Pyeong Hwa Gyeong (075) BOOK 5. Absolute Values and a New World Order CHAPTER 9. Unification Thought as the Basis of a New Cultural Revolution
1. The new cultural revolution should be based on absolute values
The world is undergoing rapid changes that correspond to the remarkable development of science and technology. As a result the established values of society are being shaken to their foundation, causing confusion and conflict on every level. This trend has been accelerated by the growing influence of atheistic materialism.
All of these factors have driven many difficult problems to beset our world today. Until now, people have not been able to find genuine solutions to these problems.
It is clear that neither democracy nor communism provides the means to cure the ills of society. Originally both democracy and communism developed from the desire to solve humanity’s common problems. Yet not only has democracy been unsuccessful at this task, it has proved itself unable to resist and overcome the destructiveness of communism.
Communism on the other hand also is completely unable to solve the world’s problems and ironically creates even more woes for the human race. Thus the world is at an impasse; democracy and communism are faced with a no-win situation leading to a dead end.
This being our present reality, the future of humankind seems bleak and unpredictable. Why then are democracy and communism not the answer? A careful analysis of both systems shows that neither has a core of truth in the ultimate sense.
Democracy may serve as the basis for a political system, but it does not provide a clear and comprehensive worldview. Communism offers an inclusive, systematic worldview, but it is one based on false assumptions and distorted facts.
What is needed then is a third alternative—a movement based on a new understanding of truth, one that gives hope by presenting a new vision of world society. This is in fact the Unification movement, with the Unification Thought system—a complete, systematic worldview grounded in truth and absolute values. A new cultural revolution is coming, and all scholars and professionals are called to participate in creating it.
Learning from the shortcomings of democracy and communism, we conclude that a new cultural revolution can come only on the foundation of absolute values. These cannot be relative values grounded in the changing world of phenomena. Rather they must be universal and ultimate values, grounded in the unchanging world of essence and cause, in the fundamental relationships between God, human beings and the universe.
We initiated the ICUS meetings for the purpose of resolving the present world problems and developing this third alternative worldview. When I founded the ICUS conferences twelve years ago, I established “absolute values” as their central theme. I did so because I believe that unchanging, universal values are the essential foundation for a true worldview.
In addition to the ICUS meetings, I initiated many other conferences and projects in order to prepare for the building of an ideal society, society as it exists in the dreams and hopes of all people. The Unification movement’s purpose, for which I have been working all my life, is to create the new cultural revolution based on this new systematic worldview. Our movement has expanded to over 130 countries. As a result many conscientious people now seriously consider our guiding principles—the Unification thought system—as a new expression of truth.
Generally, there has been openness to the Unification ideology in the democratic world and great interest in its potential. The communist world on the other hand has been consistently hostile toward the Unification movement, and communist elements within democracies have used the democratic system as a tool to try to destroy us.
Communist leaders regard us as their primary enemy and have opposed each and every project related to Rev. Moon. The ICUS organization is no exception. Communists know that Rev. Moon founded this conference and has always considered it to be of the highest importance. This is a major cause of the accusation and persecution ICUS has received since its inception. |