Author: Richard Urban

These Words Shall Be Upon Your Heart

Cheon Seong Gyeong 441

Section 2. The Family is the Textbook of Love through Which We Can Connect with Universal Love

What is the universe? Everything in the created world is designed as a sort of training aid to help God’s beloved sons and daughters find the ideal of love. This is why everything exists in reciprocal relationships. Minerals are based on the reciprocal relationship of subject and object partners and so are atoms. Protons and electrons also exist based on the reciprocal relationship of subject and object partners. Without reciprocation they cannot continue to exist. Without give and take action they cannot exist eternally. Therefore, the universe is a world created in such a way that its center can only be reached through human beings. (137-59, 1985.12.18)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2445

The perfection of the Four Great Realms of Heart is realized when the object partner manifests, centering on God, the past, the present and the future, bearing the fruit of love. This state is achieved when husband and wife, once they are married, become one through love. That is why we are not able to reach the state of oneness by ourselves. We should center ourselves on God. Only when God enters and becomes part of the equation can the position of a king emerge through the couple. Without the unity achieved through love, the kingship is not created. The kingship here refers to a king and a queen, but only with the intervention and involvement of the vertical God does the kingship emerge.

Richard: Wow! What a beautiful statement of the meaning of godly, Blessed marriage.

Scripture and Interpretation

SCRIPTURE IS THE BEDROCK OF RELIGIOUS KNOWLEDGE. All the higher religions are founded on inspired teachings or divine truths revealed by their founders and codified as scripture. Thus, scripture is the basis upon which believers lead their lives. It is also the enduring standard for evaluating new ideas and theological innovation. Regular study of scripture is recommended for gaining wisdom and finding guidance for daily life.
Nevertheless, the proper interpretation of scripture is not simple. The many disagreements of the meaning of scripture have created lasting disputes and fractures in communities of faith. One reason for this confusion is that the scriptures were written using parables and veiled language. Understanding the meaning of these symbols and parables requires spiritual discernment, even the assistance of the Holy Spirit.
Another issue is the problem of the letter and the spirit. Religious traditions always have to balance fidelity to the letter of a text with openness to new spiritual insights. Where scripture is meant to be a “raft,” in Buddha’s terms, which takes us across the sea of troubles that we might walk free on that blessed other shore, fixation on the words of scripture can be a burden to further spiritual advancement. Old interpretations need to give way to new ones or the scripture itself can become an impediment—a situation that occurred in Jesus’ day.
The section closes with passages on the limitations of scripture as finite expressions of God’s infinite truth. Jesus, Buddha and other Founders lived in circumstances where they could only teach a part of what they knew of God’s truth, according to the level that their disciples could receive it. Father Moon affirms the value of all scriptures as expressions of the truth of God, given at various times and places to elevate humanity for the fulfillment of God’s purpose. Nevertheless, since there is still much of God’s Word yet to be revealed, the world is due for a new expression of truth fit for this scientific age.

1. Take Instruction from Regular Study of Scripture

O how I love thy law! It is my meditation all the day.
    Psalm 119.97

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
    All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
    2 Timothy 3.14-17

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You Are Inheriting as a Free Gift All the Foundations I Have Fought to Establish

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1296

Since God is the substance of true love, when one is connected to true love, everyone becomes part of the one body. Parents are living gods representing God, the husband and wife represent two halves of God, and the sons and daughters are small gods. A family structure formed of three generations centering on true love in this manner is the basis of the Kingdom of Heaven. Without achieving such a basis, the Kingdom of Heaven cannot be established. The family is the center of the universe. The perfection of the family is the basis for the perfection of the universe. So, if you love the universe as you love your family, you can be welcome wherever you go. In this case, God stands in the central position of multi-faceted love as the parent of the whole universe. (298-306, 1999.1.17)

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3.2.3. The root of true lineage: God

Were it not for the Fall, God would have become the internal Father and Mother, and Adam and Eve the external father and mother. As the sons and daughters of the internal Parent, human beings should have been born inheriting the seed of love. However, due to the Fall centering on the love of Satan, they inherited his love, life and lineage. (223-234, 1991.11.10)

Tradition

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

Goodness is not realized instantly. If we are to be good people, we have to inherit from the past. This is why we need education. We need to go to a school and learn. What should we learn? Throughout history, those who have sacrificed to pave the way for goodness did not have an easy life. We should inherit the spirit of those who made sacrifices in the past. (50:101, November 6, 1971)

For a nation to prosper, it should preserve the inheritance of history. Young children absorb stories from the elderly and enjoy folktales. Like the new buds that receive sap from the tree, children should inherit all the historical essence of their culture.
    Though children may be crying with runny noses, if you say you will tell them a fairy tale, they immediately stop crying and wait for the story to begin. They truly enjoy listening to it. Why? It is because they desire to inherit history. It is a principle of heaven and earth. (28:188, January 11, 1970)

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Do Not Forget the Works of God, but Keep His Commandments

Cheon Seong Gyeong 211

The Unification Church teaches about the parent-child relationship and the husband-wife relationship based on such a principle. Furthermore, it proposes to incorporate such a principle in the relationship of siblings and the family as a whole. We are not talking about brothers and sisters who just meet once and then part, but those who do not grow tired of one another even after living together for tens of thousands of years. God’s sphere of love will be established only when this is put into practice by people of all colors. Will this be easy? There must be the kind of parents who will share their food with people, wait patiently until they finish eating, do the dishes and even take care of them until they go to sleep. This is the very path that True Parents have been trying to walk, and the path that I believe they must follow. Each day, whenever I meet someone, I try to talk to him, even if I forget about lunch and even keep talking past dinner time. This is my philosophy. Meals are not important. I want to find those whom I would not grow tired of even after living together with them for tens of thousands of years. I am the kind of person who longs to have a son and daughter whom I can love after midnight, after two o’clock in the morning, after the cock crows and even when the dawn breaks – all throughout the night. Also, I am someone who seeks a brother or sister. (127-284, 1983.5.15)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 438

If grandparents are in an environment that is not harmonized, they do not feel good. The sight of a grandfather and grandmother laughing with each other cannot be compared to the noisy laughter of a young couple. The deep laughter of wrinkled grandparents is quite dignified. You may not know this, but all things come together in harmony through the grandfather and grandmother’s laughter as they harmonize with each other. The grandfather’s laughter is deep and hearty. When he gestures, his movements are slow, but broad, high, deep and large.

Tradition

Tradition contains the accumulated wisdom of the generations. It is bequeathed through the study of history, the recitation of proverbs and folklore, in public ceremonies and at home. Some of its best teaching material consists of the lives of great men and women, as well as ordinary citizens who lived lives of exemplary goodness and self-sacrifice. Tradition can be hard to find in today’s culture of celebrity and instant fame, yet its importance can hardly be overlooked.
Family lies at the heart of tradition. Parents pass on their values and morals to their children through teaching and example. Good parents encourage their children to keep their ways and even surpass them. A stable family structure maintains and strengthens tradition, passing on its wisdom to succeeding generations.

Tradition endures.
    Akan Proverb (African Traditional Religions)

Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls.
    Jeremiah 6.16

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What is the Core of the Universe?

Cheon Seong Gyeong 698

The principle of heaven and earth is very simple – I realized this after researching and checking all positions, going around even the back alleys of the spirit world. The truth is simple. Two things unite through an absolute force, creating a vacuum for God to enter that place and become the core, like the marrow of a bone. The two pieces of masculine and feminine love are stuck together. This is the core of the universe. The ideal substance of love unites them to become the axis of love. (170-170, 1987.11.15)

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When seeking the fundamentals of the universe, we arrive at the concept of subject and object. Even the smallest woman sitting here has power within her, does she not? Would the power in this small woman desire to be the weak power of a small man, or the strong power of a big man? This is the case for the man too; if he were a small man, he would yearn for the power of a big woman. Why is this so? It is to attain a balance. Balance is the issue; you need to be perfectly perpendicular on a horizontal base. That is why the term ideal of reciprocity arises; it is from there that the ideal of reciprocity is derived. (216-9, 1991.3.3)

The Search for Knowledge

Investigate All Sides of a Subject

A gentleman can see a question from all sides without bias. The small man is biased and can see a question only from one side.
    Analects 2.14 (Confucianism)

I am not biased in favor of Mahavira, nor averse to Kapila or other teachers. I am committed to the preaching that is truly rational.

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Do Not Recklessly Make a Move When your Are Given a Vague Teaching

Cheon Seong Gyeong 685

The returning Lord must come as the ancestor of not only the third but also the first and second Israels. Unification Church members must, from a position similar to that of the first Israel at the time of Jesus, overcome their doubt. Then, with a Father’s heart, they should occupy the position of a child inside the Father. The returning Lord must establish order in the spirit world. By doing this, he must begin his work on the foundation where the first Israel was established. Since people in the spirit world cannot form a bond with the True Parents, they must go through this course. The archetypes of the twelve tribes already exist in the spirit world, but Christianity, which had to become the second Israel, lost the center by which it could organize itself into tribes. Thus, the returning Lord must proclaim the ideology of unification and organize his tribes. (10-217, 1960.10.14)

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Because you received the precious thing called the Blessing, the door is open for you, but you cannot enter because you are not dressed in formal attire. You must go to the banquet house in formal attire. Can a groomsman go to a wedding in work clothes? Think about it. You have to dress appropriately for the occasion in order to go there and be welcomed into that environment. Otherwise you will be thrown out. People will say to you, “Get lost, blockhead!”

The Search for Knowledge

  1. Comprehend the Truth Not Merely on the Authority of a Teacher,
    but from One’s Own Extensive Study and Research

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

The ultimate purpose of religion can be attained only when one first believes it in one’s heart and then puts it into practice. However, without first understanding, beliefs do not take hold. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Introduction)

Do not recklessly make a move when you are given a vague teaching. Do not make a move unless the direction is established in clear truth. Even if someone propounds a new teaching with great persuasiveness, do not simply believe it. First discuss it with someone who is more Abel-like than you. (3:212, November 1, 1957)

Although you have joined the Unification Church, if it does not answer all your questions, then pack up and leave. (150:110, September 4, 1960)

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