Author: Richard Urban

He Began to Build the Ark

My latest blog post: Seek First His Kingdom

Video: Seek First the Kingdom

Listen to the Podcast of Seek First the Kingdom

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2082

Do our political leaders love the nation? Politicians do not care about what is going on in the nation, but just fight to get the presidency. Just let them try and do it! Everything will just fade away eventually, dissolving like bubbles, because they do not have the heart to sincerely live together with the people. If a leader cannot love the people, then he cannot escape the judgment of his people and history. (148-275, 1986.10.11)

Richard: False and fake political leaders will meet their reckoning.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1127

How many times a day do you think about your portion of responsibility? You have to remember this many times: when you eat, when you hold a spoon, when you wash the dishes, while you go to the toilet, while you walk…. Adam and Eve did not think about their portion of responsibility and consequently came to ruin. We must not become people who, like Adam and Eve, cannot fulfill our responsibility and fall. To become someone who can be restored and be victorious we have to respect and consider our portion of responsibility twenty-four hours a day. (124-103, 1983.1.30)

Noah

Noah is the first Biblical father of faith. His remarkable work to build an ark, believing God’s command that a flood was about to destroy humanity, showed faith far beyond the ordinary. Father Moon emphasizes the incredible faith of Noah, which was difficult to comprehend even for his wife and family. Another quality of Noah was his compassion for the people whom he knew to be doomed, enabling him to follow God’s command that he announce to the very people who were mocking and persecuting him that the judgment was imminent and invite them into his boat.
The story of Noah goes far back in the historical record. Diverse versions of the story go back 5,000 years, to ancient Sumer and Babylon. There is reason to believe that the account is based on historical fact, from evidence of a massive flood that wiped out a whole civilization in the region of the black sea some 7,500 years ago.
The biblical story of Noah ends with the sin of his son ham. Father Moon regards this as a serious setback for God’s providence. Always viewing history from a family perspective, he sees ham’s mistake as fracturing the unity of Noah’s family such that it could no longer serve in God’s providence.

1. Noah and the Flood

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the lord was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the ground, man and beast and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the lord…And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh; for the earth is filled with violence through them; behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make yourself an ark of gopher wood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.
      Genesis 6.5-8, 13-16
 
My counsel… was inspired in Noah: “None of your people will believe except those who already believe, so grieve not at what they do. Make an ark under Our eyes and by Our inspiration, and speak not to Me on behalf of those who are unjust. Surely they will be drowned.”
    And he began to build the ark. And whenever the chiefs of his people passed by him, they laughed at him. He said, “Though you mock us, yet we too mock you even as you mock; and you shall know to whom will come a punishment that will confound, and upon whom will fall a lasting doom.”
    At length when Our command came to pass and the oven gushed forth water, We said, “Load in two of every kind in pairs, and your household—but not those against whom the word has already gone forth—and those who believe. Yet but a few were they who believed with him.
    He said, “Embark in it, and in the name of God may be its sailing and its anchoring. Surely my Lord is Forgiving, Merciful.”
    And it sailed with them amid waves like mountains. And Noah called out to his son, who was standing aloof, “O my son, embark with us, and be not with the disbelievers.” He said, I will betake myself for refuge to a mountain that will save me from the water. Noah said, “This day there is no one safe from God’s command, but he on whom He has mercy. And a wave came between them, so he was among the drowned.
    Qur’an 11.36-43 
 
God… did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven other persons, when he brought a flood upon the ungodly.
    2 Peter 2.5
 
Lo! We sent Noah to his people, saying, “Warn your people before there comes to them a painful doom.” He said, “O my people! Verily I am a plain warner to you. Serve God and keep your duty to Him, and obey me, that He may forgive you some of your sins and grant your respite to an appointed term. Surely the term of God, when it comes, cannot be delayed. Did you but know!”
    He said, “My Lord! I have called unto my people night and day, but all my calling has added to their repugnance. Whenever I call them that You may pardon them, they thrust their fingers in their ears and cover themselves with their garments and persist, magnifying themselves in pride.”
    Qur’an 71.1-7
 
 

I Must Restore the unaccomplished Mission of past Prophets and Saints

My latest blog post: Seek First His Kingdom

Video: Seek First the Kingdom

Listen to the Podcast of Seek First the Kingdom

Exodus 37

10 Bezalel built a table of acacia wood thirty-six inches long, eighteen inches wide, and twenty-seven inches high.

Richard: We should be practically involved in building God’s Kingdom, such as teaching the importance of sexual abstinence before marriage.

Matthew 9

29 Jesus touched their eyes and said, “Because of your faith, you will be healed.” 30 They were able to see, and Jesus strictly warned them not to tell anyone about him. 31 But they left and talked about him to everyone in that part of the country.

Richard: This is very interesting. Why did Jesus not want people (at that time) to know about him? Study more about Jesus’ course here.

Founders, Prophets and Saints

3. Keeping the Tradition of the Fathers of Faith

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

We should respect the tradition established by the forefathers of faith… Where is the spirit of Noah who was loyal to Heaven for 120 years? Where is the spirit of Abraham, who left the land of Ur of the Chaldeans to wander in a foreign land? Where is the spirit of Jacob, who left the land of Canaan and entered Egypt, and the spirit of the Israelites, who fled Egypt, the land of their enemy, and marched across the wilderness to the land of Canaan? Where is the spirit of Jesus, who after coming to the earth, wanted to bring all Israel into a new blessed Canaan, the new Eden? You should inherit their spirit through keeping their tradition. (8:25, October 25, 1959)

When Confucius appeared, did he ignore the traditions passed down from generation to generation and create something totally new that never before existed in history? No, he did not. Rather, he studied the traditions, systematized their ideas, and expanded upon them. (25:93, September 30, 1969)

Why should posterity revere the saints and the great men and women of the past? It is because in their hearts are concentrated all the stories of the struggle for goodness. In order to achieve the purpose of goodness, we should devote ourselves through their foundations. Otherwise, we cannot connect with the path leading to the fulfillment of the divine purpose. People cherish the saints and seek to follow in their footsteps, because through them the fallen human heart is connected to the heart of Heaven. Thus, it is natural to follow these people as we pursue our original value. (17:268, February 15, 1967)

In the history of the providence of resurrection, many of those who were entrusted with a mission exerted themselves with utmost sincerity and faith to realize the will of Heaven. Even though they may not have fully carried out their responsibilities, based on their devotion, they broadened the foundation upon which subsequent generations can form a relationship of heart with God. We call this foundation the merit of the age in the providence of restoration. The merit of the age has increased in proportion to the foundation of heart laid by the prophets, sages and righteous people who came before us. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Resurrection 2.1)

As an individual, each one of us is a product of the history of the providence of restoration. Hence, the person who is to accomplish the purpose of history is none other than I, myself. I must take up the cross of history and accept responsibility to fulfill its calling…
    In other words, I must restore through indemnity, during my own generation, all the unaccomplished missions of past prophets and saints who were called in their time to carry the cross of restoration. Otherwise, I cannot become the individual who completes the purpose of the providence of restoration. To become such an historical victor, I must understand clearly the heart of God when He worked with past prophets and saints, the original purpose for which God called them, and the details of the providential missions which He entrusted to them. (Exposition of the Divine Principle, Restoration 3)

We must become sons and daughters adequate
to inherit the spirit of our forbearers
who shouldered the mission of indemnity through the ages of history. (30:39, March 15, 1970)

No One Living on Earth has ever Seen God’s Day.

My latest blog post: Seek First His Kingdom

Video: Seek First the Kingdom

Listen to the Podcast of Seek First the Kingdom

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1474

God created humankind for the sake of love. Why were human beings created? They were created because of love. The reason human beings are different from other forms of creation is that they were created as God’s sons and daughters. They were created as object partners who can receive love directly from Him. Such is the privilege of humankind. (132-245, 1984.6.20)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1100

No one living on earth until this time has ever seen God’s Day, True Parents’ Day, True Children’s Day, and Day of All True Things. There are 365 days in a year. You should clearly understand that the most important days among all 365 days are those days that I have just mentioned, which have now appeared in providential history. You should know that these days are the king of all days, and if a year like that existed it would be the king of all years. (92-252, 1977.4.18)

Richard: These are four foundational Holy Days of the Unification movement and all mankind, as if Adam and Eve had not fallen.

Founders, Prophets and Saints

3. Keeping the Tradition of the Fathers of Faith

Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.
Matthew 5.17-18
 
I [Krishna] told this eternal secret to Vivasat. Vivasat taught Manu, and Manu taught Ikshvaku. Thus, Arjuna, eminent sages received knowledge of yoga in a continuous tradition. But through time the practice of yoga was lost in the world. The secret of these teachings is profound. I have explained them to you today because you are my friend and devotee.
    Bhagavad-Gita 4.1-3 (Hinduism)
 
Moses received the Torah on Sinai and delivered it to Joshua, and Joshua [delivered it] to the elders, and the elders to the prophets, and the prophets delivered it to the men of the Great Synagogue.
    Mishnah, Avot 1.1 (Judaism)
 
Confucius said, “I have transmitted what was taught to me without making up anything of my own. I have been faithful to and loved the Ancients.”
    Analects 7.1 (Confucianism)
 
Mention Abraham in the Book. He was a truthful prophet when he told his father, “My father, why do you worship something that neither hears nor perceives, and does not benefit you in any way?…
    When he moved away from them and what they worshipped instead of God, We bestowed Isaac and Jacob on him. Each We made a prophet. We bestowed some of Our mercy on them and granted them a sublime tongue for telling truth.
    Mention Moses in the Book. He was sincere, and was a messenger, a prophet. We called out to him from the right side of the mountain, and brought him close to confide in. We bestowed his brother Aaron on him as a prophet through Our mercy.
    Mention Ishmael in the Book. He kept true to the Promise, and was a messenger, a prophet. He used to order his people to pray and pay the welfare tax; he was approved by his Lord.
    Mention Idris in the Book. He was a truthful prophet; We raised him to a lofty place.
    Those are some of the prophets from Adam’s offspring whom God has favored, and some of those We transported along with Noah, and some of Abraham’s and Ishmael’s offspring, as well as some others We have guided and chosen. Whenever the Mercy-giving’s signs are recited to them, they drop down on their knees and weep!
    Qur’an 19.41-58
 
It was in this way that Emperor Yü, Kings T’ang, Wen, Wu, Ch’eng, and the Duke of Chou achieved eminence: all these six noble men paid attention to propriety, made manifest their justice, and acted in good faith. They exposed their errors, made humaneness their law and prudence their practice, thus showing the people wherein they should constantly abide. If there were any who did not follow these principles, he would lose power and position and be regarded by the multitude as dangerous.
    Book of Ritual 7.1.2 (Confucianism)
 
Of yore I followed countless Buddhas,
And perfectly trod the Ways
Of the profound and mystic Law,
Hard to perceive and perform.
During infinite kotis of kalpas,
Having followed all these Ways,
Attaining fruition on the Wisdom-throne,
I could perfectly understand. 7
Lotus Sutra 2 (Buddhism)
 
 

Religious Founders Taught the True Way to Live

My latest blog post: Seek First His Kingdom

Video: Seek First the Kingdom

Listen to the Podcast of Seek First the Kingdom

John 21

12 Jesus said, “Come and eat!” But none of the disciples dared ask who he was. They knew he was the Lord. 13 Jesus took the bread in his hands and gave some of it to his disciples. He did the same with the fish. 14 This was the third time that Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from death.

Isaiah 24

24 The Lord is going to twist the earth out of shape and turn it into a desert. Everyone will be scattered, 2 including ordinary people and priests, slaves and slave owners, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, the rich and the poor. 3 The earth will be stripped bare and left that way. This is what the Lord has promised.

Founders, Prophets and Saints

2. Every Prophet and Saint Endured Hardships and Rejection

Teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

Of all the people throughout history, there are four great saints worthy of reverence; they are Jesus, Mohammed, Confucius, and Buddha. Did they have big, fancy houses? Did they even live a settled life in a village? No, wherever they went they were persecuted, despised and driven out. Jesus said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have their nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Is that a characteristic of a great man?
    During his time Confucius was called a “homeless, wandering dog,” as he put it, because he had to beg for food while traveling from place to place. The Buddha was born into a palace as a great prince, but he gave it all up for his spiritual quest, living as a hermit in the mountains, praying and searching for spiritual truth. None of these saints had a house to live in; they died without a nation. Yet today everyone considers them great. (115:14-16, October 25, 1981)

When a prophet spoke out strongly, warning the people not to follow the ways of the world, the people would say angrily, “That man is not one of us!” They would beat him and persecute him and cast him out from their midst. After much bitter rejection, the prophet would reach out to the failures of the world, to the crippled, the wounded, and those discarded by society. He would tell them of his mission as a prophet and describe how the people persecuted him and drove him out. Thus he would build relationships with those who were similarly rejected by society.
    He would give hope to people in despair, telling them of a new world, one far better than the existing society of their day. They would naturally listen closely to the message, while the stylish and well-to-do people were nowhere to be seen. Only society’s rejects became his followers. None of the people with talent and good family backgrounds joined him because Satan took them all away. All that remained were those whose hearts were hurt and scarred. They were the ones with no ties to the world and who wished for a new world. They were the ones who responded to the prophet’s words of hope. (106:176-77, December 30, 1979)

The founders of religion taught the true way to live. They taught the people of their age about the world to come, but the people were ignorant and could not understand. Why? The difference between the future world and the present reality was too great. Hence, the rulers of their time persecuted, expelled and even murdered them.
   These saints did not harm their countries. They only wanted to rescue their countries from chaos and lead them to hope. However, the people did not understand, and drove them out. Yet, over the course of time, people began to accept their teachings because they showed the way for all people. In due course, their teachings would become the nucleus of the world’s civilizations. (39:256, January 15, 1971)

They Kept Mocking the Messengers of God

My latest blog post: Seek First His Kingdom

Video: Seek First the Kingdom

Listen to the Podcast of Seek First the Kingdom

Cheon Seong Gyeong 291

Essentially, what have we been trying to do during the Old Testament, New Testament, and Completed Testament Ages? We have been trying to bring God inside us. Who is the root? God is. God is the root of humankind. Originally, True Parents were not the root. True Parents also came from God, who is the root. Before Adam and Eve fell, they were in the position of God’s son and daughter. But after their Fall, all things of creation came to be in a higher position than Adam and Eve. This happened because Adam and Eve fell. Through the Fall, they sunk lower than all things. Since all things became higher than people, they have given their lives for humankind. They have shed blood in our place and through this, have worked to reverse the positions. This is why, in the Old Testament Age, offerings were sacrificed to pave the pathway for the sons and daughters to travel on.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1059

You should offer all your devotion in witnessing to your parents. There is no greater happiness than receiving heaven’s blessings with them, in the presence of God’s will, and creating a protective fence as a Blessed Family. (16-329, 1966.7.31)

Founders, Prophets and Saints

2. Every Prophet and Saint Endured Hardships and Rejection

A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
    Mark 6.4
 
As an elephant in the battlefield withstands the arrows shot from a bow, even so will I endure abuse.
    Dhammapada 320 (Buddhism)
 
A scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.”
    Matthew 8.19-20
 
The Messenger says, “O my Lord, behold, my people have taken this Qur’an as a thing to be shunned.” Even so We have appointed to every Prophet an enemy from among the sinners; but your Lord suffices as a guide and as a helper.
    Qur’an 25.30-31
 
To what land shall I flee? Where bend my steps?I am thrust out from family and tribe;I have no favor from the village to which I would belong,
Nor from the wicked rulers of the country:How then, O Lord, shall I obtain Thy favor?
    Avesta, Yasna 46.1 (Zoroastrianism)
 
While Confucius stood alone at the east gate of the outer city the natives reported to Tsekung, “There is a man at the east gate… He looks crest-fallen like a homeless, wandering dog.” Tsekung told Confucius this story, and Confucius smiled and said, “I don’t know about the descriptions of my figure, but as for resembling a homeless, wandering dog, he is quite right, he is quite right!”
    Ssu-ma Ch’ien, Shih Chi 47 (Confucianism)
 
The lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place; but they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words, and scoffing at his prophets, till the wrath of the lord rose against his people, till there was no remedy.
    2 Chronicles 36.15-16
 
They say only, “Lo! We found our fathers following a religion, and we are guided by their footprints.” And even so We sent not a warner before you [Muhammad] into any township, but its luxurious ones said, “Lo! We found our fathers following a religion, and we are following their footprints.” And the warner said, “What! Even though I bring you better guidance than that you found your fathers following?” They answered, “Lo! In what you bring we are disbelievers.” We have requited them; see what was the consequence for the deniers.
    Qur’an 43.22-25
 
You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered.
    Acts 7.51-52