Reverend Sun Myung Moon
September 4, 1983
Belvedere
Translator - Bo Hi Pak
What comes to mind when you hear the term "front line"? Beyond any front line is an enemy line and an enemy country. One's enemy is dedicated to destroying him; therefore, unless one defends himself in battle, he will be destroyed. The citizens of a country have a responsibility to defend their country and themselves. There are different kinds of conflict on the earth, but none is the same as war in which governments and people are united, with the goal of common survival, to fight an enemy.
Every battle leads either to victory or defeat. If a war ends without a clear conclusion, for instance with a truce, that conflict is destined to continue until either victory or defeat is determined. Both nations fighting a war want to win, so what determines victory or defeat? The greatest power determines the outcome, whether it is military, economic, or political power. There is also the invisible power of spirit and determination that influences the outcome.
We cannot forget the recent war in Vietnam, when America was embarrassed by its first defeat. How did America come to be defeated? There is no doubt that this country had sufficient military power and it certainly had sufficient economic power. The fact is that it was the power of ideology that defeated America in Vietnam; no one can deny this. This country, defeated by ideology in Vietnam, cannot continue in this condition. America is immersed in a global conflict and it did not end in Vietnam; we are still moving toward the final showdown, so it is very important to know precisely where we are.
Since America was defeated by communists in a small, rural country like Vietnam, people in places like the Middle East and Africa wonder what will happen when America directly confronts nations like Soviet Russia and Red China. Red China alone has a population of 1.3 billion; that is over five times the population of the United States. The goal of Soviet Russia is clearly that of global conquest, and the communist leaders there see America as their foremost enemy. Will America really have the strength to defeat them?
America withdrew from Vietnam and then pointed to the Monroe Doctrine, warning other nations not to bother this hemisphere. Most Americans never imagined that their enemies would invade the countries in their own backyard, but even the Pacific Ocean is no obstacle to the people whose goal is global conquest. Furthermore, even outer space will be utilized and both sides are now scrambling to dominate it. This is precisely the situation today.
The present American mood seeks to avoid involvement in any other war. Imagine a wrestling champion who comes before an audience and challenges anyone to step forward and defeat him; if no one volunteers, he can truthfully claim that all of them have been defeated without even fighting. The audience may ask the wrestler to just step down and shake hands and make peace with them, but that wouldn't work. The challenge must be met.
Communist leaders have been raised from the cradle to believe that their goal is to defeat America; this has been the communist doctrine for over sixty years. Military training is targeted at the United States; soldiers even practice shooting at dummies representing Americans to feel realistically that their goal is to kill Yankees, to cut out their eyes, cut off their ears, and so forth. That is inhumane, but the end result of such training is an incredible animosity toward America on the part of the soldiers.
America, on the other hand, doesn't want to fight and only wants to enjoy peace. The problem remains that such an attitude doesn't create any dialogue. The whole world was outraged by the barbarity of the Soviets' shooting down the Korean airliner, but that was just another Soviet challenge to the United States. The Soviet Union is exactly like that wrestler on the stage, shouting and swinging his fists and causing all kinds of embarrassment to his opponents.
What is President Reagan going to do? What would God want him to do? God is watching the President's reaction, feeling that if he lives up to His expectation, then God will give more blessing to this country. If Reagan doesn't do that, though, America's future is that much more dismal. If you have no resistance when an enemy virus invades your body, it will ultimately travel to your brain and heart and your position will be desperate. Can you just offer to shake hands with the virus? No, you would be dead. By the same token, does Satan understand about peace?
Currently the free world has no way to confront an atheist adversary who wants to take over the world. If communism is victorious, this whole planet will be under the rule of atheism and God's ability to rule will virtually be kicked off the earth. What about God's providence if ail religion is made illegal in the world? Human life has no more innate value than dust and dirt to communists; murdering "reactionaries" is nothing more than shoveling dirt away. They can do that without any pain in their conscience.
Communists, who view Western capitalists as bloodsuckers who are draining the blood of the world, consider themselves historical champions. They are out to destroy the enemy, capitalism, and the center of capitalism which is the United States. Can you deny that the communists think this way and that they educate their citizens this way from birth? How can you simply ask them to stop? There are already communist nations in this hemisphere who would like nothing better than to spread communism to Mexico and then, of course, to the United States.
The free world is in a miserable situation and is being pushed into a corner. The internal situation of America is one of moral corruption; so many young people taking drugs and chasing after artificial joy. Who shall secure the future of this country, the senators? The President? The armed forces? No matter how strong the military may be, it comes under the command of the people through Congress. No army is stronger than its leadership.
The Commander in Chief of the armed forces is the President, who is a politician and can be replaced every four years. If somehow a communist were elected President, the Pentagon and armed forces would be under his command. There is a great power struggle between conservatives and liberals in this country, and history is watching to see what direction Reagan will set. By contrast, the Kremlin has a well-orchestrated plan for undermining the different seats of power in America-the armed forces, Congress, the White House, and the media. They are focused on one goal-how to destroy America.
Communists believe that struggle is everywhere, especially between classes of people. They believe that struggle eventually leads to the victory of communism; this begins on the ideological level, in which their superior "scientific" ideology confronts all other, weaker ideologies.
While the communist world is extremely controlled and goal-oriented, the free world is susceptible to corruption. Politicians in a democratic society have to win votes by hook or by crook. This situation can be likened to the biblical description of the wolf in sheep's clothing; the American society is so vulnerable, the wolf has a golden opportunity to infiltrate.
This is the external and internal reality of the United States. Day in and day out, communists are pushing farther into America. Look at the college campuses, where the future leaders are supposedly trained: left-wing ideologies are rampant there; colleges are literally becoming instruments for communism. In every field-science, the media, even the military-efforts are made to infiltrate. Communist leaders have concluded that people in the free world are only walking corpses; if they were alive, they would show some signs of resistance! Thus they are certain that this is a rotten civilization.
The only solution is to make the communists taste our strength, showing them that people in the free world are not just corpses. Because the communists have become so complacent about their strength, one strong confrontation could shatter them.
Americans must realize that while they are living lightheartedly now, a powerful enemy is creeping up on them, armed with daggers. Could anyone joke if he knew that a deadly blow was only moments away? Clearly, America is destined for doom if it continues its present ways. Too many American women do not care about the world situation but only about their make-up, diets, or catching a husband. Communist policy makers depend upon such weaknesses.
Who are the front-line soldiers in this war? People in the West normally do not want to be on the front line, but communist soldiers are forced to stand on the front line every day.
Within communist countries there are honorary organizations for people who have betrayed and even killed their own parents. After 1917, when the communists took over Russia, they perceived a great obstacle to their revolution in the form of Christianity. In order to infiltrate and destroy the churches, they urged the young people to show their faithfulness to communist ideology by reporting their parents if they were counter-revolutionary. Can the West seriously think it is possible to negotiate with such an opponent? Would a nuclear freeze have any effect upon such people? Compromise and negotiation have no effect. I pity the American people and their blind leaders.
I have been fighting communism my entire life and I know what it is. When I was a student, I already understood that communism was the worst enemy of mankind and God, and I was resolved to fight it. I opposed communism in North Korea and suffered under it. I fought it in South Korea and now I am fighting it in Japan and America.
We have been talking about external political situations; what does that have to do with us? After all, we are a religious organization, so why should we worry about it? We worry about communism because it is not only the enemy of mankind but the enemy of God. Communists are determined to exterminate religion as "the opiate of the masses" Can we just sit and pray and ask God to take care of us?
Communists may come after us with guns and bombs but our tactic is to destroy an evil ideology with a true ideology, through strong, disciplined organization. Therefore, we need strong men and women. The sign of the communists' strength is how they can grab people and pin them to the ground, but the sign of our members' strength is the way we can knock the communists out with words if they argue with us. Furthermore, we have to be able to defend ourselves if they attack us and be able to defeat them. Our members are confident in the face of communist challenge.
In Japan our members challenged the communists to debate their philosophy over the radio and television and let the public make a Judgment. But the communists retreated. No one wants to confront our ideology. For the first time in their history, the communists are truly on the defensive. I am the man they fear the most in the free world.
Many people thought Reverend Moon would never last, but instead of disappearing I am rising like the sun, bringing the only hope to the world. America has been reluctant to believe I have anything to offer, but now this country has no choice, especially since the communist countries recognize me as their archenemy. The communists know that Reagan will come and go and they see that secular American society is corrupted, but they cannot take Reverend Moon's movement lightly for we have a strong ideology, strong organization and committed members. When the IOWC was formed last spring, everyone went.
Some leaders have come to me with requests for vans and mobile centers and a whole shopping list. Would a real soldier require a chair and fight a war like it was a video game? If you are just riding in your vans, will you win or lose the war? Moonies' training includes a lot of walking; can you sell flowers by just sitting comfortably? No, you have to go after the people. I know that tall women are especially susceptible to backaches and even more so after bearing children, but I also know that lots of walking will help heal those aches. Many Americans take time out to do jogging these days, but our members combine their jogging with their work!
I want American women to feel that their sweat is their makeup and lipstick. That attitude will lay a foundation for lasting peace in this country and for your children's prosperity. Don't you think the success of our noble crusade is the most important thing you could work for? Do you have an appetite now for being on the front line?
After the Washington Monument rally, I announced that our next goal was Moscow. I am sure the communists snickered then, but now they are not laughing. This year we sent a second delegation of opinion makers to Moscow. The first time, the communists didn't pay much attention; but this time our group was treated with great respect. The Kremlin bent over backward to please it. The communists knew very well who was behind that project.
This year we also initiated a fact-finding tour for journalists, sending them to places in Central America that are sore spots for Soviet Russia because they don't want them investigated. At the current World Media Conference in Colombia, South America, the 600 journalists in attendance want me to address them; I am still deciding whether or not to do so. If I go I will certainly talk bluntly about the world situation. The news media is such a powerful tool, but so far they have been spreading only liberal or leftist views. Our movement is assembling Abel-type news media for the cause of God and freedom.
Amazingly, it is not the free world but the communist world that knows Marxist ideology is inferior to our ideology. Previously, the communists were confident that they could win, but now we are on the ideological offensive. Over the past ten years in Japan, the communists have been tasting what the Unification movement is all about, and they have seen our ability to turn events around. Therefore, as soon as I came to America the news media felt the influence of those who are anxious to have only bad things said about me and to keep America from accepting me. Who uses brainwashing? It is the communists. They saturated the news media with accusations that I use brainwashing.
I want you to understand that all communist activities are coordinated internationally. Court battles similar to the one here in America are being fought almost simultaneously in Germany, England and France. The communists' ultimate target is no longer the United States but Reverend Moon and the worldwide Unification Church.
What America needs most is strong, committed leadership; without that, this country cannot survive. I am trying to provide vigorous leadership and a strong organization for the sake of this country. America is now looking for such things and I am trying to meet the demand.
I confront people, trying to wake them up. Universities must understand that the Unification movement deserves greater respect than communist activities. Our CARP movement does not hesitate to confront the communists on campus.
What do you have that is so special? The truth. Who will recognize your truth and accept your True Parents? The best way to wake up the free world is to persuade the communists that Moonies are their worst enemy. The communist newspaper Pravda leftist publications in Japan, as well as The Washington Post have attacked me. In doing so, they are recognizing me.
Where is my home? Do you think of East Garden or Belvedere as my home? No, those are Church homes. The money I spent there was to make them Church properties. Ordinarily, people with money are anxious to hoard it in secret accounts, but I am anxious to mobilize every penny to create Unification properties. Am I foolish to act this way? Still, I have no place to call my own. I would like to visit you in your homes, but I also know you are not well-to-do. You married couples are lucky to have a little cubbyhole of your own!
Why are the communists so afraid of me? Do I have fighter bombers or atomic weapons? Do Americans fear me because I am a violent person or murderer? I am none of those things. Americans are afraid because they see that young people of many nations change when they hear my teaching.
Are you brilliant young men and women? Not quite, but I hope you will become brilliant. Am I a fool or a wise man? If I am wise, as you say, why can't I escape persecution? I am persecuted because I am too smart. An ordinary man just takes a branch, but I want the whole tree! An average wise man has a few followers, but I have thousands from many nations. It is almost like I am uprooting the tree!
Scholars will have to spend 600 years studying the 60 years of my life in order to get a glimpse of why young people respond to me so much. People may not like Moonies, but now they have to accept that we are on top of the world. The Unification Church cannot be uprooted from American culture; it is here to stay.
What is so great about getting up early to fundraise and witness and go on the IOWC? Your parents think I am a love-robber, that I stole you away. Did I rob your parents of their child, or did you come to me? I never stole you away. The Unification wall is very high and only the best people can jump over it.
There is no restriction on leaving but what will you find when you return to the secular world? Even though you have worked hard here and endured difficulties, you will realize that this life is the most genuine and fulfilling one. Here you can make the world come alive! If you leave, you may have more time for sleeping and eating, but in the secular world you deal with the walking dead. If life outside the Unification Church were better, I would be the first to leave.
Do you think my life is easier than yours? Why would I put myself in such a difficult position? From the very beginning, my goal was to reach the apex of the world for God. I knew that the world would oppose me, so I resolved to win the battle and make a foundation each step of the way. In Korea, no one thought I would survive. When I came to America, people were absolutely convinced I would flop. The recent court battle gives people the conviction that I am finished, but through all these circumstances, I have only risen higher. Actually my battle in America is over. Not too long from now, America will see us as its only hope. During our many recent conferences, many scholars and thinkers have come to respect our movement.
It is the news media which has crucified me. However, there is a segment of the media which realizes that I am the only one who can unite the God-accepting media against the God-denying media. Everyone said it would be crazy to start a new newspaper to compete with The Washington Post. They predicted that The Washington Times would not last six weeks, but it has been going now for one-and-a-half years and has become the preferred paper of this Administration. It is a God-fearing, anti-Communist force working for the sake of the world. Now it is a national and international newspaper, read in the capitals of the world.
The time will come when people will not only welcome you but request your leadership. I am trying to prepare you men and women for those opportunities and thus members of the Unification Church are trained to do not just one, but dozens of things at the same time.
I have been given all the worst possible titles. When people call me a Korean evangelist or industrialist, they use the label "Korean" in a scornful sense. Could anyone coming from the small, backward country of Korea have anything to tell this rich country of America? The initial reaction of most Americans is that they don't need my advice.
You know the arrogance of the United States; it thinks it has the world under its arm. When The Washington Post and The New York Times printed allegations against me, most people thought I was finished. However, our Church just grew faster.
I am now becoming a champion among the news media of the free world. We are assembling and organizing all the Abel-type people in order to chop up our target, communism, and to liberate the communists. When Americans see that it was a yellow man, not a white man, who defeated communism, they will be totally surprised. That day is near. It is far better for America to suffer that embarrassment than to be defeated by totalitarian communism. Eventually the free world will apologize to me for its opposition.
We are the front-line soldiers in this battle against communism. In Korea and Japan we have many communist enemies. But when we have won the final victory and they are turned around, we will have one great tearful reunion. They will no longer be our enemies, but our brothers and sisters-children of God. Right now, while we are concentrating on this battle, we need front-line soldiers. Our present course is one of difficulty and suffering. The value of being on the front line at this time is so great that the value of even the whole United States is small by comparison. This time is unique in history. God is watching American women in particular to see if they can play a major, pivotal role. If you can, God's blessing will be great.
Our arms are not rifles or bombs. We will fight with the weapons of truth and love, lifting the enemy up in the air and making them lose control. I am like a giant hydraulic lift, raising the entire world to its maximum height.
There are political parties in Korea and Japan which realize the power of our ideology and the strength of our movement. They are trying to root it out but as they keep pulling on us, they realize that our roots have no end. When they pull out enough roots, they will be buried by them!
Your parents and your society have tried to kidnap you and bring you back. But you won't be defeated by them. Will you be victorious over communism? It is easy to say yes, but to actually do it is something else.
I am making meticulous, step-by-step preparations for complete victory. When this movement makes God real to the world, the God-proclaiming ideology shall overcome the God-denying ideology. Do you share this commitment and conviction? This is the final, historical battle line; after this is won, everything is completed. Once we are victorious, the world will come under God's ideology. This is God's desire and, knowing that, I have devoted my entire life to gaining the victory.
Am I a stranger to you? No, I am your True Parent. True Parents and their children will naturally live together forever. Your eternal home and family is based on the True Parents. That home will be erected here on earth and continue forever in the spirit world. God designed the whole globe to be our homeland. This planet is the land of children who love their Heavenly Father. Every Sunday we say, "We are proud of the one sovereignty, proud of the one people, proud of the one land"
You cannot regain this position anywhere else. Therefore, if you are wise men and women, you will sincerely try to strengthen your relationship with the True Parents. This bond is the foundation for your eternal well-being. If you are separated from us here, how can you meet us in the spirit world? It will be impossible. Here on earth you have to establish the tradition of being pious sons and daughters of the True Parents and patriots of the heavenly nation, not just of the secular nation. When you feel close to True Parents, you feel we are your own mommy and daddy and you are an intimate part of the heavenly nation. But when you are distant from us, everyone else is a stranger. What a miserable destiny that would be!
How grateful you can be to know that True Parents are truly your own eternal father and mother! 1, too, am investing all my strength to secure that one eternal relationship. God wants to touch you and comfort you. He wants to tell you, "Well done, my son and daughter" Your true, lasting existence will begin at that point.
Our immediate job is to liberate the world from communism. We have missionaries all over the globe, including the communist countries. Some of our brothers and sisters have become martyrs for this cause. I have prayed tearfully over their pictures, crying out for them in prayer. Our missionaries are yearning for the day when I can come to their liberated countries.
No matter how much suffering and difficulties come our way, we shall march forward until the day of final victory. President Reagan will face many difficult times in the future; without the guidance of God, he will be unable to survive. Do you need my guidance, direction and commitment? Once I tackle a project, I will not leave it until I succeed. Even though people make dire predictions about such things, I always succeed.
I am always standing on the most dangerous front line of all because, more than anyone else, I am the target of evil. Many times some national intelligence has warned me of approaching danger, but I have never relied on men-only on God. I have absolute confidence that my life is in God's hands. My attitude is, "Thy will be done" I have already transcended the danger of physical death many times in my life. Have you made that kind of decision?
I am warning you that our front line is the most vital position. Unless we succeed now, we will never do it. This is the opportunity to be victorious. With commitment and determination, we can win.
I am giving you such a strong sermon today because this is such a critical time. We must tighten our belts and rededicate ourselves to these clear goals which I have pronounced. We will bring direction and guidance to America. Like a locomotive, we will pull this country and the world. For this goal, we shall go to the front line. There is no substitute. Shall we do it?