UTS Leadership Transition

by Dr. Michael L. Mickler
Barrytown, NY

On May 13, 1994, in a meeting of key Seminary personnel at East Garden, Dr. David S.C. Kim, who had served as the President of Unification Theological Seminary since its founding in 1975, officially retired. At that time, Rev. Moon recommended that Dr. Theodore Shimmyo, Professor of Theology at UTS since 1985 and a member of the Seminary's first graduating class, succeed President Kim as the second President of UTS, subject to approval by the Seminary's Board of Trustees. He also announced that Book I of UTS was now closed and called on those present to make a new determination for Book II.

Subsequent to President Kim's retirement, Dr. Edwin Ang retired as UTS' Executive Vice President and Dean Therese Stewart retired as the Seminary's Academic Dean. Together, President Kim, Dr. Ang and Dean Stewart guided UTS through its formative years. Under their leadership the Seminary gained its Absolute Charter as a degree granting institution from the State of New York, served as a hatching ground for innumerable theologian's conferences and organizations which formed the matrix of the Interreligious Federation for World Peace, and produced with this year's class more than 800 graduates.

Following his formal appointment by the UTS Board of Trustees, President Shimmyo named Dr. William Brunhofer (UTS'84) as Dean of Administration and Dr. Jennifer Tanabe as Academic Dean.

According to Rev. Moon, the mandate of the new administration remains the same: to revive Christianity and save this nation. However, the circumstances have changed. Having proclaimed True Parents and the completed Testament Age and the Safe Settlement, in short, having "ushered in a great transition on the world level," Rev. Moon advised the Seminary's leadership to institute a new curriculum with Unification Theology at its center, beginning from September. He also called for a "revival" in the Seminary's life of faith "initiated by the students."

Finally, centered on professors, he challenged UTS to become an internationally famous academic institution.

UTS 18th Annual Commencement Exercises

by Dr. Michael L. Mickler

The Eighteenth Commencement of Unification Theological Seminary held on Sunday, June 26th had one of the fullest schedules in the Seminary's history. It combined not only graduation exercises for 17 Master of Religious Education (M.R.E.), 13 Master of Divinity (M.Div.) and two Diploma in Religious Education graduates but also an early morning Board of Trustees meeting, an inaugural address by President Theodore Shimmyo, congratulatory remarks by outgoing President Kim and an address of Rev. Moon (read by President Shimmyo). The day also included the traditional graduation banquet and entertainment followed by afternoon activities (a Tongil Moo Do demonstration and tennis exhibition were features) and an evening buffet after which the Junior class presented their version of the "Wizard of Oz."

Dr. James Baughman, president of the Unification Church in America and a 1978 UTS graduate, served as master of ceremonies for the Commencement exercises, which began in the seminary chapel at 11am. Following the invocation by UTS Chaplain Shawn Byrne, Dr. Theodore Shimmyo delivered his inaugural address as the second president of UTS. Emphasizing that "the presidency is not mine but God's," Dr. Shimmyo emphasized that he "will always be available and accessible to the whole seminary community." He also stressed that he "will make sure that this seminary serves the rest of the Unification movement, this nation and world, with a desire to shoulder their burdens."

Dr. David S.C. Kim noted in his congratulatory remarks (read by Shawn Byrne) that since the founding of UTS he had never missed a Board of Trustees meeting or graduation, but due to an eye operation scheduled for graduation weekend he was unable to attend either. In his speech, entitled "In the Power and Authority of True Parents," he encouraged graduates "to live by the C's of successful God-centered living: a commitment to Kingdom-building, communication skills, and control over yourself." David Hanna, representing the Class of 1994, in his graduate response conveyed his gratitude to the outgoing administration who not only pioneered the seminary from the beginning but also raised up its new leadership. He described the graduates as "better equipped" to do the task to which they have been called, which in his view has to do with a readiness "to embrace the world."

Rev. Moon, in his Eighteenth Commencement address, "Create Your Ideal Family to Save the World," emphasized that the world's problems "can be attributed to the problem of the family." Abnormal or unhealthy relationships among family members, including unnatural sexual relations, result "in abnormal or unhealthy relationships within society." In noting the family's "decisive influence on the world," Rev. Moon questioned Christianity's present capacity to "create exemplary families" or handle these problems, "in spite of Jesus Christ's original moral teachings 2,000 years ago." He therefore challenged UTS graduates "to do what Christianity could not do, i.e., create ideal families for the building of God's Kingdom on earth." In order to restore the world, Rev. Moon told graduates, "you must create your own blessed family which is an example to other families in this world." However, to do so, they "must know the tradition of True Parents' family."

Unification Thought Institute Conference in New York

Self-interest will no longer be the driving force in the society of the future; rather that force will be "showing a warm heart to please the object," said Dr. Sang Hun Lee in a recent seminar. Power will come not from the barrel of a gun but from the True Love of True Parents and the appreciation and reverence of the one who receives it, he said.

In a four-day seminar June 14-17 at the New Yorker, Dr. Lee said that until now the ideal society - so-called utopia - has been described only in vague terms. Now we must describe in concrete detail how True Love will be expressed in the family and, with the family as the model, in the educational system, the organs of government and the institutions of society, he said. Such clarity is an essential step in the public acceptance of Rev. Sun Myung Moon's vision for the future.

Speaking to some fifty leaders of the Unification Church and of other organizations founded by Rev. Moon, Dr. Lee outlined Rev. Moon's Three Great Subjects Thought and its application. He described how Rev. Moon has painstakingly and successfully applied that thought in his mission as Messiah and True Parents in restoring humankind. Also, Dr. Lee presented Rev. Moon's specific strategy for defeating Satan, uniting the Korean Peninsula and constructing an ideal society based on that thought.

Sponsored jointly by the Unification Thought Institute of America and HSA-UWC, the seminar offered a comprehensive overview of recent significant providential events and of Rev. Moon's proclamations and new revelations over the past decade. Much of the content in the twelve lectures Dr. Lee presented was too recent to be contained in The Divine Principle and Essentials of Unification Thought.

"Through Dr. Lee's lectures, one can understand the limits of the Divine Principle book in the Completed Testament Age and the extent and newness of Rev. Moon's recent teachings," said Paul Perry of the Unification Thought Institute.

In a quiet, methodical manner Dr. Lee shared Rev. Moon's views on solving actual world problems, the Four Great Realms of Heart and Three Great Kingships, the House of Unification, the creation of a culture of heart, among numerous other topics. Participants said they had received so much new truth during some 28 hours of presentations that they would need to study their notes for months to be able to absorb it.

"Each lecture gave me incredible insights into the providence, Rev. Moon's life, the background of the Proclamation of True Parents ... which I will want to share with others," said Dr. Andy Wilson in a testimony during the closing ceremony. "I want to teach this material to professors," he said.

Dr. Lee, also at the closing ceremony, noted the substantial value of teaching of Subject Thought in the United States. He said our responsibility as members, whatever our missions, is that humankind quickly accept True Parents. "The U.S. [needs to] become number one in accepting the True Parents in all families, ahead of other countries," he said, implying that Subject Thought will be an invaluable benefit in achieving that goal.

A Thirty-Six Blessed Couple and the creator of Unification Thought, Dr. Lee emphasized the need to solve actual problems from the individual to the world level and beyond. A theoretical messiah can only bring theoretical results.

Past efforts to resolve actual problems proved ineffectual because they were only partial, or what he called "item," solutions based on archangelic thought, Dr. Lee said. Because all problems are interrelated and are ultimately caused by man's fallen nature, their solutions must be "comprehensive," addressing all problems and their root, the fall of humankind.

Political, economic and social solutions in the past have all proved to be partial solutions and despite some temporary successes, have all ultimately failed. While religions and philosophies have sought to bring comprehensive solutions, they were based on angelic revelations which have proved unable in the long run to eliminate fallen nature and thus completely solve actual problems, he said. (Ed: You may want to consider whether this is too sensitive for some of your readers from other faiths.) Only the Messiah can bring comprehensive, Adamic solutions for those problems and their cause.

But the Messiah will not deny those faiths; rather, he will "supplement what remained unsolved" and "revitalize their teachings," Dr. Lee said. "With the aid of True Mother's speech and True Father's thought, each of those religions and thought can be revitalized," he continued. In this way "they can participate in the building of the new culture."

Through True Mother's speech, he added, those religions and systems of thought can discover "what was the cause of their ineffectiveness or decline. ... [and] solve their own problems and participate in the building of the unified culture." That will be the method by which Unification Culture will be formed, he said.

That Unification Culture Dr. Lee called Heart Culture. "In this culture everything is done with the heart of love," he said. "Political leaders are supposed to act with the heart of love; so are economists, educators, and so on. Everything is done with the heart of love."

The solution to these actual problems may come more quickly now because of True Mother's world and campus tours, according to Dr. Lee. In her speech leaders in religion, politics, economics, art, education and other fields will be able to find the keys to solve their problems, he said.

"All world leaders are struggling because they cannot find fundamental solutions to the problems they face in politics, economy, crimes, etc.," Dr. Lee said. "It is like a person drowning in the ocean. They are desperate to find anything that can help them."

True Mother's speech provides the keys to solving these problems, and their desperation will help them to discover that, according to Dr. Lee.

Those leaders will need to realize that today's democratic system, for example, is only a preparatory step for the ideal society of tomorrow, Dr. Lee said. In what he called co-prosperity, the future political structures will all be patterned after the ideal family. Sessions of Congress, for instance, will resemble family gatherings, unlike current sessions of individual legislators which can be thought of as meetings of "angels," not of a family, he said.

Dr. Lee criticized today's legislators as "archangels, not sons and daughters of God." He said, "Lawmakers make laws arbitrarily based on their selfish thinking. That is why politics does not become ideal." In the future they will serve the purpose of the whole as a kind of family council offering solutions to True Parents, rather than serving selfish special interests, he said. Also, legislators in a not-so future government will be couples, not single representatives, said Dr. Lee. Some of them will be chosen by lottery, just as in the New Testament the disciple to replace Judas was chosen by lot.

Besides the family, the human body is also a pattern for government, Dr. Lee said. Now the legislative, judicial and executive branches correspond to the lungs, heart and digestive system of a person. But in the past those same functions were performed by the monasteries, pope and king in the medieval period and by prophets, priests and king in the United Kingdom of Israel. So, in the future, while those same functions will be necessary, the bodies which carry them out may change as they have in the past.

More importantly, government has functioned until now like a person without a brain and nervous system. In the future, those roles will be performed by the True Parents and what Dr. Lee called the "family system" -possibly elder blessed couples - respectively.

In this ideal society ownership of property will usually be "joint," not private as in capitalist economies, Dr. Lee said. He called this co-living.

After entering Canaan, the Jews held property jointly as have many other societies. In fact, private ownership is a recent development. In the past two centuries as monarchic systems were replaced by democracies in preparation for the Second Coming, property owned by the king was distributed to individuals.

But as individual owners come to know and attend the True Parents in the Last Days, they will naturally want to offer their property to them, Dr. Lee said. Then that property will be jointly owned by the True Parents and the family of that individual.

Dr. Lee cited a conversation Rev. Moon had with the leaders and members of Il Hwa in Korea. "{Il Hwa] is owned first by God and you, secondly by TP and you, thirdly by the company president and you," he reported Rev. Moon as saying.

In the future there will still be a place for private ownership, but it will be in the context of the purpose of the whole. He cited children in a family owning a musical instrument or artistic materials, practicing hard and winning a contest in art or music, and in this way giving joy to their parents. The children's private ownership thus contributed to the joy of the whole family.

In such a society, all political, social, economic and family activities will be based on attendance in the context of family ethics, said Dr. Lee. Calling this way of life co-righteousness, he said, "This life of attendance is expanded to all ... aspects of society and all levels: workplace, home, community, nation, world, etc."

The ideological basis of this society will be True Parents' Three Great Subjects Thought, or simply Subject Thought. According to this thought, there are three great subjects in society: parents, teachers and what he called chief, the person responsible for organizations, associations, government -virtually any administrative function. Each of these subjects functions in their role and has dominion not by force but by exercising "warm heart of love toward the object." If their love is true, then sons and daughters will naturally, appreciatively and even reverently respond positively to their parents, students to teachers and members of an organization or government to their chief and grow and develop in that love. Those in the objective position will also naturally spread that love to others. Such downward true love will eliminate conflict and promote unification and harmony on all levels. Each person in such love relationships will feel like a son or daughter in a family and develop his or her full potential, and the organization or administration of which they are members will function effectively.

This Subject Thought is one of "five great [areas of] thought of the Completed Testament Age," according to Dr. Lee. He identified the others as:

2. Four Great Realms of Heart and Three Great Kingships,

3. Providential background behind the Proclamation of True Parents,

4. Co-living, Co-prosperity, Co-righteousness (above), and

5. House of Unification for World Peace.

The Four Great Realms of Heart refer to the heart of the four basic relationships in the family, namely: husband-wife, parents-children, brothers-sisters and children-parents. These are the same as the three kinds of love identified in the Divine Principle with the addition of that of brothers and sisters.

"The Four Great Realms of Heart means that in a family each member loves each other out of the irresistible impulse to love each other," said Dr. Lee.

Dr. Lee said that God himself also had this irresistible impulse to love. "Because of it, he began to create the universe," he said. "Out of this irresistible impulse to love, he had to create his object of love, human beings, as his children."

Calling this the Heart Mobilization Theory and a new revelation, he said that for God "creation was unavoidable." This same irresistible impulse exists in each individual and is the basis for the Four Great Realms of Heart.

But in a family there is also "an aspect of authority of love with reverence for each other," he said. "That kind of family in which there is mutual reverence is truly an ideal family... a palace of love where kings and queens live together on the foundation of the Four Great Realms of Heart."

Because Rev. Moon seeks to teach the immense value of each family position, he speaks of each as a royal position, according to Dr. Lee. Grandparents are king and queen of the past and of the spiritual world; parents are king and queen of the present and the physical world and the children are princes and princesses of the future.

"When those families in which the Three Great Kingships and the Four Great Realms of the Heart have been established get together, they form the royal family sphere," Dr. Lee said.

Another important development in the Completed Testament Age is The House of Unification for World Peace which Rev. Moon established August 24, 1992 in Seoul at the World Culture and Sports Festival on the eve of the 30,000 blessing. Comparing it to the nervous system with True Parents as the brain, Dr. Lee said the House of Unification will coordinate Unification conferences, organizations and other activities and provide family education. This may be the nervous system which Dr. Lee called a "family system" in his lecture on co- prosperity (above).

Neither a workshop center for learning the Divine Principle, nor a school for learning math, science, history and other academic subjects, it is to be a sanctuary of family education and will focus on non-Unificationists, Dr. Lee said. "The House of Unification will provide what is lacking in today's education," he said.

In this house people will find comfort and a solution to their problems of loneliness and solitude; they come to get rid of anxiety or uneasiness. Many have "private, secret matters which they don't want to reveal to others from which they are suffering," Dr. Lee said. They need someone to confess to who can also help them deal with these matters.

Dr. Lee described the House of Unification as a "warm place" with an "atmosphere of mothers embracing their children ... [a place] people feel like going back to, cannot help but go back to..."

The House of Unification as well as the Four Great Realms of Heart and the Three Great Kingships are all concepts Rev. Moon introduced only in the Completed Testament Age. Proclaimed January 1, 1993 in Korea, the Completed Testament Age is the age in which God will fulfill the promise he made to the Israelites in Isaiah 9:6-7, namely, that he would send the Prince of Peace to the earth to establish the kingdom of peace. Dr. Lee said, "The promise of peace was never to be changed, as written in Isaiah 54:10."

On this biblical basis we can know the Completed Testament Age is an age in which the covenant of peace will be fulfilled, Dr. Lee said. It is also a time when all people will come to attend the True Parents, he said.

Leading up to the proclamation of the Completed Testament Age, however, is a trail of True Parents' intense indemnity to restore 4,000 years of history and a number of important conditions and providential events which Dr. Lee outlined (see sidebar).

One of the more significant of these events was the proclamation of the Day of God's Eternal Blessing. From that time on, God's will will be achieved, Dr. Lee said. Satan has no more condition against Rev. Moon.

Dr. Lee said this day ended the forty-year wilderness course and its aftermath and begins preparation for the Completed Testament Age. It is a watershed event; history before and after this date are different, Dr. Lee said.

As of this date "the Kingdom of Heaven established by the blessed members is eternal and will never perish," Dr. Lee said. God's blessing on the earth is now eternal.

It also meant that "all the conflicts and struggles throughout history had come to an end," said Dr. Lee. Rev. Moon said that his responsibility as parent to resolve the conflicts between brothers - like those between communism and the free world, between North and South Korea, politics and religion, nation and nation, religion and religion, and philosophy and philosophy - had been fulfilled.

That does not mean that these conflicts are over, Dr. Lee explained, but simply that Rev. Moon had established the necessary conditions for them to end. These conditions become a foundation for their eventual substantial resolution.

Rev. Moon declared, in addition, that "the time has come when the blood shed by people on the good side in the struggle between good and evil can be compensated," Dr. Lee said.

Furthermore, from this time on True Parents on earth will have dominion over the spiritual world and will be able to direct them to do things, he said. For example, "True Parents can order the founders of [the different] religions to cooperate, and the spiritual world will be mobilized," he said.

Finally, as of this day Rev. Moon's sphere of victory can be bequeathed to successful tribal messiahs, Dr. Lee said.

Another significant event almost 14 months later that opened the way to the Completed Testament Age is the Proclamation of the True Parents on August 24, 1992.

Dr. Lee reviewed the providential history that made this proclamation possible, only part of which is contained in the black book. Besides the Foundation for the Messiah detailed in the book, there are two parallel providences, one of the history of preparation of the bride of the Messiah through the chosen "maternal" nation - Israel, Christianity and then Korea -and of the preparation of families in which cooperation between mother and sons has been fulfilled to indemnify the failure of Cain, Abel and Eve to unite.

The fulfillment of these "three great internal providences" is a necessary foundation for True Parents to appear and the Completed Testament Age to begin. Dr. Lee shared little-known details of these providences such as the difficult relationship between Zerah and Perez which Tamar helped to resolve as a foundation for cooperation among Mary, Jesus and John the Baptist. He also explained the failure of the Mother-Son Cooperation providence in Korea and how God became a "God of failure" as a result, then how Rev. Moon in tears offered to reindemnify all of human history since Abraham's family so that God would not be a "God of failure."

Dr. Lee also detailed Rev. Moon's strategy for the reunification of the Korean Peninsula.

Participants in the conference said they were overwhelmed by the amount of material they had received in four days. One professor, who had taken 119 pages of written notes, complained tongue-in-cheek of having developed "writer's cramp" during the seminar.

Videos of the conference are available through the Unification Theological Seminary's Audio-Visual department at 758-6881 ext. 250.

At the closing ceremony Dr. Theodore Shimmyo, President of the Seminary, said he was "amazed there is such oneness between True Father's teaching and Dr. Lee's teaching." Rev. Joong Hyun Pak, Continental Director of the Unification Chruch of Noth America, urged participants to become "second Dr. Sang Hun Lee's and teach [this material] to all of the American public."

At the ceremony Rev. Pak and Dr. James Baughman, president of HSA-UWC, presented 36 Couple Dr. David S.C. Kim a plaque of appreciation for his pioneering work in America and his long years of service to True Parents, the Unification Church and the Seminary. In his response, Dr. Kim suggested there be a follow-up "revival" of seminar participants.

Tribal Wars

by Frank Kaufmann

All things expand to their next highest level, one level at a time. This is natural and inevitable. The only way to thwart this process is to die or to become arrested at some level of development which results sooner or later in becoming an oddity. Individuals naturally act in ways which give rise to families. Families naturally grow into clans, and so forth. This intuition into the nature and development of the social order make Unificationists, by dint of their education uniquely positioned respond to the contemporary breakdown in the global order.

We live in paradoxical times. Unquestionably our race is at its most advanced state, both technologically and intellectually. Access to information is all but instantaneous. Human sciences (such as economics, political science etc.) devoted to analysis and problem solving are at unprecedented levels of sophistication. Presuppositions of equality, and tolerance have reached most levels of society (not just among the elites), and much that was reserved for a tiny upper class such as international travel, the output and acquisition of information and entertainment etc. also has become democratized. One recalls Gary Trudeau's homeless couple pirating on the internet with a stolen laptop, spliced into telephone cables out on the street. Fifteen year old kids wear beepers, and people who cannot spell or identify their own state capital have gold cards and large lines of credit.

Great thinkers abound throughout the political spectrum, and information technology makes it easier than ever for them to be prolific and widely read, heard, or seen. From Buckley, Saffire, George Will and Thomas Sowell on the one side to the gang at The Nation on the other, there is no lack of powerful minds in our time. Even our own incontinent leader is widely acknowledged as one of the most intelligent men to ever occupy the oval office. Were it not for the black hole located where his morals and integrity might otherwise be found, we would all stand in serious danger of his effectively implementing the errant ideology by which he and his pit crew are guided. The point is not to bemoan the fact that Americans have foisted their own mirror image up the flagpole this time around, but rather to point out that the intellectual development of our leaders is greater than it's ever been.

With such an advanced state of informational, technological, and analytical powers at our finger tips, how is it that the public discourse is characterized by little other than patent confusion, and attachment to minutiae and second order analysis? Those that take even one step back from being lived by life should quickly see that the even greatest minds dare only to address the issues three grades off the real cutting edge. To see Boutros Boutros Ghali's pathetic, half- hearted, whimpering, finger-pointing-cum-apology, in response to the UN's failure in Rwanda, can only convince even the most Panglossian optimist that we've got trouble in Paradise. Indeed we have experts who can trace demographics of refugee movement, or historical, geographical, and economic factors in the unfolding of various orgies of human and property destruction, from Bosnia, to Downtown L.A. (perhaps Rodney King can use part of his $3.8 million to airlift supplies to the 200,000 blacks in Rwanda, who rather than being beaten with police clubs have been massacred with machetes by fellow blacks), but none present thoughts or positions which even approach a comprehensive account of our current state of affairs.

This is not to condemn our current leaders. Their plight is understandable. They have not been chosen to provide a clear account of contemporary providence. There is no way they could accurately deal with the larger picture ignorant of the Divine Principle. What continues to frustrate is not the obvious lack of insight or the fact that the most brilliant among us simply haven't a clue, but rather the fact that neither they nor responsible citizens seem to acknowledge this current intellectual and leadership crisis. What persists is an the attempt to carry on with business as usual, as though current problems are neither more nor less intractable than they have been in past ages. The problem with this stance among leaders and experts is that even the common and uneducated clearly see or intuit that all traditional centers of stability are in thoroughgoing decline, the world is disintegrating before our eyes. This collective refusal to admit of crisis represents a willful choice to live in denial on a massive scale. Insofar as the suffering and carnage resulting from such a decision increases at alarming rates, the decision is unacceptable, and probably culpable.

The first requisite for analyzing and solving a problem is to accurately identify what "type" of problem it is. A problem for an individual calls for a solution for appropriate to individuals. Similarly families or clans have their respective, unique characteristics. Each level in the social order is governed by principles appropriate to that level. As we see race riots in America, genocide in Rwanda, and Bosnia Herzegovina, elections of fascist and communist governments in modern states, internal terrorist rebellion in places like Peru and Mexico, we must ask exactly what it is that are we looking at. Are these discrete and isolated phenomena which all happen to be occurring at the same time? Are Bosnian Serbs, Turks (as they try to exterminate Kurds), or Northern Yemeni "bad people," unlike you and me, and Warren Christopher? If so, how did whole races come to be comprised of only bad people? Didn't their mother's love these people? Do we, perhaps, have whole nations full of unloving mothers? If we listen even briefly to television, if we read the New York Times for even one day, one quickly sees, that the discussion of such problem is not of the quality, or focus that encourages one to presume that solutions are forthcoming.

After the fall, the natural forces of creation caused human beings to expand from families, to clans, to tribes. (This, of course, would have occurred in any case.) Due to the failures of providential figures the age of redemption could not occur during any one of these stages of human development. It was not until the emergence of "nations" as a principle for the ordering of human relations that the possibility of a peaceful and harmonious world was fully introduced. Human affairs had reached the level of sophistication in which several tribes cooperated and united under the uniform direction of a national leader. Powerful kings ruled over unified territory and tribes prior to the emergence of a nation which was to form itself under principles reflecting heavenly tradition. That nation was Israel consisting of twelve tribes, united first under conditions of slavery, then under conditions of exodus and migration and finally under conditions of spiritual and political governance while occupying physical land.

That nation and its people could have embodied the principle for "world unification" had it chosen to be guided in its international relations by a person whom God chose to reveal the means by which "international unity" could be achieved. The secret for global harmony perished when that individual was murdered at the age of 33. A community of faith, maintained a spiritual relationship with that individual thus allowing this community to learn and achieve these principles of global harmony only insofar as it related to the maintenance of international cooperation based on common spiritual pursuits, but not insofar as the achievement of international cooperation could occur when the physical dimensions of life were considered, material, intellectual, and cultural resources for example. For this reason wars between nations have persisted in the Christian era.

The mission of the second coming of Christ is to complete the full restoration of the human being. This includes bringing all physical reality into harmony with divinely inspired spiritual purposes. For the individual this means that the impulses of the physical body no longer contradict and overpower the altruistic impulses natural to the spirit. Instead physical impulses naturally cooperate so that each person in fact can become constantly good, rather than live under the constant and depressing experience of only desiring to do good. Correspondingly, with nations (for example), the pursuit of material wealth and cultural superiority does not dominate the national desire to live in harmony with other nations and cultures in a just and peaceful world. This is harmonious state is also meant to exist with the smaller human collectivities such as clans, and tribes.

Reverend Moon discovered the reason why the physical until now tends to contradict and overpower the good intentions by which the spiritual is naturally constituted. He discovered how to reverse this process and establish a cooperative relationship between the body and the mind, or spirit. First he successfully applied these principles and achieved mind-body unity in his own life, and then taught and guided his wife, the second person to learn and achieve this reality. Together Reverend and Mrs. Moon built up a family based on these principles. In so doing they expanded this ability to bring the physical into full cooperation with the good impulses of the spirit, not just to more individuals (their own children, for example), but rather to a family per se, the whole unit could exist as a fully good entity. The members of this family taught their followers (the members of the Unification Church) not only how to become good individuals, but how to expand this capacity this to produce good families. These are the 10's of 1,000's of "blessed" families of the Unification church.

The successful application of the religious teachings taught by Reverend Moon and inherited by these "blessed" families, have effectively served to protect the institution of the family as it came under increasing assault from the ideologues of self-indulgence (primarily in the post-industrial west). Now Pope John Paul II speaks endlessly about the family. The "Dan Quayle Was Right," issue of Atlantic Monthly emerged unchallenged as it established the definitive starting point for all social discourse since its publication. Michael Medved single handedly challenged the confused, insecure hedonists who produce hollywood films in his Hollywood Versus America, and won back ascendancy for family films. The list goes on. Even the free sex crusaders such as Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders use pro family rhetoric. The heavenly side does have a foothold both at the level of the individual, and of the family.

Where the world is rent in bloody and violent discord, however, is at all levels beyond the family; from the tribe outward. The once "United" States is fractured into warring tribes, as chronicled by the likes of Arthur Schlessinger Jr. in The Disuniting of America, Jeffrey Davison Hunter in Culture Wars , and Before the Shooting Begins, and elsewhere. All current wars are tribal or racial: Israel/Palestine, Former Yugoslavia, Yemen, Sudan, Armenia/Azerbaijan, South Africa, Rwanda, Cambodia, Kashmir, and so on. This explosion of tribal and racial warfare can only be defused by two distinct means, which happen not to be known by Henry Kissinger, Abe Rosenthal, George Will, or Al Gore.

There are two sources for the dissolution of racial and tribal war which come from the nation above, and from the establishment of heavenly tribes below. The first necessary requisite is guidance from a unified higher unit, namely a unified nation. This should be the role of America, (and people still look to America to take that role) but America lost its roots and foundation for unity close to 40 years ago. The US itself suffers from tribal and racial division, and has lost the spiritual and moral to stand as a world leader.

In the absence of such a nation, Reverend Moon has made the recovery of such a social entity on earth his primary mission. Thus, he has sought for over 20 years to provide America with access to the principles and wellspring of national unity, but he has, for the most part, been persecuted by established Christians, and racially discriminated against. In addition to sacrificing so that America may fulfill the mission for which it is destined, he seeks to labors so that Korea may adopt the principles he knows are necessary for peaceful re-unification. Should a significant nation inherit from Reverend Moon the capacity to achieve internal unity, one important requisite for the dissolution the contemporary epidemic of tribal genocide will have been achieved.

The second condition necessary to dissolve the proliferation of tribal and racial warfare is the establishment of tribes internally unified under the principles of goodness. Thus on July 1, 1991, following the collapse of Communism, Reverend Moon immediately and urgently inaugurated the institution of Tribal Messiahship. Reverend Moon knew all too clearly that global tensions frozen in the cold war stand-off concealed the history of unresolved tribal hatred and discord. When Communism fell, virtually all world leaders and citizens blindly fiddled in the goofy shadow of George Bush's "new world order." (George Bush wouldn't recognize a new world order if it bit him.) Meanwhile, Reverend Moon acted radically and desperately to pre-empt the inevitable disintegration of our globe into tribal and racial war which bedevil us with greater tribulation as each day passes. Unfortunately, the response of Unificationists to this visionary, emergency action (tribal messiahship) has been less than stellar. The success of the blessed families has not been reproduced at the tribal level. So a condition for a divine foothold at the level of tribes and races is not fixed in any similar to tht which has been achieved by blessed families for the sake of protecting the family as an institution, and social unit. Reverend Moon has the mission for the nation, and he has given the families which follow him the mission for the tribe.

Readers familiar with the severe regime Reverend Moon is putting himself through, working beyond imaginable limits for the sake of the nation, should understand that our own investment at the tribal level should proceed at this same level of intensity. Our work no less than his is all God has for the healing of this globe full of such unthinkable terror and devastation at the tribal and racial level.

Thoughts as My Grandfather Passes On

by Frank LaGrotteria

My grandfather, William A. Dunning, was an avid reader of the Unification News before he passed away. In fact, for at least the past 10 years he had not missed an issue! I was often inspired and comforted to see the Unification News right there with all his reading materials. He often brought up an article now and then discussing some issue or activity of the Church.

Although my grandfather was only an associate member, I often felt that he was one in heart with us. I gained a great deal of encouragement and moral support from him because of that.

This is taken from the eulogy for William Albert Dunning, Dec. 12, 1908-May 2, 1994.

I'm sure in these last few days, as you watched his body slowly slipping away, you reflected on the impermanence or frailty of our physical life.

In recognizing this impermanence, all religions have commented. From the Zen Buddhists, we are instructed to sever all attachments to this physical world-both coarse attachments such as the passions and desires and the more subtle threads of intellectual attachment.

The Taoist sage Chuang Tzu said that life and death are two sides of the same coin and it would be unwise to affirm life and not accept death.

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus said that nobody can step into the same river twice. The river, as a metaphor for life, continually flows along. We need not dwell unnecessarily on the past or the future, but live each and every day as if it were our last.

For the Christian, Jesus best summarized this when he said, according to Matthew 6:28: "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you-oh men of little faith."

And in Paul's letter to the Corinthians [ICor15:44] he reminds us: "It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body."

For the Jewish view, it is said in the Bible that all things follow a natural order. In Ecclesiastes 3:2, we read: "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing."

Finally, Unificationists believe the essence of life after death lies in the intentions and motives of our hearts. Our eternal life is not something we wait for when we die, but is created here on the earth based on our ability to give and receive True Love within the family, since the family is the very place where the full spectrum of True Love can be found.

Thus on this day we are faced with both the sadness of our own personal loss, and at the same time encouraged by a life well spent. It is truly not how we die that matters but how we live! I can recall with fond memories many chapters in my life that were graced by both my lineal connection with Gramps and my spiritual affinity with him. For I think of him not only as my grandfather, but as my brother and even as my child. I often sat and talked with him of spiritual matters and found in him a kindred heart. Or sometimes we would just have a good laugh.

It was at times like these that I was so deeply reminded of the spiritual reality of life and our position as children of God. Here was this aged man-old and worn by time, much the same as an old, well- worn suit clothes. And yet shining so delightfully through was his fresh and young spirit. I could only remark that Gramps was living proof that life is not only physical, but essentially spiritual. Does this not testify to the reality of spirit?

When news of Gramps' worsened condition spread, some of my friends whom Grampa knew sent their good wishes to him. Dr. James Baughman, whom Gramps had respected very much, wrote him a letter of encouragement. When leaving Seoul just a few hours ago, I happened to meet Dr. Baughman at the airport. He said, "I was so happy I could correspond with him before he departed. It was like wishing my friend well on his imminent journey. I wanted him to know how much I admired him for his courage and for leaving such a fine legacy through his children and grandchildren, and that this would be most important to him where he was going. I told him that we would meet again sometime later, after which he would be able to realize what I was speaking about.

"He is a man to be honored for his steadfast love and commitment to his family and his faith. And I hope his children will continue this tradition of commitment to their marriages and families."

My good friend Robert Kittel, a seminary classmate with whom I have been traveling these past two years, commented that Gramps was bold and strong with good faith. Robert easily recognized the clarity of mind which allowed him to face his inevitable passing without fear.

I think in Gramps' passing we can be reminded of the preciousness of life, the importance of living morally well, and keeping the well- being of others, particularly our family members, close at heart.

In this moment let us celebrate life! Let us celebrate our eternal spiritual life. Let us be comforted by our Heavenly Parent who has cared for us all these years on earth and will surely care for us in the world beyond.

Thus today is a day to reflect on the quality of our lives, repent perhaps, and certainly look forward hopefully. We will surely meet again!

Gramps: I know you are here with us today! Don't ever forget our love and care for you. We all wish you Godspeed. I imagine you have already started drawing the plans for your next project-that is, after you've danced with Granny and told a few stories! Well, make this your best project ever; you have no limitations.

Now you can start your new life in the spirit world, much the same as a newborn baby on the earth. The baby finds its new environment strange and yet exciting, and full of hope and promise. Truly the most memorable experiences in life are the day we are physically born, our wedding day, and the day we physically die. We who are here with you today want to make this a most memorable and noteworthy occasion. We are all very much encouraged by your example of love and service to others and your courage in facing death. Now as this old suit of clothes which was your physical body slowly descends to rest in the earth, let your spirit likewise rise and be with God. For me, Gramps, I will always be your laddy.

Think About God In All That You Do

by N. Chiaia Berkeley, CA

This is an excerpt from a sermon given April 24, 1994 at the Northern California Church HQ in Berkeley. It is reprinted from American Neighborhood.

Who is in control of our mind? What are you thinking right now? Are you thinking about God? Am I thinking about God? Are you here in this room, or are you having a conversation with some invisible friends? It's possible. It's very important to ask ourselves where our mind is. Are we thinking about food? Maybe you are thinking, "As soon as Sunday service is over, I am getting one of those great croissants down the street."

I have been through a service and I have thought, "An espresso on Euclid!" And here is the pastor-"And you should repent..."-and I am thinking, "I can just see the white foam on that espresso drink." Where your treasures lie so shall your heart be-in an espresso drink. Scalding in a hot coffee for all eternity.

I've been particularly sensitive about the spiritual world recently. I've been reading a book called "A Wanderer in the Spirit Lands." There is also a book by Anthony Borgia. It is not so much that the book is so special, but for me it has been an awakening to how grossly unspiritual I am. Who is controlling my mind? What am I thinking about most of the time? Here I find myself and I just can't get it out of my mind, some thought, whether it is getting something, or getting back at someone, or anger, or positive things. The way we think has great impact about what's going on with us. I like to read a passage from this book. This was one person in the spirit world talking to another person in the spirit world. He said:

"All are free in the spirit world. All must follow only where their own wishes and desires lead them. If you study to cultivate the higher desires, means will be given you to attain them. And you will be strengthened with such help and strength as you may need. You are one who has never learned the power of prayer. You will learn it now. For all things come by earnest prayer. Whether you are conscious that you pray or not, for good or for evil, your desires are your prayers and call around you good or evil powers to answer them for you."

This question of desire is so critical for our spiritual lives. I assume everyone here has heard the Divine Principle at least once. There have been different diagrams like this one up here [points to the blackboard drawing]-this one is from the '70s, maybe in the green study guide there's a different diagram. But the diagram indicates that we exist in two worlds. Our physical body is in this physical world, our spiritual body exists with us in this physical world, but at the same time is engaged, consciously or not, with the spiritual realm.

What we desire is our prayer. What do we desire? I don't ask that question out of judgment. But to really examine myself, I find that I had to ask myself that question constantly.

Sometimes I am in the midst of prayer, praying what I think is passionate prayer, and then all of a sudden I find myself thinking about this house I want to buy someday. It has nothing to do with my prayer. "Heavenly Father, I really pray that we can bring spiritual children...success for the Women's Federation for World Peace...and if I only could have that house.... What? Where did that come from? What am I thinking?"

The desire itself-or whatever we want-is not bad. God gave that desire to us. But we must realize that when we form a reciprocal base on the foundation of our desire, we create a certain spiritual atmosphere around ourselves.

Even now as I speak to you, each one of you, including myself, we all have our own group with us. It's amazing how many people can sit on one chair. Some more than others, but we are not alone. We are in control of our own environment and our destiny. What is my inner world like? What is you inner world like? What do you feel most of the time? What do you think most of the time? We are living in this world, too.

How many people here have read some kind of spiritual account, like somebody speaking through someone and their description of the spiritual world? And how many of you-because you have read that-find that you really think, "I live for eternity and absolutely I think of eternity all the time"? Anyone? It's really hard. It's very difficult to do. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's difficult to do. Yet, we must do it.

Do I like the spiritual environment around me? Sometimes I don't like it at all. Sometimes it is horrible, it's hell, and I hate it. But we have to do something about that to change it.

With that awareness-this book that I have been reading is very interesting. First of all, I want to read a couple of passages to you which describe some of the spiritual environments different people are living in for eternity, based upon the way they live their lives. One thing I learned from the Borgia book, and it's reinforced in this book: if I feel cold and loveless, then my eternity (unless I change myself) will be cold and loveless. If I feel bitter, then my eternity will be bitter. The inspirational part I am finding in this book that was not in the Borgia book is that the only way you get out of this is by witnessing. You go down to bring someone up. And when you bring them up you go higher.

I'd like to read a couple of passages to you:

"One place was a great valley of gray stones. Dim, cold, gray hills shutting in on every side and this twilight sky overhead. Here again not a blade of grass. Not one poor stunted shrub was to be seen. Not one touch of color or brightness anywhere. Only this dull desolation of gray stones. Those who dwelt in this valley had centered their lives and their affections in themselves and had shut up their hearts against all the warmth and beauty of unselfish love. They had lived only for themselves. Their own gratification, their own ambitions. And now they saw nothing but themselves and the gray desolation of their hard selfish lives around them. There were great many beings flitting uneasily about this valley. But strange to say, they had been so centered in themselves that they had lost the power to see anyone else. These unhappy beings were invisible to each other until such time as the thought of another and the desire to do something for someone besides themselves should awaken. When they would become conscious of those near to them. And through their efforts to lighten another's lot, they would improve their own. 'Til at last their stunted affections would expand in the hazy valley and selfishness would hold them in its chains no more."

There's another passage here. It's particularly noteworthy because it addresses the issue of living a religious life without really being aware of our internal condition:

"There were men here who had been prominent members of every religious faith and every nationality on earth. Roman Catholic cardinals and priests of austere and pious but cold and selfish lives. Puritan preachers, Methodist ministers, Presbyterian divines, Church of England bishops and clergymen, missionaries, Brahman priests, Egyptians, Mohammedans. In short, all sorts and all nationalities were to be found in the frozen land. Yet in scarcely one was there enough warmth of feeling to thaw the ice around themselves even in a small degree. When there is even a little, tiny drop of warmth such as one tear of sorrow, then the ice began to melt and there was hope for that poor soul."

Now does this stuff sound entirely foreign to your experience? It's not foreign to my experience. I've been in frozen tundra spiritually, where I can't pray. When I hear the words, "God is our Father, and God is suffering," I can't move myself. Certainly, you might have been there. I'm not pointing this out so we beat ourselves. Because that's not going to necessarily change it. But we have to own it and take responsibility for it and change it. So whatever price has to be paid so that we can move ourselves out of this realm, so we can move up, we pay it.

There's a great push right now for witnessing. Sometimes when I hear the "great push for witnessing," I'd like to push Mata out the window. [Laughter.] It's like, "Oh, I'm so overwhelmed. And now you're putting another stone on my back. And the weight of it is soooo heavy." Did you ever feel like that? I guess it's just me. I publicly confess.

But what am I burdened by? A lot of times I'm burdened by this world here. Indeed, it may be for a larger level or my family, for my children. But what's more important for my children? Certainly we have to care for our families physically. But if we can't even squeeze out a tear to melt the frozenness around our hearts and minds, then what are we passing on to our children? And if we're so self-centered that we're blind, then we can't feel or see or hear the cries of someone else. All this busy-ness in the physical world, if that's the reality, is a waste of time. It's a waste of time. Our physical life is temporary.

Maybe some of us have spiritual friends whom we don't even know about. One thing that's clear from this book, is that people in spirit world are really suffering. They're suffering so much. We hear so much in the Unification Church about saving others, repenting for our ancestors. It's so serious and important that we do so. We have an opportunity and a chance now. We have a chance here and it's critical that we do so.

When we hear about witnessing and numbers-personally, I hate numbers, I hate goals-but we need numbers and we need goals to grow spiritually. The numbers and goals don't mean anything if we don't give it some internal context, internal substance-if we don't attach it to the fact that there are people in the spiritual world who are in hell, agonizing desperately, and connect it to what's going on in the physical world. I am so frequently tricked into thinking that people out there don't really need the Principle. Am I tricked consciously? No. If you asked me: "Do you think people out there really need the Principle?"-Absolutely!!!

How much do you witness? "Oh, I'm really busy." My own behavior shows where my level of belief is. It shows you my level of faith. It shows you where my level and sensibility for the spiritual is.

I'd like to share with you what Nan Sook Nim shared in her recent visit. And when she shared-talking about spiritual realities-whenever she talked about God and that God is suffering, she cried. She just naturally cried. God's suffering was very real to her. Talking about being in a certain spiritual environment versus being with other people, it was such a clear sense of the presence of God, a clear sense of the presence of high and holy spirits. And it wasn't something supernatural-it was just warm and natural. Everyone knew who they were, knew where they had to go. What did she say? Nan Sook Nim said, "Think about God in all that you do. Don't complain." Then she would say, "I know, I complain. And I shouldn't complain. But this is the truth, this is the Principle. Don't complain."

She said, "We will struggle until we die. This is not a perfect world. We must struggle to be perfect. How do we serve God? How do we know what God's Will is?" She said even she herself sometimes struggles. One day, this is God's Will, the next day, she's not sure what God's Will is.

"We have Divine Principle and the Bible. Even though we have this truth in a book, we must struggle to know what is right-and it's difficult to do. Think about God. Heavenly Father is always with us as long as we obey him. When we're happy, God is with us. When we're struggling, God is with us. We are chosen by God. We have no choice. We have to accomplish what God wants us to do. Hold onto God, our time will come. There will be judgment. We don't have to impress anyone else. Impress God."

Then Nan Sook Nim said, "Some people say, `You're a good person, you're a part of the True Family.' Sometimes I feel like I'm in a dark, dark place. I can't see and I have to go to a certain place and I don't know where it is. Sometimes you go and you have to come back, then get up and go again."

She shared her struggle. It's not that these words themselves are important. But I hope you can feel her heart from what she shared. She shared that struggle, and then she said, "Some day we will be together in the arms of God. We have to accomplish our mission and keep going. Give everything you've got. Even though our mission may be difficult, it's given by God."

"I have a long way to go myself. When God says, `You are my child,' that's when you are a True Child. I wish everybody could all be in one place later on and be happy. Satan is all over the place. And we don't know if it's Satan or not. With suffering comes blessing. From suffering pain and anguish we grow closer to God. God is a suffering God. Without suffering, we can't know God. God is greatly mysterious. We have to finish our mission. Our children have to finish their mission. If we don't finish our mission, our children will have to finish their mission and our mission, too. This will go on and on until we get there.

"I want to complain, too. But when I think about God, I can't complain. I educate my children that God is their center. Now they can't know God's voice."

And then she laughed and said, "But I tell them, `You have to listen to your parents, so you can practice. So then when God calls you and asks you to do something, because you practiced doing the things that I tell you to do even though you don't want to do it, you'll do it'."

"I always have the feeling that I'm unworthy to stand before God. There's nothing that we can do to pay God back. Keep God at the center. Then we can be together in the same place. Sometimes God might put you in struggles so that you can overcome for a blessing. It's so important that we feel a sense of immediacy. At the time of the early Christians they thought Jesus was coming any day. So they worked desperately.

"So we really have to nurture in ourselves the sense of immediacy. Something will happen straight away. Something will bring victory. Be true, honest and sincere. God is not going to forget you. "So many people have no idea who God is. We know who God is. Be grateful for all you have and give. We all need to be awakened to feel God. Wisdom comes when we experience God. We must feel God in everyday life."

Again these words are so precious to hear. But we still have to acknowledge our own reality. Where are we? Where am I? Do I feel God? Have I given up on feeling God? Have I just accepted that it's okay?

I can see as I grow older that I have to be really careful not to accept as reality the things that are evil. It's a constant battle to just say, "This is the environment, this is the way it is, this is who I am, this is how life will be." Otherwise we may end up as a chapter in a book like this. We may end up as one of those people who can't see anyone else. Because all we can see is our own preoccupation with our own pain. Or because we can't feel God, we can't feel warmth. We may end up in an icy tundra. It's very, very serious.

I say this to you not out of judgment. I apply every word to my own life as best I can. But I really am imparting this to you because I feel deeply that this is very serious for all of us. It doesn't matter what church you're in. It doesn't matter what kind of ring you wear. What really matters is what kind of reality I am creating. What kind of environment am I creating around me, spiritually and physically? What am I thinking right now? Am I thinking about God? It's really serious.

And we can say in the organization of our movement, that the responsibility we keep running away from just follows us wherever we go. Whether it's 360 home church houses that we restore, the tribal messiahship goals, 40 blessed spiritual children. All those goals are not arbitrary. They're not pulled out of thin air-or rather, they actually are pulled out of very, very thin air. Very fine, fine, fine, thin air. Right from God. If we want to climb out of the hole we're in-face it: every one of us is in some kind of hole-then we have to acknowledge where we are and begin to restore others. Restoring others is our ticket.

God is an unselfish God. The whole creation celebrates self-sacrifice and love to restore others, to give life to others. Witnessing is a term now as a result of the fall of man. We have to really be serious about it.

I imagine that everyone here is organized into some kind of trinity. We can say, "I'm in a trinity and we're going to bring this number of people." But we've got to pray. We have to create a spiritual environment to give life. Our way up is to go down and help others. And spirit world's way up is to go down and help others.

Some spirits are in such a horrible place that they can't even begin to help us. And maybe not. Maybe we're down there with them.

The topic of the sermon is "Think about God in All that You Do." This is something that every single one of us is in control of. Does my mind belong to God? Or does my mind belong to Satan? There are times when my mind absolutely belongs to Satan. He owns every square inch of it and he fills it up with his thoughts. But I also know that I can change that in a second. In just one second.

How do I change it? Repent. Satan has nothing to do with repentance. Nothing at all. He can't relate to it. He has no common base with it. And any kind of spirits in this realm who have unfortunately given themselves up to evil, they can't have anything to do with repentance. So what happens when we repent? They go. Because they can't relate. So we decide what we're going to give the spirit world to relate to all the time. We can change everything. Those numbers can really become reality. I personally and honestly believe it. The failure to reach those goals is just a reflection of our own individual-level, personal, spiritual failures. It's just an indication of how much God is participating in our lives. Individually, and as a community. It's an indication of the extent that we can really make God a part of our life, individually, as a family, as a trinity.

Regarding those trinities that were created: if you're not in a trinity where you feel you will really do that with the other families, get out of the trinity and get with another trinity where you will do it. And do it 100%. It's our choice.

We can run away, but responsibility follows us wherever we go. Whether you're standing up here, whether you're sitting at East Garden, whether you're sitting there, whether you're on the street and you're a beggar, whatever the situation is, the Principle is the same for all of us. The Principle of growth and the Principle of indemnity apply to everyone. We can't escape the law of indemnity. No one can. It's with us all the time.

It's not that we should be hopeless. Actually we have a great, great hope. I think we can repent for not being with God as much as we need to be. Because at least we know. We can do something. So I hope for all of us. I believe that if we can really have a spirit of earnest repentance for whatever it is we need to repent for, then we can see a real revival and a change.

We cannot accept evil. Evil is not part of God's reality. And we really have to be serious to check ourselves when we just accept "This is my life, this is the way things are." Own it if that's the situation. But repent for it. If I know I'm in the icy tundra, I'm not going to stand up here and lie. I am in the icy tundra. But I am repenting for being in the icy tundra. However, if I say I'm in the icy tundra and [sticks his tongue out]-then that's the kind of spirit world that around us. Just like a little kid [sticking his tongue out]: "Icy tundra!" But that icy tundra is a horrible place. And we have the ticket. But it just sits in our pocket and gets moldy. And when we sweat, it's sticking to our pants. And it's been through the laundry fifty times and you have to peel it out to see if the writing is still on it. But we have the ticket. So let's use it.

The Trinity as the Basis for a Theological Critique of Homosexuality

The promotion of homosexuality to normative status is one dead-end of a major thorough-fare in human history. This promotion is possible only through the intensive deconstruction activities of western cultural elites over the past millennia. I term the homosexuals' now- legitimated interpretation of society, history and nature, "homosexualism." Homosexualism is an ideological systematization of the ethics of individualism, self-affirmation and self-gratification in their most extreme forms. It is a rejection qua critique of virtually every religious and moral tradition known to the human race.

Homosexualism is like Communism. As in the case of Communism, we love the sinner but hate the sin. As with Communism, homosexualism has moved from being a personal spiritual problem (viz., homosexuality, the parallel being the mix of utopianism and resentment in the communist man) to being an ideological threat, promulgated not by the numbers under its sway but by the few at the control of language and institutions. As with Communism, homosexualism offers two faces: peaceful co-existence at the same time as programmatic insurgency. As with Communism, our best strategy is vigilance and containment, as we develop a superior alternative which serves to liberate those oppressed under its spell. However, as with Communism, we cannot claim in all honesty that Christian thinkers have promulgated an explanation of the cause of homosexualism, that is, homosexuality, of what ultimately is wrong with homosexualism, and of how to avoid suppression, on the one hand, and uncritical approval (and surrender to its demands) on the other.

Investigation of causes draws us along two tracks. One is the general disintegration of the moral foundations of western civilization in the name of the liberation of the individual, centering on the physical body, with roots in the twelfth century. This concerns the context in which the demand for the legitimation of homosexuality can even gain a public hearing. The other is the more ancient, spiritual roots of homosexual desire itself.

Serious attention to causes, however, as well as useful thinking as to how to truly free this world from this malignity, presupposes clarification of what is wrong with homosexuality. The present essay is therefore dedicated mainly to that question, although in the process prescriptive implications appear.

***

Logic cannot prove homosexuality evil, nor can the Christian tradition answer it. Who among the divorced majority can criticize the homosexual? Are we to argue for the pallid state of marriage, which leaves the society panting for the zestful physical "culture" of youth? Hundreds of thousands of men would not enter upon a path of sure self-destruction through homosexual life if the reality of man- woman love in our culture offered hope for true joy. Homosexualism names homosexuality "gay." It declares itself the love which makes people happy and joyful. No one objects to their self-advertisement; everyone knows who are the "gay" people. If you are not homosexual then you cannot be gay. If you are not gay, a friend-of-gays, or at least silent about your disapproval of homosexuality, you are labeled neurotic, uptight, hum-drum, and that worst of all sins: straight. Thus, Christian society in the late twentieth century, which exalts "love" as the reason for living, and Jesus as the one who came to make us happy, and salvation as being happy about oneself in front of God, becomes the hotbed of homosexuality. There is a deeper cause of Christian impotence in the face of homosexualism. Under the Christian archetype, wherein religious celibacy competes for and generally wins the high-ground commanding God's attention, heterosexual marriage cannot attain the status of a central paradigm. Marriage cannot become an absolute value for Christians, because the Lord and Savior did not marry, nor did he anywhere dictate that his followers do so. The ideal of Christian celibacy, rooted finally in Jesus' bachelor status, predetermined for 2,000 years an incorrigible ambivalence on the part of Christians toward the physical body, on the one hand, and toward the sexual relationship which produces it, on the other, even within the marital context. Blood, that of Jesus and of the martyrs, is the seed of the church, but it is not the seed of human procreation. Hence the awful and ultimately unnecessary division between physical life and spiritual life, between birth and rebirth. If the Christian church and culture is to resolve this problem, it must discover a new fundamental paradigm.

Paul presumably spoke from within the experience of the early Christian church when he wrote that in Christ there is neither male nor female, Jew nor Greek, slave nor free. The separation into Jew and Greek, slave and free, I would submit, are results of the fall, and Paul was right with regard to the rightful ending of those divisions. But Paul was wrong, ultimately, concerning male and female. The separation into male and female is not a result of the fall; it is a principle of creation. In fact, the very image of God is male and female (Gen. 1:27). The masculinity and femininity in and of God, which are distinct, constitutive of God's creativity, and of equal and absolute value, were concretized directly as a man and a woman, who naturally long to re-constitute the unity of God in marriage.

This re-constitution of God's unity by two separated, complimentary beings is the chief insight underlying the Unification model of the Trinity, the three-in-one: God, man and woman. This is the substantialization of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and every married couple is meant to be a representation of the love-fellowship of the Trinity. The best of Christian theology instructs us that the Trinity is life-giving, procreative. This revelation is made a thorough-going principle, systematically coherent, through the Unification view of the Trinity. Indeed, this is a new self-disclosure of God. From this viewpoint, homosexualism is a denial of God, for it is denying the Trinitarian image of God.

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One could probably compare it with one or other of the classical heresies which denied the Trinity. At first glance, I would suggest that homosexualism is akin to "modalistic monarchicism". That teaching, judged to be Christian heresy, collapsed the Trinity back into the unity of God. It called the three persons of the Trinity mere masks or appearances of the One. The three persons lost their personhood; there was only one individual person. That individual could appear in any guise. This would seems similar to the homosexualist view that sexual identity is epiphenomenal to personhood, both spiritually and physically. As God could appear as Father, Son or Holy Spirit, homosexualism allows any individual to appear as a man, woman or something in-between. (That "something in- between" may be an angel, as the current Broadway play suggests. Whatever that third position is, it is not fully human.)

Modalistic monarchism denied any real relationality in the Trinity. Thus there was no true love in the Trinity, because there was no "other" involved; it was only God loving Himself. This is also the ultimate significance of homosexuality. There is no true love of an ultimate other; at best (and this is undoubtedly rare, considering the typicality of promiscuity among homosexuals) there is a limited love for one other person. This love by nature does not extend into time through children. Homosexual couples who adopt are participating in a false or imitation form of natural love between man and woman. They are acting as parents. Little girls like to act as parents, too.

In contrast to modalistic monarchism, orthodox Trinitarian theology maintains, even at the cost of coherence within the framework of Greek philosophical categories, the separate identities of the three persons, so that the love between them might have significance. Homosexual love has no significance, at least no constructive significance in relationship to the human community in time.

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The new paradigm for Christian thought roots itself not in the historical existence of Jesus but in the theological affirmation of the Trinity, based upon revelation. The development brought by Unification revelation is in the contention that the Holy Spirit is feminine. This obviously has major theological implications with reference to homosexuality. An all-male Trinity is exactly a homosexual image. A masculine God, masculine Son of God, and masculine Holy Spirit are one as the fount of love. What fundamental criticism, then, can be made of those who follow this model physically? Unificationism simply asserts that the fundamental model of love is not male-male, but male-female.

The contention is that Jesus Christ is indeed the Son of God and that this means he is not the Daughter of God. But God is the Creator of woman as well as man; God must have a Daughter in order to completely disclose Himself. That Daughter of God was not revealed on earth, for such could come about only in relation to the Son, and the Son, tragically, was killed. However, the Son lived on in the spirit world, and in the spirit world the installation of the Holy Spirit obtained, as the Daughter of God and spouse of Christ.

Thus the Holy Spirit embodies in the church, the bride of Christ. Thus the true believer is reborn through the Holy Spirit, and stands as a spouse of Jesus. Mystics perceived this throughout the ages, even enjoying love relations. But there is a further ground for the femininity of the Holy Spirit, for the "sex-inclusive Trinity". That ground is the creation event itself, the "original Trinity" consisting of God, Adam and Eve. Again, deepest Christian insight has understood Jesus as the second Adam (Paul, Ireneaus). There is an obvious wanting of a second Eve; at least this seems obvious from the Unificationist perspective. Blaming Eve for the fall may have sufficed to justify her exclusion from the intimacy of the Godhead for 2,000 years, but no one countenances such exclusion today.

The creation of the world came from the physically procreative power of God, man and woman (Adam and Eve). The recreation of the human race came from the spiritually procreative Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Christians call this "rebirth", a spiritual creation of new life. Thus reborn (baptized) Christians are physically of the fallen physical parents, Adam and Eve, and spiritually of the true, spiritual parents, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The result of this duality of births is the split of the spirit and flesh, or mind and body. This conflict will be reconciled at the end of the age, with the second coming of Christ. And this paradigm provides a powerful vision for that event: the advent of a true man and a true woman, married as true husband and wife, substantiating the dwelling place of God on earth and the procreative power over the physical world and spiritual world as a unified whole. This is the Unificationist paradigm of the True Parents.

The Three-Legged Lesson

by Richard Van Loon-Falls Church, VA

We were playing basketball in the school gym when our PE teacher, Mr. Trumble, blew the whistle.

"Okay, kids. Over here," he said, his big arms waving like a signal at a train crossing. We trotted over.

"In two weeks," Mr. Trumble said, his thick neck bulging and his voice much too loud, "we will be participating in the inter-county school track and sports meet. I've made a list of events," he continued. "It's posted on the bulletin board. Please take a look before you leave. Practice begins tomorrow."

I was looking at the bulletin board after gym when I got the biggest shock of my life. Mr. Trumble had matched me and Ted Zukkerman, the new kid, for the three-legged race.

Suckerman. That's what everyone called him. His face looked like it had a never-ending case of chicken pox, his hair was bright orange and his nose was flat, like when you push your face up against a window. And he was the only kid who had ever beaten me in the twenty yard dash.

Some of the other guys were looking at the list too. "Alex and Suckerman sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G," they chanted. I turned and ran down the hallway as fast as I could but their laughter echoed after me. This, I thought, was going to be the longest two weeks of my life.

Mr. Trumble had arranged with our teacher, Miss Blystone, to have PE every day until the meet, and so after math the next day we went to the gym. We ran and jumped and practiced handing off the baton, and then came the three-legged race.

After Mr. Trumble tied our legs together with ropes, Ted looked at me, his spotted face split wide with a grin.

"Suckerman, you smell," I said. I wasn't planning to say it, but he did smell. His grin faded and he turned away.

"Bang!" Mr. Trumble shouted, his finger in the air like a starting gun and Suckerman and I hobbled off. We went about ten yards then crashed to the floor. Everyone laughed. I felt my face turn red hot, untied the ropes and sprinted out of the gym.

The next day I told my mom I had a headache, and she wrote a note excusing me from PE. Just as I was about to go home, Mr. Trumble came down the hall.

He was about as tall as my dad but wider. He used to play football in college and looked like he still had on shoulder pads. His nose had been broken in two places and if you looked closely you could see the zig-zags along the bridge where he had gotten clobbered. He was scowling when he came up, his thick eyebrows down and his head lowered like a charging bull. I was expecting to get blasted but he smiled, put his hand on my shoulder and asked gently: "How's your headache, Alex?"

I looked up at the lights, squinted my eyes, put my hand on my forehead and moaned. Mr. Trumble just laughed. Then his smile faded. "You think I'm doing this to embarrass you, don't you? Well, I'm not. Ted's the only kid could ever beat you in a race and he's just your size."

A moan escaped from me. I did not want to be reminded of that.

"Listen, I don't know what's bugging you," Mr. Trumble continued, "but if you could find your way to run with him, we'd have a darn good chance at the championship. Do you know how long it's been since Spruce Hill Elementary's won the championship?

"No," I said.

"No. Of course you don't. It was before your time. Seven long, painful years, Alex. But this year we've got a chance."

Suddenly my headache got worse. Seven long, painful years... all depending on me!

"But why not Jeremy, Mr. Trumble? He's almost as fast as I am," I said.

Mr. Trumble shook his head. "Nope. I've seen the competition. You and Jeremy would be good, but not good enough."

Then Mr. Trumble gave me a run-down of the other schools. He must've had spies in every gym! He knew all the top athletes, had up-to-date records for each one. Jimmy Somebody-or-other from Such-and-such a school did the twenty-yard dash in so many seconds and Bob Schnob from East County was boinging some unbelievable number of feet in the broad jump. Kids, schools, events, numbers... They came tumbling out as if from a run-away computer going full speed! What it boiled down to was this.

I should be able to take the twenty-yard dash and Jeremy would probably take the broad jump. The relay was ours and for good measure, me and Suckerman would take the three-leg. You needed to win three out of five events to clinch the championship and the three-leg was our spare tire. I could see how excited Mr. Trumble was about winning the championship but no matter how much he rambled on, I still didn't like the idea.

"But...but what if I get sick, Mr. Trumble? On...on the day of the meet?" I suggested.

Mr. Trumble became very serious. "That's a chance we all take," he said, then added, "Who knows? I might even be dead by then."

Sometimes Mr. Trumble said strange things. When he did, his eyes would screw up in his head then slide back into place again. I looked at his eyes. Sure enough, they were all twisted around and funny like. I didn't know what he was talking about, that he might be dead in two weeks, but I had the awful feeling that if he did die, somehow it would be my fault.

I wrinkled my eyebrows. "I'll try, Mr. Trumble," I said. "I really will."

"Great!" he said, slapping me on the back so hard I almost fell. "I knew I could count on you, Alex. You're my main man."

Main man or not, our little talk and that slap on the back did nothing to change my feelings for Ted Zukkerman. As the days went by, things only got worse.

The kids made sloppy kissing sounds in the morning when I came into class. It was a good thing Suckerman and I didn't sit at the same table. And I had to be careful not to get close to him during recess or in the hall when we went to music or art class or else the other kids would start hooting and howling. So I avoided Suckerman as much as I could. Until practice, that is.

Mr. Trumble tried his best to keep the kids quiet, but they made noises and said stuff. You see, when you run three-legged you've got to put your arms around each other, and seeing me and Suckerman like that, with our arms around each other, it was just too much for the other kids. Their teasing hurt and I blamed Suckerman for my pain.

I didn't go around saying things, like, "Hey, Suckerman, I'm having the worst time of my life, and it's all your fault!" but that's exactly how I felt. Sometimes when our eyes met, I zapped him with a look of pure hatred. I enjoyed the way he winced. Once I drew a picture -- you know, crazy orange hair sticking out like spikes, red spots all over, blue eyes hopelessly crossed, swollen head on a stick body -- then left it on his desk.

But during practice I would smile at Suckerman, just to confuse him. (I didn't know I could be so clever.) While he was trying to figure me out, I'd slip my arm around his shoulder, say something like, "Suckerman? It's just you and me," then jab my fingers into his ribs. He'd be holding his ribs when Mr. Trumble would shoot his make-believe gun and we'd start running. All the way I'd be hissing, "C'mon, Suckerman. Think of the school. The school is counting on us." I knew it was mean but after a while I began to enjoy it, the kids laughing at us, me giving Suckerman a hard time.

Then one day during the last week before the meet Mr. Trumble sat us all down on the gym's wooden floor and gave us a talk. He told the class all the things he had told me that day I had skipped gym, about our school being able to win the championship and all the statistics on the other schools. As a result, the other kids became more serious about the "spare tire," Suckerman and I. I did too. The name-calling and the noises stopped. I quit poking Suckerman in the ribs and from the moment Mr. Trumble's "gun" went off, Suckerman's and my eyes would be fixed on that big clock at the other end of the gym. By the last day of practice we were running smooth as a well-oiled machine and fast as the wind.

We had one final practice on the last day before the meet. After it was over I went to the bathroom. I was sitting on the john when two other kids came in.

"You're doing great!" one of them said.

"Thanks!" the other one said. It was Suckerman.

"I don't know how you do it," the first kid said.

"I've always been fast," Suckerman said.

"I don't mean the running. I don't see how you can stand Van Loon -- those other kids. And especially that guy, Alex! If I were you, I'd have punched him in the nose a long time ago."

Suckerman didn't say anything. Then I heard him cry. "I'm sorry," the other kid said. "I didn't mean to make you cry."

"It's O.K.," Ted sniffled. "He does treat me mean and it has been very hard. But maybe if I help win the championship, the other kids will like me." I stayed in the toilet quiet as a mouse until they left then came out. I stood in front of the mirror but couldn't look myself in the eye.

When I got on the bus to go home it was raining. I picked at my dinner, told mom I didn't feel good and went to bed. It was still raining when I fell asleep.

When I woke up the next day the sky was clear and the sun was strong. By ten o'clock the ground was dry. The meet was to start at noon and when we got to Soldier Field it was so crowded it took mom, dad, Patty and I a good ten minutes to find my class. Things got going right away.

The twenty-yard dash was first and I took it no sweat. Suckerman came in fourth on a field of eight, though, and in the relay he lost ground and we had to really pull to squeak a win.

One of the schools must've been feeding their guys basketball vitamins. Their kids were taller than a lot of kids I know in middle school. They just flew over the hurdles. We didn't have a chance. But that was okay. We had two wins under our belts and two events to go.

Jeremy must be half frog (the lower half, that is) and he's the best jumper I've ever seen. But something terrible happened in the broad jump. On his first jump he hit the pad wrong and twisted his ankle on the take-off. He landed like a sack of potatoes in the sand pit and just lay there moaning. Mr. Trumble ran out and picked him up. As he carried Jeremy back to the sidelines, he fixed his eyes on me. Seven long, painful years.

The officials announced a fifteen minute break and we went over to see Jeremy. His ankle was swollen but he managed a grin. "Well, spare tire," he said to me, "I guess it's up to you."

My mom and dad and Patty came over to encourage me. A lot of parents were there with their kids, but not Suckerman's. He sat alone on the grass warming up for the race.

Then they announced the three-legged race. We went to the starting line. The giants, who were in the lane next to Suckerman and I, were at least six inches taller than us.

We all sat down, then our P.E. instructors came out and tied our legs. Mr. Trumble was so excited he had to do it twice to get it right. He gave us a pep talk while he tied the ropes firmly around our legs but the whole time Mr. Trumble was talking, Suckerman just stared at the ground. I wasn't paying much attention either. All I could think about was what had happened in the bathroom the day before.

The instructors helped us up then went back to the sidelines. I put my arm around Suckerman.

"Ted?"

He looked at me and I could see the sadness and pain on his face. I squeezed him. "Let's be friends," I said.

Tears burned in my eyes.

Then Suckerman's face brightened and it was as if the sun had come out from behind a cloud. It was the same speckled, flat-nosed face but now it was the face of a friend, the warm, smiling face of a very good friend.

He squeezed me back and it was like both of us had been hit by lightning.

"On your marks...get set..." the man in the striped shirt said, and then came the "pop" of the starting gun. And when that gun went off Suckerman and I were squeezing each other so tight it was like our two bodies had become one. Energy flowed between us like electricity through the coils of a motor and we exploded off the starting line.

I had never experienced anything like it! We were so energized it was like our feet weren't even touching the ground. I didn't have to look at him to know Suckerman was grinning from ear to ear 'cause I was too.

At first the giants were even with us but when Ted and I exchanged glances and poured it on, we left them behind. We streaked over the finish line but we were having so much fun we just kept on running. We could hear the crowd going wild and we knew the same electricity that had jumped into us had zapped them too. We rounded the bend and went down the far stretch and the Van Loon yelling faded away. We were holding each other so tight my ribs felt like they were going to pop but I didn't care. The way I was feeling, I could've kept running forever.