God Bless the Life of Rev. Sun Myung Moon

| September 02 2012

The Reverend Sun Myung Moon, revered by millions as the Messiah and True Parent, who was born in Korea but who lived more than 40 years in America, and who is loved by families of peace the world over, has ascended. In his last hours he was surrounded by our True Mother, his children and close disciples. If the Divine Spark is an ability to love “the Other,” he had it. That incredible gift was his gift to us, and to the Ages.

We are so fortunate to have lived at the same time as the Messiah, who lived an unparalleled life of devotion to God and to God's will to save humanity. Together with his wife, Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, he leaves behind a remarkable legacy, the impact of which will be multiplied in the generations to come. His vision of sacred marriage, of the formation of ideal families and a world of peace has been taken up by millions of people around the world and a second- and third generation of Unificationists.
We are secure in the knowledge that Rev. Moon's vision lives on through the leadership of his wife, Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, who always has shared in the leadership of the Unification Church International, standing together with her husband as the True Parents. In January 2009, Reverend and Mrs. Sun Myung Moon appointed their youngest son, Rev. Hyung Jin Moon, as the spiritual heir and International President of the Unification Church. Under the guidance of Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon and our International President Rev. Hyung Jin Moon, we have tremendous hope for the future of our church worldwide.
The Unification Church in North America is prospering under the leadership of Rev Moon's daughter, Rev. In Jin Moon. The U.S. ministry of the Unification Church, Lovin' Life Ministries, is attracting young people across the country who share the vision and desire to pursue excellence both personally and professionally. Young Unificationists have great pride in their faith and church, and Lovin' Life Ministries has taken Rev. Moon's vision to the next generation of Americans.
In the Unification tradition, death is not an ending of one's life but rather a new beginning. Rev. Moon always encouraged us to live in harmony with the eternal world, so we understand that Rev. Moon is very much with us.
Rev. Joshua Cotter, Vice President of the Unification Church USA

Like a Fireball Burning Hot

After graduating from the Kyongsong Institute in 1942, I traveled
to Japan to continue my studies. I went because I felt that
I needed to have exact knowledge about Japan. On the train
to Busan, I couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. I covered myself with
my coat and cried out loud. My nose ran and my face swelled up, I cried
so much. It grieved me to think that I was leaving my country behind as
it suffered under the yoke of colonial rule. I looked out the window as I
wept, and I could see that the hills and rivers were weeping even more
sorrowfully than I was. I saw with my own eyes the tears flowing from
the grass and trees. Upon seeing this vision, I said, “I promise to the
hills and streams of my homeland that I will return, carrying with me
the liberation of my homeland. So don’t cry, but wait for me.”
I boarded the Busan-to-Shimonoseki ferry at two o’clock in the
morning on April 1. There was a strong wind that night, but I could not
leave the deck. I stayed there watching as the lights of Busan became
more and more distant. I stayed on deck until morning. On arriving
in Tokyo, I entered Waseda Koutou Kougakko, a technical engineering
school affiliated with Waseda University. I studied in the electrical
engineering department. I chose electrical engineering because I felt I
could not establish a new religious philosophy without knowing modern
engineering.
The invisible world of mathematics has something in common with
religion. To do something great, a person needs to excel in powers of
reasoning. Perhaps because of my large head, I was good at mathematics
that others found difficult, and I enjoyed studying it. My head was so
large it was difficult for me to find hats that fit. I had to go to the factory
twice to have a hat tailor-made for me. The size of my head may also
have something to do with my ability to focus on something and finish
relatively quickly what might take others several years to complete.
During my studies in Japan, I peppered my teachers with questions,
just as I had in Korea. Once I began asking questions, I would continue
and continue. Some teachers would pretend not to see me and simply
ignore me when I asked, “What do you think about this?” If I had any
doubts about something, I couldn’t be satisfied until I had pursued the
matter all the way to the root. I wasn’t deliberately trying to embarrass
my teachers. I felt that, if I were going to study a subject, I should study
it completely.
On my desk in the boarding house, I always had three Bibles lying
open side by side. One was in Korean, one in Japanese, and one in
English. I would read the same passages in three languages again and
again. Each time I read a passage, I would underline verses and make
notes in the margins until the pages of my Bibles became stained with
black ink and difficult to read.
Soon after school began, I attended an event held by the Association
of Korean Students to welcome new students from our country. There
I sang a song from our homeland with great fervor, showing everyone
my love for my country. The Japanese police were in attendance, and
this was a time when Koreans were expected to assimilate themselves
into Japanese culture. Nonetheless, I sang the Korean song with pride.
Dong Moon Eom, who had entered the department of architectural
engineering that year, was deeply moved to hear me sing this song, and
we became lifelong friends.
During this time, Korean students who were enrolled in various
schools in the Tokyo area had formed an underground independence
movement. This was only natural, as our homeland was groaning in
agony under Japanese colonial rule.
The movement grew in response to what the Japanese called “the
Great East Asian War (1937–1945). As the war intensified, Tokyo began
conscripting Korean students as “student soldiers” and sending them
to the front. The work of the underground independence movement
was spurred on by such moves. We had extensive debates on what to do
about Hirohito, the Japanese emperor. I took on a major position in the
movement. It involved working in close relationship with the Republic
of Korea Provisional Government, located in Shanghai and headed by
Kim Gu. My responsibilities in this position could have required me to
give up my life. I did not hesitate, though, because I felt that, if I died, it
would have been for a righteous cause.
There was a police station beside Waseda University. The Japanese
police got wind of my work and kept a sharp eye on me. The police
always knew when I was about to return home to Korea during school
vacation and would follow me to the dock to make sure I left. I cannot
even remember the number of times I was taken into custody by
the police, beaten, tortured, and locked in a cell. Even under the worst
torture, however, I refused to give them the information they sought.
The more they beat me, the bolder I became. Once I had a fight on the
Yotsugawa Bridge with police who were chasing me. I ripped out a piece
of the bridge railing and used it as a weapon in the fight. In those days,
I was a ball of fire.

август 2012 56 выпуск ВЕСТНИК МИРА ЕВРАЗИИ Ежемесячный бюллетень, посвященный деятельности Послов мира и Федерации за всеобщий мир в странах СНГ и Евразии Содержание: UPF и ООН: 21 сентября - Международный день мира Семинары и встречи, Межрелигиозные молодежные проекты: Грузия, Молдова, Эстония, Ценностно-ориентированное добровольчество Спорт за мир Календарь событий Подписка на рассылку АНОНСЫ Конференция "Европа и Россия - партнеры в мире глобализации" 12-13 октября 2012г. г. Вена, Австрия Уважаемые Послы мира! Приглашаем вас принять участие в работе международной конференции по лидерству. На заседаниях будут рассматриваться вопросы: Европа и Россия – партнеры в мире глобализации; Ценности, видение, идентичность – мобильность и культурное многообразие в странах Европы и в России; Европейская мечта и российская идея; Будущее Европы и России  – перспективы для молодежи; Роль женщин в XXI веке в Европе и в России; Достижение устойчивого развития – Европа и Россия, в продолжение «Рио+20». Подробнее о мероприятии и об условиях участия - в начало - UPF И ООН Ежегодно Федерация за всеобщий мир отмечает учрежденный ООН Международный день мира. Отделения нашей организации в странах бывшего Советского Союза, Послы мира, партнеры и активисты проводят масштабные акции, призывая к миру в душе, в семье и на всей планете. В 2012 году ООН призывает провести День мира под лозунгом «Устойчивый мир ради устойчивого будущего». Подробнее... Конкурс сочинений "Как я провел лето 2012: начало или конец мира?" 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A Key to Unlock a Great Secret

Just as I had climbed all the mountain peaks around my hometown, I explored every corner of Seoul. In those days, there was a streetcar line that ran from one end of the city to another. The price of a ticket was just five jeon, but I didn’t want to spend that money and would walk all the way into the center of the city. On hot summer days, I would be dripping with sweat as I walked, and on frigid winter days I would walk almost at a run, as if piercing my way through a bitter arctic wind. I walked so quickly that I could go from Heuksok Dong, across the Han River to the Hwa Shin Department Store on Jong Ro in just forty-five minutes. Most people would take an hour and a half, so you can imagine how quickly I was walking. I saved the price of a streetcar
ticket and gave the money to people who needed it more than I did. It was such a small amount it was embarrassing to give it, but I gave it with a heart that desired to give a fortune. I gave it with a prayer that this money would be a seed for the person to receive many blessings. Every April, my family would send me money for tuition. But I couldn’t stand by and watch people around me who were in financial difficulty, so the money wouldn’t even last to May. Once, when I was on my way to school, I came across a person who was so sick he seemed about to die. I felt so bad for him I couldn’t pass him by. I carried him
on my back to a hospital about a mile and a quarter away. I had the money I intended to use to pay my tuition, so I paid the bill. However, once I paid the hospital, I had nothing left. In the following days, the school repeatedly demanded I pay my tuition. My friends felt sorry for me and took up a collection for me. I can never forget the friends who helped me through that situation.
The giving and receiving of help is a relationship that is matched in
heaven. You might not realize it at the time, but thinking back later, you
may understand, “Oh, so that’s why God sent me there at that time!”
So if a person who needs your help suddenly appears before you, you
should realize that Heaven sent you to that person to help him, and
then do your best. If Heaven wants you to give the person ten units of
help, it won’t do if you only give him five. If Heaven says to give him ten,
you should give him a hundred. When helping someone, you should be
ready, if necessary, to empty your wallet.
In Seoul, I came across baram ddok, literally “wind rice cake,” for
the first time in my life. These are colorful rice cakes made in a beautiful
design. When I first saw one, I was amazed at how wonderful they
looked. When I bit into one, however, I discovered they had no filling,
only air. They just collapsed in my mouth.
This made me realize something about Seoul at that time. Seoul was
just like a wind rice cake. I understood why people in Seoul were often
thought of as misers by other Koreans. On the surface, Seoul seemed
like a world filled with rich and important people. In reality, though, it
was full of poor people. Many beggars, clothed only in rags, lived under
the Han River Bridge. I visited them, cut their hair for them, and shared
my heart with them. Poor people have many tears. They have a lot of
sorrow pent up in their hearts. I would just say a few words to someone,
and he would break down in tears. Sometimes, one of them would hand
me rice he had been given as he begged. He would hand it to me with hands
caked in dirt. I never refused the food. I received it with a joyful heart.
I attended church every Sunday in my hometown, and I continued
this practice in Seoul. Mainly, I attended the Myungsudae Jesus Church
located in Heuksok Dong and the Seobinggo Pentecostal Church that
held services on a stretch of sand on the opposite shore of the Han
River. On cold winter days, as I was walking across the frozen river
to Seobinggo Dong, the ice would make crackling sounds under my
feet. At church I served as a Sunday School teacher. The children always
enjoyed my interesting lessons. I am no longer as adept at telling jokes
as I was when I was young, but back then I could tell funny stories.
When I wept, they wept with me, and when I laughed, they laughed
along with me. I was so popular with them that they would follow me
around wherever I went.
Behind Myungsudae is Mount Seodal, also known as Mount Darma.
I would often climb up on a large boulder on Mount Darma and spend
the night in prayer. In hot weather and in cold, I immersed myself in
prayer without missing a night. Once I entered into prayer, I would
weep, and my nose would start to run. I would pray for hours over words
I had received from God. His words were like coded messages, and I felt
I needed to immerse myself even more deeply in prayer. Thinking back
on it now, I realize that even then God had placed in my hands the key
that unlocked the door to secrets. However, I wasn’t able to open the
door, because my prayers were insufficient. I was so preoccupied that,
when I ate my meals, it didn’t feel as though I were eating. At bedtime,
I would close my eyes, but I couldn’t fall asleep.
Other students rooming in the same house didn’t realize I was going
up on the hill to pray. They must have felt I was somehow different,
though, because they related to me with respect. Generally, we got
along well, making each other laugh by telling funny stories. I can relate
well with anyone. If an old woman comes to me, I can be her friend. If
children come, I can play with them. You can have communication of
heart with anyone by relating to them with love.
Mrs. Gi Wan Lee became close to me after she was inspired by my
prayers during early-morning services at the church. We maintained
our friendship for more than fifty years, until she left this world at age
eighty. Her younger sister, Mrs. Gi Bong Lee, was always busy managing
the rooming house, but she related to me with warmth. She would say
she didn’t feel right unless she could find something to do for me. She
would try to give me extra side dishes for my meals. I didn’t talk much
and wasn’t much fun, so I don’t know why she would want to treat me
so well. Some time later, when the Japanese colonial police were holding
me in the Kyounggi Province Police Station, she brought me clothes
and food. Even now it warms my heart to think of her.
There was also a Mrs. Song who ran a small store near my rooming
house. She helped me a lot during this time. She would say that anyone
who lives away from his hometown is always hungry, and she would
bring me items from her store that she had not been able to sell. It was a
small store, and she barely made enough money to support herself, but
she always took care of me with a kind heart.
One day, we held a service on a sandy stretch by the Han River. When
it came time for lunch, everyone found a place to sit down and eat. I was
in the habit of not eating lunch and didn’t feel comfortable sitting there
doing nothing while others ate. I quietly walked away from the group
and found a place to sit on a pile of rocks. Mrs. Song saw me there and
brought me two pieces of bread and some flavored ice. How grateful I
felt! These were just one jeon apiece, and only four jeon in total, but I
have never been able to forget the gratitude I felt in that moment.
I always remember when someone helps me, no matter how small it
may be. Even now that I am ninety years old, I can recite from memory
all the times that people helped me and what they did for me. I can
never forget the people who did not hesitate to put themselves to great
trouble on my behalf and generously gave me their blessings.
If I receive a favor, it is important to me that I repay it. If I cannot
meet the person who did this for me, it is important for me to remember
that person in my heart. I need to live with the sincere thought that
I will repay the person by helping someone else.