Sun Myung Moon
April 16, 1996
Excerpt
The US capital, Washington DC
The inaugural banquet of the Washington Times Foundation
For a son to be born on earth with this seed of God's love and life, a mother must first exist. Such a mother cannot give birth to this child in a conventional way. Conception must happen in accordance with the formula of restoration.
All the cooperation between mothers and sons in the providence of restoration is a preparation and a condition for the son of God to be born with the seed of new life, free from satanic accusation. By making conditions to avoid Satan's attacks, and by subordinating the firstborn son who represents evil, mother and son restore the love, life and lineage that Satan had taken over.
The Bible, which records the providential work of God, contains many stories that are difficult to understand. For example, Rebekah deceived her husband Isaac and her first son Esau, and helped her second son Jacob receive the blessing. God took the side of that mother and son, and although they used methods that at first glance seem unjust, God still blessed them for their actions.
In Adam's family, Cain and Abel fought and their struggle resulted in the death of Abel, the second son. Then came Jacob. On the merits of many godly people who paid indemnity and sacrificed after the time of Abel, Jacob at last caught up to the level at which Satan first dominated humankind. Jacob had to deal with his twin brother, Esau. At the ford of Jabbok, Jacob set up the condition of spiritual victory over the angel, and through winning over Esau, who was in the position of the archangel. Jacob consequently was blessed as the first victor in history, and was given the name "Israel." (Gen. 32:28) By then, however, Jacob was forty years old. Satan had sown the seed of false love within the womb of Eve, which gave birth to evil life. Therefore, God needed to purify a mother's womb from which the heavenly son could be born. That purification period of separation from Satan had to begin at the time of conception and continue to the age of forty. Even though Jacob was victorious, he made only one step toward meeting that criterion. The great mother who assumed the responsibility to meet this condition was Tamar.
Tamar had married Er, Judah's eldest son, but Er displeased God and he died. According to the custom of that time, Judah gave Tamar to his second son, Onan, that they might bear a child for Er. Onan, knowing that Tamar's child would not be his own, spilled his semen on the ground. This was a sin in the eyes of God, for which Onan died. Then Tamar wanted Shelah, Judah's third son, for a husband, but Judah did not give him to her. Judah thought that his two sons had died because of Tamar, so he was afraid that Shelah would die and end the family line.
Tamar had the conviction that she was meant to carry on the chosen people's lineage. In order to do that, she disguised herself as a prostitute and slept with her father-in-law, Judah, and became pregnant with twins. At the time of birth, one of the twin sons, Zerah, stretched out his hand from the womb to be born first. When he was pulled back into the womb, the second son, Perez, was born first, taking the position of the elder brother.
Thus, within the womb of Tamar, the first and second sons fought, and their reversal of position was the condition that separated them from Satan. In other words, this became the condition for restoration in the womb. Upon this condition, the Messiah could be conceived within the chosen people's bloodline, on the foundation of the nation of Israel, which would be able to stand up to the Roman Empire two thousand years later. The victorious foundation on the national level could then form in the womb of a mother free from satanic accusation, prepared for the seed of God's son. On this foundation, Holy Mother Mary emerged in the mainstream of God's providence.
God's first love
Mary, when she was engaged to Joseph, received from the archangel Gabriel the surprising message that the Messiah would be born through her (Luke 1:31). In those days, if an unmarried woman became pregnant she was killed. However, Mary accepted God's will with absolute faith, saying, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38)
Mary consulted the high priest Zechariah, who was her relative and was highly respected. Zechariah's wife Elizabeth, with the help of God, was pregnant with John the Baptist. Elizabeth said to Mary, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! Why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Luke 1:42–43) With these words, she testified to the coming birth of Jesus.
True Parents at the inauguration of the Washington Times Foundation at which True Father gave this landmark speech, which In Jin Moon interpreted into English
In this way, God let Mary, Zechariah and Elizabeth know about the birth of the Messiah before anybody else. All of them had the crucial mission of following God's will and serving Jesus. Zechariah's family let Mary stay in their house. Jesus was conceived in Zechariah's house.
Elizabeth and Mary were cousins on their mothers' side. According to God's providence, they were considered sisters, with Elizabeth as the elder (Cain) and Mary as the younger (Abel). Mary received Elizabeth's help in the presence of Zechariah.
Through this cooperation, Zechariah's family, on the national level, indemnified the lack of unity between Leah and Rachel in Jacob's family, and their failure in mother–son cooperation.
This allowed Jesus to be conceived. For the first time in history, there could be generated on earth, free of satanic accusation and through a prepared womb, the seed of God's son, the seed of the True Father. In this way, God's only begotten son, the owner of the first love of God, was born for the first time in history.
Mary had to achieve something that through common sense was incomprehensible and was nearly intolerable under the law of those times. Mary, Elizabeth and Zechariah had been spiritually moved. They followed the revelation that came from God, and unconditionally believed that it was God's will and desire.
Although it was possible for God's son to be born on earth, he needed a wall of protection to grow up safely in Satan's world and to fulfill God's will. God had hoped that these three people in Zechariah's family would establish that protective foundation.
There are many points to consider with regard to how seriously the three had to dedicate themselves to protecting and serving God's son, and how long they were to have been united with one another.
In the Bible it is recorded, "And Mary remained with her [Elizabeth] about three months, and then returned to her home." (Luke 1:56) After that, there is no biblical record of any further communication between Mary and Elizabeth and Zechariah. From the time Mary left Zechariah's house, difficulties began for Mary and Jesus. The family of Zechariah ought to have been the wall of protection for Jesus until the very end.
A short time later, Joseph discovered that Mary was pregnant. How great must have been his shock at that moment! Mary, his beloved fiancée, without having had any conjugal relationship with him, had become pregnant after a three-month stay in another place. It was natural for Joseph to question Mary about who the baby in her womb belonged to. What would have happened if at that time Mary had explained everything candidly? If she had exposed everything, it could have been the end of a clan. So Mary simply responded that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit.
Mary's pregnancy began to show, and the people of the surrounding area became aware of it. What would have happened if Joseph had declared that he did not know anything about it? However, Joseph was a righteous man. He believed in the revelation of God and defended Mary, saying the pregnancy was his responsibility. Mary may have been ridiculed for becoming pregnant during her engagement, yet she avoided being stoned to death.
Joseph, who loved Mary, protected her in this way in the beginning. However, there was a great deal of anguish deep in his heart. Once Jesus was born, Joseph's suspicions about Jesus' father only increased and his heart ached. As Jesus grew older, the two became increasingly distant in heart; because of this, family problems frequently arose. Jesus was viewed as an illegitimate son, and lacking the protection of Zechariah's family and the love of Joseph, he grew up with an indescribable loneliness in his heart.
Jesus' three-year course
Jesus was aware of his path as the Messiah, and he lamented by himself these lonely circumstances and the serious obstacle they presented to fulfilling God's will. The Messiah is the True Parent. To fulfill that mission, however, he needed to receive his substantial bride. Jesus had to reverse, at the very root, the false love by which the archangel had caused the fall of Eve, who was originally growing up as Adam's sister. Consequently, Jesus, in the place of Adam as God's son, ought to have received as his bride the younger sister of someone in an archangelic position. That bride was to have been none other than Zechariah's daughter, John the Baptist's younger sister. To fulfill this in a world where Satan plays the role of owner and lord, Jesus needed a foundation of protection formed by absolute faith. Tragically, the entire foundation ended up collapsing around him.