disaster, not on the moon.
Look at the people around you. I can see your expressions clearly. Some women have the expression, "Don't bother about me." Others have the expression, "I'm going to sleep anyway." If this is the moment for lift-off and God looks down and sees you dozing, He knows for sure that even if He pushes the button that the missile will never take off but will fall apart. What do you think He would do in that case -- go ahead anyway, or do something to wake that person up?
If God wakes you up but sees that there is still no hope, He will take off without you. Will He leave the blessing behind for you or find a new launching pad? Of course you get physically tired, but in that case do you just sleep, or do you tell God, "I need a few minutes now. I'm going to tie You to me so You won't take off without me while I rest." Whether God says yes or no makes no difference; at least you reported to Him. If that is the case then you have already set the condition and even though God may want to leave He will not punish you by leaving; He will come back later. Will you just doze without saying anything to God, or give your apologies to Him? If you need to doze, just say so out loud and then sleep.
You know that according to the law of indemnity you must set a condition for salvation, so do something about it. If your body doesn't obey you then set the condition that at least your finger is awake. Bite your tongue, or hit yourself, or hold your hair in such a way that when you start to slump you will pull it and wake yourself up. At least you can help that much. Everything is conditional.
For example, you may be so busy with the crusade that when you come in at night you just go to bed and sleep without taking off your jacket. Sometimes you just cannot sleep with your clothes on but you want to set the condition, so you keep one sock on or sleep with one leg outside the blanket. I want you to know that God has a great sense of humor and when He sees that you want to set a condition by telling Him you will sleep with one leg out, He will smile and shake His head and think you are cute. One kind of person will think, "Oh, so what?" and say to God, "Just don't look at me. I'm going to sleep. " That is no good. But when you act very cute with God, it works because God enjoys a sense of humor very much.
It's very important to set the condition of indemnity, even though in some cases it looks charming and cute from God's point of view. Just do something to excuse yourself before God. That's not evasion. If one morning you just can't get up and you say, "God, please excuse me this one time. You know I am not like this normally. I am always running, but just now I can't," your sincere heart will be accepted by God. Sometimes you are given a mission in which you just can't bring the full achievement. Then you have to do something to allow God to look at you and say, "My boy, you are good and I love you. Even though you failed your mission, I still love you."
I have drawn a chart here according to the Divine Principle standard. There are many of you who are below that standard, having made several blunders here and there. But sometimes you set a little condition and when God looks at it He forgets everything else. That's God's parental heart.
What God doesn't like is the person who is lukewarm and has no determination. That person seems dead twelve months out of the year. This is why Revelations says to be either hot or cold but not lukewarm, for that is the hopeless state. When I am preparing to go somewhere I don't like everyone to go out after I do, waiting until I come downstairs. I like to see everyone come out first and take off before me.
What kind of man would you American women want, lukewarm, hot or cold? If you only like hot then you are lopsided. You should appreciate hot and cold together. I understand the reason you say "hot dog;" a wiener is only tasty when it is hot. What kind of drink would you want, lukewarm, hot or cold? I want to give the sisters some good advice. Want a man who is sometimes hot and sometimes cold. If he were hot all the time you couldn't stand it. In the winter you want a hot drink but in the summer you want a cold drink. Usually when you go out in the cold it becomes uncomfortable, but I am working so hard that when I go out into the cold it is very comfortable.
If a husband and wife are always with each other, saying, "Good morning, darling, how are you?" their life becomes routine. Sometimes it's good to speak strongly. I have asked American women an unusual question, "Have you had the experience of being spanked by your husband?" and they said no. Well, there's a certain taste to it. You say that if your husband touched you like that you would get a divorce. However, life must be balanced and that's what makes it beautiful. In a song there are high notes and low notes and it's the balance of the two that creates the beauty. Married life is like the weather. There are warm days, cold days, rainy days and sunny days. If every day is sunny you can't appreciate it, but after a rainy or cloudy day you see the sun again and feel absolutely gorgeous.
God is like that. God is hot and cold, gigantic and calm, rough and smooth. Work is also like that. If you work 24 hours, that doesn't mean you should do things mechanically. I would like to see rhythm in your work. Some days are calm and quiet, while other times there is a very tense moment when you have a tough discussion about Divine Principle. But all that is followed by coming home, singing and enjoying a gay moment. Sometimes you feel so intoxicated by the love of God that you walk like a drunk person. Then people will say, "I didn't know the Moonies drank so much."
Already an hour and a half have passed although it doesn't seem that long. Shall we continue for five more minutes? Aren't you hungry? We have a broad topic today and I could go on for hours and hours.
The situation of the free world and the Communist world has come to an explosive breaking point today. Religion also has come to a dead end. The situation looks like the ocean because on top you think it is quiet and still, but actually underneath there is a great deal of movement and activity. Suppose that the ocean remained still and stagnant for years and years; then it would become corrupted and dirty. When there is a deadlock, some kind of change must occur and a wind or typhoon is needed to turn everything around. This world is like stagnated water and needs some kind of fresh wind. It needs something that will cause a changeover.
There are breezy, very comfortable winds, but the wind can also become angry and fierce like a powerful tornado. When people meet Unification Church members they feel they have experienced a pleasant, breezy wind. Sometimes, because of what people have heard about us, they feel we are monsters, but after meeting you a question comes to their minds: "How could these nice people create such controversy? It's impossible. These people are good."
As individuals we are breezy, pleasant winds; however, when we get together we become like a hurricane or typhoon simply because there is no other way to get the attention of the world. The world needs a heavy wind to turn it upside down and right side up. This is why we did the Yankee Stadium and Washington Monument rallies. After a hard campaign for Yankee Stadium, the rain and storm came down and everything was torn apart, but our Moonies kept singing and shouting. At that moment God was ecstatically dancing. He was the conductor who actually sent that storm, trying to see how the Moonies would react. But there was no panic because the Moonies were following His conducting, jumping, singing and shouting. God could say, "I have good children out there."
Unification Church members are not warmongers but are most peaceful people, so we wait until the last. There is no other champion to go against Goliath, however, so David must go out and fight. That's the Unification Church. For example, let's consider the problem of degradation of the American youth. I wanted to have someone else solve that problem, like Billy Graham or Oral Roberts or Pope John Paul II. But there seems to be no one capable of coping with it so the Unification Church must step forward. It's the same with Christianity. I wanted to have someone else revive it but no one else is doing it so we must step forward. What about Communism? No one else will stand up against it, so we must do it. This is our position.
I am Korean. Korea is mostly known to Americans through the experiences of the Korean War. The newsreels showed the homeless refugees and the poverty of war, so Americans concluded that it is a beautiful small rose in a trash can. They thought Korea was finished, for it survived only with American aid. Then I came to America, not to ask for aid, but to declare that I am the firefighter who will put out the fire in the American nation. I came as the doctor to save sick patients. American people just couldn't believe what they were seeing so my words were really a shock.
The sleeping people woke up and looked at me, saying "Are you serious?" The truly serious people are trying to measure my size, always changing lenses to try to focus on me, but none of the lenses can contain the whole picture. Sometimes I look like a small peanut, at other times like a Mt. McKinley (Denali). Americans just can't figure me out. They thought I was just a religious leader, but the things I do are all-encompassing. Yes, I am preaching the gospel, but at the same time I am competing with champion wrestlers. Then America is even more deeply puzzled and confused. The Americans don't know which way to shake their heads, whether in approval or criticism. In spite of the controversy all the young people are coming to me and Americans are more confused than ever.
Unification eyes never look down but always look up. Do you know why? Because our goal is getting higher and higher, and there is no way to find our goal by looking down. We will only find the goal by looking up. Beyond the individual we will find the family, beyond the family the society, beyond the society the nation, beyond the nation the world, beyond the world, the spirit world, and beyond the spirit world, God. We just keep going on, but even God is not the last stop. Ultimately we will reach God's love. Then after we see the love of God, our eyes Will look down to the world again and we will start to dance. In order to dance you have to look at the floor because otherwise you will stumble. Are you on the way up or down? Is the Moonie walk a fast walk or a slow walk? Are your eyes wandering in all directions or are they focused?
Your eyes are so concentrated on looking straight ahead that you don't even see or acknowledge the person who says hello to you. Later that person will say that he said hello to you and you didn't even greet him. Then you will reply, "I'm sorry. I didn't see you. My eyes, my ears, my everything is focused straight ahead so unless you come straight toward me I can't see you. The next time you see me, stop right in front of me and say hello to my eyes. Then I will see you." Have the reputation that the only person you will surely greet is the one who comes straight at you almost in a head-on collision. Such a man cannot hear on the side but only straight.
As a group we are creating a typhoon era so that both the free world and the Communist world will be fearful, but as individuals we are charming, brilliant and smiling. As individuals people cannot help but love us and that's the way we will win. When an individual makes a mistake you should be able to give advice; when the nation makes a mistake you should plunge at it; when the world makes a mistake you must really show higher and higher determination to set things right. With an individual you should be more low-key, showing warmth and love.
When you look at the history of God's dispensation and the work of restoration, it is clear that God has been working for one turning point in order to bring about His ideal. Before the fall, God wanted to have one tremendously exciting turning point of joy. He wanted to be absolutely free to maneuver, coming down to the earth any time He wanted and going up to heaven whenever He wanted. There would have been no way in which the freedom of God would be hampered. God wanted to go from extreme to extreme in His ideal. In turning from extreme to extreme there are all kinds of joy and excitement, and harmony can be created. But because of the fall that turning was stopped.
There are all kinds of accidents in the world, but the greatest accident the world has ever seen was the shattering of Adam. The bombshell news that resounded most fearfully to God was the news of the fall of man. God practically passed out in that moment. He lost His composure, His reason, His emotion. Think of how much darkness God felt at that moment. It was so dark, He couldn't see the world. The history of God after the fall is that of trying to recover and recompose Himself, and slowly looking at the reality of the situation.
You women need husbands eventually, don't you? How much do you need them? If you had to buy your husbands, how much would you pay? $10? A husband is so priceless that a million dollars or even the whole continent of America would not be payment enough. If you have a choice between a diamond the size of the earth and a husband, which one would you like? Would you pay the price of that diamond for your husband? Could you give your left leg or your right eye? If you still could not buy your husband would you give up both legs? Would you give up everything, leaving only your face and body? Even though your husband costs that much he's worth paying for. However, nowadays the cheapest bargain is the husband sale. Here in America a husband is worth less than the price of one shoe, maybe $15, and even then if your husband breaks your shoe you say you don't need him and get a divorce. Of course, the Unification Church woman is entirely different and doesn't belong to that category.
The easiest way of showing woman the value of man is to assemble all the women on one island with one man and have an auction to see who wants him. Then everyone will want him. If one man showed up among all those women, they would say, "I would give up anything for you. Here's my diamond ring, my savings account. I will forget them if you will be mine." Don't you think you would do that? Those who think they wouldn't and don't want to participate in the blessing, raise your hands. Once you see the value of a husband you must serve him, and then whatever he does for you becomes a priceless joy.
If you give your total soul and devotion to your husband but then he dies, what would you do? Would you be heartbroken or would you say, "It's too bad but I'll get another one"? Would you hold on to your dead husband's body and cry or laugh? Would you cry superficially or genuinely, with water coming from your eyes, nose and mouth? Would you think about how you look, or just forget yourself? If you are truly in love but your love departs, you don't think about how you look but just totally express your sorrow and emotion.
I described this at such great length to show how God felt at the fall when Adam was broken into pieces. If Adam were like some kind of merchandise then God could have said, "Forget it. I'll make another one." But Adam was God Himself in visible form: His love, His son, His everything. Actually Eve was the visible wife of God. I'm sure you have never heard this expressed before, but in God's ideal Adam was the visible, walking form of God, and most certainly Eve, as wife to Adam, was wife to God. They were to live with God in eternal love. Marriage is really the most holy event in human life, for from it God's son and daughter are born.
God cannot turn away from me because I am teaching the truth of His heart, which He has longed to express. No one else in the whole history of mankind has done it. Instead, all religions have put a distance between God and man, saying that God is holy and must stay up in heaven while we stay down here. The Unification Church gets rid of that gap and brings God inside man and man inside God so that they can become one through love.
That capacity for love made Adam and Eve priceless. How do you think God felt when the news of their shattering fall reached Him? He wished that the entire universe had broken into pieces rather than Adam and Eve. If His entire creation had been destroyed then God would not have been so sorrowful as over Adam and Eve. If the whole earth had broken into pieces God could easily recreate a home for Adam and Eve, but God cannot recreate love; it has to be restored and be given with free will. The entire purpose of creation focuses upon one man and one woman, and if they are broken into pieces then there is no hope, only total darkness. God cannot create them again. He has only one course of action: restoration.
If God can recreate His love then man can recreate his love. Why is one love so precious? If one love doesn't work, you can't go get another. That doesn't work in our Principle because the ideal is always eternal. Truth has an unchanging quality. Therefore, what God created through truth cannot be cast away and made again.
The full moon is round and when I look at it I always think of the dispensation of God. I feel it is revelatory that my name is Moon. The full moon becomes smaller and smaller, darkens and disappears in half a month, but then it reappears and slowly becomes a full moon again in fifteen days. Restoration is just like a full moon emerging from darkness. God has been yearning for the day when restoration reaches the halfway mark.
The dispensation of God has been focused on one thing: sending the Messiah as the leader to reach this halfway point. There are three kinds of full moon-winter, autumn and spring. Are they all the same? Which one would you like? In winter there is a very stark feeling to the full moon and no one wants to go outside in the cold to watch it. The spring full moon is hazy and somehow not well-focused, but the autumn full moon really sparkles. In Korea we have a traditional full moon festival on August 15 of the lunar calendar. That full moon celebration comes when the new crops are in and the air is breezy. It is the Korean version of Thanksgiving. It is a most pleasant evening when everyone goes out and watches the moon and appreciates the food recently harvested. All of the people take food to the tombs of their ancestors, for that is the ancient way of worshipping God. The ancient Koreans thought God was the forefather of their forefathers, and in worshipping them they could worship God.
Revelations have been received that the world will end, but what does that mean? Actually the end of the world means reaching the turning point of the messianic ideal. The end of the world has arrived and this is why the Moonies are going out and talking about the moon, saying, "Look, the moon has come out and it is August 15. Let's have a moon festival. " The problem is that everyone stays inside and doesn't appreciate the moon. You are the only people now watching the moon, wanting to follow wherever it goes, whether to Korea or Europe or Belvedere.
The scientific analysis of the moon's light is that it is a reflection of the sun's light. God is the universal sun. Who is reflecting the universal sun to the earth? The secular world is in darkness but we are in moonlight. We have a direction and a goal we can see, but other people can't see that goal.
The Unification Church also has winter, spring, summer and fall and we are now passing through the winter season. Then we will pass through the spring, summer and autumn seasons. The winter, spring and summer moon isn't appreciated so much, but when autumn comes everyone goes out to a grassy knoll and watches the moon. Autumn is the best season in which to appreciate the moon. The important thing is that we see the moon in the autumn, but even though other people come out, their eyes are veiled and they can't see it clearly. We have to remove the veil from their eyes to enable them to see clearly. Now we come to the point of the moon festival and home church by lifting off all the veils and enabling the people to rejoice in finding the moon.
The greatest banquet of celebration will be held in your hometown. Actually, the entire content of fallen history has been man's departure from his true home. All mankind departed from their true home. When we restore everything which is lost, we will go to our hometowns and have the ultimate celebration. When you go back to your hometown you can greet your grandparents. You might have been told they had died, but actually no one has died; when we combine the physical and spirit worlds together, everyone is there. At the festival all ancestors from all our family trees will dance around the banquet table.
Before we have this banquet on a worldwide scale, however, we must have it on the tribal level and that is the home church. You will be a tribal messiah, and you will have that banquet first at your home church with your own tribe. Everyone will go outside to appreciate the light of the moon. When that moonshine is accepted by the people, God's heart will be vindicated. This is why home church is the final destination of the providence of God.
You should be a small moon and be loved by everyone in your home church area. Both young and old should be in a position to love you. Once the people love you, you will become a messiah to them and they will follow you to the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. When you are the messiah, those who accept and love you will be accepted by heaven. The home church is the altar upon which to present your offering. The anguished, broken heart of God will be healed when we achieve this goal of home church. When we go over this boundary we can move the rest of the world and become the full moon at that time.
You yourself are superior to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and all those who follow you will also be superior. That's the ultimate goal. You will come under the direct domain of God and be led by Him. Every day we are moving toward the direct domain of God and bringing our tribe with us. As you know, there are three stages of formation, growth and perfection. The Old Testament was the servant era, the New Testament the adopted son era, and in the Completed Testament era we will become the direct heirs of God. Ultimately you will be elevated to become true parents yourselves, but first you must become a direct son or daughter of God. Unless you pass through that stage, how can you become a true parent?
One thing is sure. Once you are blessed as husband and wife, nothing-no nation or military power or anything-can part you. Not even God or I can part you. Husband and wife united under the covenant of God cannot be separated, nor can children born to that couple. This is more precious than your own life. You must feel the joy comparable to that which God would feel to see Adam and Eve restored. That is the kind of dispensation God has been seeking. After Adam's fall, God sent Jesus Christ as another Adam. But Jesus was crucified. Think how much God's heart was broken again, being shattered in pieces for the second time. Nevertheless, God moved forward and is looking to this time in history as the turning point in His dispensation.
Therefore, we are gathered together upon the foundation of the dispensation of the Second Advent. After tasting the tragedies of Adam and of Jesus, you can see how determined God is that nothing cause failure this time. The Unification Church has become so precious in the sight of God that He will say, "Satan, do you want a world? Okay, take the world, for it is crumbling anyway. Do you want a church? Take Christianity. But you cannot touch the Unification Church." That is really God's determination. Satan knows what precious objects the Unification Church and Reverend Moon are to God. Satan replied, "God, I don't need the world or Christianity or anything. I just want to get the one You hold on to." Satan's final assault will be focused upon the Unification Church because he knows that God can give up anything else. Therefore, the only thing he wants to win is the Unification Church; he wants to destroy the Unification Church and demolish me. But God has quickly pushed us to a level where no power under the sun can demolish us. That was God's strategy and it has already won. Under adverse conditions and incredible opposition God has already secured the beachhead and no power can separate it or destroy it.
After World War II God gave America and the free world a great victory. God blessed that victory but the results have been dismal because America and the free world are retreating from world responsibility. In this retreating trend of the twentieth century only one force is advancing; that invincible force is God's champion, the Unification Church.
How many young people have been sacrificed in wars around the world? In the Korean and Vietnam wars tens of thousands of people died. They are now in spirit world pleading that their lives and sacrifice not be in vain. America's actions today are nullifying their sacrifice. President Carter and this administration are backing away from the entire world. Where is he going?
President Carter was known to be a human rights advocate. What about national rights? Does he have the right to give up one nation after another to Communism? He talks about human rights, but what about the sovereignty of the nation? Is there any justification for him to give up nation after nation to Satan? What America is doing in today's world is absolutely irresponsible. I'm not talking about worldly politics but about God's point of view. America is nullifying all of God's victories in World War I and World War H and the Korean war. By going in this direction, America will become totally isolated as the rest of the world falls under Communist rule.
Look at Iran. Everyone is trying to blame events there on the dictatorship of the Shah and human rights violations, but ultimately if Iran is lost to Communism, who is going to take up the responsibility? This is America's responsibility.
At this point in human history some champion must come forward and say to America, "Your direction is wrong! " This is our responsibility. God can trust the Unification Church to tell America, "While you are enjoying your wealth the whole free world is crumbling." I don't want to eat the bread of defeat or disaster, but to taste the bread of victory.
God knows that above all else a revolution is needed and for this we need young people. Therefore, God is giving young people to me, saying, "Here are the young people. Go ahead and achieve my goal." We have come together and pledged our lives to God, saying, "God, I have given my life to You and will turn the tide around and give hope to the country. I shall be responsible, Father, if You just give me a few more years. " That is going to be our prayer.
We will serve as the brake to America and become her steering wheel. Even if our arms are hurt and our bones stick out, even though we become crippled and disabled, we shall hold onto the wheel and continue. We must become the rescue crew which prevents the Lincoln Continental from falling off the mountain cliff, steering it onto safer ground. After one giant upheaval we will descend to safety. Under normal circumstances, we would take the car to the garage to be fixed but there is no time for that. This is a life-or-death emergency and we must overcome the crisis.
How far have we come in our third seven-year course? We have come around one curve after another. As soon as we go over the third seven-year course, we will take off by leaps and bounds and the entire world and spirit world will have to focus their attention on the Unification Church. Their first thought was that the Unification Church was a devil and their worst enemy. We had been covered by the snow, which prevented people from seeing the mountain underneath, but as soon as the snow clears they will see an absolutely dazzling sight and know their first opinion wasn't true. It is almost as if our true image is emerging from underneath the snow in one area after another.
Now the true picture of deprogramming is emerging. America has been in a confusion of darkness but now the truth is being revealed. I have heard many times from the media that an electronic gadget to control the brain is made at our Tong Il Industries, and although many people tried to locate it, no one could. Then they invented the allegation that the Unification Church was created by the KCIA. For two years people tried to prove a link between us and the KCIA, but they have failed. We have established two things very clearly: there is no brainwashing in the Unification Church, only true religious conversion, and second, we are not linked with the KCIA. When people ask if we aren't brainwashed and connected with the KCIA we now have evidence to show from government investigations.
It is as though one continuous trial took place, at which the prosecutor charged, "Reverend Moon is a criminal; he is a brainwasher and an agent of the KCIA." But the defense retorted, "No, Reverend Moon is a prophet of God and without him America shall not survive. " There have been many arguments and upheavals in the last several years, and now the judge is making the final pronouncement: "Here is the proof. Reverend Moon is not only innocent of brainwashing and of being a KCIA agent, but he is truly the prophet of God. America must welcome him."
Of course, the happenings in Guyana are a great tragedy and many people are trying to compare us with that, but I think this is a great opportunity for us to set ourselves apart from any false image. This is the time we can win. Furthermore, God will never lose. Because of the Guyana situation the government has been secretly investigating us for many weeks. We asked them if they were investigating us and they said, "No, we never investigate religions." They always denied conducting any investigations of us, but actually the FBI and the Justice Department have been investigating us for several years already. When the Guyana tragedy occurred and everyone said, "Why don't you investigate the Unification Church?" the Justice Department came out and said they had already investigated us and found nothing. Their conclusion was that the young people in the Unification Church are not brainwashed but willing and conscientious. They felt the brainwashing charge was unfounded.
In a way Jim Jones made a contribution to society by demonstrating that when people believe in Marxism, religion cannot survive. However, when you believe in the God of truth and love, the end result is the Kingdom of Heaven. We are going to make this absolutely clear to the rest of the world. This crisis is a great opportunity for us to show how different we are, how righteous and God-centered, so that in the future we can be freely accepted by the nation and the world. I stand for the complete opposite of what Jim Jones stood for. In a way the Guyana situation intensified public feeling that the end of the world is at hand. There are extreme things happening in both directions. Five streams of satanic activity and five streams of heavenly activity are going to converge at the same time.
Why have I become controversial? The power of God has been injected into America. I came to America to give this nation a shot in the arm, but so far Americans haven't accepted me due to arrogance. Americans think this country has all the knowledge and religion necessary, and that concept has prevented them from opening their minds and hearts enough to see the true story about me. The time will come, however, when America will realize how ugly she is and what terrible things she is doing. Jim Jones was an American. People will repent when they open their eyes and see that I have been the victim of bigotry, prejudice and religious discrimination. Then they will understand that there is no one except me to grab onto for the salvation of America. Because American conscientiousness is still alive, she will be quick to turn around once she sees the truth.
If people still think they are superior to the Unification Church, they can try to do more than we do, work harder and be more sacrificial and more devoted than we are. Let them go ahead and do it. If they think we are not doing enough, they can go ahead and do better than us and we will welcome it. Once the proper atmosphere is created, America will try to compete with us instead of trying to destroy US. Then we will have good competition.
God will never lose. We thought Congressman Fraser was our worst enemy because for two and a half years he worked relentlessly to destroy me and the Unification Church, but actually he helped us to clarify our image. He trained us and gave us the opportunity to speak to the world, so we should send him a letter of appreciation. You think we are suffering now because of the Guyana situation, but eventually it will help us. The government persecuted us and eventually that will help our movement too. We will not lose because of any persecution.
The next two and a half years will be the grand finale. After that the third seven-year course will be over. Then I would like to ride down Fifth Avenue on a white horse. In two and a half years the word "Moonie" shall become an honorable name and we will have demonstrations and victory celebrations from coast to coast. By that time the Go World Brass Band and New Hope Singers International will be out of a job because all the other great bands and choirs will want to perform for us.
I will laugh and smile ear to ear. We are going to create a Moonie dance, Sunny dance and Kingie dance. I would like to choreograph those dances and instead of hip-shaking dances I would like to see arms and bodies moving upward and jumping. It's fine if husband and wife dance together, but instead of just turning around they should also go up and down. Wouldn't you like to see that kind of Moonie dance? I have been experimenting with all kinds of dances through the Little Angels, Korean Folk Ballet and International Folk Ballet. Are you happy to be in the Unification Church?
Just winning a victory is not dramatic, but when you are pushed all the way down to the bottom and still survive, ultimately gaining the final victory, everyone will respect you. No other victory is as dramatic and the victorious day is not far away. Will the people who are going to play the major role in turning the dispensation around be lazy and idle, or will they wear themselves out, walking their shoes off in search of that victory?
Are you younger than me? Sometimes I walk so much that my legs swell up. If my legs swell that much, would you like to have your leg swell less or more? I am always on my feet, and even now my legs are swollen. The other day I went to Denver to inspire the IOWC members. I left East Garden at 6 a.m. and returned a I o'clock the next day. In Denver I almost fainted, but I didn't mind. Even if I faint twice or three times a day, no one will stop me. That is my spirit. This is the final showdown and there is no time to let up. If I am working that hard, you young people, the princes and princesses of this nation, should work faster and harder. You have no excuse. Would you do it?
For the next two and a half years I want you to compete with me. I want you to defeat me by doing more than I do. If you keep up with my pace, we will definitely erect a new history. If we set a brilliant record then even if America is demolished, God will feel no pain whatsoever because He will be comforted. The turning point must occur right here in New York. This is the place to do it.
Let's examine whether we have that value here in New York. So far the entire religious goal has been how "I" as an individual can be saved, but our goal is not individual salvation. We are going to bring the entire tribe into heaven at once. If your 360 homes have faith in you, love you and believe in you, they will be saved. As you are saved, they will be saved. In the history of religion this kind of privilege never existed. Religion has never before included salvation for the whole family, but rather encouraged separation and meditation alone in the mountains.
Now I am proclaiming, "Go love your wife and your husband, love your children and your neighbors and bring them together into the Kingdom of Heaven." Such a privilege never existed until this time in history. An amazing era has arrived. Home church is the privilege God has given to you, saying that if you set the conditions to let the people know the truth and love you, He will save everyone you recommend in your 360 homes.
Actually, in order to come to perfection you have to go through all these paths. In the home church you are creating a miniature world but God will still give you full credit. Jesus gave the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven to Simon Peter for individual salvation, but now I am handing out the key that can save the entire tribe as one unit. I am anointing you as messiahs and whomever you bring shall have salvation. What a promise! Those are not empty words but a promise that will be redeemed in the Kingdom of Heaven in spirit world.
I have given you a diamond mountain and the rest is up to you. However much you can mine is your business. This is your opportunity right now and any amount of diamonds you unearth are yours. Everyone is in a different location, trying to make a hole. There is some difficulty because we need a factory, tools and people. Then let's create a factory. We can create the leadership of this nation, the men who can become governors, congressmen, senators and President.
The amazing privilege is that we can do this work together with our loved ones. In the history of God that was never allowed until now. Jesus died on the cross 2,000 years ago a lonely man. Now not only your own husband and wife but your children are with you. The time will come when you will go to restore your parents. That time will be hastened when you do well with your home church members for they are in a position to assist you. You must fulfill the home church of Cain before you go back to your hometown and tackle your Abel home church. Therefore, this is the hope for the salvation of your own tribe. It is unprecedented in history to be able to build the Kingdom of Heaven with your wife and husband, children and parents together. Did such a luxury ever exist in human history? No.
This special privilege is bestowed upon you but if you are just sleeping and don't know anything about it or its value, it will be shattered into pieces. How many Christian clergymen and theologians are seriously studying Unification theology? You have no idea. Soon Korean ministers will come to the United States and try to evangelize for us. A Christian minister from India came to New York, studied Divine Principle and was completely amazed by it. He became a member and now his ambitious goal is to shake the Indian continent. He has that faith and ability. Unless you do it now, you will have to give up your place to those who are coming last.
In Africa there is a special Christian group with five million devotees. If these people become united with me and want to do home church in Africa, the entire population of Africa will not be enough for them because there aren't enough homes for 360 each. Then the Africans will go to Europe, Asia and America. How can you not wake up when you hear this kind of news?
Today is the emergency turning point in the dispensation. People were martyred even for individual salvation, but now you can save the tribe and the nation at one stroke. For this, what would you hold back? Nothing. Is your mind bubbling with enthusiasm? Once we do this, there is no question that America will be revived and see the day of resurrection. The goal of achieving eternal world peace is close at hand. All religions are compartmentalized now, creating barriers among themselves, but the Unification Church will shatter all these barriers and for the first time in history we can truly have hope to unite Christianity and all religions.
In an Olympic race the margin that separates the gold or silver-medal winner is very small. The spiritual worldwide record in the dispensation of God is decided in one second. We have come to the critical turning point where the determination of who is a winner will be decided in a very short time. You are trained and ready for that emergency. What remains for us is the final assault. If you fail in that then you will lose everything and all the foundation that has been erected will be nothing. I have trusted you all along and will trust you even more, but if you finally come up with nothing I will have to go someplace else where I can conclude the dispensation. I have told Mother to have her luggage ready at all times, for in a moment I might say, "Let's take off."
Our destiny hinges upon this one battle and victory. Do you agree that this is really the critical turning point in the dispensation of God? No matter what direction you are looking from, this has to be the truth. We have come to that turning point and I want you to set at least one world record; for example, in not sleeping or eating, in witnessing to more people and bringing more spiritual children. In whatever you do, you must set one world record before you are elevated into spirit world. Set the world record in receiving persecution well by laughing and being joyful to those people. If you have no other way to set a world record, go to the bathroom and sit for 24 hours and set a world record there. Would you rather sit down in the bathroom 24 hours or run out and meet people for 24 hours? I am also setting world records. The other day I was playing pool and wanted to set the record of playing 20 hours. But after 18 hours everyone else collapsed and there was no one left to play with me. Yet even that is still probably a world record.
In whatever I do I always aim to set the world record. If I start to dance, I will continue for three days and nights without eating or sleeping. But don't try to set the world record in stealing or using violence. We are only interested in constructive world records.
We must persevere and not become drop-outs. That's the worst thing you can do. Hang on. That must be your goal. Then let's make December 31, 1978 at 9:30 a.m. the turning point. Usually you didn't know when a turning point came because it happened so quickly, but now we will set the time because we know it is the critical point in the dispensation of God. Make this your personal turning point so that in 1979 "1" will be a new man. Tomorrow, January 1, 1979, is "my" day. Even tomorrow you will look different. You will be so determined and totally committed that you will appear different.
What kind of shoes do you women wear? High heels? How about setting a world record for wearing the highest heels? I like high heels; they fit the dispensation perfectly. Americans are very smart in that respect because setting your heel down on the ground and then picking it up in the air takes time. Americans see it is worthwhile to have women's heels up in the air, pushing them forward so that they have to run. That is very good for newspaper selling because you can deliver papers very fast that way. Did you know we recently bought a press to print our own paper?
Many women spend much time manicuring their long fingernails, which look almost devilish. Long fingernails colored red or green or pink are an advertisement of how idle those hands are. For those women, preservation of their long nails has become a way of life and they are always worrying about them. Even the crying baby must wait while they are taking care of their nails.
One day Ye Jin came and showed me her nails. "They are so long," I said. "Not really," she answered. "High school girls now have nails at least an inch long. Compared to them mine are short. I should have at least this much." I told her, "What are you talking about? Cut them right away. " It's best to work so hard that your nails stay short naturally. Who will criticize the person who works so hard that his nails always stay short? That person will have a spotless house and be welcomed by everyone.
America has a shoe culture. Women wear high heels and men always tie their shoes so tight that their feet are cramped. I wondered why you always wear shoes and thought maybe it was a custom from the old western days when pioneers always worried about Indian attacks and had no time to put their shoes on. Maybe American men always want to be ready for combat and that's why they always wear their shoes.
I have brought the no-shoe culture to America, but we are going to be ready for battle anyway. We are going to jump up even without shoes. In the ancient tradition you needed shoes to do battle but in the Unification Church tradition going barefoot is perfectly all right. Did you ever hear of the lion or tiger who wore shoes, or of the bear who climbed trees wearing shoes? The Unification Church members can run faster than the tiger and don't need shoes. In the morning when I get dressed the thing I hate the most is having to put socks on. Isn't that a tedious task? I like just to jump up and go out and work.
Tomorrow is your new day. Don't talk about working for me or God; that's secondary. You are going to work for yourself, your people, and your tribal, national and world salvation. You Americans are chosen as the champions to save this nation. That's God's mandate and we will deliver it. Those who promise to make today the turning point, raise your hands please. Thank you.
Today is the end of the forty-day campaign but your record is very poor. Mr. Pak is responsible and must repent. [Mr. Pak is Bo Hi Pak, who is translating.] You started out right but didn't deliver the expected results. What you have done in the last forty days is nothing. From now on you must do 100 or even 1,000 times more than before. That must be your new determination. Otherwise, we will never achieve the goal. From tomorrow we are going to start a new 120-day condition and this period shall be most critical. Whether we win or lose shall be determined during this time. Would you like to take off to the "A" degree, "B" degree, or "C" degree? Only in words or in deeds? If you work hard and achieve this result, "A" will bow down to you. If you say "A" at the beginning, "A" will reply that it is not that easy to achieve. Do you still want "A" and do you have the confidence to do it? Mr. Pak pledges his life to go this way. Will you join with him? You must sympathize with Mr. Pak because he is pushed and poked so many times by me, but that's his blessing. Is there any other speaker in the world who treats his interpreter this way? Mr. Pak must hold the world record.
Is the critical turning point of the dispensation of God my topic or your topic? It is not the Church's topic but your topic. The Church is merely behind you giving support so that each one of you can achieve your goal. My own critical turning point has already passed and even if I leave America today, God will not say that I didn't fulfill my mission here. My own role has been accomplished, and now I am giving this inheritance to you as your blessing. Those who will accept this inheritance touch your eyes, your ears and your mouth. Are you there? The reason you touched yourself is to recognize your own reality.
When the rabbit is ready to jump, he always starts in this jumping position. We are all heavenly rabbits and from today on we will jump. From the first day of next year you must feel that I am no longer here. I will travel all around the country and go to England and then to many other countries. My absence should make no difference in your determination.
State leaders will be responsible for the states and should determine not even to undo their ties or unpack for the next three years. Leaders shall have no beds. We are not here to lead a luxurious life -- Pray, teach Principle, set conditions and lie down right there and sleep. Then get up in the morning and go out again. It must be so cold that you will open your curtain and say, "I wish the night would pass quickly so I can get up, go out and work." That should be the leaders' attitude.
In New York all the leaders should be out in the front line. Before saying this I have established this principle and policy, so you can go ahead and fulfill it. Many times I remain in an armchair all night. I pray and then just sleep there. Don't leave the wrong tradition for those who come after you.
Any responsibility you have is secondary; the primary mission is witnessing and home church. You have to spend more time witnessing than in your own work. How can you ever imagine you will save 240 million Americans without doing that much? If there were an easier way to save 240 million people, God would do it because His heart is a heart of love. Do not hesitate to suffer and make yourself a sacrifice. God's one son, Jesus, gave up his life on the cross. I don't ask you to do this for me but for the sake of mankind, for re-building the nation and the world. Do you think this is principled? Then we must live the Principle.
We have already made up our minds today. From this time on be proud of being Moonies. Don't let anyone be scornful or arrogant toward you but speak up. We shall elevate ourselves to become Sunnies and make the rest of the world Moonies. By then our goal will be well on its way. We will advertise that the Moonies are to be called Sunnies from now on. If someone calls you a Moonie, argue it out by logic and reason until he calls you a Sunny.
I have instructed Mr. Pak to meet with many people and testify about our Church and our activities. You now have all the proof necessary to show people what the Unification Church is. Be proud and dignified, for there is nothing you need be ashamed of.
Tomorrow is the day for launching by leaps and bounds. Shall we demonstrate the "can do" spirit by holding both arms high? Would you do it? Would you do it? Would you do it? Thank you. Let us pray.
