Author: Richard Urban

Who to You, Scribes and Pharisees, Hypocrites!

The recordings of the Peaceful Families; Peaceful World workshop are now available:
You can view the recordings for free at https://www.visionroot.org/workshop-recordings/
Day 1: Abstinence-centered curriculum training,
Day 2: Unification Principle Study 
Day 3: Strengthening Families and Communities Forum. 

Cheon Seong Gyeong 450

You should understand why human beings are born. They are not born for the sake of knowledge or political power. They are born because of love and from love. Then what makes love so great? It is the fact that love is the original source of life. You are born in the midst of your parents’ love. You are not born out of your parents’ desire for money or knowledge. Since you are born in love like this, you should bear fruits of love. This is why you need children. A husband and wife become complete when they become one and have sons and daughters as their object partners. (Blessed Family – 1062)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1422

Registration will take place from now on. When South and North Korea are reunited, the members of the Unification Church across the world, the Blessed Families who have conducted themselves in an appropriate manner, will all be registered regardless of tribe. This will happen, if the North and South are united through the authority of True Father. Then heavenly law will decree that the loyal subjects of the Unification Church around the world [are] the representative race, the race that passes on the lineage. Who would oppose that? From the historical point of view, I have worked so hard for the independence of Korea and to establish it as the homeland, so who could possibly oppose me? (197-212, 1990.1.14)

Hypocrisy

WHEREVER PEOPLE SUBSCRIBE TO A RELIGION or doctrine of moral excellence, there is always the danger of hypocrisy. The hypocrite wishes to enjoy the approval of his peers and even the benefits of a religious office by appearing outwardly moral or religious, while inwardly he is not. Where religion makes serious demands upon people’s lives, such as Jesus’ call to love your enemy, Islam’s call to jihad or Buddhism’s strict precepts of monastic discipline, the hypocrite tries to circumvent these demands while appearing outwardly righteous. The hypocrite does not pay the price of commitment to the religious life and hence does not reap its spiritual benefits; hence he remains at a low state.
Furthermore, when hypocrisy becomes prevalent and lowers the standards expected of religious people, it brings religion itself into disrepute. In Father Moon’s survey of history, he teaches that the decline of the Christian spirit, accompanied by hypocrisy of the rich who tolerated and justified widespread poverty and racism, was the direct cause for the spread of materialistic ideologies in the 19th and 20th centuries. (See Chapter 8: Christianity) Only by recovering the true godly spirit of religion Father Moon teaches, can we establish a spiritual civilization that can bring lasting peace to this planet.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
    Matthew 23.27-28

He who has the character of a sinner, though he lays great stress on the outward signs of his religious calling as a means of living, he who does not control himself though he pretends to do so, will come to grief for a long time.
    Uttaradhyayana Sutra 20.43 (Jainism)

Continue reading “Who to You, Scribes and Pharisees, Hypocrites!”

Do You Believe in God, or Do You Know God?

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2160

Jesus knew that individual enemies were not the only enemies. He knew that family enemies, clan enemies, ethnic enemies, national enemies, and global enemies surrounded him on all four sides. This means that there are many enemies awaiting those who want to follow his path. It also means that if you go the family path, there are family enemies waiting, and if you go the clan path, there are clan enemies waiting. You can expect fierce battles, but you must love those enemies whenever you encounter them. If you possess this kind of spirit, someday victory can be yours.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1514

All the creation would appear beautiful in your eyes at the time of your marriage, just as it was when God created the universe. The whole of creation, including you, exists through love. When you realize this, then through that love the fundamental feelings God nurtured at the time of Creation can be re-created and shared with your partner and all forms of existence on earth, all united together as one. In other words, it is possible for you to experience the deepest feelings of God at the time of Creation. You are also a part of the creation who inherited every ideal conceived by God when He created the universe. If you were to pull true love towards yourself, heaven and earth would also be drawn towards you. Even the furthest things would be drawn to you if they were pulled by true love, and things nearby could be sent far away by the power of true love. (216-192, 1991.3.31)

Doubt

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

Do you believe in God, or do you know God? You say you know Him; then, do you believe in His love, or do you know it? You say God is alive; do you believe He is alive, or do you know it?  By the same token, you say you are of God’s lineage, but do you just believe you are of His lineage, or do you know it?
    What is faith? According to Hebrews chapter 11, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” It is something provisional, not connected to the reality we experience. (359:87, 011106)

Continue reading “Do You Believe in God, or Do You Know God?”

O Man of Little Faith, Why Did You Doubt?

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2110

When you go to your hometown, you should go there with true love. If you bring true love to your hometown, plant it and practice it, you will become ancestors. You will be the first generation ancestors. If you are a Park, your generation will be engrafted to the heavenly kingdom with the family name Park. Then, your father would be in the position of your son. (177-161, 1988.5.17)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1456

From the theoretical perspective, there will no longer be anything to explain with regard to God’s will. Everything has been completed. The time has now come for us to turn over a new leaf. Now that we are carrying on the history bequeathed to us from God and True Parents, the era of registration will soon arrive. Then you will have to be registered. Have you all become like God and True Parents in the position of sons and daughters of God? It is easy to say, but not to fulfill. Whether asleep or awake, you must always keep this in mind. These thoughts must accompany you wherever you go, and whatever you do, whether you are eating or sleeping. In order to do so, you need to experience residing in the homeland before passing on to the next world. (201-234, 1990.4.22)

Doubt

FAITH IN THE INTANGIBLE IS INEVITABLY MET BY DOUBT. Doubts arise from faith’s unrealistic claims, from the challenges that living a life of faith entails, and from the skepticism that abounds in today’s secular environment. Unresolved doubts can weigh down and even sink a believer sailing on the voyage of faith, as symbolized by Peter’s unsuccessful attempt to walk on water.
Every believer is responsible to confront and overcome his or her doubts. Intellectually, we can find answers to satisfy our unresolved questions. Ultimately, we should graduate from the level of belief to attain knowledge of God based upon lived experience.

Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and place my finger in the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side, I will not believe.” Eight days later, his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. The doors were shut, but Jesus came and stood among them, and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed.”
    John 20.24-29

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Egoism Is Worthless and Just Vociferous

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2220

We believe in God who wants to realize one world, a world of one purpose. Since God is Jehovah and Lord of all nations, and the center of all centers, when we face Him from afar, we want to be His loyal subjects. We were born for this duty and responsibility. Understand that as we draw near to Him, He becomes our Father to whom we owe the duty of filial piety as His sons and daughters. That is our priority. Only when you have lived like that can you say to God, “If you want to send me to hell, send me there. If you want to send me to Heaven, send me there. Do as you please.” Nobody went to hell after living like that. (154-314, 1964.10.5)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1188

As viewed from God’s original ideal of creation, the eldest son should come from God’s side and, of course, the second son should also come from God’s side. Due to the Fall, the position of the first son was taken by Satan, and the position of the second son went to God. This has to be made right. Thus, when we consider the story of Esau and Jacob in the Bible, Jacob united with his mother and received her help. He gave Esau the pottage of lentils and bread in exchange for the birthright of the firstborn son. Until today, we could not understand why Bible history is the way it is. With the appearance of the Unification Church, its meaning was clarified for the first time. (134-304, 1985.8.16)

Richard: Unless you study the Unification Principle, you cannot understand the Bible fully. You can now view the recording of the Unification Principle workshop for free here.

The Fear of God

2. Reverence and Awe

The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.
    Habakkuk 2.20

The fire of hell has been forbidden to these two eyes: the eye that remained sleepless through watching in the ways of God, and the eye that wept with spirit trembling at the fear of God.
    Hadith of Darimi (Islam)

Divine things,
Proceeding from the mind
Of the unseen kami—
How awesome, and
Not to be taken lightly!
    Norinaga Motoori, One Hundred Poems on the Jeweled Spear (Shinto)

The true believers are those whose hearts are filled with awe at the mention of God, and whose faith grows stronger as they listen to His revelations. They put their trust in their Lord, pray steadfastly, and give in alms of that which We have given them. Such are the true believers. They shall be exalted and forgiven by their Lord, and a generous provision shall be made for them.
    Qur’an 8.2-4 

The fear of God is mighty and of great weight.
Egoism is worthless and just vociferous.
Walk under the weight of such great fear;
And through Divine grace obtain knowledge of God.
None crosses the ocean of existence unless he bear fear;
Through fear the fear-directed life is beautified with divine love.
Through fear of God, the fire of fear blazes in the human frame.
Through fear of God and love is molded spiritual beauty.
Without fear of God all that is uttered is misshapen and worthless—
The mold and the shaping stroke both blind…
Through fear of God vanish worldly fears.
The fear of God which eliminates all other
fear—how may it be called fear?
No other resting place is except Thee;
All that happens is Thy will.
One might be afraid of it if anything other than God held any fear—
To be shaken with such fears is sheer perturbation of mind.
    Adi Granth, Gauri, M.1. p. 151 (Sikhism)

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

Father! Our hearts are filled with fear as we recollect Thy sorrowful historical course. Knowing Thy difficult labors, whenever we approach Thy majesty, our minds are struck with awe. (6:328, June 28, 1959)

Give reverence and honor to God, who has restrained Himself, silently enduring the path of suffering for thousands of years. Have the heart that God is your true Father. Make a determination that regardless of the suffering you may endure, you will become the central ancestors who will leave behind the Father’s tradition for tens of thousands of years. (363:254, December 25, 2001)

Although I have a mouth, I keep silent. Not because I do not know how to speak, but because I am cautious that by misspeaking I might go against Heaven’s law. Not because I do not know how to complain, but because of God. (67:316, July 22, 1973)

Most people curse Heaven, living with resentment and despair; few are the people who pledge their loyalty to God. Since we are among that loyal few, God treats us with seriousness. Nevertheless, think about God’s heart and His situation: How wretched it is that He has such a small group of insignificant people as us with which to restore the world. (93:217, June 1, 1977)

O Father, Thy sons and daughters gathered here feel fearful
that we might not be adequate to become sons and daughters
who can receive everything Thou wouldst give us,
and who can give everything to Thee.
We fear that we may not be able to represent
the world, history and the cosmos,
when to us Thou wouldst express Thy heart,
the heart Thou hast always wanted to give us. (35:288, October 25, 1970)

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Absolute Faith Means there Is No Concept of Self At All

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Cheon Seong Gyeong 2133

Realizing the boundless realm of peace of the ideal world that links the ideal of the nation to the ideals of the race, family, and individual, through assimilating the ideal for the world and the nation through God’s ideal that I have described, is without a doubt the way that the world of peace of true love will be built on earth.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1254

Marriage is a very serious thing. Marriage is the coming together of heaven and earth, east and west, north and south, and high and low. Then, where does love go? When the two become one, where does love go? Why should we seek love? By seeking love, we automatically go to the central place of the environment. If people do not have a family, they are imperfect in this society. No one will ever trust them. That is because they fall short of the standard of the principle in sustaining the universe and so people do not acknowledge their value. That is only logical. (139-64, 1986.1.26)

Richard: The key to world peace,whether in the Ukraine or anywhere else, is not more weapons, but exactly what Rev. Moon states above. Peaceful families do make a peaceful world. Register here for the Peaceful Families; Peaceful World workshop.

Faith

4. Absolute Faith—Untainted by Personal Desires and Unaffected by Circumstances

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

When you pray, be aware of your privilege as a glorious son or daughter of God. Then when you pray, “O Lord, please grant me my wish; I truly want it to be done,” God will grant your request. Thus you will discover the living God. You will see that God is alive and working on your behalf.
    By harnessing the power of God in this way, you can heal your members when they become sick. When you go through difficult times, you will find that God is directly helping you. Live this way, and you will have many realizations. You will gain the confidence and conviction to overcome every obstacle. You will know with certainty that God is on your side. (65:286, January 1, 1973)

On the way of our faith there should be no self-assertion or self-concept. Absolute faith means there is no concept of self at all. If I say I believe absolutely, it means there should be no opposition to that within myself. When you say you are united with God, there should be no ego. You have to unite completely with the Subject, leaving no trace of self. In the life of faith there is no place for egoism. (46:82, July 25, 1971)

When God called Noah, He did not instruct him to do something that corresponds with common sense. He said, “Noah, build an ark on the heights of a mountain.” God could have told Noah to build the ark near the seashore or by a river, but instead He gave Noah instructions that seemed completely implausible. Nevertheless, Noah carried out God’s command in faith, and persevered in doing so for 120 years. God always conducts His providence in ways that ordinary people cannot understand. (70:64, February 8, 1974)

If you follow the secular environment and try to pursue a life of faith at the same time, you cannot attain absolute faith. Most people live routine lives and think, “I am acceptable in God’s sight.” However, regarding the fundamental problem—how to enter the Kingdom of God—living a routine life in this fallen world does not suffice… Why is it, that without an absolute standard of faith, we cannot establish the Kingdom of God? It is because Satan dwells there. (46:79-80, July 25, 1971)

When you walk with absolute faith, even if your nation comes against you, you must never yield. Although your family may oppose you, with absolute faith you should not be defeated. Even if your loving spouse persecutes you, you must hold on to the attitude of absolute faith. Why do we live our life with an attitude of absolute faith? Quite simply, the way to goodness requires that we overcome the evil environment. (29:206)

The purest and most trustworthy person does as God does: although belief seems impossible he never stops believing, although loving is difficult he never stops loving, and although he cannot stand living with his partner he continues to live together with her. That kind of person will definitely become a victor over any circumstances. (Way of Unification 8.4.8)

How serious are you, as you stand before God’s tremendous Providence which He has been conducting through history? How much are you united with God’s Will? Are you leading a life of absolute faith, centered on God’s Will? You should be able to say, “Though winds and tempest blow, and though I may perish, my conviction is firm. I could be wrong, but God’s Will can never be wrong.” You should have such a rock-solid conviction. It is folly to desire for the Kingdom of God when your faith is ever changing from morning to evening. (46:74, July 25, 1971)

Where do we connect to love? It is at the point where we become absolutely zero, where there is no trace of self. To find perfect love, there is no place for “me.” It is the same with faith. As God’s object partner I believe in my Subject absolutely, and God as my Subject partner believes in me as His object partner absolutely. In faith, there is no self. In absolute faith, there is no place for “me.” Faith is absolute at the zero point.
    When you unite with your partner in absolute love, there is no “I.” Likewise, when you unite with your partner in absolute faith, there is no “I.” This is how two become one. Follow this way, and you will become completely one. (279:146, August 4, 1996)

At the time of creation, God created with absolute faith. When God spoke, He determined according to His Word that created beings would become His object partners. In other words, He spoke based on absolute faith. Furthermore, the objects that God created by His absolute faith were for the sake of His absolute love. (273:298, October 29, 1995)