Sun Myung Moon
June 6, 1978
London, England
Translator - Sang Kil Han
In the Unification Church we have four great ceremonies which the world is not yet aware of. You already know that those are God's Day, Parents Day, Children's Day and Day of All Things. Those who are celebrating one of these four great days with me for the first time, raise your hands. Today is the 16th Day of All Things.
If the fall had not taken place these specific days would not have been necessary, but as it is, it is the destiny of religious life to have these days in the process of restoring them to their original position. If the fall had not taken place, Adam and Eve and their children would have been the center of all things, but since the core became fallen, so did the surroundings.
God is a mathematical God, so horizontally speaking there are three steps in creation which center around parents, then children and all things. These become three circles or realms, and they form three different steps. Because of the fall they were not perfected and it is as though they do not yet exist. Originally, parents, children and all things came in order of importance, but this has become reversed since the original parents fell. Now in the order of gravity of sin the parents are the worst of all, the children are next because Cain and Abel did not fulfill their mission, and all things are the least sinful.
When man fell, creation stayed on its original level while the parents went all the way down and children were little better. Because of this reversal all things were better than man. In the original order of creation the parents were to be the closest to God while all things were farthest away, but as a result of the fall all things stand closest to God and the parents are the farthest of all from Him. The dispensation behind restoration is to put these back into the proper arrangement. Everything must be put in its proper position, bringing man and parents closest to God.
Because of the fall man became stained with satanic blood. To restore that, we know from history that God worked in each stage of the dispensation to separate good from bad, step by small step. The good that God can claim is separated out from the whole.
Religious people had to shed blood to pay indemnity for the satanic blood. All good men of religion had to sacrifice themselves, being restored on that condition; God made them sacrifice themselves and often they had to shed blood. Originally man would have gone to God directly, but now we have to put all things of creation ahead to go to God before us, and upon the acceptance of our offering we too can then go to God. Restoration is recreation and God created all things first; in conforming with this principle all things must go before man.
History reveals that always blood must be shed before an offering can be made to God. Therefore, whatever was sacrificed was killed and cut in half, to ensure that one part representing goodness was separated from the bad so that God was free to claim it. You already know that in Abraham's offering a heifer was cut in half, a ram and a goat were cut in half and birds were to be cut in half. Treasures as well were laid on the altar in the Old Testament.
In simple creation no bloodshed should have been necessary, but because the fall introduced Satan's blood, the shedding of blood is necessary in order to restore the original position. This is why we see in the course of history that whenever a. offering was given it was made by killing things.
By instructing man to shed the blood of animals, God could begin to restore man without shedding man's blood. That offering served as a condition, but most important of all it was to separate the offering from satanic domination, the whole purpose of restoration. If the animal that is shedding blood is not obedient and goes against its master, then the offering will not be valid. Many animals could protest, but some animals like the heifer and the lamb are very obedient and calm. The lamb is the symbol of obedience and the dove is the symbol of peace, so those animals were selected. Who kills these animals for the offering? The chief priest is the one who kills these animals, and in order for that offering to become a valid and acceptable condition, they have to be completely obedient to the priest, never protesting.
Even though these are just a few small examples, they comply with the larger principle. These conditions are necessary because man fell and thus there is something wrong with him. Even so, today's Christians do not have even a vague idea of the nature of man's sin, nor do they know why this bloodshed is necessary. In the Jewish religion a baby boy is circumcised on the 8th day after his birth. Why should the chosen people shed blood this way, and why on that particular part of the male baby? By shedding blood from the male organ the man fulfills the condition of obedience. The woman, however, does not have to shed blood; all she has to do is be obedient.
In some primitive religions men were killed as offerings. This was necessary to restore a large continent or a big part of the world, so spirit world taught certain people this practice and men acted accordingly. In the entire history of God there were few occasions like that where human sacrifice was necessary, but the so-called primitive peoples did not know this principle and needlessly continued this practice, later in history often offering virgin girls.
It is not that God likes bloodshed and cruelty, but we cannot deny that the human fall took place and that God's salvation is necessary to restore man's original position. Because evil blood is present in man it is necessary to shed blood to establish the condition to be restored; also, it is the reversal of the way the fall took place. To be saved means to be restored from the fallen position to the original unfallen position, but before you are restored you must make certain conditions. Three things are needed. First is the offering. Second, it must be made by a man in Adam or Abel's position; that is the position of chief priest. Third, a certain period of time is needed; the offering cannot be accomplished in one second or two minutes. These are the three essential elements. Together, all things of creation, children and the parents will form three steps.
Why did people make offerings? They did so to establish a condition to return to the position of Abel and then eventually to the parent position. The main principle is to restore sons and daughters who can sacrifice the things of creation, which are of lesser importance. First all things and children restore their position in the reverse way and then parents are restored to their original position. That is why you first have to have an offering to establish a condition for restoration. Then you need to have a person in Abel's position, which is the same as Adam's position, and finally a certain time period is needed to carry everything out. In many cases this time period is a multiple of four; we also see the numbers three seven and twelve often. These three elements are needed to establish the condition by which you are restored.
In order to make the offering the date must be set. We don't do that at just any time. We set a date and then prior to that time we make wholehearted preparation, purifying our minds and bodies. Then we make the offering a very clean one, separating evil from it and becoming completely one with it. By becoming completely one with the offering you know that you have returned to God's side. It now belongs to God.
Satan will not easily retreat, however. He will say, "This belongs to me!" Satan's characteristic is that he does not want anything that once belonged to him to go back to God. Whenever he is in danger of losing something, he even tries to kill it so that God won't have it. A man may dedicate his offering purely enough for it to belong to God but Satan protests. Since God is a God of law and principle, He will require blood to be shed because of the bad blood within and that will erase Satan's right to claim it. God cuts it in half and says, "Now it belongs neither to you nor to me," and then waits until man acts.
Since man fell according to his own will, God lets man make his own choice about whether to go to Satan or to Himself. If the man chooses to go to God at this time then Satan must give in. If in making the offering this person becomes completely one with the man in Abel's position and then wishes to stay on God's side, Satan has nothing to say.
At this time the man who is making the offering in Abel's position must have a tearful heart, pitying all things which have died because of man's sin. "Because I wronged and because of my ancestors I have to kill you." We have to pity the sacrifice. The chief priest must have that kind of tender feeling. Satan is happy because he has killed the offering, determined that it will not go to God, whereas on the other side there is pity and tender emotions. Thus the offering that starts out on Satan's side begins to move over to the other side.
By becoming completely one and choosing to stand on God's side, a man will establish enough condition to be restored to God's side. Likewise, the chief priest who makes the offering and all people who are attending are one, standing together in the same position. Together they successfully offer the sacrifice and eventually they will automatically return to God's side. This is why the chief priest has to make an offering with much heart, and also why those for whom the sacrifice is being made must be very obedient and completely one with the chief priest. If anyone were critical or tried to interfere, he could never share in the blessing that comes from making the offering.
Many different things can be said about what religion is, but the fundamental description is that religion must accomplish the offering. This is clearly the essential basis of religion, no matter which one it is. Seeing the sacrifice of its members we can understand that the Unification Church is an offering. The chief priest in this case is the church leader. Because the Church itself is the offering, the chief priest puts the Church and all of its members in the sacrificial position.
Then what is a chosen people? They are not privileged people, as many worldly people think, but they are the people who are to be sacrificed for the sake of the world. The chosen people are not sacrificed for their own sake but rather for the universe and for God. The chief priest in this case is God. As His people satisfy basic conditions within their religion, it goes on to higher and higher levels. Religion does not just evolve by itself, but develops according to God's Principle. Some people intuit that this is the spirit of religion even though they do not know the details. Nevertheless, all religions have drifted so far away from this principle that they cease to be of service to God. They have become useless and unnecessary. Christianity is no exception to this. However, even though Christians may nut understand the reason for sacrifice, if they choose to comply in heart then God can continue to use them. If they are unable to do this, though, they will decline and no longer have the assurance of being God's instrument.
What about the Unification Church? It is no exception. If the Unification Church deviates from the original principle by neglecting the truth then eventually it will become useless and cease to be God's own instrument. God is in the parental position and if Reverend Moon is in the Abel position then you Church members are in the Cain position and you belong to the world. As the ones who are physically in the position of offering, if you will become completely one with the chief priest in the Abel position, and never separate from him but be obedient like a lamb, then we will be accepted by God. This is exactly what you are doing. You go out to fundraise with great heart and dedication because your only desire is to be accepted by God. We are now gathering and preparing the offering. In this way all things, children and parents all go everywhere together. One stays with the other.
People ask, "What does Reverend Moon do?" The chief priest does many things in preparation. To whom do the altars and preparations belong? They all belong to the chief priest and He dedicates them to God. In the capacity of his position the chief priest must meet the necessary internal conditions.
What belongs to God belongs to His children and what belongs to a son belongs also to God as Parent. A chief priest is a child of God and likewise, he returns everything he has to his own Father, God; there is no separation anywhere. Today's churches belong neither to the congregation nor the church minister. In the Protestant churches the elders select the ministers but this is actually against the nature of Principle. Christians don't know this but it is supposed to be the other way around, with the minister choosing the elders in that church.
Everyone knows that one big reason for the churches' fast decline is a wrong attitude toward material things. They do not have a clear idea of heavenly direction and they do everything according to their own will. The congregation, which is often influenced by material concerns, dominates the minister instead of uniting around his position. The essence of a sound religion is this very point of making an acceptable offering.
When you truly understand the principle of it, we might say on one hand that the Unification Church property belongs to the Unification Church, but in another way it also belongs to England. England owns the Unification Church. They are one and the same; they can never be separated because the purpose of the Unification Church is to return England to God. It is very simple logic.
If we stand by our words all the time, the world will know that any religious endeavor on our part is to promote the future welfare of mankind. Our activity can never go wrong whether we act for the Unification Church purpose or directly for England, because eventually everything we do will be for the world's benefit. If we work directly for the world's welfare, of course, that will suit people even better for the present, but soon sentiments will be heard that all efforts like ours are welcome.
Our fundraising activity is done with genuine heart. We know our purpose-we do it for the rest of mankind, parents and for God. If we do it with more heart and dedication than worldly people who are earning their own salaries then Satan has nothing to accuse us of because he knows that this money is eventually being spent for all people. What happens when we fundraise and we decide to keep the money for our own individual purpose? Then there is no way of escaping Satan's blame, and everything we gathered will all return to him.
All of our efforts in being restored are being done through this principle. When a chief priest makes an offering, he not only offers what the members have prepared but has to chip in on his own. He has to produce his own offering and add it to the general offering, giving everything together to God. When Satan sees that, he knows there is no point in opposition because eventually the benefit will come to him too. Satan certainly cannot accuse when man does as God does. This is the law of religion in simplified form. Every religion must somehow fit into this principle.
The Old Testament Age was the age of the offering. By making offerings the servant can be restored as the adopted son. The adopted son is in the Cain position, which is equivalent to the angelic position. The archangel fell because Adam fell and everything else suffered as a result. All things of creation long to find people in the Cain position on God's side. Generally this level of restoration is called the Old Testament era.
What is the wish of all Cain-side people? Their wish is to meet their Abel because through their Abel they are going to be restored to God. This is why the people of the Old Testament Age sincerely yearned for the Messiah to come. The Messiah that they were waiting for was actually their Abel on the national level, and if all those in a Cain position could have become one with him then they could have been restored to God.
What is the purpose of meeting Abel? To have someone who can run errands for you? All Cains will meet Abel and work according to his command. Cain will do the work but Abel will directly it wisely. The way for Cain to live is through Abel, and even if we must make our lives a sacrifice we can never separate from our Abel.
We know what took place in history. Cain killed Abel and it became the source of regret so painful to God that it is beyond description. Now this must be reversed. If Cain is so completely dedicated to Abel that even if Abel wrongs Cain he never rebels, then that Cain will be instantly brought back to God. That is the clear process of recreation. Does this apply to you? This is the law of God and the law applies to everyone.
As the chosen people, the Israelites were in Cain's position and waiting for the one person in Abel's position, the Messiah; once he came they were to become completely one with him. However, they did not perceive God's will so they just acted as they wanted to act. They did not unite, but did everything according to their own point of view. The people of Israel were faithful and had made many offerings; even the land they had was an element of their offering. Though the Israelites were on God's side they were still in the Cain position. Consequently, all of what they had to offer was still on Cain's side and was not ready to be offered to God. Without becoming completely one with Abel, their offering could never be accepted by God. A nation by itself can never be restored even though the people have made many offerings. Their offering has to be completely one with Abel before it can be offered to God.
If this unity had been created, the nation of Israel would have been restored to God's side. To meet this condition, the Israelites needed to know clearly that everything they had belonged to Abel. It is up to Abel to do whatever he sees fit on the foundation of complete obedience and complete dedication to God. This is the whole purpose of religion.
Whatever happens, Cain must be determined never to separate again from God, never to object again. As Abel makes Cain's offering he may even decide to cut it in half for the sake of the world, but the offering should never revolt. If the people know for sure what their position is then they will never oppose Abel, but the Israelites did not understand this and they did not believe in Jesus.
When Abel is rejected before he successfully accomplishes his offering to God, can God continue working in the same place? For thousands of years the Jews were the chosen people but God had to leave them and start again with another religion. Nevertheless, God continues to love even the man who has lost his position. The Jewish people tend to be blessed with wealth, but other countries have persecuted them regardless, even confiscating their legitimately earned property and killing millions of them. By shedding blood and paying much material indemnity, the Jews struggle to come near to the Messiah.
It is really a heartbreaking situation that we see now. Because Jews are lacking their central Abel, God cannot use what they intended to offer as a legitimate offering. Many generations ago they killed their Abel so God accepted their material offering only to indemnify the position they held before they failed. Once the death of Abel has been indemnified, the Jews will make offerings in a different way. The only way for them to be restored is for the Messiah to come again on earth in the flesh and ask God to forgive what they did when the Messiah first came. God will listen to that prayer.
It can be concluded that once the country in which the Messiah comes again is completely separated from evil, the country which strayed from God by rejecting the Messiah when he first came will also be brought back to God. It never was a coincidence that both Korea and Israel won independence in 1948. Just as the Korean people are now divided between North and South Korea, the Jewish nation on a world scale is divided into two blocs-one being Israel and the other being Jews scattered around the world.
The Jewish people living in England have much money but they cannot take it just anywhere they want to because England will stop them. In America there are many Jews with much property but they cannot freely take everything they own to another country either. This is the reality. Israel is cut in two just like Korea is cut in two.
The Jewish people are puzzled about why a chosen people could be subjected to so much misery and injustice. Non-Jews cannot explain what took place in history either, but this is simple to comprehend once one has a glimpse of what has been happening throughout history.
The futures of Korea and Israel can shake the future of the world. The more problems that originate there, the more tension there will be in the world. The situation of South and North Korea is not just the division of a country. It is unique in that the whole free world is sympathetic to South Korea while the communist bloc supports North Korea. Neither side can lay a finger on the other without stirring up worldwide opposition.
The religious issue is also prominent at this particular time because the Unification Church happens to be from South Korea. Korea has become the center of controversy for the entire world and on every continent people know about the Korean minister, Reverend Moon. Spiritually speaking, Korea now occupies the crucial center, while the Jewish people hold the key to material things. Eventually these two must become united. History wants to see the Jewish nation harmonized with Christianity.
Historically speaking, the central religions in the providence are like three brothers; the eldest brother is the Jewish religion, Christianity is the second brother, and the Unification Church is the youngest brother. To actualize the pattern of the three brothers in the world, all the Arab countries have to become one centering around the Jewish nation; centering around Christianity the Western world must become one and centering around the Unification Church all Asia must become one. The world situation can be narrowed down to that. South America and Africa are mainly Christian and in that sense they are extensions of the West.
Who will bring these three together? The restoration process involves going on a reverse path, and once the purpose is fulfilled, the Unification Church will take the position of oldest brother, while Christianity and Judaism will be the second and third brothers. How can this third brother take the position of eldest? Heaven will do that because the Unification Church has the ability to bring these three brothers into unity. In other words, since the eldest brother has failed to make these three into one, the youngest one, who will succeed in bringing the world into unity, will inherit the position of the eldest.
Most of you come from Christian backgrounds but in a few more years many young Jews will also come. Most people automatically accept their parents' traditions without understanding them. That spirit is very good, but we should understand clearly before we believe in something. Before you commit yourself deeply in heart to confidently believe in something you must know about each aspect of it.
The Jewish religion opposes us and the Christian religion opposes us but we oppose neither. Who among these three is capable of uniting all three into one? Then if someone had to be God's first son, who could it be? Because you are Unification Church members you think it will be the Unification Church but what are your reasons?
The Bible promises that the peacemakers will become the sons of God. Each nation in the democratic world opposes us without any substantial reason. The communist world opposes us like it opposes everyone who isn't communist, but what about us? The only reason we speak out against communism is so we can teach the communists about God. We are making peace with them too. All Cains and Abels on God's side as well as all of creation will become completely one, each one obeying the other. Then they will make an offering to God and completely separate themselves from evil. Once God accepts this offering the history of sorrow will be over.
Most people in the world believe that each nation should remain autonomous and they criticize me for stirring up America when I am a Korean. Now they say, "Now he comes to England! Why doesn't he just go back to Korea and stay there?" I cannot. If I did then I could not function in my own country. During this period, which not even our members understand in detail, I will go to Europe and then back to Asia; then eventually I will return to America where my cause is.
In this period you and I must complete the condition of all the world's indemnity. While America is opposing me I would like to see all Europe become united with me. If Europe cannot do this then it won't complete its own purpose. No matter what happens in any part of Europe we must always be completely one. It is impractical for me to go to each country, but by bringing representatives from each country to work together here, all of Europe will eventually share the same blessing. England may have been the enemy of many other nations in the past, but now those nations are working hard for England.
We only see the results now but when we dig into the original cause we see that the cause and the result are consistent. Even in religion we have to be reasonable, checking all the evidence and explaining it logically. Then we can commit our hearts and everything that is precious to us.
Even after basically understanding the foundations of everything, we still suffer very much. Do you welcome this suffering or do you reject it? No one wants to suffer much so how can you say you welcome your own suffering? Your fate is to be restored. The whole nation is to be restored. In other words, if Abel sacrifices everything for the sake of the Cain on God's side and Cain sacrifices for the sake of Abel, then together they will sacrifice for the sake of God. Finally, only through the parents can we gain life in the true sense and then go to God. This is the original procedure.
The more you become aware of the meaning of "True Parents", the more significant that becomes to you. Only through True Parents can the entire world be dedicated to God. If True Parents did not exist, the world could never be dedicated to God and the fallen world could continue, having nothing to do with God. This is how important True Parents are in the consummation of religion.
That's the meaning behind all your work here. You are actually not sacrificing only for your own country, which you thought was difficult enough, but in some cases for a country which may even have been an enemy before. As I said, you must make a condition for restoration, having each of the necessary three elements. In the parental position you are restoring three members in your own country, like restoring Cain and Abel.
If you can accomplish all that I have asked of you, I can begin to give my responsibility over to you. Strictly speaking, I can delegate all responsibility to you if you are prepared. If something had happened to me ten or twenty years ago then the world would still be doomed to total misery, but not any longer. At this historical point, even were I to go to spirit world you could still carry out the will of God. The will of God is now solidly founded on earth.
Let us pray.