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True Parents Words from 1982 |
The Harvest Season For God's Providence
Reverend Sun Myung Moon
September 19, 1982
Belvedere
The word "providence" is used in relation to several factors. Besides mankind, God, of course, is involved; and the planet earth is the place where the providence has unfolded. The earth represents the material world and mankind lives on top of that material foundation. God presides over all of mankind. Therefore, the three factors involved in the completion of the providence of God are earth, mankind and God, Himself.
These three do not bear fruit separately but come together to bear fruit. There must be a season for the harvesting of their combined fruits, as well.
When God began His creation of trees and plants, how many seeds do you think He created for each kind? Always God uses one perfect unit to initiate forms of His creation. He devised the pattern through which multiplication can occur: one seed multiplies and starts the infinite process of growth and multiplication.
One seed is not just a solid entity because inside of it there are several elements. The aspects of plus and minus interact within a seed and produce a plant. When you peel off the cover of any seed, there are two pieces inside and in one corner there is the small germ or embryo of the plant which is to grow. These three elements are covered by the skin of the seed. The universe can actually be summed up in the beautiful microcosm of one seed.
All of life exists like a seed; it has both plus and minus aspects, and also an embryo inside which is the origin of new life. The skin of the seed protects it from outside influences. By the same token, there is a protective "skin" around the universe and that skin is none other than love. The skin covers the seed tightly and prevents the two pieces of plus and minus from separating from each other.
In mankind, love brings plus and minus together, covering them up and creating harmony between them. When plus and minus come together within the protective skin of love, the embryo, which is the origin of life, can sprout. The universe itself interacts with the tiny plus and minus within the seed. It is natural and even necessary that men and women love each other because in that way we, too, reflect the law of the universe and its strength.
The earth has a north pole and a south pole and they exert a constant magnetic power or pull upon each other. Everything on the earth is pulled by that magnetic force. By the same token, everything in the universe is pulled by the magnetic force of love. When small pieces of metal are exposed to a magnet, they are pulled to it and stick there. Men and women are pulled together by the magnetic force of love; no matter how hard someone may try to resist that magnetic force, he cannot move outside of its influence. Everyone is pulled by it.
It is because of the give and take between the poles of plus and minus that a magnet has the power to attract metal. As men and women we are pulled toward the core or the origin of life. The embryo is that core or original place where life springs forth. The embryo is linked with the force of the entire universe so the gigantic plus and minus of the universe ultimately affects the tiniest embryo. When energy touches the embryo, life bursts forth.
A seed cannot create life all by itself. It must have a relationship with its surroundings. There must be fertile soil, moisture, and warm temperatures for that seed to grow. The soil is like a womb for the seed since it gives it birth. Within the seed, there is give and take between the plus and minus factors, out of which new life is born.
What is the meaning of the word "lonely," and why do we recognize that condition as undesirable? When you are all by yourself, without an object for give and take, you feel lonely. In a way that feeling is protection for you because it moves you to do something about it. If you never felt any pain from loneliness, you would be satisfied and complacent by yourself. Since it is painful to be lonely, however, you are driven to seek a partner with whom to share your life. In that way, loneliness is a protective feeling which pushes you to live parallel with universal law.
Universal law pushes a child to seek out his mother or father when he gets lonely; when people grow up, they naturally seek the opposite sex for companionship. This is the natural way for remedying loneliness. However, this world is not natural and the perversion of homosexuality exists. This is a destructive force which violates universal law. The simple proof of its destructiveness is clear when you consider what would happen if everyone in the world were to live as homosexuals for one century. All humanity would simply cease to exist! Homosexuality is a satanic force which is exactly opposite universal law. It brings destruction rather than creation.
The universe exists in continual give and take action, turning from the inner to the outer core of existence and back again. The power of the entire universe goes into the tiniest embryo and then the embryo sprouts and gives itself to the entire universe. This is the ultimate form of give and take.
Each individual is a tiny being compared with the size of the universe. However, each individual feels the need to link himself with the whole universe. Why do we have that need? There must be a reason for it. It is because the vast universe is truly linked with each tiny life. The universe relates itself with each embryo, each person's origin; then each embryo expands itself to the universe. The universe comes within you; you relate with the universe. Like a continually moving spiral from inside to outside.
Once each individual life expands itself to the universal level, the natural movement is to remain within that spiral motion, going back inside toward one's source.
Suppose the individual decides to take off on his own, toward a different direction? When such a thing happens, the ideal is destroyed. It is within the ideal that each individual must be able to unite himself with both the largest, universal things and the smallest, most particular things.
If an individual takes off in his own direction, he might say, "I just want to do anything I want to do. This is my universe and it exists for me to indulge myself to the utmost." The more such a person would move, the more destruction he would bring to the universe. If enough people followed his example, everything would be destroyed. The order and harmony of the whole world would be ruined by such a "freedom-loving" attitude.
When life expands outward it does not go in a random direction but must move parallel with the motion of the entire universe. That turning in and out motion is comparable to a coil through which electricity can flow unhindered. There need be no loss of energy or diminution of life. Our universe is not consuming itself but is always maintaining its own existence through the vitality of this give and take. It is like the waves of the ocean which come crashing to the shore; first they are high and strong, then they disappear into the water but the ocean itself is never diminished by the waves.
Did you know that the earth itself is constantly breathing? When it exhales it is about one foot smaller and when it inhales it is one foot larger. Every day it is breathing, even though you can't feel it. This is universal law.
Whenever there is movement it creates a certain shape or form, such as the triangle or rectangle. This form will not be destroyed unless the movement ceases. The force of give and take is always contained within the particular form it sprang from. Each individual carries within him the original pattern he inherited from his parents. It is obvious that everyone has a certain physical appearance which he received from his parents, but some people want to say, "No, I am a totally unique, self-sufficient being." However, he still came from two parents whose traits can always be found within him.
Everything within the universe comes under this law of origins; it is a very interesting thing to observe from the viewpoint of Principle.
Can you imagine that a bird would ever exist and sing all by itself? No, birds naturally live and sing together in harmony. Male and female naturally blend their voices in song. When deer run across a field, the male deer normally runs in front and the female follows immediately behind him. This is according to the pattern of harmony and is totally natural.
In any kind of literature, whether it is Korean, French, English, or whatever, much of its beauty is in the way the author uses adjectives, the words of description and comparison. "Dew-like morning," or "Dove-like eyes" are samples of the use of adjectives. The ability to use such descriptions comes from the universal law of parallel or comparable existences. If you simply say something is beautiful it is not nearly as clear or as meaningful as if you compare it with something else. "Beautiful like a flower," "Lovely as a rose," are phrases in which we take an example from the universe and compare it with the subject we are talking about.
According to universal law, everything in the universe is in motion for prosperity and multiplication, never for self-destruction. The ideal we are trying to achieve is that for every movement or motion we make. we receive a corresponding benefit. If we do 100 activities, we want to gain 100 benefits from them. Certainly we do not do things for the purpose of losing. This is a clear explanation of the meaning of "ideal", that everything we do ought to create goodness or benefit for someone or something.
What is the ideal of the universe? Certainly anything which carries the universe toward its infinite, eternal benefit is considered ideal. Is there any way that mining a lot of diamonds would be part of the ideal of the universe? Suppose you panned millions of dollars worth of gold from a river; would that be considered part of the universal ideal? Certainly people have pursued such things with great fervor. In the Western movies, gold is always the source of conflict between people!
Perhaps the ideal of the universe can be found within the acquisition of great power. Some people have left the Unification Church because they felt a desire for personal power; but is that truly pursuing the ideal? Would you sacrifice everything else for the sake of education and knowledge? Some people feel their lives are worthless unless they can go to Harvard, Yale, or some prestigious school.
What is the truly ideal action which always benefits the entire universe? It is the action of true love. What is true love and what distinguishes it from all the other types of love? True love is always welcomed by the universe- everywhere, anywhere.
Can you produce your love for me and show it to me on your palm? Can you see magnetic fields? You can prove scientifically that the north and south poles are pulling each other, but can you actually see the magnetism? True love exists in the realm of the invisible, as well. You know it exists; you can even prove it, but you cannot see it.
From the beginning point of true love, everything good can happen. From there the ideal world can begin. As we have said, the ideal of motion is for every activity to bring about a corresponding benefit. True love is the power by which to create that ideal of motion; wherever it exists. it always brings benefit and prosperity. Therefore the ideal world can be achieved by true love. It is only logical.
Why is true love so good? Everything begins from true love and is consummated in true love-it is the alpha and the omega of the universe. The motion of true love is unlimited; it can go anywhere within the universe. It can penetrate your whole being and be totally welcomed. You never want to reject true love; wherever it touches you. you respond with joy and openness.
Does the current American habit of husbands and wives maintaining their own separate savings accounts reflect an attitude of true love? Can you tell your spouse, "I love you, but don't ever touch my savings account!"?
Anything less than true love within the home is going to produce something less than the ideal, but most families do not understand the basic, true philosophy of true love. Some Americans protest to me, "Oh, you don't understand anything about America. We are a highly advanced and first-class culture. You have no right to talk about us!" However, by the rule of true love many things can be understood. Do you think true love affects the President of the United States? Is he immune to it because he is so great? Even God himself will never say, "I don't care about true love because I have omnipotence and I don't need it." The almighty God is completely vulnerable to true love. When He is approached with true love, He is helpless to resist.
Think about your life; why were you born and what are you here for ultimately? You are here for the fulfillment of true love. The ideal of existence is for every person to be glowing with the spark of true love twenty-four hours a day. As men and women, you are like the plus and minus of electricity which gives off a tremendous spark when a connection is made. Sparking brings light, heat and other phenomena. When two beings come together in true love, it is the most exciting element of our lives.
Men and women come together and "spark" with the power of true love, creating heat, light, and multiplication of energy. Then together they become a larger plus entity; as soon as a bigger minus comes along, they spark with that, always growing and multiplying energy. There is never the destruction of energy between plus and minus. That is the kind of life which Divine Principle is taking you towards.
In the Unification Church we always talk about plus and minus. We speak of the unity between mind and body to produce a "spark" of prosperity for the individual. Then a man and women must "spark" together to produce a family; the family spark becomes a society spark, which becomes a nation spark and so on, all the way up to the level of the universe.
Reverend Moon has brought this message to the world and because of it the world looks at him as a very controversial religious figure. Rather than feeling bad when people describe me as controversial, I welcome it very much! The strong controversy exists because I have brought a tremendously magnetic force field to this world. When people come close to that magnetic field, they are like small iron filings clinging to a magnet. It is the same when your parents try to pull your legs and drag you away from the Unification Church: you refuse to budge. Likewise when society exerts pressure on you. Thus many different explanations of this phenomenon have come up in society: "Brainwashing" for example.
When the teachings of the Unification Church hit you, the spark occurs and a new kind of ideal is born within your heart and mind. A new kind of personal prosperity becomes yours and no power can separate you from that.
In electricity when the plus and minus circuits come together, all impure and foreign elements are burned up in the heat of their union. All that remains is the genuine, pure conductivity of electricity. Likewise, that is what happens when you are contacted by true love and you spark with it. All foreign elements of sin will be burned up; you will be cleansed and become a truly sinless person.
Like a spiral you are involved in a never-ending motion; going in, going out, circling always within the universe and vibrating with the universe. True love never stands still but is always in that positive motion. This is the answer to the question, "What should I pursue in my life?" Now you know what is the true goal of your life.
What is the central force moving God's providence along? Certainly the central theme of the providence has been true love. With true love alone can God fulfill His own ideals and purpose. True love alone can harmonize everything, activate all things, unite and move everything in the universe. How wonderful that is! True love is so powerful and wonderful that once you have the hope of acquiring it for yourself nothing else really matters to you. The taste of true love gives you power and determination to pursue it further.
All machines on the earth will eventually wear out; even a brand new Cadillac will run for years but will eventually deteriorate. The human body is the same. If you over exert any part of your body it will eventually break down. The whole body is destined to die. Well, then, is God's creation destined to end in decline and destruction? If God is almighty and eternal, He must have created something which, the more it moves and exists, the more it grows and increases. There must be something which doesn't break down but always continues from greater to greater levels of prosperity. What is it that would enable a person to be anchored for thousands of years but never get bored, as long as he has it? You know the answer is true love.
"True love", two simple words which describe the pinnacle toward which all the pursuits of mankind have been striving. Throughout human history, all the great philosophers and sages sought to understand the ultimate truth of life but usually they tried to be too sophisticated in their approach and could not find it. Once a person has acquired the knowledge of true love, he doesn't need any other philosophy. The more movement a person of true love makes, the greater the benefit; he never declines. A person is anchored for eternity and can never get bored within the universe. You will never get tired of living in true love.
Once I observed a young couple on the beach; they were obviously deeply in love. They sat with their heads pressed together for the longest time. In fact, I was timing them to see how long they could sit like that. After thirty minutes they were still together, but I couldn't stay any longer because I had a plane to catch. Maybe they are still pressing their heads together even now! If that is just the imperfect standard of secular love and it is that strong, imagine how much more powerful true love is!
Love in America today has become very cheap, but if even the cheapest love can bring a man and woman together in bliss like that couple, what about the "most expensive" variety of love, true love? It can do so much more for men and women. You could sit with your heads together for hundreds of thousands of years and never get bored! If true love is capable of doing that for you, what else under the sun could you want?
The ideal we are describing is simple but very dramatic and romantic. True love is totally flexible; it fits the needs of every individual perfectly. None of the billions of people in the world will be dissatisfied with the presence of true love; each person will be fulfilled.
The purpose of the Unification Church is to train each of you and graduate you with a "license of true love." Regardless of where your license is printed, the important thing is who signs it. The Ph.D. candidate can never receive his degree until the professor in charge signs for him. You want to receive the signature of God and the True Parents on your true love license. Reverend Moon is like the professor in charge of the members of the Unification Church. The subject of learning is true love; I push you out into situations in society that will train you and season you as true love champions. You do not sit in classrooms but learn through activities. The purpose of all those activities is to enable me to sign your true love certificate.
As an ambitious candidate for your certificate of true love, how will you respond to my pushing you and giving you more and more burdens? Will you accept it willingly or will you complain against it" when the major leaders come to visit Mother and me at East Garden. they are always grateful to see us initially. However I always grind them down-keeping them up until 3:00 a.m., for instance for three or tour days in a row. Soon they are all worn out because their scale of thinking is different from mine.
True love can overcome anything, so nothing is more important than finding and dwelling in true love! I always sacrifice sleep for the sake of true love. Sometimes I can get up early and speak to members and at midnight I am still sitting in the same chair, having spoken all day. However, I never get bored with such activities because every minute of the day is exciting when true love is present.
I have the absolute conviction that anybody who lives his life in total intoxication from true love, forgetting everything else, must receive protection and support from the entire universe. My way of life is constantly evoking such give and take action with the universe. This is what the Unification Church is all about.
The essential truth of the universe is contained within one seed. Without the "skin" of love, nothing in the universe could survive but would be destroyed. Seeds germinate in the warmth of the springtime sun. The spring sunshine is a symbol of true love which gives life to everything.
Why have so many religions come and gone throughout history? It is because they have not been able to live up to the demands of true love. True love can never decline or be destroyed. Religions talk about true love but they have not been able to give a crystal clear understanding of what they are talking about; their understanding has been somewhat hazy and unclear and therefore they have been weakened.
You members of the Unification Church, do you need your marriage partner? Why do you say yes? Is it just for the sake of your own satisfaction? No, you know that you need your spouse for the fulfillment of true love. In an electrical circuit, do you ever see a positively charged wire rejecting a negatively charged one, saying, "That wire is ugly; I don't want to connect with it!" No, you will never see such a thing. Actually an "ugly" wire would probably be bent and twisted and would therefore have a greater area for the electricity to travel through, whereas a simple straight wire would be far less interesting. When you love your ugly spouse with true dedication, that is truly the best realization of true love. You will become a universal heat conductor, giving warmth and light to the entire universe.
According to natural law, whenever an object must overcome some tremendous obstacle, its path will be very smooth after that. Likewise, after tremendous joys it is normal that things will level out. This is the wavelike motion which is a part of natural law. It is natural for air to go from being very dense to sparse; it makes a wavelike motion, as well. When a boat is on the ocean, its motor must work very hard to move through rough waves, but then it is very easy to move over smooth seas. Married life is often like that-up and down, intense and smooth, dense and sparse. Those couples who come together in sweetness and lots of romance will experience difficulties in a later time of their marriage. However, if you have to overcome difficulties in the first part of your marriage, your later life together will be beautiful. Everything comes into balance.
Because I am aware of this secret of balance in the universe, I always push young members to take on difficulties and suffering during the first part of their church life, because they will be taken care of by the law of nature. When you get older you will automatically have a smoother, prosperous life. I am pushing you up a steep mountain, but it is definitely exciting.
While we are on earth, we want to cross the highest possible mountain; then we want to go down deep into the ocean. Out of all religions in history, membership in the Unification Church is the toughest. I deliberately make it a challenging and difficult course for you. There are other religions that are much easier to belong to. I have no awards to give to easy-going people, but I have great medals and prizes in store for those willing to go this path. The easy-going person should go somewhere else, because he simply won't make it within the Unification Church.
I am 62 years old now but I have the same mental capacity as a young person. You may think I am an old man but I do not feel old at all. Although some have endured worse physical suffering, no one endured more mental anguish than 1. Why do I always put myself in the position to receive such negativity, in Korea first, then Japan, now the U.S., as well as making myself a target for international communism? Why do I choose to live in such a way, since no one is forcing me? It is because I want to hit the peaks of human experience so that no one can ever compete with me. I want to set a record of going higher and down deeper into life than anyone else. Do you accept that I have set that record?
I have worked for ten years to establish Ocean Church. Do you like Ocean Church? I went to Provincetown and pushed the members to get up at 3:00 a.m. and go out onto the ocean. They hated it, although they didn't say anything; I know they simply do not understand such activity, or why I did it. We went out onto the ocean all day, then even after midnight we didn't come back. Nobody likes it when I lead the Ocean Church members. My family seems to suffer, the leaders don't like it, the members don't like it. So why do I still push you in that way?
My body is not made of iron. 1, too, get tired and fatigued, but I always think of the future of mankind. My actions are always for someone else's benefit, so because of that I can go on and on, beyond my physical limitations. I don't get tired or discouraged.
My favorite thing is true love. I am in love with true love and you yearn to be with me because you also long for true love. Since I embody true love you always want me to come and visit your homes and centers. You want to wear the clothing that I buy for you, not because you don't have clothes but because they represent true love.
Because of my relationship with true love, I am always with you wherever you are; we can always have give and take. I am only one person, but there is something different about me. The missionaries in Africa can feel a communion with me every day. They can see me through true love and there is no distance or boundary between those who share true love.
The motion of the universe is one circling motion, in and out, from the center of the spiral to the outside. Everything within the spiral is connected. Everywhere within the spiral of true love, God is omnipotent and omnipresent. God is not everywhere randomly, at whim, but only in the sense of true love. He has always wanted to dwell everywhere here on the earth, but He couldn't do that in reality because Satan and his power have dominion. God can only dwell directly in the places where true love prevails; in those places He is truly omnipresent and omnipotent.
God has total vision into the future where true love reigns; time and space present no limitations. Regardless of the vastness of spirit world, with true love you can connect yourself anywhere there with true love.
Is it good to be willing to die for the sake of true love? Jesus said, "He who seeks to lose his life for my sake will gain his life." Another way to say it is that those who are willing to die for the sake of true love will live in true love forever. Those who live for their selfish purposes will die permanently.
According to Principle, we must love our enemy with a heart of true love; without that it would be impossible. There is actually no room for the concept of "enemy" within the realm of true love. We can conclude that all beings in the universe relate with each other within the universal "glue" of true love. As I mentioned in the beginning of this sermon, God, mankind and all things of creation can come together under the power of true love.
According to Principle, the world is first in order of importance, then the nation, then the society, then the family, and finally the individual. Today however, the world embraces the exactly opposite way of thinking. Many people put themselves first in their lives, calling it "individualism" and do not care much at all about the world, their nation or their society.
Looked at from the overall point of view, individualism is totally wrong because it is self-centered. On the other hand, if a person is concerned about his own self perfection or completion, that is justifiable. Everyone has an innate desire to perfect himself. Thus, taking care of oneself is not totally evil from God's point of view. If the goal of an individual is to perfect himself or herself in order to form an ideal couple, the universe will accept that.
Most people do not understand how to direct their natural desires for self-fulfillment and instead create all kinds of chaotic ways of living. Each person is designed to become a perfected, God-centered individual; then he can find his partner and create a family. From the base of the family, both the vertical and the horizontal worlds come into being. Before you create your family, you are a plus or a minus being but you are without a true point of reference with the center. Once plus and minus join into one, you merge for the first time with that universal center. Therefore, we need to get married not for our own personal pleasure but more importantly to gain harmony with the universe. When you are joined with the universal plus and minus, you form around you a universal circle.
When a man and woman embrace in true love, each feels completely fulfilled; they have everything they want. They actually "own" the universe because they are relating with the entire universe. That is an experience which can never be bought with money. As a couple, you become a seed or representative of the universe and through your love you create an embryo. That embryo becomes your child, a new life which blossoms forth for the universe.
Have you ever wondered why God didn't create women with beards? Women represent the virgin earth, prior to Creation. Men are like the vegetation which God planted on the earth-plants, trees, flowers. The process of creation made a complete circle, coming at the end to the creation of women. Why were women created last? The alpha of creation was the virgin soil of the earth; the omega was the virgin "soil" of the woman. Therefore, you have no beards because you are like the earth, before seeds were planted and without vegetation. It all falls within a logical system and framework.
The skin of women is soft, smooth, and pliable, almost like clay. Clay is a basic material of the earth, out of which artists create sculpture and many useful materials are made. Men are like the bones, so when men and women come together, they make up one body. If both were like bones, that would not be complete, or if both were like clay it would be formless. People naturally seek their opposite-men like to receive the soft, tender touch of a woman and women like the feel of a masculine, hairy man. A man isn't attracted to a woman with a lot of coarse, rough hair on her face and body. This is because of the law of complementation; we are drawn toward those things in each other which we don't have.
In school, little girls usually learn how to draw and write earlier than boys; this is because girls have a natural sensitivity and gift of observation. They are also capable of imitating well. Boys, however, pick up a drawing pen and just make all kinds of strokes which don't look like anything else. They don't want to imitate anything but simply want to express themselves. Men and women have different proportions. When a woman sits down she has a natural cushion; she doesn't even need a chair! Men are more developed in the shoulder area. Man is like a triangle which is broad at the top; woman is a triangle which is broad at the bottom. The Western business suit for men is actually more parallel with the natural needs of a man; thus even in the Orient men are wearing Western type suits. Because of the proportions of a woman's body, it is usually easier for her to move and sit in a skirt; trousers are more restricting.
It is natural that a woman should take care of the home while the man should be going out into the world. It seems much more natural that a woman come to the door whenever you go to visit a home; when a big man comes and opens the door, it seems less inviting. Men are more easily capable of driving trucks, firing guns, using heavy machinery; women more naturally do well at detail-oriented tasks, such as typing, bookkeeping, sewing, etc. This is a reflection of the law of nature. Nature is a great teacher. The things of nature do not violate the law at all; if they did, they would quickly be extinguished.
Look at the birds; the male is larger and more dominant, while the female is smaller and follows the male. It is not always possible for the female to keep up with the pace of the male; therefore, she has a nest to stay in. Likewise with women; you need a comfortable home to stay in and take care of. When you go out and try to keep up with your husband's pace, you may have to take 15 steps to his 10; therefore you get more tired. It is natural for you to want to get back home where you can rest.
Sometimes I receive the criticism that I am "anti-woman" and "pro-man" but that is not true. I am simply pro-natural law. At this time, many women are trying to take over the societal positions and responsibilities of men; but you are not equipped to do that. You have your own strengths and virtues. Unless you can understand the reality of natural law, you can never understand or make sense of all the crazy things going on in today's world.
Let us return to the topic of the seed. According to Divine Principle, having children is the natural and desirable result of the love of husband and wife. If you have felt that you did not want to have children, this sermon will teach you why it is so valuable that you do so. Without a child, you and your spouse cannot enjoy the heavenly four position foundation; you remain as a triangle, without a vertical line from God to that fourth position.
The Oriental viewpoint is that parents should live for their children; the children are all-important in the family. The Western viewpoint emphasizes men and women just living for each other. Therefore, the Oriental way is more vertical, the Western more horizontal The vertical way is safer and more stable. There must be an axis for any circular motion; a spinning top always turns on its axis. Therefore, the motion of the universe is determined by its vertical, central axis and everything in the universe turns around that axis.
The give and take of men and women originated from the universal give and take of plus and minus. Spiritual values, things of truthfulness and beauty, are at the center of the universe. We naturally pursue experiences of goodness and beauty in a big way because the center of the universe is one of bigness, goodness and beauty.
Whenever there is a turning action, the result is the appearance of a circle. Even when a triangular shape turns around and around, it appears as a whirling circular object.
Children are the result of the combined effort of a man, a woman, and God. Why do we need God in the relationship? It is because we want to create a rectangular, four-position foundation. You need God, the children, and the relationship between man and woman to produce the ideal. As man and woman come closer, God, too, comes closer. When you unite in love, God is involved too; likewise, the child you create is involved in that action. Therefore, all four positions are brought into unity through the act of love.
God is big, good and beautiful; by the same token, you see your husband or wife to be big, good and beautiful in your life. You look at each other as the image of God. Your children, likewise, reflect that same nature which is big, good and beautiful.
What power can create bigness, goodness and beauty? The power of true love alone. Therefore, the heavenly four-position foundation is the focal point of the teachings of the Unification Church. Within the four-positions, every subject and object has three directions in which to relate. This motion creates the rectangular shape.
Why should you love your children more than even your spouse? Even in the secular world, the importance of the vertical relationship between parents and children is very apparent. In American society, you see that divorcing couples often struggle over custody of the children. Why do people never want to divorce their children? It is simply because the child is in that object position to God; God and the child dwell in that vertical line of relationship and there is only one vertical line. It is possible to make all kinds and levels of horizontal relationships, but there is always only one vertical line of relationship. In a way, by holding on to your child, you are holding on to God.
Within the Unification Church, you always put your relationship with God first, then your children, and finally your spouse. We can conclude that the Oriental philosophy toward the family is closer to the Heavenly standard than the Western way. This is not because I am an Oriental person; I am only interested in teaching Heavenly tradition.
For the embryo within the seed to blossom forth, it needs the warmth of the sun. By the same token, in order for a true and valuable human life to blossom it needs the warmth of love coming from God. During the teenage years, a young person is very sensitive and poetic and romantic. Life is very exciting to him. Often the mind of the teenager is full of fantasy; and as soon as the energy of love touches him, he immediately responds and is ready to act on it. The teen years are the time of preparation for the response to love.
One individual represents the entire universal force. Men and women bring down the power of heavenly love between them. They feel that, instead of two units, they were meant to be one unit, one entity. Through their love, germination of the embryo occurs. The action of physical love is an expression of harmony between the two different plus and minus physical human shapes.
I want you to understand that love is not yours; it belongs to God. Love is truly God's property. When you are in love with your husband or wife, don't ever think that it is just between the two of you. When you embrace each other, also remember that you are embracing God and you are sharing God's love. Men and women started out from the same origin, God, divided into their separate existences, and then, through the expression of their love they are brought together into the center with God. Each wants to swap positions freely with each other; a man wants to be able to take the position of the woman and vice-versa. They want to share everything.
Love between husband and wife thrusts them in two directions: toward the center, or unity with each other, and toward the future-to the ideal and hope of future goals. God is in the same position-His love moves in two directions-toward mankind and toward the future realization of His goals.
The child in the womb lives with the constant heartbeat of its mother. His life throbs with the love of God, with the heartbeat of his mother, and gradually his own little heart begins to beat. It is the parents who are closest to true love who will produce a child of the greatest goodness and beauty.
God's providence has been moving toward this day of completion, the time of fulfillment of true love within the family. It is a mandate from God that men and women come together as husband and wife to bring forth children who will take dominion over all creation with greatness, goodness and beauty.
To summarize, the act of love between husband and wife should not be conducted with a selfish attitude. It is actually the most public action which is for the sake of the universe, mankind and God!
As parents, you must have purity of heart and a sense of gratitude toward God. It is not so valuable to have great ambition and say to God, "I want to have a wonderful child who can become a powerful person and take dominion over all creation." What you need is simply purity of heart and through the sanctity of your love, your child will reflect the highest ambitions of anyone.
The fruit of the providence is certainly the fruit of true love. Who shall harvest that fruit? The husband and wife together. Once you make the harvest, you store it in Heaven's storehouse.
A child is a representative of God and his parents. He can see the manifestation of true love in his parents and he can know that he is the fruit of their true love. The mother is like the railroad tracks, the father is like the railroad car and the children are like the cargo riding inside. All they have to do is just move toward the goal. This means that the parents must be the example of true love for the children. When that is the case, you don't even have to say "I love you"-your every day actions are the living manifestation of your true love. Your children will be totally devoted to you and will never want to abandon you; even if they go away, they will have to come back.
It is human destiny to search for true love. Even after the fall of man, the traces of true love still remain so everyone is seeking for it. Mankind has always tried to find that original source of true love. In form, everything for the ideal world already exists; our task in building the ideal world is to make everything true-true parents, true children, true couples, true ideal. This is the most significant aspect of our movement.
The true, ideal world means the world of true love. When that is accomplished, everything will be fulfilled. Everything will be okay. That is the goal of the harvest of the providence-for everything to be okay. We are looking forward to the harvest of that seed of true love; we are working every day to create that true love seed.
In the electronics field, such companies as Sony can say "everything is okay" when it comes to their products. No matter how sophisticated the equipment that breaks, the Sony Co. could take care of it. By the same token, we want to have a spiritual "Sony Co." that can take care of everything spiritual-don't you want to be a member of that kind of church? Such a church would be a true love church, a church of ideal love.
The church of true, ideal love is one in which God is totally satisfied and vulnerable to being moved by His children. In such a church, God is everywhere-in the bathroom, in the kitchen, etc. Body odors would not offend God. In true love, everything is okay.
You are consummating your family life now. The most important question you must face at this time is what kind of harvest are you going to make? What kind of child do you want to bring to this world? When your mental, spiritual or physical condition is not prepared, how can you pursue your spouse? You have no right to do so. If your spiritual or physical situation is not proper at the time of your child's conception, you will have much regret after he is born. That child will be the reminder of your situation over and over again. You do not want to bear that kind of pain. You don't want to be in the position to be constantly reminded of how poorly you treated your husband or wife; your child will exhibit signs of that and remind you constantly.
Are you ready to pray, "God, I am ready to bear a true child for this world"? Actually, nobody can pray such a prayer because nobody is truly ready or worthy. The alternative is to pray, "I am not worthy, so I am throwing myself into my mission. I will work hard and take on persecution and suffering, but I will do it with a truly grateful heart and never quit." That is one way in which you can move God.
When husband and wife work hard in your Home Church area, bearing rejection after rejection but never cursing the people, you can pray together in tears for the sake of the people. God will look at such a couple and think, "They deserve a true child-so I am going to bless them." He will tell them, "My son and daughter, don't worry, I will give you a child who will vindicate you and take his proper dominion over all things. He will be the source of your glory."
God is looking for suffering people who have such noble hearts-it doesn't matter in which country, whether it is large or small-He wants to see people who truly represent the suffering heart of the parents to this world. Korea is one nation in that position; it has suffered much tribulation, yet it clings to its hope and faith in God. Within that nation, God called on me to represent His heart to this world. Actually, if anyone could curse the Korean people it would be me because they have given me a harder time than anyone else. However, I am not in such a position to curse Korea. In America, likewise, I have been misrepresented and mistreated but I am still reaching out m compassion toward this country.
I knew that God would bless me with better and better children further and further down the line and that is what has happened. Those children who were born in this country were bestowed with superior blessings. Each child has been greater and greater in their devotion and filial piety.
You should be pulling your beloved's hands, not into the bedroom but along the road of tribulation for the sake of God. God called Abraham and told him to leave his country immediately. Do you think Abraham went gently to his wife and allowed her to get lots of sleep before he obeyed God's command? No, he must have shaken her awake and pulled her out of bed to follow him. If she asked "Where are we going?" he would have answered, "Don't ask. Just follow me." Abraham didn't even know where they were going.
You women should look at your husbands as if they were in Abraham's position. Don't demand an explanation from him when he pushes you to get up and out of bed; just trust and follow him. Usually when someone is trying to explain all the details about the providential path, the providence has already gone on ahead without him! Your husband might tell you, "Don't ask questions, just follow me. Beyond that horizon, wonderful things are waiting." You should follow him without having any idea what kinds of things are waiting.
Perhaps when you and your husband get on the other side of that mountain where wonderful things were supposed to be waiting, there will be a howling wolf instead. Then your husband might say, "Don't worry, we must cross over another mountain and then we will come to Canaan, that wonderful land." Even if the wife is not so cooperative, the husband must somehow persuade her to go with him over all the mountains. Do you men understand? That is your job. Actually, in some cases the husband is the one who is confused and not sure of what to do or where to go.
Sometimes you have to give an ultimatum and tell your spouse, "All right. You can stay here, but I'm going ahead." Do you rascal men hear me correctly this morning? So many men feel they have to discuss their missions and mandates from God with their wives first before doing them. But you must feel, "I must talk with God alone; let my wife follow me."
You know that I have taught you American women many things. You love and trust me, is that correct? From now on you must truly be different from all secular American women. Think of it: if I had been the sort of man who always cleared things with my wife before acting on them, there would not be any Unification Church today! I am speaking now of my first marriage. That woman was very brilliant and capable. She told me, "All you need to do is just love and pay attention to me and our child; I will make you happy. Just stay here; why do you have to go to North Korea, anyway? You have no guarantee that you will survive there!" However, I did not listen to her; I only discussed with God and obeyed God's commands. Even more than Abraham, I left everything behind and went directly to North Korea as soon as God directed me. I didn't even go to visit my own home town there in North Korea-that is not why God sent me. I went to North Korea in order to do exactly what God commanded me.
When I came to the United States, there was opposition, too. People said to me, "Father, you have success now here in Korea. Why must you go to another strange country and suffer there?" At that time, I left Mother behind and brought only those missionaries who could translate for me. So again I left my wife and children behind and took off for a foreign land. My immediate family felt unhappy, but I didn't pay much attention. Mother felt that she would like to accompany me everywhere I went, but I had to leave her behind. I was coming to a place similar to a spiritual "combat zone." I had to go to all fifty states setting up the holy grounds in forty days' time.
In that way, I was able to demonstrate my love for this country. I wanted to be able to say, "I love this country more than anyone else, even any American." In the process of giving true love to this country and its people, I incurred persecution on the worldwide level. Although I received so much opposition and hostility, still I loved this nation with a father's love. Therefore, no one can compete with such love.
At this time people are wondering why Reverend Moon is spending so much time and energy trying to promote the memory and image of General MacArthur, especially through the movie Inchon. Julius Caesar was the emperor under whose rule the messiah, Jesus Christ, was crucified. MacArthur has been nicknamed the "American Caesar;" but he was like a heavenly Caesar. The kind of character which Caesar embodied was authoritarian, not democratic. Caesar, in the position of emperor, should have been able to love his people and his public mission; of course, he could not do that. Caesar did not love God, first of all.
On the contrary, MacArthur showed his trust in God through the Inchon landing. Without trust and faith in God, it would not have been possible. There is much more that could be said about this, but I want to wait until some future time.
At this time in history, Reverend Moon has promoted the memory of MacArthur, thereby stirring up people throughout this country. I want to see the image and spirit of MacArthur welcomed here. When that happens, I myself will receive a kind of liberation because Reverend Moon's position is parallel to that of MacArthur. When this movie is released all over the country, America's perception of Reverend Moon will become different. When people see that .'Moonie movie" and gain inspiration from it, they will have to change their minds about Reverend Moon. When General MacArthur and Reverend Moon become one, it is symbolic of America and Korea becoming one. It's almost like achieving the impossible unity between Jesus and Julius Caesar-such a thing is almost unthinkable, but if such a thing had occurred, human history would have been different.
This is the time of the revival and resurrection of General MacArthur. That great soldier of America was actually rejected and fired; but now Reverend Moon has come and led the revival of MacArthur's spirit. In modern history, the only person who achieved the status of a true hero was General MacArthur. Some people name Winston Churchill as a true hero, but he was limited to the European area, not the world level. However, the Korean War was a worldwide conflict between the United Nations and the combined forces of the communist nations.
Julius Caesar controlled the entire civilized world during his time. If MacArthur could have gained unity with Truman, he could have created a different kind of "Roman Empire" of modern times. If he had been allowed to advance beyond the Yalu River and liberate all of Korea, Manchuria, and even China, he could have destroyed communism in Asia. Certainly he could have become president of the US on that foundation. Undoubtedly, the history of this country would have been very different.
Therefore, America must restore the memory and the spirit of MacArthur. When his spirit prevails here, this country can re-discover a true dream, an ideal. Where can a true ideal be found at this time? Nowhere else but in the Unification Church. If General MacArthur had heard and understood the ideology of Unification Church, what do you think would have happened? Don't you think one world under God could be possible?
I want to bring General MacArthur to the attention of American young people. If they see Inchon and read the program, they will be inspired to think, "I want to be like General MacArthur." Three characteristics of MacArthur are very distinct through the film: he was a man who loved God, loved humanity, and hated communism.
There is a part of the movie program which states that a national movement to promote General MacArthur's anti-communism needs to arise here. MGM, the distributors of the film, protested strongly saying, we won't be a propagandistic company." There was much discussion back and forth, and finally we said, "If you don't accept it, we won't allow you to distribute the movie." They surrendered at that point.
Inchon is a movie that will ignite a new fervor in the hearts of American youth. All together, approximately $60 million was spent on this project. This was not done for the sake of making money. If even 100 young people become inspired and strive to emulate the spirit of General MacArthur the money will be very well spent.
The words I have spoken will not vanish throughout history. I want to register for history these remarks at Belvedere about McArthur long after I am dead, this movement will continue and prosper; it will become the leading force for the world. There shall be a museum in which all the words I have spoken and written will be preserved for people of the future to see. The day will come when the name and spirit of Reverend Moon will be justified and glorified. At that time, those who persecuted me will be regarded by mankind as traitors. Therefore, I am not perturbed by having to go to court or by any other experience. I am considering the future; for the sake of 100 years from now, I can never be a coward or try to beg for mercy from unjust accusers. I have not done anything wrong and history will prove it.
This is why I have been carrying on many different activities at the same time as this court battle has been going on. This year we began the Minority Alliance International for the sake of Black, Oriental and other ethnic groups. Then we carried out the Conference on God, an idea which was impossible for most people to even think about. We had the Youth Crusade for God, with people from different religions coming together. Then The Washington Times was created. The Professors World Peace Academy was greatly expanded. Then, on July 1, there was the blessing here in America; soon another blessing will be held in Korea. On September 17, Inchon was released. All these things have been done within one year.
Those people who are neutral about Reverend Moon and the Unification movement will soon be swayed toward positivity. Do you think the Unification Movement is going up or down in this country now? Certainly, it is going up. Do you think Inchon will lead America toward further corruption or toward her resurrection? I love and forgive America and I am demonstrating that through the Inchon film and everything else. As long as you Americans are strong and faithful to the ideal, this nation will have hope; you are the only hope of this country. You cannot falter; you must go out and teach this nation the truth and bring it resurrection.
Religion is not for the purpose of destruction; it is for the purpose of living and salvation. I have come here as a foreigner and have given this much; you as native Americans should do one hundred times more. I want to push you harder so that you can achieve your potential for this country; you can be doing far more. Do you welcome my pushing you? You have got to educate this country out of its ignorance.
My role is not just to teach Americans; America's role is to teach the world. Therefore, I am doing all this here so that you, in turn, can teach the rest of the world. I know that if you cannot do the job, God will mobilize other forces. There are many professors who appreciate what I am doing and they can be the ones to teach the truth in their own classrooms. If that happens, you will be in a shameful position because you will have failed your mission. I don't want you to be in that position and therefore I am pushing you hard at this time, seemingly ruthlessly. I want you to fulfill your mission. If you can accomplish just one kind of record-even if you can only say you suffered the most-that is at least something you have done at this historic time.
Every year at the Science Conference, the chairmen want to meet with me, but I have not yet granted them that request. Those people admire me and respect me, while many average people look at me with tremendous disrespect. What is your position? You call me Father so in order to be in that kind of position, you must be a defender of the family, standing up against opposition and fighting the negativity. Otherwise, you are not truly in the position to call me Father. If you feel that you cannot go beyond certain limitations because of your own reputation and your own job, can that be enough?
In America, Reverend Moon is in the position of "No man." Your job is to make him a "known man," to educate the public about him. You American women, will you listen well to your husbands? You fierce American guys, do you want to lead your wives well? You must maintain your subjective position, even in love. You must have your own dignity. You women must help your husbands maintain their dignity; if your husband comes to you with a whining, self-pitying attitude, you should kick him!
Your love relationships now must set the tradition for the future; they must not contain anything dishonorable. The tradition you set now will be the model for the world in the future; if your standard is crooked now, people in the future will have a crooked model to follow. That tradition has been walked by God, True Parents, and now it is your turn. Millions of people will have to follow that standard; that is why I do not want to compromise it in any way. It must be a dignified tradition.
Husband and wife, you must have a disciplined life not a loose one. Your sexual relationships have an impact upon the universe itself. You must bear beautiful, healthy fruit through that; otherwise, you are offending the universe.
I would like to see flowers of hope, the ideal, and future prosperity blooming through your children. Our love exists on an entirely different level than the kind of love which people get from prostitutes. When you approach your spouse, you should do it in the name of God, True Parents and humanity; you must maintain your dignity at that time. Are you confident that you can do that? Although you may have been in the church for 3 or 7 or 10 years, that can't be enough to wipe out the memories of the past if your life was open and undisciplined before you joined. You must become totally new men and women, eliminating all traces of the past; otherwise you are not worthy of loving each other.
We are raising a serious question here: how can we create an ideal couple? Let us harvest the most beautiful seed in the form of our children, as the fruit of God's providence. You must pledge to God that you will love your children; nothing else can matter. Your education, your money, and all those secular worries cannot be important. First things must come first and you must establish the tradition of true love.
When you women come here to Belvedere, you are always very quiet and obedient before me. As soon as you get out of here, however, do you revert back to being typical American women? I want you to understand that God knows exactly what you need. God knows me completely, and He is still pushing me out further and further.
Satan is always trying to exploit your weaknesses, but you must be strong and have no weaknesses for him to exploit. The ideal of the Unification Church is the greatest one, but if you fail to practice it, it will bring the greatest tragedy to you. You want to enjoy the sweetest part of the ideal first, but I push you to taste the worst suffering first. Once you overcome those difficulties, you will be completely separated from accusation from Satan. In that position, God will give you the three blessings.
Do you feel regret for having given so much effort and time doing your work for God? At this time, you must continue to work hard and suffer together with your spouse and family and you will become the subjects of the Completed Testament Acts of the Apostles of God's Kingdom. Even though you may work so hard you feel completely exhausted and cannot go on, you will not be finished. You will receive the true, unending admiration of all the people of the future, year after year.
That is why Mother and I have lived with the same spirit, year after year. Mother has given birth to so many children and her body is not the same as it was; she endures incredible suffering. However, I still push her to go together with me everywhere. Do you object to that or do you approve of it`? You approve? Does that mean you want Mother to suffer more ? No, but you understand the Principle and you know the reasons why I must push her. 1, myself, am over 60 years of age and I don't really have to work as hard as I do, but that is not the way I want to live my life. I cannot sit complacently in a reclining chair for even one day.
God is telling me that I should take it easy now, since the age of the children has arrived; I could just offer guidance and not work so hard. However. I will not live that way. Do you think God will say, "You have broken the law: I asked you to rest and you did not rest, so I am going to punish you'"? No, there is no such law in God's kingdom. Even though God may be telling me strongly in front of all the angels in spirit world that I should take it easy. inside of Him He is filled with pride. He is thinking. "Reverend Moon is really my champion. I am so proud of him."
Now I am treating you the same way. When I send you out on some mission, you respond quickly with, "Yes, I will do it!" and you set out with enthusiasm to do it. Then you should complete it and come back to me asking, "Okay, I did it. What's next?" However, I have never yet seen one member or one leader come to me with that spirit and say, "My mission is accomplished; what's next. Father?" Furthermore, usually your attitude is a quivering, fearful "What's next?" Where do you stand? Are you always afraid of what I am coming up with next?
Unless you Americans restore that kind of aggressive, pioneering spirit, this country will decline and some other forces will be able to take over this country. Look at the lesson of Japan: that tiny little nation is the number one competitor to the United States. Thirty years ago, Japan would never have been regarded as capable of such a thing. The great U.S. corporations thought they were untouchable in the world market, but now Japan is ahead in many markets, such as automobiles, electronics, etc.
I would like to hear you black people asking me what's next, because it is your time to rise up. I must tell you that what is next is that you must go out and give more, suffer more for the sake of God and humanity. What is next? The real Moonies are what's next on the horizon. More than anybody else, the Moonies are the people who are ready to suffer and give ourselves for the sake of God and humanity. According to this criteria, no one can compete with us. That will be our pride. We have a definite path in this life, like a certain railroad line. You may not have a first-class cabin or seat, but you must somehow stay on that train, even if you are just hanging on.
I am running swiftly and every corner of the world is emitting protests, like barking dogs. Controversies are swirling around me and my activities. This is truly a sign that I am not standing still but am moving swiftly- running along the path. Some people have depicted me in the ugliest possible ways. It is like the graffiti vandals who have painted the outside of the New York subway cars. But once you get inside my "railroad car" you see that it is beautiful, golden and clean-it is a royal car. Precious stones and glittering walls are on the inside.
When passengers enter that car, they can feel the regal elegance and totally enjoy being there. However when those passengers, namely the Unification Church members, look outside the windows they see all the swirling protests and controversies. They can become so confused that they even try to run out of that car while it is moving. If someone does that on a real railroad car, it is surely fatal. Likewise, if you pay attention to the secular world and get affected by it, you will be a victim of the secular world. When you come to Belvedere, you should not be thinking. "When I was living in the 'outside world' I slept till ten o'clock every Sunday. Why should I get up now at 4 in the morning?" You should not compare your life now with the past.
Even women are going to Ocean Church now and are being made boat captains. Are you women wondering, "How can I possibly do such a thing?" and comparing your past life with this? On the contrary, you should go out to the seashore and wait for my boat and tell me, "Father, I want to be the first captain!" That is the winning spirit.
At the leaders' conference last week, I integrated all the fifty state centers with Ocean Church. Everybody in the church will be giving at least two weeks a year to Ocean Church. If you are a very fat person, you may tip the boat over-but still you have to go to the ocean for two weeks! Perhaps I will send all the husbands to Alaska in the winter time and the wives to Alabama in the summer time. How would you like that? You must be able to bring salvation to people in every climate-hot, cold, northern and southern.
When the parents work with such a spirit, the children will automatically follow. Do you want your children to be universal, world citizens? Or do you want them to be small-minded? You must train yourself first.
What, then, is-the harvest of God's providence? The children of your families are that harvest, that fruit. Can you do it properly? We will see the result. I asked all the blessed couples to send their children to Korea for their schooling, but one mother in England protested, "Father, Korea is not our culture. Our children cannot survive there." I directed them to send their child, anyway. but they soon took the child away. Is that right or wrong? I am sure that among you there is the same kind of thinking and that is why I am announcing this now. You need the right kind of training.
Suppose I asked a white couple to trade places with a black couple. Suppose I asked them to go and take care of each other's children with true love? We need that kind of capacity to change and become parents to other people's children. Suppose I asked all American men to swap missions with German men. If you say no, you are distancing yourself from the ideal of Heaven and you cannot inherit the Heavenly tradition. Suppose I asked all Tarrytown members to stand up and trade places with African members, taking their missions.
Are you thinking, "Finally the blessing came and we can be husband and wife and take a honeymoon!"? Any honeymoon without God's tradition will produce great problems. I would like to see that you are in the position to inherit God's tradition. This kind of tradition has to be lived by the Moonies first, not the secular world first. Would you say that even Moonies cannot live it? Or would you say, "Yes, we can welcome such a tradition"? If you can do that, it means that you can inherit the world and take true dominion over the world. Those who are rejecting and shying away from the Heavenly tradition are actually digging your own graves, because the world and universe will move away from you in the future.
It's a great world and we have great hope for the future, but it is not easy to live properly. Husband and wife and family are important, of course, but the Unification Church cannot truly settle down yet. Certainly Reverend Moon has not settled down yet. Nothing of what I have established here in America has been for the sake of my own future-not even for the sake of the Unification Church. If God commanded me to, I would leave here without even telling you good-bye this afternoon. You might think, "How can you be so impersonal and cruel, Father?" But it is not cruelty to obey the providence of God without hesitation.
I want you to understand that you are the pioneers of the tradition of the future. You are making the mold for others to fit into. I want you to prepare your home and clan for every eventuality. Those of you living close with me feel more to the bone this tradition. You must be ready to learn and take over the tradition.
Almost everybody who was important in God's providence had to leave his own hometown. Jacob had to go away and you, too, must go into enemy territory at one time or another. The best way would be to marry with a person who represents your enemy. Those who marry interracially, especially white and black, are accomplishing this and bringing together two extremes.
I want to instruct you new wives how important it is that you breast feed your babies for at least the first 100 days; they need to receive their mother's milk. During that time when you are feeding your baby, you should be thinking, "My beautiful child, you are the child of God. When you were in my womb, I may not have given you everything perfectly, but now I want to give you everything-my love, my very body to nourish you." You should feel like asking that child for forgiveness, "When you were in the womb, I fought with your father and I had many unhappy moments. I complained against God's providence and being pushed too hard; I complained that the church wasn't taking care of me properly. I repent very much, so as the representative of God, please forgive me. As you grow, I will try my absolute best to be a Heavenly mother." You should pray, "God, please accept this child as Yours and bring him up as a great champion for Your Kingdom."
The heart-to-heart relationship between the child and the mother can be best formed through breast feeding. Since it was the mother who denied God first in the Garden of Eden, it is the mother who can restore the home and family. First you should repent to your child and tell him,
"As much as I love you, I will love your father, as well." Your child is the fruit of your blessing. When your husband must travel all around the world, busy with God's providence, he will come home and he will discover that his wife is becoming more and more beautiful, both inside and out.
Husband and wife should have heart-to-heart talks and confess your shortcomings to each other. The wife might tell her husband, "I complained about this and that, but can you forgive me?" The husband will say, "Of course. When I hear you confessing to me, I am moved to confess my sins, too. I was very mean and unkind to you and I am very sorry. I have not been so good, but can you forgive me?" Your child will be like a representative of God in your midst, bringing husband and wife together. You will see that once your baby is born, repentance and confession will come much more easily and quickly to you.
You must pray together, holding your child between you. Do your five o'clock Pledge service together, with your child. That will be your hour to have communion with God and True Parents and that should be how you approach it. How beautiful that will be!
Our children are the only hope of the future; they are going to be the stars of the Kingdom of Heaven. Those of you who pledge to bring to this world such exemplary children, please raise your hands. Thank you. From now on, I will look forward to your accomplishing this goal.
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