True Father on National Messiahship (Excerpts from Reverend Moon's Sermons)
True Father's Directions For 1997 (Reverend Moon's Instructions for the year)
A New Curriculum for Education in the Four Great Realms of Heart (Z. M. Kim)
Absolute Sex - Exploring Its Meaning (J. H. Pak)
Before the Boston Globe Published the Hassan Article
Boston Globe - Bashing Hassan
Boston Globe's Attack on Religious Liberty
Boston Globe's Defense
Boxing with cancer: Round won, but the match isn't over
California Divine Principle Youth Study Group Completes 3rd Year
Chicago Blessing, Dec. 27, 1996
Chicago King Day Prayer Breakfast
Contemplating Unification Thought - Life After Death
Distance Learning Project at University of Bridgeport
Help Decorate New Nebraska Church
Highschool Workshop - Sun Shines Through a Rainy Week at Aetna Springs
In Memoriam Arcely Constantino Kouassi
IRFWP Conference in South Africa - The Role of Religion in the Transformation of Southern African Societies
Letter to John Koch, Boston Globe
Letter to Steve Hassan
Letter to the Boston Globe
Mr. Koch's article on Steve Hassan II
Mr. Koch's article on Steve Hassan
North America: Regional System (List of new Regions)
Proclamation
Region 2 Gathers Christian Ministers in the Poconos for the First Regional TFVM Seminar and Festival in 1997
Spirit World Shows Its Support
Sponsorship
Steve Hassan's War On Cults
The History of Drugs and the Future of America
The Loveliness of Virtue
Those Injured by Steve Hassan's Illicit Activities
True Family Festival at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota
True Family Festival in Toronto, Ontario Canada
White War
Wind in the Grass
Why We Should Believe in God
by Christopher Ren-Boonville, CA
This article was presented and given as a speech on Nov. 20, 1996 by Christopher Ren, 11 years old, to his 6th grade class in St. Mary Catholic School. Christopher chose the topic from his English teacher's list of different subjects. He and his brother had just finished reading the Divine Principle book and the Unification News monthly series on True Parents' life.
Do you believe in God? Have you ever believed in Him?
Well, the reason we should believe in God is that He won't punish us and we would stop fighting each other. Also, He can be our friend.
So, the reason we should believe in God is that He is our Heavenly Father.
He created us as His sons and daughters. He gave us this beautiful creation like trees, oceans, flowers and animals to enjoy and take care of.
As you can see, if God is our Father, we are all brothers and sisters.
No matter who we are, where we live, or what color our skin, we should all love each other as our Heavenly Father loves us. This is the reason we should believe in God. Also, we should believe in Him because without Him, we would not exist. So we should be grateful to Him because He gave us air, food and the sun. I hope that now you will better understand who is God and why we should believe in Him.
What's Moksa?
by Brigitte Wakabayashi
This was posted on the internet in response to a question about moksa.
The "herb" is called "moksa". It is widely used in Korea and Japan already. I first got it years ago from a Korean accupuncturist who used it on my children to treat colds, coughs, fever, etc. and I found it really works well.
It is an extract of certain leaves and has almost a feeling like cork that has been ground fine... You take a minute sample for children, for adults a slightly larger sample, place it on the affected area and light it. As it burns, it stings for a short instance (like a needle prick), and the essence of the herbs go under the skin, into the tissue, nerves, etc .-relaxing them, and promoting healing.
The Japanese have slightly altered the "moksa" by not burning the skin directly, but through some kind of contraption, and I found it just as effective - you can buy it in packages, and it is called "Sennenkyu" or "Okyu". You can get it in various strengths and even added with Ginseng, Garlic, etc. The accupuncturist taught me a bit how to use it on certain accupuncture points-this is often a place rather far removed from the painful area or organ.
Ways to Stop Crime
by Haven Bradford Gow
Reuben Greenberg, the police chief of Charleston, South Carolina, addressed law enforcement professionals, public officials, journalists and ordinary citizens in Greenville, Mississippi in a thought- provoking and significant December 2 speech on ways to reduce crime. Chief Greenberg is well-known nationally for his innovative and commonsense approaches to crime reduction which have alleviated the homicide, burglary and sexual assault rates in his city.
Chief Greenberg said the emphasis must be placed on crime prevention programs, that is, helping to prevent crimes before they occur. In so doing, the law enforcement community must work hand in hand with educators, civic leaders, business people, the media and clergy.
Author of Let's Take Back Our Streets (Contemporary Books), Chief Greenberg provided the example of how anti-truancy enforcement resulted in a 27% decrease in daytime crime. Before this anti-truancy program was implemented, kids skipping school would use their idle time to engage in burglaries, auto thefts, and the like.
Chief Greenberg dealt with this growing and alarming problem of juvenile daytime crime by hiring truant officers to go out and look for kids out of school. Every police officer was authorized to act as a "bird dog," and when officers noticed young people out of school and hanging around fast-food places, malls and neighborhoods, they would relay information to truant officers who followed up with enforcement.
Chief Greenberg also discussed Charleston's "Operation Midnight" curfew program aimed at young people out after midnight. Instead of arresting these young persons and risking the possibility of lawsuits, Chief Greenberg directed his officers to pick up the kids and bring them home. By so doing, police kept children out of trouble and, at the same time, reinforced parental rights and authority. The result: from July 1990 till the present, no juvenile has been killed by another juvenile in Charleston.
Greenville Police Chief Marvin Minor and Police Lieutenant Pam Miller also spoke to the audience, and pointed out that Greenville police have adopted and adapted many of Chief Greenberg's commonsense anti- crime strategies. For example, Greenville has effective truancy and teen curfew programs; also, as Chief Minor noted, his department has adopted a "community-oriented" approach in which officers are assigned to certain areas of the city so they can develop a bond of trust with the people in the neighborhoods. This approach has made it possible for officers to pay closer attention to nightclubs in certain neighborhoods and the problems which ensue, such as loud noise, vandalism, disorderly conduct and drug abuse.
During the question and answer session, this writer asked Chief Greenberg: "Is there a connection between organized crime and legalized gambling, and is there a connection between legalized gambling and an increase in crime?"
In response, Chief Greenberg pointed out that, from studying the experiences of Las Vegas, Nevada and Atlantic City, New Jersey, organized crime has its dirty hands even in legalized gambling, and that organized crime skims profits from even legal gambling enterprises.
The Charleston, S.C. police chief said casinos in and of themselves do not cause crime, noting that casinos provide excellent security; however, we usually do see with legalized gambling an increase in such crimes as street robberies and purse-snatching.
Responding to another question, Chief Greenberg noted that 86% of burglars are re-arrested within three years for committing more crimes. He said the way to deal with recidivists is to keep criminals in prison and make them serve out their sentences.
uViews January 97 All You Need is Love
I ignored that still small voice a couple of months ago and expressed some of my personal reservations and criticisms about some very commendable efforts being made by Christian colleagues in the struggle for God ("What Promises are Necessary Today?" November Unification News). It is unwise and useless to criticize what one sees as shortcomings in others. Despite some favorable feedback I received about the essay, on balance I regret the barriers I threw up and want to let them fall as quickly as possible. We will win together or not at all.
* * *
My thoughts have turned to my youth and its music. My youth, the sixties, the Beatles. Maybe it's a result of viewing the video history of the group which was aired last year. Perhaps it's the omnipresent calendars and photo-essay books on the group; perhaps its the Beatles imitations that keep popping up; perhaps its the songs we hear everywhere. For whatever reason, I'm thinking about the Beatles.
They sang about the basics of love. If we translate the content of some of their early lyrics into simple and straightforward prose, we see that they, in many of their songs, struck a universal chord of love. For example, consider a simplified rendition of the essential message of the song, "And I Love Her":
I give her all my love; I do nothing else; She is universally loved. She gives me all her love; She is faithful. Our love is eternal, It will never die. Or, "Things We Said Today": When we are apart, I will find strength in your abiding love. Our love is eternal and unique; I am blessed. I am grateful when you say love is beyond reason and eternal. That is enough to guarantee our unique love. We will love constantly and forever; In the future, when we are without words, dreaming; We will remember this moment. Or, "She Loves You": She loves you, although you think her love has ceased. She asked me to tell you that she loves you. It is not evil; you should rejoice. She realizes that you did not mean to hurt her; I bear her message of love. It is not evil; you should rejoice. It is your responsibility to be just. Do not be proud, but repent to her, Because she loves you. Or, "Eight Days a Week": Your love is necessary to me, You know this truth. I hope my love is necessary for you. Let us unite with 1,000 percent of our being. I love you constantly with my entire self. Let us unite with 1,000 percent of our being. Even 1000 percent is not enough to express the greatness of my love. Or, "I Feel Fine": My wife constantly tells me she is faithful; I'm perfected by her love.
My wife is good to me and is supremely happy; I'm perfected by her love. We both are so happy; she is telling the world That I provide her with great wealth, I'm perfected by her love. Or, "I Want to Hold Your Hand": I believe you understand that I want to unite with you. Please tell me I can be your husband and unite with you. It gives me internal joy; my love explodes; Your nature leads me to unite with you.
The Last Days
Mal 4:5 "I will send you Elijah the prophet. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of children to their fathers; lest I come and smite the land with a curse." This final verse of the Old Testament indicates that before the Messiah comes, a prophet will come to draw together families, to draw together parents and children, and that if this does not come about, the land will be cursed.
God has to perform a delicate operation in the at the time of the Messiah. He has to create conditions for the old world to end and the new world to begin. This means that there must arise a generation which is not attached to the old ways, to the ways of the fathers. Then the prophet comes to rebind the generations centered upon the new way, centering not on the false traditions of the past but the true traditions of God.
The risk here is obvious. If the new tradition is not established, then God is left with a generation adrift, and generation with no past and no future. All the old morality has been discarded, and nothing new has appeared to replace it. This sounds like "Generation X," doesn't it? This "generation gap" actually began in the sixties.
Now, here is the role the Beatles played. They played a role similar to that of George Whitefield in the eighteenth century. Whitefield, interestingly, was another youthful Englishman. In his early twenties he became the sensation of the American colonies; he preached up and down the eastern seaboard, drawing thousands and tens of thousands to hear his dramatic gospel orations (he was trained as an actor). In an age before amplification, his resonant voice could be heard by a crowd of ten thousand. His elocution of the word, "Macedonia," induce weeping. The paragon of common sense, Benjamin Franklin, attended Whitefield's sermon, prepared to give a small donation as was his wont. The longer he stayed, the more he decided to give; he stayed 'til the end and emptied his pockets in the offering.
What Whitefield accomplished was to bring spiritual unity to the heretofore multi-cultural American colonists. Through the Awakening, a shared experience, they realized they had more in common with each other than any of them had with Great Britain. They became a nation. This was the spiritual foundation for the next generation's independence movement and successful revolution, the engine of which for the population-at-large was the churches and clergy, the heirs of Whitefield.
Back to the 1960s. Four lads from England in their early twenties sing their way up and down America, and England, and France, and Germany, and soon Japan and the Philippines and Australia. The young people heard it clearly; it was by and large completely unintelligible to the adults of the era (save those who stood to profit from it financially). The import is this: the young generation realized that we had more in common with each other than any of us had with our parents. That is, teenagers in New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Tokyo and beyond were having the same deep experience and speaking the same language. We were a world nation. We bonded with each other, over and against the received tradition of our parents. It was the Beatles who sparked this, just as Whitefield did.
This new world generation separated from the old order in the name of the exciting message of love, which I outlined above. We Anglo- Americans felt that the world would follow our direction, and indeed we find today the long hair, jeans, music and lifestyle of those youth to be universally accepted and fashionable. My visit to Moscow in 1990 exemplified this. On the Arbat was a duo of guitar playing kids doing the finest renditions of early Beatles songs I have ever heard. I sold three or four Beatles cassette tapes to a group of youths on the street in about two minutes.
Sadly, the prophet who would turn the hearts of fathers and children together did not appear. And then, by 1965, the watershed already came; the first indication of self-reflection and negativity on the part of the Boys: the song, "I'm a Loser." I'm wealthy, famous, powerful, influential, loved by millions, but I'm a loser. Where in all creation could that have come from? It awoke my dogmatic teenage slumbers to hear the Beatles sing, for all the Top 40 world to hear,
"I'm a Loser" I am declining; I am false. I have loved many women; One of them destroyed me. I am declining; my life is breaking; I am declining; I am false. Perhaps even my grief is self-centered. I am declining; my life is breaking; I am declining; I am false. How did I create this fate? I have been remiss; I was proud and I fell. Heed my warning!
It was around this time that Mr. Lennon opined that the Beatles were more popular than was Jesus. It created a tremendous uproar in America; he clarified that he did not mean that they were morally superior to Jesus, just that they were at the moment more popular. Christian youth had mass burnings of Beatles records, which would seem to lend credence to Lennon's statement about their popularity.
In any case, the Beatles' song content declined in spirit. Love songs were replaced with songs of free sex, transient love affairs, stealing women, depression, betrayal, class-consciousness, isolation, family breakdown, accusation, blame and all those poetic things. Then came intoxication and aestheticized nihilism in Lennon, and nostalgic yearning to go home in McCartney. Intoxicated nihilism: Lucy in the Sky, Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey, Cold Turkey, Tomorrow Never Knows, She Said, She Said, A Day in the Life, I am the Walrus, etc. etc. Longing to go home: Get Back, The Long and Winding Road, Yesterday, She's Leaving Home, Fixing a Hole, Honey Pie, Back in the USSR, Let It Be, etc. etc. Naturally each tried to have the other see it their way, and they fell apart.
Typical of Lennon's songs at the time is "Strawberry Fields Forever":
Let me seduce you. I'm going into a benumbed state of euphoria; I want to stay there forever. Living is easy in ignorance. What we see, we misunderstand; It's difficult to be a person, but what the hell, I don't care.
Let me seduce you. I'm going into a benumbed state of euphoria; I want to stay there forever. No one is connected to me; I have lost my orientation. You can't communicate with me, but what the hell, I'll suspend judgement. Let me seduce you. I'm going into a benumbed state of euphoria; I want to stay there forever. You have concepts about who I am, but they are illusory. You're wrong and I could correct you, but what the hell, we'll survive Let me seduce you. I'm going into a benumbed state of euphoria; I want to stay there forever. (and the music starts playing backwards)
Meanwhile, back in the hometown, we had McCartney's increasing affection for the old days, even in the midst of the 1966-67 revolution of consciousness:
"Penny Lane" On my street is a barber With photographs of all his customers Whom he loves. The people love him. On my street is a fireman; He has a clock and the Queen's portrait in his pocket. He keeps a high standard. On my street is a banker Who has a nice car. The children think he's funny, He never wears a raincoat when it's raining. It's so exciting! My street fills my soul, as I sit beneath the beautiful sky outside the city. In the center of town A pretty nurse is raising funds. She feels as if her life is a drama, and it is. My street fills my soul, as I sit beneath the beautiful sky outside the city. On my street the barber is working. The banker is with him as The fireman comes in out of the rain. It's so exciting! My street fills my soul, as I sit beneath the beautiful sky outside the city.
Finally we had Lennon proclaiming himself something between Christ ("I am he as you are he and you are me and we are all together;" "They're going to crucify me.") and a walrus with a monkey friend. McCartney finally revealed his longing for that "long and winding road to your door," and his faith in Mother Mary.
If Lennon had been German, he probably would have gone as mad as Nietszche, but as it was he, a sensible Englishman, ended up another contented citizen of New York City, until his tragic heroism caught up with him. McCartney found safety in numbers, whether referring to the mildest of drugs, the myriad of fans, or the digits in his bank account. Without the Messiah, where else can one turn?
I close with a rendition of McCartney's song, which I read that he wrote for Lennon's son, Julian. Lennon, hearing it, thought it was about himself, but McCartney said to him that it was about himself. So, I don't know who it was about, but it was called, "Hey, Jude" and I think Jude is clearly a biblically-based name, either for Jesus, Judas or the writer of the epistle, Jude.
Jude, turn this sadness into joy; Love for a woman will give you joy. Jude, fear not. It is your nature to love a woman; You will find joy if you allow yourself to. You are taking on too many burdens, and It is painful to you; stop. You are fine as you are; You have what you need. Jude, don't disappoint me. Realize what you have discovered; Open your heart and things will improve. Let go and let God , Start your life again from now. You need someone to share your life. The fool isolates himself and hurts others, Expecting them to serve him. You can make it, Jude; I know you can make it.
Let's pray that the song is not over; indeed, "Hey, Jude" is a song which does not want to end. Let us hope the hearts of the fathers and children turn once again to each other, through the return of Elijah.
UTS Receives MSA Accreditation
by Gareth Davies-Barrytown, NY
On Monday, December 11, President Shimmyo received notification that the Seminary's application for accreditation had been approved by the Commission on Higher Education (CHE) which is a unit of the Middle States Association (MSA.)
This means that UTS will now be recognized nationally and internationally as a graduate educational institution and that, consequently, the degrees held by UTS graduates will be universally acknowledged as valid master's degrees.
A long struggle
It was in October 1987 that UTS first applied to the CHE for candidacy. In May 1988, UTS received a visit from an MSA evaluation team and was approved for candidacy. For the next eight years, the Seminary would endeavor to respond to the concerns and the advice of the various consultants and evaluators who visited the campus.
In the Spring term of 1993, the Seminary's "Self Study" process began as a requirement toward accreditation and in May 1994, President Shimmyo and his new administration took over and completed this unfinished task. In April 1995, an evaluation team led by Dr. Mathew Quinn of Carroll College, Montana, was impressed by much that had been done at the Seminary but still expressed some concerns and the CHE determined that these were serious enough to warrant a deferral of any action on accreditation pending a report followed by another team visit. The following twelve months were a period of intense activity as the Trustees, administration, faculty and staff tried to ensure that every concern was fully addressed. When the evaluation team paid a follow-up visit to UTS in October 1996, they described the efforts and improvements of the past year as "remarkable" (see the October issue of The Cornerstone) and on November 20, 1996, the commissioners of the CHE voted to accept their report and to approve the application of the Unification Theological Seminary.
While reviewing the victory, President Shimmyo expressed his gratitude to certain key contributors. "UTS was very lucky this time because, at the right time, we had a capable Controller, an able Plant Director and a new Board chairperson who helped to address the three MSA concerns about us: financial stability, physical plant and governance. I deeply appreciate them and also others," he said.
This is perhaps the most significant development at UTS since the Seminary received its absolute charter from the New York Board of Regents in 1990. New York State is unique in that it grants accreditation as well as charters. Dr. Jennifer Tanabe reports that this uniqueness has sometimes been problematic. "Being accredited by New York State alone has limited the recognition accorded to UTS degrees," she said. "Institutions in other states and countries don't always recognize New York State accreditation without regional (MSA) accreditation and that is why this recent victory is so important."
What is MSA?
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools was established in 1887 as a nonprofit, voluntary association dedicated to educational improvement through evaluation and accreditation. The member institutions are located in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia and several overseas locations with institutions which are chartered in one of the states within the MSA region. There are five other regional accrediting associations in the United States, each responsible for a specific geographic area.
MSA activities are carried out by three commissions which work with institutions at the levels of elementary, secondary and higher education. The Commission on Higher Education, which handled UTS's application, was established in 1919. It has four major purposes:
* To evaluate institutions of higher education based on standards developed by the member institutions.
* To accredit those institutions which meet the standards for accreditation.
* To assist institutions in as many ways as possible to improve their programs and services.
* To work closely with other organizations in promoting educational improvement.
CHE member institutions are evaluated every five years and the CHE is itself evaluated every five years by the US Department of Education and the Council on Postsecondary Accreditation. These, however, are not themselves accrediting bodies.
In assessing the significance of MSA accreditation, Academic Dean Dr. Michael Mickler, who was instrumental in preparing the Self-Study document and the follow-up report, pointed out that the phrase "regional accreditation" can be misleading. "There is no national accrediting body which oversees the regional associations," he said, "and so it would be incorrect to think of MSA accreditation as `merely regional.' Beyond the level of the regional associations, institutions usually seek accreditation from associations of peer institutions which share their specialty. In the case of UTS, this would be the Association of Theological Schools," he said.
True God's Day 1997 Celebrated in Sao Paulo
by Michael Kiely-Redhook, NY
"Our age is changing to a more church-centered age," True Father said in a speech to church elders, continental leaders and some 130 national messiahs gathered in Sao Paulo, Brazil, for the celebration of True God's Day 1997. "Now I will focus more attention on the church," he said.
In four days of speeches and marathon meetings at the spacious and newly restored six- story Brazilian church headquarters, True Father directed national messiahs from all over the world to build headquarters churches in each nation, focus on family and ethical issues in witnessing and teaching, and develop the hobby and leisure industry. He also told them to witness to ambassadors, educate children, maintain the earth as God created it by planting trees and purifying water, learn Korean by the year 2,000, and start newspapers in each country by April 1997. In addition, after a moving testimony about the healing of his terminal cancer by Rev. Do Hi Pak, True Father encouraged them to use and share moksa, an oriental treatment for cancer and other ills.
In what appeared to be a shift in global priorities, True Father underscored the importance of spiritual work. "Now the time has come to help the world church," True Father said. "I used not to support church people," he explained, saying that church leaders had often abandoned the church and focused on finance. "Now we are turning back; this trend will be reversed," he said. "Whenever I have money, I will invest it in the church and even provide a livelihood for church leaders," he said. While in the past it had been important to invest in the movement's external financial foundation, he said now he would look to sell businesses that are not performing well in order to better support church activities.
Speaking of the most significant of those activities this year, True Father told leaders at a morning talk January 31, "The 3.6 million couple blessing is our destiny. If that is completed, then 1998 will be completely different." Success in this blessing, to be held around the world simultaneously by satellite on November 29, 1997, would "liberate mankind," he told leaders and Brazilian church members at the True God's Day midnight speech. He encouraged them to make a serious effort to bring their clans and their adult children as well as their non-family contacts to the Blessing, saying that achieving 160 blessed couples would really set them free. Proclaiming the motto for the year, he said that success in Blessing '97 would come not simply by hard work and indemnity but by "being proud of and loving True Parents." (Rev. Zin Moon Kim's unofficial translation of the motto was: "Being proud of and loving True Parents is the accomplishment of the 3.6 million couple Blessing.") Because "all ... indemnity conditions were restored last year," a "whole new realm of victory has been created," he said. As a result, when members become united with True Parents, then they can truly "represent True Parents," he said.
Quipping that national messiahs should be "fun and hobby messiahs," True Father challenged leaders to take caring and joyous dominion over nature in their countries and develop leisure activities in the beauty of nature. He said he wanted the Unification Movement to be on the forefront of environmental protection and development. "Develop a beautiful and fun environment in your own nation," he told them at a meeting January 3. Not only should they make the mountains, rivers and ocean beautiful, but "fun." Many people work only for money, he said, but it is better to enjoy ones work, to have fun at it. "Some church leaders think that leisure and hobby activities are only side issues, but they will be the main activity in the future," he said. Only those who understand this "will be able to harmonize with the Kingdom of Heaven on earth," he said. The Korean word, "Shin" (the rough translation is "hobby" or "enthusiastic involvement") implies not simply enjoyment, as in English, but total involvement, so much so that "you don't feel tired," True Father explained. He said he becomes so thoroughly engaged in an activity such as fishing that he feels he "was born for that task." In the future ideal world, anything that is not connected to the realm of hobby and fun "cannot be connected to heaven," he said.
With this in mind, the birds at New Hope Farm in Brazil are being trained to respond to the sound of a bell and even the fish are being educated in this way, True Father said. "All the birds and animals can be harmonized," he said. "Won't this be the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth?" he asked.
One leisure activity about which True Father expressed particular concern is martial arts because of its abuse by the Mafia and by gangs. "Some martial arts people are connected to the power of darkness," he said in the midnight speech. He called on leaders to start an organization of the teachers of karate, taekwondo, jujitsu, and the various other martial arts in each country "to give them direction and educate them in the Divine Principle." Already there has been a workshop for martial artists "who thought they were the best in their art at least physically," he said, and he also said he plans to include an Abel-like approach to martial arts in the curriculum of schools and universities.
Turning to issues of family tradition, he encouraged couples to have at least four blessed children "representing the four directions." In this way "you learn to understand the four different types of people, the four directions and four seasons," he said, then quickly added, "Actually there are 12 types of people ... and I also have more than 12 children!" implying that blessed couples should ideally have at least that many as well.
Also, he said it was not enough simply to read the Divine Principle, but urged families to read True Parents' recent speeches as well particularly "True Parents and True Family" and "In Search of the Origin of the Universe" given in 185 countries last fall for the inauguration of Family Federation for World Peace. These are part of the "Completed Testament Age Bible," he said.
Families should also study Korean at least two hours a day, preferably three "as much time as you spend eating," he said. "No matter how difficult it is, we must unify language," he said, insisting that national messiahs should all speak Korean by the year 2,000. "If you can communicate in True Parents' language, you can communicate with heart," he said. When you enter the spiritual world, he said, "your ancestors will ask you if you spoke to True Parents in Korean or English." He directed Korean national messiahs to teach Korean to their other national messiah team members every day.
In addition to the speeches and meetings, True Parents attended a gala three-hour celebration True God's Day evening in which Hyo Jin Nim, Kwon Jin Nim and Hwa Yun Nim, Sun Jin Nim, Yeon Jin Nim, Jeung Jin Nim, and Hoon Sook Nim all performed. Also present at the festivities were Kook Jin Nim, Young Jin Nim, and Hoon Sook Nim's son Shin Chul Nim.
A Yute tournament that same day-which lasted from early afternoon till 2:30 a.m. the following morning-pitted national messiah teams from six continents and the True Children against each other. Finalists were the True Children and national messiahs from the CIS and Asia. With the participation of Jin Song Eu and Adrianna, a Brazilian sister, and, according to one observer, some effective "reverse psychology," the True Children won by a hair.
The School Vouchers Debate
by Rev. John Kung-Queens, NY
I am sure someone with more data and eloquence could refute what Bob Chase, president of NEA, in Washington DC, said on the NY Post's Oct. 9 op-ed page better than I. But I felt so incensed by his lies that I cannot wait for someone else.
The NEA put so much money into advertisements to distort the facts and frighten the people the last time the issue was up for referendum in California, it was no wonder people did not vote for it. It is a testimony to the strength and endurance of truth that the "voucher" idea is still very popular with parents who about the quality of (or lack of) education their children are getting and with fiscally-wise parents who know how much money is being spent per public school child and what they are getting in return.
I agree with Bob that no children should go to school where the roof leaks. But what caused that problem? Bob wants us to believe that vouchers will take away money needed to fix the roof. He's just using scare tactics. The public school system gets more money per child than any other school system, including the Catholic. Here is another scare tactic: whenever there is a cut in budget, the NEA and the media like to show with great drama the effects on school lunch. Instead of a serving of vegetable, kids get ketchup! So much money is siphoned off that what's left for kids can't even buy them adequate school supplies. There is hardly any accountability in this school system.
Bob says the voucher system doesn't cover total tuition. This scares people into thinking they must pay additional money out of their pocket with the voucher system. Also this argument is used to show that those people who have money (the term "some" used by Bob, supposedly means only the richer parents) would be able to afford the extra expense for private school and the poor parents would not. This is discrimination!
Studies have shown that private school costs a fraction of the money allotted for each public school student. Given a fair amount, parents can send their children to private schools without additional expense. The fact is that to demand a voucher equal to what the government gives the school for each child would be opposed by the NEA. So to appease the NEA we compromise and say: let the parents have half of the money that the government allocates to each child. The other half can go to the school system and support the bureaucracy. This sounds reasonable. What do you think the NEA says? No. Because if the parents were given a choice (hey, I thought this is a democracy), they might choose a private school over a public. But that's just it. If the public school is not doing a good job, the parents should be allowed to choose a private school. But if the public school had good teachers and was doing a good job, the parents would choose that public school. This way, the law of the marketplace will weed out incompetent and unsatisfactory schools, and schools which fulfill parents' wishes will flourish. This will also solve the problem of whether or not to teach various "sexual" education topics, like "condoms" or "abstinence". Parents may then be able to select the school of their choice which teaches subjects they support and not things they object to.
Taxes will not go up. If less money is needed to educate the same number of students, taxes will go down. The money used to transport to school those students who have now transferred to private schools, is money saved. There are no hidden costs.
The liberals and the NEA would like you to believe that there is already school choice, like sending your child to a Magnet School or another school through applying for variance. But that is not school choice. You will still be stuck in the same high-priced, low- performance education system.
We will not be supporting another school system. The number of students does not suddenly increase when we institute the vouchers. We are actually decreasing the administrative work because the public school is handling fewer children. The students who have gone to the private schools are being taken care of by the private school or the parents themselves. No one is asking more tax dollars from the government. This is another instance of the NEA trying to scare us, the taxpayers. Oh, no, if we have to support two entire school systems, it's going to cost us more tax dollars. But we are not as stupid as Bob Chase would like us to be. Then he says "no extra money" will be funneled to those schools which so desperately need taxpayer support. This was said to show the NEA has compassion. If the NEA has so much compassion for certain suffering schools, let them push for more accountability for every penny spent and see how much there is left over to support these schools.
The government has already allocated ample amounts. It is because the school system is a failed system that there is little left for the students after siphoning off so much for its bureaucracy.
Vouchers are real reforms in a system which is incompetent, bloated with bureaucracy, excessive waste, no accountability, and which is first and foremost not giving students the education they need and deserve. Parents pay with tax dollars for the education budget which the government gives public schools. It is time we have some say in it. Under the voucher system, no parent is discriminated against. All parents would have the right to pay for whatever kind of school and education they want. It will not be for a privileged few at the expense of many. Bob Chase is lying and he knows it. It is a question of protecting their jobs. There are many good teachers but there are too many in the school system who allow self-serving decisions to be made. When was the last time you heard a teacher was fired for being incompetent? The NEA refuse testing of their teachers to see if they are competent.
I can't believe Bob Chase doesn't know these facts, but he chooses to confuse the issue and lie to the parents so that he can protect teachers' jobs, including his own, at the expense of the students. If given a choice, the NEA is afraid that parents will take their children out of the public school en masse, because they know they are doing a relatively substandard job and have subjected the students to controversial social and political agendas. All manner of social engineering has been foisted upon our children to the point where the three R's are no longer the priority. Political and social correctness is.
Bob talks about serious solutions to quality education. But he has none. Meanwhile the standard of education and student behavior keeps spiraling down.