Unification News for August 1999

Spiritual Life at Chung Pyung Workshop

Michael Hentrich
Casper, WY
August, 1999

I realize that some people may be tired of seeing Chung Pyung Workshop testimonies after all these years, but for those of you who aren’t….

Our family of four just returned from a 10-day workshop in Chung Pyung Lake. Our children are 13 and 15 years old. I was so grateful that the kids were able to digest that experience. My hope in going to Chung Pyung was to experience something that would help my mission and my blessing.

The first thing that struck us was the nearly completed Chung Pyung Temple. It is a breathtaking marble construction worthy of being True Parents home and Training Center overlooking the lake. But, as Dae Mo Nim said to us, it is already probably too small for the anticipated throngs to come. A hospital is also on the drawing board, in addition to two other new buildings currently under construction there now.

The next thing that overwhelmed us was the number of Japanese and Korean members who were attending workshops there. Weekends would see about 2,000 guests roll through for an Ancestor Liberation Workshop, for example. This happened three times when we were there, actually, including a new mid-week workshop. From missionaries to businessmen in suits, all were new faces.

The next thing that was very humbling to me was the number of Japanese and Eastern European members who spoke fluent Korean. In fact, quite a few young Japanese members were attending the Korean members’ 40-Day Workshop. I was speechless. Of course, I realize that some people have Korean spouses or are working or studying in Korea, etc., but this is not enough to explain what we saw in terms of mastery of Korean language.

Personally, I’m sure that I could have pushed myself more at Chung Pyung, as a general rule, but then I would always feel compelled to say that. I did push my limitations a lot. I eventually got the famous Chung Pyung phlegm and sore throat, but at that point I started to have some spiritual experiences there.

The first was when we were walking out of Dae Mo Nim’s prayer room and a voice said to me very clearly, "She (your wife) is not Japanese. She’s Korean." I was so surprised and shocked. Mr. Lee had just explained that many Japanese suffered from the resentment of Korean comfort women. I immediately could see it in my wife. That explained to me why she had continually attacked me for any or no reason since early on in our family life. Before that time, she was happy and sweet. But, at one point, when she started to feel that I did not sincerely care about her in her pregnant condition, and that I was being heartless, she then changed into a very different person from that time on. The Korean comfort woman scenario seemed to explain everything. Later, as we left the Tree of Blessing, another voice said to me that this was why Father picked a gentle-type man for her. She had always resented my being somewhat gentle in nature, but then I understood that the resentful spirit was best served by such a husband. This, also, seemed to make sense.

Another time, when I was most sick with this phlegm and cough, I was trying to sleep and found that my lungs were filling up. I was wheezing and getting pretty concerned that maybe I was getting pneumonia or something. I was starting to get very concerned and thought maybe I would need to go to a hospital or something. Then a very clear and ethereal-feeling personality came to me (I didn’t actually see any spirits during this time.) and gently and warmly instructed me in precisely what I should do in this situation. It clearly said to me, "Cover yourself up, and lay first on your left side and then switch to your right side." It was clear as a bell and felt very personal and intimate. As I followed these steps, my lungs cleared up and I could sleep. From this time on, the sickness gradually got better. It was very dramatic.

Finally, I realized later in the workshop that I and my ancestors had hurt people many times heartistically, especially my mother, wife and grandmother, etc., women in general. I did An Su from this perspective and tried to liberate resentful spirits in the area of the heart, as instructed by Dae Mo Nim. Something very unexpected happened. First of all, for years I had had no endurance whatsoever, in terms of my physical heart. When climbing the hills to the Holy Trees at Chung Pyung, for example, I would literally have to stop every 50 feet, like an old man. I am only 47. There was no exception to this. I told my wife that I thought maybe my arteries were not open and that these days many people my age were getting bypass surgery to open the arteries around their heart. But, when I entered the room to begin this An Su, a spirit warned or threatened me that I was going to die if I proceeded with this An Su. Usually I would heed such a warning or threat, so I considered whether or not I should leave the room. Then, in the end, I stayed and finished the An Su session. Nothing happened, and this left me suspicious. After that, I was amazed by one thing. I no longer needed to take a break every 50 feet going up the hills. In fact, I shocked my wife by walking all the way from the top building to the first tree with no stops. Then, I walked all the way from the Water of Life to the half-way point on the way to the Tree of Blessing, where the trail turns sharply left, again, without a stop. This was unbelievable. Then, I walked the rest of the way up to the Tree of Blessing. It seems that my heart was being choked by some resentful spirit, and probably for justifiable reasons.

Those who have worked with me and know me personally know that I am not a person who normally has such a flow of spiritual experiences as this. But, in the context of Chung Pyung, this is what happened to me. In the end, I can’t say that I experienced anything that would directly impact my mission, unfortunately, but then our blessing experiences and our mission experiences are hardly separate and distinct from each other. I would say they are very much related. So, we shall see. I would say to anyone considering their first trip to Chung Pyung, go as soon as you can, but know that as in all spiritual contexts, you will get out of it only to the measure that you put yourself into it.

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