[378] World Scripture - Prayer - 6. Unselfish Prayer

[대태양/김현수]

Part Three - The Path of Life

Chapter 16 Prayer and Worship

1) Prayer

6. Unselfish Prayer

World Scripture

He who prays for his fellowman, while he himself has the same need, will be answered first. Talmud, Baba Kamma 92a (Judaism)

The pure whom you have found worthy for their righteousness and their good mind, Fulfil their desire, O Wise Lord, let them attain it! I know that words of prayer which serve a good end Are successful before you. Avesta, Yasna 28.10 (Zoroastrianism)

Sitting cross-legged, They should wish that all beings Have firm and strong roots of goodness And attain the state of immovability. Cultivating concentration, They should wish that all beings Conquer their minds by concentration Ultimately, with no remainder. When practicing contemplation, They should wish that all beings See truth as it is And be forever free of opposition and contention. Garland Sutra 11 (Buddhism)

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon

Your prayers will definitely be realized if they are not for selfish ends but in accordance with God’s Will and righteousness. (104:109, April 15, 1979)

Instead of praying to receive a blessing, pray that you can offer devotion for God’s sake. To pray out of a desire to receive a blessing is a selfish prayer. It is better to pray asking God’s blessing on the nation and the world. (126:339, May 1, 1983)

My teaching is this: Do not pray for yourself. Pray for the fulfillment of your mission, pray for others, and offer your prayer as words of comfort to God. (91:117, February 3, 1977)

People who are experienced in the spiritual life know to pray for themselves at the very last. If you enter into the realm of the holy, the realm of the spiritual, you will naturally pray for God first. And the moment you meet the Lord, you want to invoke blessings upon Him.

By praying for God’s sake, you can know God’s heart throughout history. Next you should pray for Jesus; then you will understand his heart when he walked the earth. Then you should pray representing the multitudes of saints in Christendom who have fought for the great Will of the dispensation, putting yourself in their places. Following in the footsteps of all the prophets and saints who walked the path of faith since the fall of Adam and Eve, you should pray in tears, “Please allow me to become an offering to cleanse all their sorrows.” After you have finished that prayer, you may pray for your beloved children, and lastly for yourself. That is the order, according to heavenly law. (7:328, October 18, 1959)

When in prayer we pledge before God to advance the foundation of Heaven’s victory at the cost of sacrificing ourselves, God takes responsibility and fulfills our prayer. To fulfill the content of our prayers, God does not walk an easy path. He goes through many courses to arrive at the place to meet our requests. When you stand in the most miserable situation akin to God’s, then God can directly take action; otherwise God cannot act. As long as we stand in a sacrificial and sorrowful situation, and our true heart corresponds with God’s desire, then God will recognize us and be merciful to us. (18:269, June 12, 1967)