Chapter 14
Excerpts from Published Speeches
1974 -- 1983
You should know, in order to be a qualified leader, you absolutely need more training. You have to know how to speak out and persuade others. Everyday, I go fishing out in the Freeport, Long Island area. Some of the people think, "Oh, Reverend Moon is a world renowned preacher. Why does he have any connection with fishing? He should forget it"
To Belvedere Trainees August 29, 1974
I am leaving again today for Boston, and again I have an important mission. I will go out to sea, not for pleasure, but to lay a foundation for the future economy of the Unification Church. That's my goal. There is no way we can exceed the advances in industry and technology, except in the one virtually untapped area of the sea and sea products. The international law has recently been changed and America can soon claim jurisdiction over the waters extending 200 miles out from shore. There will be much more territory to cope with, and the American people do not pay very much attention to the sea, nor invest very much in marine industries. Thus, the treasure of the sea surrounding America is virtually untapped. I feel that the future economic foundation of the Unification Church lies in this area. Some time ago, I promised that in three years I would start exploring the treasures of the sea.
I have to train you. People criticize me and say that Reverend Moon is taking it easy on a yacht out in the Atlantic Ocean, enjoying himself. Nothing could be further from the truth. I don't think very many of you will inherit large fortunes from your own parents, so I am responsible for you. I must begin to plan how you can support yourselves. You will be blessed in marriage, and God will bless your marriages with children, whom you must be able to support. While you're going down to Washington to fight this battle, I am looking more than ten years ahead and going to sea to prepare our future economic foundation. Going out to sea is the most wearying and tiresome task I have ever done, but I am determined to do more and to endure more physical hardship than any one of you.
Since we have developed a worldwide system of organization, our movement can grow rapidly in this new industry. Even in this area I want to play the role of a forefather, a pioneer.
Past and Future Generations August 1, 1976
Do you want to participate in the creation of the economy that will restore this world? I am now starting our fishing industry and with that purpose in mind, I experimented with the tuna trade this summer. No matter what time of day or night or what type of weather there was, I went out to sea. If the sea was rough the captain of the New Hope used to ask whether we were going out, but now he knows I will go out no matter what the circumstances.
The members who finished at the Seminary and now have their Master's diplomas may work at sea. The captains of our boats may have Ph.D.'s. Don't laugh. It is that kind of condescending attitude that has caused the decline of America's fishing industry. Unless I resurrect it, the fishing industry in this country will die. I will contribute to America by restoring the dying marine industry. We are now negotiating to buy a mother ship, but it is not for a pleasure cruise to the Caribbean. It is to catch the treasures of the sea. I don't like the smell of fish, but we can create a great economic foundation for God's work. Catching fish is not our goal, but the liberation of the communist world is. That is why we must advance. If you unmarried women don't want to be blessed to fishermen, you should leave now. If you don't want to marry a sailor then you will have to marry someone outside our church.
There is a vast treasure lying in the sea, waiting to be harvested by our hands, but right now the American fishing industry is dying because American young people do not like the hard work of going out to sea. When they go out to sea for three months, they return to find that their wives have left them and their money has been squandered and they never want to go out to sea again. If they are not married, they are still not interested in going out because sometimes the weather is so brutal. You women who marry fishermen must be proud of them for working for God and mankind .
I have experienced how the sea will make a man more reverent. At sea, you need faith in God because you must totally rely on Him. Furthermore, when the men go out to sea they will not forget their families. In my own experience, I thought of Mother and my children more at sea than at home because at sea I never knew what would happen in the next moment. At sea, I love and pray for my wife and children more than anywhere else. When the New Hope docks, and Mother and the children are waiting and waving to me, I feel as though I have met God at that moment. The women who can love their husbands when they return from harsh work at sea will be the most superb, exemplary wives in the sight of God.
Perfection and Gratitude October 3, 1976
You should not just know these things, but take up the responsibility for them. Even more than I, you have got to go and awaken these people and turn this nation back to God. I am determined to train young people to become responsible for this country. For example, I am now training the seminarians; they are making up a new fishing net now, and I have had them fishing in the icy water of the Hudson River to see what kind of young men and women they are. They are not making nets and fishing for the sake of making money, but to build their own iron will and to become determined young leaders who cannot be stopped by anything.
I do not only deliver sermons to you. When I get down to action, I can do anything, and do it better than anyone. Those seminarians are really rediscovering me, finding out that I do not just have theories, but that I have the kind of knowledge which can only come from experience. I have studied fishing and designed several patented tools for fishing. For instance, sometimes the hook gets caught in the fish's mouth, and the fishermen have an awful time getting the hook out. I have invented a small tool to push the barb through and get the hook out easily.
One member saw me cutting the metal to make this tool myself, and he said, "Father, why do you work so hard? Why don't you just go to a tackle shop and buy one?" I told him, "America doesn't have such a tool; if I could buy this kind of tool, then why should I make it?" I invented a new net at Barrytown, one you have never seen. It is a one- way-street net and once the fish goes into the net, there is no way it can turn around.
Yesterday, I had an appointment with the Belvedere people, but I had a new inspiration for the net and got caught up in directing the seminarians about how to make it. We worked very hard all night, and I could not get there on time.
Twenty-third Anniversary of the Unification Church May 1, 1977
I frequently go out to sea because the future economy of the world will depend upon the vast resources of the sea. The future will belong to the person who pays more attention to the oceans of the world. In addition, many people throughout history have died at sea in war or tragic accidents, and I want to comfort those people and pay indemnity for them. Sometimes, when I hear that a dangerous storm is coming, I purposely go out to sea.
Many people think I go out only for pleasure, but going out in such weather is a desperate battle, not a pleasure. I must do these things to liberate the many people who died under such circumstances. In 1975, I had a special ceremony at sea with Mother and one of our daughters, for the sake of people who died at sea. Even my own captain did not know what kind of ceremony was being held at that time.
Things That Belong to God and to Man May 15, 1977
In leading the fishing expeditions at Barrytown, where many hundreds of carp were caught, I thought very much about the universal principle of creation being killed to become food for man. Six big turtles lost their home as we dredged the Barrytown lake to accommodate more carp. I felt sorry for them and had them put in the Hudson River, thinking, "You turtles go and live in the wide world."
When I go fishing, I send the first fish back to its home. Even a lowly creature like a carp appreciates love, and when someone appreciates their purpose for being what they are, they even want to die for that person. In that sense, the carp are not a sacrifice as they give themselves for the person who loves them. This was God's idea for creation. By being loved and appreciated by the Unification Church members, all these creatures will be thankful and proud of living and dying for the purpose for which they were created.
Love is supreme. Living for love and dying in love always brings happiness. When the moment of your death comes, you will be smiling as you think about your love, and it will be your joy at that moment to be embraced by the one you love.
Suppose someone said, "I understand that Reverend Moon caught a lot of carp in the Hudson River. I'm sure those fish just curse him as they die." How would you answer? Before hearing my explanation, I'm sure you would have been confused, but now you know how carp have a perfected life if they can die for the sake of God's purpose, becoming the flesh and blood of God-centered people. Is there any more precious cause carp could pursue? There is the difference of heaven and earth in your actions, depending on how you are motivated.
This principle applies the same way both to a carp and to a man. The ultimate question we have to ask ourselves then is, "Am I ready to die for the love of God?" What is your answer? If your answer is "yes", then your death is not death. Your flesh and your spirit become the spirit and flesh of all mankind and of all the universe. When you center your life on the higher level, you will live for eternity.
Let Us Thank God May 29, 1977
Yesterday, I saw a member who has a Masters degree scrubbing the floors in the Manhattan Center. Do you hate to do such jobs, or do you do any work with appreciation? I am never ashamed of anything I am doing. At Barrytown, I taught the students how to make fishing nets. Even our professors were amazed. At that time, a theologian's conference was going on and the visiting scholars never expected to see me at Barrytown. They sneaked in to take a look at what I was doing with the students and were amazed and impressed to see me doing such humble, menial work. You have no excuses to make to me because I have done everything before you, even the most humble labor.
God Depends on Us Alone June 1, 1977
I have been going out to sea in a boat called New Hope. The public may think I just go yachting for pleasure, but every day I am collecting more material. God has hidden unlimited resources underneath the sea, and the oceans will be the key to future development in the world.
I know very well that in the course of developing sea industries, we may sometimes suffer some sacrifice. Eventually, we will have hundreds of fishing boats, and some of them may be lost at sea. Even losing husbands and brothers will not deter our pioneering zeal because that work will be for the sake of humanity.
We want to become masters of the sea. The ocean surface is twice as big as the surface of the land. Furthermore, there are vast resources beneath the sea. Any nation which can overcome the difficulties will conquer the sea. We first learned to have dominion on the land, and with the same pioneering spirit we can conquer the sea as well.
Our battle is now being waged on the land, and we must be victorious here, being tested and seasoned by a hurricane of persecution. Then, when real storms come at sea, we can welcome them. The Pilgrims who came to America were pioneering people, otherwise, they would not have crossed the Atlantic Ocean, especially during the stormy months. They realized that an uncertain destiny lay ahead of them, and that they had no guarantee for their lives. Few before had ever safely arrived in the New World, but they started anyway. They overcame by their hope and faith in God. Now, in the 20th century, we also are forging ahead, like a boat in a rough ocean, with faith in God. Whatever the persecution and blowing winds, we have faith in God.
I look at the vast ocean resources as God's blessing waiting for the Unification Church. I have promised to God, "Give me twenty years' time and we will conquer the sea, taking dominion over it and returning the glory to You." That is how I think every time I go out. Later, we will establish a great foundation, and even the Ford or Rockefeller Foundations will look like peanuts in comparison. That is the way we must realistically feel.
All these things are our pride in the Unification Church. The fisherman's life is a hard, dirty, even crude life and fishermen have to be very rugged. Furthermore, fishermen have often been known as thieves and liars. Why should I have us get into the kind of business which is known as a living hell? I go down to the bottom of hell, and by revolutionizing such a place, by bringing heaven there, I can hasten the Kingdom of Heaven on earth.
Our Pride June 5, 1977
The characteristics of beauty include contrast, like the combination of blonde hair, blue eyes and white teeth. At sea, there is nothing but blue water for miles and miles, and after awhile the blue color becomes boring. If suddenly, you see a black ship approaching from far away, that black dot attracts your entire attention. When the black ship raises its white sails, it becomes more exciting and dramatic to watch. If the black ship raises a multi-colored flag, it becomes absolutely gorgeous. Since everything else around is blue, you become content to watch only the black ship with white sails and multi- colored flag. That is what I call dramatic.
I am causing a lot of controversy because the white culture is like a vast ocean in which a yellow dot has suddenly appeared, and is attracting attention. Some Americans are not welcoming me, but God has been sailing vast oceans and is bored with man's present culture. All of a sudden, I have appeared like the black ship. God is focusing His entire attention upon me. I will not only raise white sails, but also the multi-colored flags of all the nations. Put yourself in God's position and look down on the little ship, raising white sails and waving multi-colored flags. It is a very dramatic sight to behold.
You are the sailors on that ship which is attracting so much attention. White, black, yellow, red and brown people are waving to the nations. There is a great deal of excitement and action on our boat!
The Desire of God June 19, 1977
You must have the faith and conviction that you are a lighthouse lighting a dark world. The lighthouse will shine forth even in the worst kind of weather because that is the time ships need the lighthouse most. When you are surrounded by the thickest fog, you must shine forth all the more. The more adversity, the greater must be your light.
I have become a legend in the Gloucester area; the newspaper there wrote several articles about our fishing and we have been a topic of conversation for the whole town. Hundreds of boats come every year from all over to fish in that particular area. When the New Hope put out to sea and dropped anchor, many other boats would follow and anchor in the vicinity. When we had a tuna strike, other fishermen would bring out their binoculars to watch what I was doing. At first, the negative people would want the tuna to break loose and escape, but after a few days of successful catches, they began to change their thinking and the rumor began that I have something good working for me.
I was always the first one out to sea. Some of the seasoned professional fishermen would go out early to outdo me, but no matter how early they got out, the New Hope was already there. The fishermen were not inspired by this, but when they tried to compete with me, they had to work so hard that they had no time for their usual drinking or laziness. By the end of the summer a rumor was going around that declining town that I was the only one who could save Gloucester.
Without any exception, I got up every day at 3:00 a.m. The New Hope went out in the moonlight and in many cases returned home with the stars and moon shining. Do you like to get up early in the morning? The staff members working on the boat were never told what time to get up, but since I arose at three o'clock every morning, they followed me, no matter how sleepy they were.
This has been my tradition for four years in America. It is not easy to follow me because no one can outwork me. My crew knows what I would do, and if I tell them to be out by 1:30 a.m. on the Atlantic, they get up and go out with no grumbling. I have even set the tradition of staying out and working all night.
This summer, I did not earn much in terms of money, but in terms of tradition, I earned billions of dollars worth. By following that tradition, the fishing industry in our movement will blossom and contribute much to America's entire fishing industry in days to come. Because I have now set the fishing tradition, no one will hesitate to go out to sea, even the women. If I were a coward, then no one would go seriously, but now people will be eager to go. There is a record of when and where I caught each fish and how big it was. In the future, fishermen will try to challenge that record.
Even though fishing is incredibly hard work, I wanted to give myself without any reservation to set the tradition for the posterity of the Unification Church. That has been my work for the last seventy days.
The Heart of Reunion September 11, 1977
Two weeks ago, I was in Alabama, which is known as the shipbuilding capital of the United States, looking around to buy a shipyard so we can build our own vessels. Would you want our factory to be mediocre or number one? That is easy to say, but not to fulfill. We have to work harder than anyone in order to be number one. It is going to be a tough job, but I will push you. There were no women working in the Alabama shipyards, and I thought that this is one way we can make history. We will have women shipyard workers. If you women become welders, your fingers and faces will get marked up, but is that all right? Now, at 7:42 a.m., on 1 November 1977, the women have pledged that they want to be welders at the shipyard in Alabama. All you men are out of jobs today! If the women are willing to do that much, then you men have to work harder, even into the night.
I knew years ago that unless I intervened in the shipbuilding and fishing industries with my own resolve and determination, this nation could have no hope for those two industries to survive. I met two wonderful individuals in Alabama, a father and son who have spent their lifetimes in the business. They said that the boat-building business is in a boom period, with many people going out to sea. I answered, "That may be true, but what about a few years in the future?" They replied thoughtfully, "Reverend Moon, we didn't think about that, but you are absolutely right. The men have no deep motivation and American women just cannot wait patiently for their husbands to come home from the sea."
Often in the past, the wives of fishermen have betrayed their husbands. What shall we do in order to reverse the trend? I will make you welders and fishing captains, and our fishermen won't have to worry about their wives running off. If the Moonies are doing that, the rest of America will not want to face being defeated and having to give everything up to us. Once they decide to compete with us, the marine industries will be revived. I am determined to give vision and hope to the American young people so they will be motivated to go out to sea. The oceans are a vast, untapped area waiting to be utilized by courageous men and women, and we want to initiate that. There is a chance for America to become great by conquering the sea, but if your countrymen ignore the sea and only want to lead complacent lives, then America has no hope to lead the world. America is blind to this.
I am leading the way in this field and the Unification Church will follow through. I would truly like to see you beautiful sisters become fishing captains and go out to sea, being so knowledgeable and dedicated that men won't mind taking orders from you. Then, people will recognize Moonie power. I want to make our women the presidents of many companies so that the employees who just graduated from Harvard and Yale will all have to listen to you. You may look tiny and weak, but when the men on the ship are scared to death, you women will take command and give orders to rectify the situation. You might even take your own babies with you! I am very excited about this idea. I was planning to travel around and look at businesses in Alabama, for instance. Mother was somewhat hesitant and said, "Father, you know that's a man's job, so you go and I will stay home." However, I told her she should come along anyway.
I will establish a system in which you women will be the captains and your husbands the first mates. You men will have to say, "Yes, ma'am," when the captain gives orders, even though she may be your wife. Do you men feel good or bad about that? If you are a seasoned captain, then whether you are man or woman doesn't make any difference; the crew has to obey.
We are not seeking millions of dollars for ourselves by starting businesses; we are looking at the world and this nation and preparing to spearhead change. Imagine the time when we have thousands of vessels and I can say to the American government, "There are so many farmers sitting idle and receiving government subsidies for doing nothing. What kind of ridiculous system is that? You pay them for not growing crops, but in the meantime millions of people are starving in other parts of the world. Let the farmers grow their crops and let us transport that food all over the world to feed the poor. We have the boats to do it."
Fishing has seasons and doesn't last twelve months a year, so why shouldn't we transport things all over the world in between seasons? How would you feel being the captain of a boat loaded with grain and headed for a nation where many people are starving? I would select the tiniest of all women to the captain of such a boat and have her wear a special hat with official decorations. We must all have a dream to live for. I have more dreams than anyone else, but the difference is that my dreams become reality.
Our Newborn Selves November 1, 1977
I was fishing for tuna at that time, but just catching fish was not my purpose. My mind was totally concentrated on Washington Monument and I thought of nothing else.
Anniversary of Washington Monument September 18, 1978
We did not start our fishing businesses only to make money, but to start rebuilding America's economy. For five years, I have worked every day to set the tradition and find the best way. Now, some officials in the government have heard what I am doing and they remark at what a perceptive man I am to see that America cannot afford to abandon her fishing industry. For fifty years, that industry in America has been desolate, but in time it will feed America. I have started far in advance of everyone else. In the last three years, our investment of millions of dollars has not made a penny, but do you think we should give up?
Our Position January 2, 1979
If I go to the farm I am a good farmer. When I go into the fishing business I become one of the fishermen. I can eat raw fish and even their guts out of my hand. There is nothing I can't do. If I go to a mine, I will dig day after day just as if it were my vocation. I can go to the slums and talk to the people and win their hearts. Without doing all these things, how can you know what your objective is?
Eternal Happiness February 25, 1979
Although the Unification Church was founded in Korea, it was not begun for a local purpose, but with a religious meaning for the worldwide dispensation. A drop of water can originate deep in the mountains and trickle down the hillside, gathering with others and becoming a brook, then a river, finally to join the ocean, and in that way travel around the world.
Cultures mix and mingle, and out of this can come something good which will advance and elevate all people. This also happens in religious development. At first a few people gather, like drops from different mountains. Then, more will come together and a river will form, flowing down to the ocean, all the time enhancing man's standard.
If I go tuna fishing this summer, who will volunteer to go with me? What about the women? I have one boat and there is a limit to how many can get on it, so I will have more boats built for all of you to get on and we'll have an armada. We will have women as captains. Then, you women would like your future husbands to be captains too, right? Does that mean you want to marry fishermen?
Jesus told Peter he would be a fisherman; being a fisherman is not bad at all. Often American women are somewhat stronger than men, so I think the 200 mile limit was reserved by God for American women. J don't just believe that, I know it! When you have a full boat load of fish, I will recognize and accept you.
Did you know we recently acquired new property for a ship building industry? What would you do to become rich? Fishermen in this nation are some of the poorest-paid professionals, so we will create the best schools and best living standards for fishermen. Now, people visit the seashore for fun, but someday soon, they will come to the sea to work and go to the mountains instead for recreation. If that trend doesn't appear automatically, I will create it.
Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the Unification Church May 1, 1979
Recently, I invited some elder ministers to travel the world and examine Unification Church activities. They were amazed at the tremendous variety of things I am doing around the world and they said, "There is nothing Reverend Moon cannot do, and nothing that he does not do." I was going to go to sea today, but the weather did not permit it. Some people might say I should rest on the Sabbath, but since the Sabbath is still a workday for God, going to sea and catching many fish for needy people is in accord with God's own standard. In our concept, a holy day is not-one for just sitting around. It is far better to go out and bring reconciliation to people who are fighting.
The Trust Placed in Us January 3, 1979
How many years will it take for you to win the marathon? Three? Ten? Even for the unbeatable Reverend Moon it took sixty years to cover the course and still I have not finished the race. Last night after graduation at the seminary, I took all the leaders fishing. It was in the midst of a thunderstorm and we were cramped in a little boat. Even though they didn't say this, inside they were probably thinking, "What kind of father are you? Can't you have even one day to rest?"
When a person occupies love, he occupies all other authority and dignity as well. The record-setter is the kind of person God and history are looking at. God is expecting you to become one who sets the record, so this is a one-in-a-million opportunity. I am now investing much energy in the fishing industry and I am determined to make it successful. When you see my desire, you should put your shoulders to the job to be a champion in that arena. I would like to see all the seminarians and church leaders go for sea duty for one and a half years. At this time, there is no master or host who is claiming or leading the American fishing industry because this is one arena God carved out and saved for the heavenly dispensation.
What if I supply sufficient fish and say that Unification Church members will eat nothing else for six months, not even bread? We will give all the good fish to the trade and eat the leftovers ourselves. Will God say we shouldn't eat just the leftovers, or will He be touched? Who do we suffer for? For God and humanity. By doing this, we are covering God with an invisible net, making Him our prisoner. All you have to do then, is pull that net and God will have to follow you.
Record-Setter of History July 1, 1979
Are you the kind of people who can rebound from pressure like a rubber ball, or will you be shattered by it? We need people who are not -- only elastic, but who are also tough and can endure. American religion is like a ship caught in a hurricane and the government is helpless and has no anchor. When the water is rough and the wind is strong and your ship is pitching and rocking out of control, what will happen? That is the kind of perilous situation we are living in today.
Do we in the Unification Church have an anchor? God is our anchor and I am the rope. That means all you have to do to survive is hold onto the rope; you don't even have to grip the anchor directly. The anchor is always deep in the water, so what you have to do is grab the rope and hang on. Other churches may be offering people a beautiful rope of gold, but there is no anchor at the bottom. The Unification Church rope is plain, but there is an anchor down below. Those people who advertise their beautiful rope criticize ours; even the government boasts how big its rope is and how fish smelling the Unification Church is. However, the difference is that we have an anchor and they don't.
Historical View of the Dispensation September 18, 1979
America is surrounded by the sea, but has not conquered it. I initiated our fishing business to revitalize American fishing and seaports. This is certainly our pride. The ocean contains tremendous resources, but no one has received them. We are inheriting it from God and all we have to do is tap it.
To the MFT January 2, 1980
You may think you have been working a great deal, but by my standard you have been relaxing too much. When I was out fishing all day, not for one moment was I relaxing or napping. Every moment my mind was busy. When I watch the vast horizon on the ocean, I see a peaceful new world dawning and the whole responsibility is on my shoulders. How could I spend one idle moment?
I will not be indebted to anyone, not the thirty-six couples or anyone else, so I receive the credit for what has been done. In the fishing industry, for example, I laid a pioneering path for seven years. You know who won our first international tuna tournament; my boat caught the most tuna. I don't want to be second even in catching tuna. In every field and competition I have been second to none.
Every day I go out to the ocean at 2:00 or 3:00 a.m., and come back at midnight. So far, tuna fishing has been a pleasure sport, but when I started fighting, it became a battle. Usually, fishermen go out at 9:00 or 10:00 a.m., but if they want to beat me, they have to go out much earlier. I am already out when they come at 5:00 a.m.! When I started, the price of tuna was ten cents per pound, but now we have pushed it up to $2.50, and eventually it will go up to $5.00 per pound. This is how I will bring prosperity to tuna fishermen, who in the past only made a meager living. Those who have opposed me in the past for no reason are now realizing that I am helping the fishermen and reviving the local economy.
The European leaders really worked hard when they came this time. We are building many boats, not only small ones, but thirty and forty foot boats. Professional tuna boats are 150 feet long and carry a crew of twenty-five people. I will build many of those in the future. Then, I will designate national leaders as captains of those boats, or even just to be fishermen. They will have no time to look left or right, but will just go.
Total Self Reevaluation September 14, 1980
We have also started an Ocean Church. It is a simple fact that the world is one-third land and two-thirds ocean. Man can eat everything that lives in the ocean, including the plants that grow there. Can you eat everything that grows on land? The ocean has whatever the land has, and even more. There are thousands of kinds of fish. Americans prefer to eat the meat grown on land, but they never learned to eat the meat grown in the ocean. Recently, Americans have learned that fish is better protein than red meat, and they think of it as natural food which is uncontaminated. Now they are becoming interested in eating fish, so that they can live longer.
In Wyoming, a cattleman told me that cattle could be bought from twenty to seventy dollars a head if bought in quantity. In New York, beef is much more expensive, more like $400 a head. One big tuna costs $3.50 per pound, and sometimes they are over one thousand pounds. If you caught one big tuna a year, that would be almost $4,000 income. A tuna lays 1.5 million eggs in spawning season, but what about a cow? She has one calf a year, or two at the most.
Would it be more advantageous to raise cattle and take care of them all year, or go out on the ocean and catch one tuna? I really like the name "tuna" better than the name "cow!" If you catch one tuna a year, you can support yourself. You can ask your husband why he bothers holding down a regular job where his superiors just give him headaches, and advise him to catch just two tuna to support his family for one year. When you are confident you can catch two tuna, you won't worry about not having enough money any more.
The fishing ports in America are declining because young people don't want to fish, so the citizens are anxious to see their towns revived. They know there is a good future in the oceans. Our leaders were told to go talk to the city fathers in the towns I have picked and tell them why we are there and what we will do with our own money and what kind of center activities we will have. When they know we are committed to making the fishing business prosper once more, there will be some support groups which will want to help train our ocean-going crews.
We will offer a program to any young men who are interested in working at sea and show them what we are about. If they like our way of worshiping God, we will take them as candidates . . . As soon as a five-man crew is assembled, it will be assigned one boat. The thirty centers will compete to see who brings the better quality people.
Which will have more results -- Ocean Church or the present system in the state centers? As the work expands, each small boat will have ten more boats under it, and soon we will have (with 30 centers) 300 boats plus 30 big boats around the American coastline.
Would you unmatched members like to be matched with people from the land church or Ocean Church? It's up to you; you have to live with that person, not me. When this Ocean Church is really underway, people will cherish it as a monument to the revival of their towns. America has three of the four best fishing grounds in the entire world, but America is not utilizing them because there is no substantial market for fish here. The beauty of our organization is that we will make our own boats, catch our own fish and sell them in our own stores.
America's fishing industry is declining, first of all because the ocean-going way of life is harder than life on land. Young people don't want a hard life. Second, fish don't sell well here; wholesalers sometimes pay only five cents per pound for fish, which is ridiculous. Third, the husbands are away at sea often, and their families start to break up. In this situation, who will go out to the ocean? Only Unification Church members! We pass the test in all areas.
Technology has made boat operation simple by the development of automatic pilots. You tell the machine which direction to go and the boat will follow that course automatically. Now, even a frail young woman can sit in the seat that used to be occupied by husky, burly captains. How fascinated God will be to see her, even when she dozes off because the automatic pilot is driving the boat and she has nothing to do. I like that! How beautiful she would be.
Will you women become captains one day? You should not forget there are sharks in the water. If even the women want to go, how can the men back away? You have to kick any such man. We have people who want to go, so that's the first problem taken care of. Second, is selling any problem for us? The women say it is no problem. Third, would you wives leave your husbands because they are away at sea so much? Even if they are out for six years? This ocean business is truly reserved for Unification Church members.
Our Duty, Our Mission October 5, 1980
In the Unification Church we have five different colors of skin coming from all different parts of the world. Our goal is to unite them into one family of man. Furthermore, Unification Church life is complex. It involves not only Sunday morning service, but all kinds of things, including boat building and catching fish. There are even more fantastic things coming in the future.
The same principle is being applied to boat-making. Our people are making the best boat under the sun, but making it the least expensive. The only way they can do that is by sacrificially giving themselves. Through this process the most beautiful boat is created, and no one else has a boat that can compete. With the same spirit we can make a society, a nation. If we Moonies make the best kind of nation for the cheapest price, there won't be room for communism to creep in.
In the fishing industry, for example, I am working on such a scale that no competitor can outdo me. Once I proclaim something, it will echo through the entire country and the entire world. People cannot help but listen. I operate on a simple principle and I have a plan.
Things that are Important to You February 1, 1981
My activities are not just religious; this is why people say I am an industrialist, a scholar, a movie-maker, etc. I deal with every facet of life with the same principle of love. Even if I go fishing, it is never to enjoy myself. I am never apart from my fundamental mission. That is why even tuna are attracted to me.
I am always living most naturally in two worlds, both high and low, moving back and forth between them. When Colonel Pak was in South America last summer, he met and was entertained by presidents of seven nations. He was given a great deal of honor because he was my aide . . . but when he came to report to me in Morning Garden, he couldn't find me in the house. Finally he found me at the bottom of the back yard, working with several members to fix a rope for fishing. In my life, I have embraced both extremes of high and low. God's will is to bring these two extremes into harmony, and only God's power can do this. A true Moonie is the personification of the life-power of love, so we can bring the two worlds together.
The Two Worlds of Good and Evil February 15, 1981
I will probably be fishing in Gloucester again this summer, living in fisherman's clothes instead of suits. Even if you are wearing smelly fisherman's clothes, the righteous side is still the same, and it is always going up; you cannot come down lower than where you are now. Though we may find ourselves in the beggar's position, we will never go down, but will go up. I live here in order to leave the right tradition. When young people in the future learn about my experiences in jail, it will set their minds on fire. I never minded having to endure prison life, knowing that it would leave a strong tradition for the future.
Our Identity April 1, 1981
Perhaps you might think when you are out fund raising, "Here I am on this hot day and Father is on his yacht somewhere." However, when I go out to sea, I do not do it as a pleasant diversion for one day or one week. I go out for many weeks, every day, rain or shine. I created Ocean Church for the sake of mankind; I had to establish the tradition for the future. There is no one else who can do it
I have spoken extensively about Ocean Church and some of you American members may think, "I don't want to hear any more about Ocean Church," but who can take responsibility for the ocean in America? No matter how difficult, I will take that responsibility -- that is my own determination. No matter how much you hate to go to the ocean, I will continue to do it for the sake of this country. After making that kind of foundation, I know American young people will get the message. You might say, "I like what Father says, but I don't like the things he does!" I can sort out among you those who like what I do and those who don't like what I do. How about you American young men? Do you like Ocean Church? Are you faithful only with your mouth?
During the tuna season this summer, we will spend half a million dollars -- every year we have lost money on tuna fishing, but we must do it anyway. Nobody else is doing it. The tuna season is only during the summer, so all the rest of the year is unproductive. I have an overall plan to supplement tuna fishing with other fish -- fluke, flounder, bluefish, etc. -- according to their own seasons. We must establish the standard for successful businesses and use all the different fish throughout the year.
Once you get out on the ocean, you come to love it, but until you do, the ocean is a stranger. Do you think I was born an expert on tuna fishing? No, I had to learn it from scratch. I kept on working day after day and established the tradition. Now, I am known as an expert among the other tuna fishermen. I developed the plan, putting in seven or eight seasons faithfully, until I learned how to catch tuna. Such a thing cannot be accomplished as a hobby or by someone who just enjoys the ocean.
I spoke yesterday at the seventh graduation of the seminary. Afterwards, with all the parents and professors around, I changed into my fishing clothes and went out on the boat again. The waves were rough in the Hudson, but I went out anyway. Those people might have thought me eccentric, but they don't understand what our goal is. Even though my feet swell up from standing all day, I reprimand them and command them to continue working. I certainly don't do this because it is enjoyable. I am very serious in this work.
As a religious leader, I certainly do not enjoy killing tuna. When they are bleeding and staining the water all around, I cannot enjoy such a sight. I am in deep prayer, apologizing to those tuna and begging them to understand. I tell them, "You must give yourselves for the sake of the people of America because they are much more important to God and the universe than you. I need you as a sacrifice to offer for all mankind; I beg you to give yourselves." Since God and the universe know that, . they are helping us and our ocean businesses are prospering. You must have a clear understanding of this.
For the sake of mankind, it is righteous to go out to the ocean. From this perspective, who is the noble, righteous American who wants to follow my tradition? I have been looking for those Americans for over ten years. Probably, I must bring people from Japan to set the standard here and then Americans can inherit it. If the Japanese do not succeed, I will use the Korean people. If they fail, I will send my own sons and daughters to make the right tradition. That is why I have been taking all the Blessed children out on the boats this summer. This is the first time I have done such a thing, but we must accomplish our objective on the ocean.
America will lose its chance to take advantage of the resources of the ocean because it is not taking any initiative in that direction. Many other nations are taking the ocean away from them. I have followed the Divine Principle in setting the Ocean Church tradition. I waited and tried to give every chance to Americans, encouraging you to participate in ocean fishing. If you still do not respond, what else can I do? The one who loves the ocean the most will become its master. I am trying to love the ocean the most.
You should not dismiss this thinking of mine. It is very important. All the other shipbuilding companies in the South have gone bankrupt except the Master Marine Company. Even though we were losing money for a while too, we did not stop our business . . . The businesses of our church members are based on love. If you truly put your heart into a business, it cannot fail because God and the universe will support you.
Our Ideal Home (Part Two) June 26, 1983
Look at how dark my skin is. I did not lie in the sun on a relaxing vacation. I am fighting on the ocean and enduring every day, leading Ocean Church. There has been no master, no caretaker of the ocean; no hope in the ocean. I want to harness the ocean and bring young people to the ocean so that its resources can be harvested. The ocean has been abandoned. Look at what is happening in South America, in Central America. All the countries there have become isolated, with the ocean being given away.
Look at the American seashores, east, west and south. Those sea coast towns and ocean ports have become desolate ghost towns. All have been given away to the refugees from South America with many becoming routes of Communist infiltration. Those people are harnessing the resources from the ocean. They use them as a staging area for drugs as, for example, with the Mafia who use those ports to bring in drugs that are corrupting American youth. The Coast Guard and police alone become helpless unless each citizen is willing to participate in a great crusade in order to prevent America from being turned over to communism. Somebody must defend this country. No one is really doing it; no one is risking their life to do it. While I am doing it, the local governments persecute me instead of helping me. No tuna fishing season is a fun time, but a war time. I knew the experience of catching a giant tuna would be one that members could not forget for the rest of their lives. Everybody is looking for an opportunity to fish for tuna; they look forward to it, hoping I will invite them again. In order to make American young people pay attention to the ocean, I studied how tuna fishing could be made more interesting and exciting. I am a champion of tuna fishing around the world. I discovered the "Reverend Moon" system. People observed my way of doing it and now they try to imitate me. In fact, one fishing shop sells "Moonie" fishing gear. Whatever I use, they want to buy. Everybody is following me.
Usually, during the tuna season, rich people would go out at ten in the morning and come back at two or three in the afternoon. I changed that tradition; I left at two in the morning and came back ten at night. Now, everybody who fishes for tuna in Provincetown knows that when the tuna season comes, they have to get up at two in the morning. No one can deny that Reverend Moon is the pace setter.
You think fishing is where you spend hours and hours doing nothing. No, you must always be alert. It is a master technique which I cannot explain (you must experience it). It's the black belt technique. For example, when a fish is coming, I know without looking directly at the fish, that the fish is ready to bite. There is a teasing game; if you pull in too wildly, you lose the moment. You just need to pull, pull a little bit, then the fish is so interested, coming at you and ready to bite. At that moment, you pull hard, double level, second level, two levels pulling. Who knows such things? Who even bothers to figure out such timing? I am researching and studying all things. You have to go through certain levels of instruction: level one, two, three -- even more levels to go. If it's raining, do you think we should stop and go back? Mother always thinks that I should come back a little early, that it's not good for my health to stay out so late. However, I must go on; I must finish! I am just intoxicated in teaching the members. I have to study more. How can I come in early? The future economy of the world, the food problem of the world, the survival of mankind will be solved by the ocean. This time of study can determine the future life or death of mankind .
In the future seafood industry, Reverend Moon and his determination, his world view and ideology of fishing will go on. When I am suntanned to an incredible degree, is it a shame or pride? By doing the most incredible work for the sake of humanity and the future of this country, I am going to develop catching different species of fish. Each fish requires special treatment and a special secret to catch it. I develop techniques and at the same time, I can teach those techniques. When you apply those techniques, you become an economically viable fisherman. Then, you will think about moving into higher level fishing.
This nation of America is God's blessed nation. Abundant material blessing has been given, but this belongs to God. We are the custodians or stewards of this property. No matter what, we have to do it. Organize! We have to win over all the God-given blessings. I laid the foundation. I will set the tradition in America. If you succeed in following that tradition, you can inherit the rest of the world. That is what you will do.
This is a new chapter, a new era, a new history. You are the master of this new history. In order to do that, you must have determination. Without that determination, you will not even get near it. With the determination to give up your life, you can separate yourself from Satan; Satan will have no business with you anymore. Don't try to survive. Go to the land of death. That means that God will take your sacrifice, and God will never let you die. That is the Principle. That is my life exactly! I have always been ready to die. This tradition goes down from me to you, from you to all others. As long as you are alive, as long as you are breathing, you cannot complain because you have already made that resolution; you are ready to die, but you have not died yet. You can say, "I am still alive! I have to go on, more and more. I am not yet dying, that means I can still go further. Thank God!"
My leg is not just muscle, it is always swollen for some reason. Even with the overuse of my legs from standing on the deck so long, I say, "Thank God! I have not yet died; I am still breathing. God, I can go on." One night there was an accident and I collapsed in the bathroom. Mother does not know, but I fainted. I got up and the first words I spoke were, "Thank God, I have not died. I can go on and on and on." That is the kind of tradition I laid in the Unification Church. How can we complain? If we disregard this tradition, America will become a very dismal and tragic country. When you inherit this tradition, America will be glorious and prosperous. Everlasting blessings will come if you inherit this.
Leaders' Conference June 27, 1983
There are so many varieties of activities and different projects in our movement, but when the summer comes, the most important of all is Ocean Church.
As you know, only one third of the surface of the globe is land; two thirds are ocean. Therefore, without knowing the ocean we can never have dominion over the entire globe. So every one of you, every member of the Unification Church, is required to take a basic training in Ocean Church, including navigation, repairing and so forth.
It is just incredible to think that the ocean is not dead! It is alive and moving; not only moving by itself, but moving in conjunction with the land masses and the solar system's sun and moon. It's so wonderful to know the beauties and wonders that are hidden within the ocean. More than anything else in all of God's creation, the ocean is most sensitive to all the movements of the universe and the weather.
Once you understand the sensitivity of the ocean, have dialogue with it, and cope with it, you'll understand the most intricate of God's creation. By doing so, you can understand about land masses in no time.
The ocean is not only sensitive, but is also very changeable. Therefore, to know how to cope with this changeable situation provides us the best understanding of ourselves and nature. In order for us to mold our God-centered character we must know how to deal with the ocean, how to become subject over it, and how to have dominion over God-given creation.
Since God is presiding over the whole realm of dominion, God presides over all the changing and moving sensitivity of the entire creation. This is God's character, so we have to mold ourselves into resemblance of that character, particularly the American youth, because this nation is surrounded on three sides by the vast ocean. Generally, an American's interest is focused in one narrow direction, but that is not the way God likes. You must open yourself up to all four directions, and the ocean is presenting you such a training ground. American young people have had very little interest in the ocean. Without this interest you might find it alright just for the present time, but as to a future vision, without an interest in the ocean you will never be a leader.
Many people say the space age has arrived, but you cannot dwell in space. From the ocean, however, you can draw resources, you can make a living from it. For this reason I founded and created Ocean Church. I feel in the future, the Ocean Church foundation can be greater than the land church. So far we've been living in the land church era, but from now on we'll be living in the Ocean Church era.
Becoming Flexible
Another important point is that when you deal with the ocean, you cannot be stubborn, cannot be inflexible -- there's no way that you could survive on the ocean. The ocean-going person must be flexible, and understanding of all situations.
For example, land people work during the day and rest at night. There's no such thing on the ocean; you work day and night because the tidal waters are moving and all the fish groups move accordingly. When certain tidal waters and the fish come at night, then you've got to work at night.
Furthermore, even if you have a perfect schedule, when a typhoon comes, you absolutely have to abandon that schedule. You cannot go by your own will; you have to adapt to your surroundings and accommodate to others. So in ocean life, you have to make harmony with nature, particularly the ocean's nature. On land you can mostly plan and set your goals, but on the ocean you cannot do so. While on the land, man confronts and tries to dominate nature. However, the ocean nature doesn't allow it so easily; therefore, men must learn how to live with the environment and how to be flexible. Instead of confronting nature, the ocean-going man must try to harmonize with it.
Training for Hopeless People
Some people have an inherent difficulty with the ocean because they have seasickness. Father sees that those guys have very poor ancestors! (Laughter)
In the long run, it is true that there was something wrong with their ancestors; either they had ulcers, or some kind of physical problem, some kind of deficiency -- you cannot deny that.
Unification Church members can be classified into three different groups. One is the champions of the ocean. You know we favor them, and the second class would be the mediocre: they're not so bad on the ocean but not so good either. Finally the third category is the hopeless group.
The Ocean Church mission is to use this hopeless group and make it into champions. This is true with any country that a nation is declining not because there are no strong people, but because there are so many hopeless or weak people. So the nation's well-being is assured by making the hopeless people strong, then the safety of the nation is assured. To transform hopeless people to hopeful people, that is the challenge of the Unification Church, particularly the mission of the Ocean Church. That means that the hopeless people will go to Ocean Church first, because they need the most training. So I have to tackle those people first.
Exposing Human Nature
I know how to train the hopeless people: take them and kick them into the ocean for three months. As long as they survive there . . . initially they look miserable, throwing up, looking pale like a green apple, and from every hole in their body there's some kind of mucous coming out.
But without hesitation, I say, "Kick 'em in." One by one people come out. Seasick people don't need any hospital you just leave them on the land for a while. There they get their appetite back, and restore themselves -- this is the best hospital. When their health is restored we kick them into the ocean again and repeat the same cycle. Then, after coming out again -- almost dead, let them recuperate, and then for the third time, kick them out again.
This three time repetition will make everyone who is hopeless into a champion. To make hopeless people hopeful again, that s the true challenge for Ocean Church and it is just as true for the nation.
Also, those healthy people who have aptitude for the ocean are ready to go. Tyler just completed his Ph.D., but he never dreamed that he would be assigned to Ocean Church, yet I kicked him into the ocean. I'm sure he thought he'd make a good professor at the Unification Theological Seminary, or he could write a book, or go to other universities and teach. I'm sure he thought about those things. Tyler Hendricks is like a real gentleman-type. He's very suave, very cordial. But once someone goes to the ocean . . . there is no bath- room, not even on the New Hope.
This summer I gave a boat to the sisters and a boat to the brothers, working side by side. When bathroom time comes, what do you do? You've got to do something! You have to get yourself relieved! Whether there are sisters around, or brothers, it doesn't make any difference. Then you need guts. You have to attend to your relieving mission. The men face such situations and deal with it naturally without any panic. They have to have guts to deal with it. When a sister goes to the ocean, there's not such a thing as always being polite and looking nice; she's got to be like a man and survive and deal with the ocean. She's got to expose her hip sometimes. But she doesn't even mind; she just thinks, "Well, my hip is somehow exposed, but I know all the brothers will close their eyes, so I don't even have to shield myself too much."
She needs that kind of guts, and when the man is doing his "business" he knows that all the sisters will close their eyes. No problem. That's the way it goes, and if anybody doesn't close their eyes, they will suffer the consequences.
Ocean training occurs at a crude, raw level of experience; therefore it will show the basic human nature. It exposes everything: you cannot hide on the ocean, so when you go out, you have to expose yourself. You can learn about yourself, about others and how to harmonize with others.
Another point: when you live on the land, you don't worry about record breaking or setting new records, but anyone who goes on the ocean always thinks about setting a record and breaking the record. These people are always goal-oriented.
In this life, it's so complicated, so sophisticated, it's virtually impossible to try to stand up or find a place to make a stand. But when you go to the ocean you have a chance. Everybody is at the starting point. You go down to the zero point and start from there to rise up and win all over again. When you men and women go out to the ocean, try to be the champion, set a new record. That kind of goal- oriented life, I like very much.
Leaders' Conference August 26, 1983
Christianity, Judaism, and all great religions had some connection to the mountains. Moses went to the mountains to pray for forty days, Jesus prayed and fasted on the mountain, and Buddha spent six years in the mountains searching spiritually. The Unification Church has experienced those sorts of things, but we don't stop there. We move on and create "Ocean Church" for the first time in history.
Why did Father Create it?
When you look at the globe, two-thirds of the surface is water. So where, do you think, would there be the greater quantity of living things, in the ocean or on the land? In the water. The population of the earth is estimated as four billion people, but how many hundreds of billions of living things are there in the sea! One more difference between the sea and the land is that tall the oceans connect, so that you can go from one ocean into another. Land masses are also connected, but the oceans are all moving into each other as one harmonious whole. The ocean is living and moving accordingly; it's not dead. Because the waters covering this planet earth are alive, we can see that the planet is alive.
So far the ocean has been used for transportation -- but people haven't begun digging in the ocean to find its hidden resources. In recent years, some nations have claimed a 200-mile limit as "territorial waters." More and more, the competition for ocean resources is sharply dividing the nations. Will the 200-mile limit still have meaning if there are no more fish to catch?
When people begin to discover resources in the oceans, maybe they'll begin to claim 300 miles, or even 1,000 miles as their nation's territory, and then the question will arise, "Who is the true master of the ocean? Who will be the true host?"
Suppose all of a sudden a gigantic land mass emerged -- an island in the middle of the ocean. Who could claim that land? Volcanic eruptions can happen anywhere. Nature follows nature's laws.
While God is looking over His creation saying, "I created the ocean; who shall be the host?" what is He searching for? He is looking for men of vision and courage. Actually God is looking for a group of people who are organized and committed to meeting that challenge of the ocean. If such a committed group of ocean-loving people can be found, God will give the blessing to them. Those people finally become candidates for lordship over the ocean. They must be thinking with the Creator's mind. As such courageous people from around the world come together and unite in one common goal, one ideal, that vision must transcend all national and racial boundaries. Once such an international group is set up, it will be very difficult for any single nation to challenge it, for it will truly have a global perspective.
What will Ocean Church do in the future? What is its purpose? It is to teach how to love the ocean, to utilize it under the concept of the Creator's ideal, and have dominion over it according to the Principle of Creation.
The dividing line between ocean and land is the coastline, so the coast represents the link to both worlds. Eventually the coastline will become most important. Coastline property will become most valuable of all.
Ocean Beauty
The ocean encompasses an incredible variety of moods. The calm sea is like a beautiful woman, and the beach sand is like silk -- dazzling beauty and peace. But that is not all the ocean presents to you -- a little breeze and the water starts to dance -- just a little bit. No matter what kind of a ballerina or dancer you may find, you can never compare her/him to the dancing of the ocean! The dancer is on a small, limited stage, but the ocean dances without limit. There is no end to its stage.
Sea birds fly around, coming and going, landing and taking off, all with different shapes, but all with harmony. Sea gulls come, they sing and present beautiful harmonious motion. Sometimes this beautiful scene is changed dramatically by the sudden volcanic explosion of a huge whale jumping out of the water. The splashing water shines, reflecting the light -- just incredible beauty. So much variety and change!
When the ocean gets mad it definitely shows its dignity and power as if it's saying, "Anyone who comes at me -- I will swallow you." Indeed, the ocean can swallow anything riding on it.
Normally, a high-speed boat runs beautifully on calm water just like on a silky highway, but once those waters get mad, splashing with high waves, that boat becomes helpless. When the waves go up, the boat answers, "Yes sir, yes sir!" When the waves suddenly drop down the boat can only obey because there nature is the most powerful and the ocean says, "You listen to me. Here I am! For that reason, men and women who love the sea cannot be boastful, cannot be arrogant. They must know how to humble themselves to the overpowering strength of nature.
On the land you see green. Sometimes you see butterflies or birds flying around, but everything is stationary. In the ocean, however, the varieties of fish are moving in all kinds of ways and from one place to another, demonstrating their own beauty. So is there greater beauty and incredible mystery on land or in the ocean? [Ocean]
When you put yourself in God's position and ask, Why did God make the ocean?" we might say, "It's because God would be bored with the land in just a few days, but the ocean is never boring. The sea and the ocean represent the future vision, the future dream." Therefore, anyone linked to a futuristic vision must be interested in the ocean. In this way, he is bound to become a visionary person.
Great Literature
What kind of people are found on the ocean? Courageous men following other courageous men. What about women?
If the husband got very bad diarrhea, lying flat on his back, would his wife beg him to stay at home and postpone the journey, or would she stand up and say, "Well, come on. I'll take over. I'll continue the mission." If she has that much determination then even the boat's steering wheel will wake up and be happy to find a woman's soft hands on the wheel after being handled by so many men's rough hands. When you women take charge of the mission, then even the ocean waters will feel sorry for you. They don't want to be rough on such beautiful women; they want to be nice to you. Even the ocean spray raining down is smiling, and saying, "I want to cling onto your skirt! "
It's so poetic isn't it? That's the way great literature and great poetry were born. When I start speaking about the ocean, there are many stories, legends, and myths to be told. Sometimes I speak to the birds and sometimes it's as if the birds are obeying whatever I am thinking, flying this way, or landing over there. Then when I think, "Now go away," the birds will suddenly depart.
Literature is written in that form, expressing such communication with nature. Creation says to man, "If you leave me yet still love me, I will go away from you." Man and the creation are just longing for each other, like the love between man and woman.
If a man and a woman have a date on top of the Empire State Building, 102 stories above the ground, it's very romantic. But why is such a date considered romantic? Because such a tall building is unique, and the two people are getting together at one of the highest points on the land. Even though no one notices, they feel they're coming together as a king and queen, meeting on the top of the world.
Say a man and a woman meet at the South Pole. There's no one around. It's all ice and snow. That's where only penguins are kissing each other. Even just imagining it is a romantic moment! In order to have some incredible stimulating experiences, you have to go through what some normal people would not do -- something unique, challenging, something special. Without it, you cannot derive that kind of intoxication and beauty of stimulation.
Alaska
Recently I have traveled to Alaska two times. Alaska is a mysterious virgin land with hardly any people living there. It's a land of bears and wild animals. Most people think of it as snow covered, with glaciers, rugged coast, and white whales, sea lions, and seals. One day I went to a small island and encountered some sea lions. As soon as they saw me, they began giving their welcoming rally, "Arrh, arrh, arrh, arrh, arrh!" They started all at once, sounding incredibly unique! But there were two kinds of sound to distinguish: one was a male sound and the other a female sound. United in-harmony, they built a resounding chorus.
There were also whales, and halibut, which are flat-fish like flounder, and grow up to 300 pounds. Maybe there are many people who don't know about the halibut, and God is thinking, "You poor people. I created such an incredible creature, and gave it to you. All you have to do is come and claim it and use it for your benefit, but you never even bother to come. You never even look at my creation and try to enjoy it. You poor people!"
God is interested in courageous people. God Himself is adventurous, and He also made us that way.
American Women
Having all these special experiences, I was thinking about how American women should be. In Alaska, I met a certain couple. The man lived there all his life, and I was interested in why this couple lived there. "Why do you live here?" I asked. "Because we love the freedom -- total freedom." They explained that in New York and other places, even if you're just trying to walk in order to get somewhere, you always bump into someone. Or else you're always stepping onto somebody's territory and they're telling you, "No, no, don't touch it." But in Alaska, they said, you keep running year after year, and you bother no one. "We are totally free," they said. Doesn't it sound good? So even though Alaska legally belongs to the United States, men and women living like this couple in Alaska virtually have no nationality.
When I looked at the woman, I saw that she was so tiny and skinny. But this particular American woman had guts. She had a vision, and she had a universal mind. She had confidence and conviction, so that even if she went bear hunting, she could knock down the bear! So I thought, "That's the kind of woman's spirit that impelled the westward-bound Americans toward their new horizon. This was the Frontier Spirit."
So how did she come to meet and marry a man like that? She revealed to me that shed traveled all around the world. So she'd met all kinds of men, including civilized and educated men. Then she came to Alaska and met simple and unassuming men. The ones who went to the ocean were fishermen, and those who went to the mountains were hunters. Here was the hunter-fisherman combination. This one man completely captured her attention by his rugged simplicity and his very natural and unassuming nature. She married him and remained living in that environment where whatever they were doing, they were just as they are -- very real, very truthful. So when they met their neighbors, or even a stranger, they gave everything, and they loved these people much more than they'd love even their own brothers and sisters.
The man told his wife that he would show her the most beautiful places and he took her to where there was an abundance of wealth from the ocean, and when they went to the mountain they saw the hunting grounds with an abundance of wild game.
Normally when a fisherman has a good fishing ground, he keeps the secret for himself, but this man said, "this is the fishing heaven -- you can catch even bigger ones." This man was really trying to be helpful and of service to others. When I was there, he prepared bait and tackle for others, and he tried to have my party catch a big fish. He really wanted me to catch the big ones.
On that day, a lot of fish were caught, and I was truly appreciative, so at the end of the day, I wanted to give him a little token of appreciation, some gift. But the man said, "No, not at all. It's my privilege, it's my honor. If you give that to me, you are taking away my honor." I sent a representative trying to persuade him to please receive this gift but the man was adamant in refusing. Finally, though, that humble man gave in and said he would accept a gift, since he saw the Reverend Moons beautiful heart. So I thought, "After many long years, I met the True American!"
Salmon
Upon examination, I decided that the salmon shall be the fish of the Moonies, that the salmon symbolizes the Moon spirit. The male and female salmon go swimming together side by side up the streams to the spawning grounds. The purpose for going all the way on such a journey is to lay eggs. The couple starts digging in the sandy bottom for a place to lay eggs. The male swims protectively around the female. Their skin color and their muscles change, and after their egg-laying mission is accomplished, they give up their lives and die. Their bodies decompose and become fertilizer for the feed for their babies.
This is their destiny of death, to succeed in reproduction by the laying of eggs, it is for love. Without fear, they go toward that destiny side by side. It's a beautiful thing to behold. I saw the image of the ideal couple in those salmon.
When all mankind is living like salmon, surely the dwelling of God will be with men, and God will be happy among men. Why did God create salmon? To educate men, to present the example to people in order that they can follow.
Let me draw a conclusion. Ocean Church has been created in order to teach the ideal of God. His creation of the ocean, so that we gain true love for, and true dominion over, the ocean. Each person can become a co-creator with God, anticipating and participating in God's great task of creation, and understanding it as a friend.
Vision and Providence in Ocean Church August 28, 1983