Filial Attendance: The Way of Filial Piety of Holy Sons and Daughters of God - Elio Roman
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Filial Attendance: The Way of Filial Piety of Holy Sons and Daughters of God - Elio Roman |
Holy sons and daughters of God have the heart of filial piety and express filial attendance to God, their Heavenly Parent. Holy sons and daughters of God have established the Parent and child relationship. The character of sons and daughters of filial piety in the family level undergoes vertical development through their attendance at higher public levels. The way of filial piety is to express filial attendance for one's parents and to live a public life for the sake of the family. The public way of life of filial attendance then leads to the development of the heart of a patriot who vertically attends the sovereign and lives a public life for the sake of the nation, a saint who attends God and lives a public life on the world level, and then holy sons and daughters who attend God vertically and live a public life on the cosmic level. Holy sons and daughters of God are higher than saints; saints are higher than patriots; and patriots are higher than sons and daughters of filial piety in the family.
As one progressively develops from filial child in the family, to patriot in the nation, to saint in the world, to holy son and daughter of God in the cosmos, one's character and personality develops to their fullest potential endowed by their Creator and Parent, God. This is the realization and perfection of the Parent and child relationship.
Confucius in a similar teaching said, "Filial piety commences with service to parents; it proceeds with service to the sovereign; it is completed by the establishment of one's own personality."1 He said that the son who is filial to his parents matures and becomes a "superior man" (chun tzu). Further development occurs where the "superior man" develops into a "complete man" (ch'eng jen). The "complete man" matures to where he could become ruler of a state, capable of ruling with compassion. The "complete" man then matures into a sage or saint who would be concerned with all humankind and not any particular group or race. One's true personality in the image and likeness of God emerges as one progresses to higher stages of public life. True Parents include in their teachings one higher stage of development than did Confucius. That level is the perfection stage where the saint develops into a holy son and daughter of God, that is, a filial son and daughter of God in the cosmos.
It is the wish and the longing of the Heavenly Parent for holy sons and daughters of God to emerge. Holy sons and daughters of God live a life of filial attendance to God first and above all.
Moshinda is attendance. Filial attendance is the first realm of heart established by God's children as true object partners. The way of life of filial sons and daughters of God is called attendance (moshinda.) It is by attending God and True Parents that we become filial sons and daughters who are representative and central families of the cosmos. The primary responsibility of the representative families of the cosmos is expressing filial piety to God and True Parents through their vertical attendance. Parental love is the vertical expression of love of God to His children. Parental love and filial attendance are top down and bottom up vertical relationships. This establishes the Heavenly Parent and child relationships which are the pillars of the cosmos.
Through our filial attendance to God and True Parents we inherit a "subject" element. This "subject" element is referred to as the Three Subjects Thought which says that we mature and become true parents, true teachers and true owners. Blessed central families attend God and True Parents. Filial attendance includes becoming representatives of God and True Parents by taking on their responsibilities. Once we establish the Parent and child relationship through our attendance to God and True Parents, we then fulfill the Three Subjects Thought. Blessed central families inherit the heart of God and True Parents and become true parents, true teachers and true owners in their own right. As representatives of God and True Parents blessed central families take on the work and responsibilities of God and True Parents and multiply God's blessings to their surroundings, which include their families, tribes, communities, nation, world, cosmos, and nature. We can fulfill our responsibilities as representatives of God and True Parents through our Tribal Messiah activities. As Tribal Messiahs who fulfill the Three Subjects Thought we restore our families, our home churched families, and leaders of the community. We can liberate the suffering of God by becoming filial sons and daughters who attend God and True Parents.
When we inherit and embody the Heart of God and become the representatives of God and True Parents we cannot bear to see mankind suffering and we seek their salvation. This heart of love is the heart that Moses had for the Israelites. While he was in exile in the desert he suffered in great anguish as he waited for the opportunity to liberate his people. This is the heart of love the Buddha had for a suffering humanity. This is the heart of love Socrates had for the citizens. This heart of love is the heart that Martin Luther King Jr. has for his people. This is the heart of love that Mother Teresa had for the lepers and those suffering in India. This heart of love is the heart that Jesus had for the Israelites and for mankind. This is also the heart of love that Muhammad had for his people.
The fact that the Jews love Moses so much, that Buddhists love Buddha so much, that mankind loves Socrates so much, that Afro-American love Martin Luther King Jr. so much, that people love Mother Teresa so much, that Christians love Jesus so much, that Muslims love Muhammad so much, is an expression of their filial attendance as a result of the great love that these saints had for God and for mankind. These saints shed tears for the suffering they saw. They are representatives of God and embodied the heart and love of God. The heart of Unificationists needs to grow and become representatives of God and True Parents. They need to inherit the heart and love of God and True Parents. The heart of love that the great saints had for their people is the heart of love the followers of the great religions of the world need to develop for all mankind. This is the Heart of God.
In the history of mankind there have been great men and women who have to a large degree embodied the heart of filial attendance to God. These are the great saints, the providential figures, and men and women of deep faith, many of whom lived their lives unrecognized by most of the people on earth, but they are recognized by God.
The creation is also waiting for the appearance of the holy sons and daughters of God. In the Bible we read: "All creation is groaning in travail as they wait for the revealing of the sons and daughters of God." (Rom. 8:22) All creation is waiting for their owners, the lords of creation.
What God had hoped from His children, Adam and Eve, was to see them become filial children, patriots, saints, and a divine son and daughter when they grew up. God hopes that you will do the same, but have you ever thought that you must become a filial child in your family, a patriot in your nation, a saint in the world, or a divine child in heaven and earth?
Viewed historically, all the saints and great religious leaders have taught people to become filial children, patriots, saints, and divine children. Religions that do not teach this will not endure for long. In any case, that is the predestined course that humankind is following.
Destiny is to do with such things as the relationship between the parents and the children. You cannot change that destiny. There are some things in your fortune that you can change, but you cannot change those aspects of destiny.
If you do not understand these things, you will not be able to fulfill the role of true parents in your families. As true parents, you should teach your children how to become filial children, patriots, saints, and divine sons and daughters. You have to teach them to fulfill all these with you and beyond that in front of God. (287-23, 1997.8.10)
I am trying to create the tradition of the holy son -- "seung ja" in Korean. Every member of the Unification Church, regardless of what race or culture he comes from, can practice this same principle and become a holy child of God. That is our ultimate goal. (1987.7.1, Unofficial)
To be a divine son or daughter requires having a loving heart like God's heart. (129-96, 1983.10.1)
People absolutely need to fulfill the duties of devoted children, loyal patriots, saints, and holy children. Due to the Fall, saints are needed; the way of holy sons and daughters is waiting to be perfected. (285-91, 1997.4.21)
Suppose that you were handed over to Satan. Only if he is unable to touch you even in that situation and tells God that you are undoubtedly God's filial son can you truly be a filial son of God. (The Way -- 410)
You should know that God exists near you and is concerned about each of you more than anyone else. People think that the love of their own family is the greatest in this world. However, you should know that God's love is greater and deeper than that love; it is deeper and greater than any human love in this world. You should be embraced in God's love and be able to call Him, "Father." You should become such true sons and daughters who deeply experience God's internal heart in a position that says, "I know the Father's sorrow." If you can become such sons and daughters, and possess the Kingdom of Heaven in which you attend God, no one would be able to take that kingdom away from you. (2-234, 1957.6.2)
The pledge of our Unification Church says we pledge to "represent and become central to heaven and earth by attending God and True Parents; we pledge to perfect the dutiful family way of filial sons and daughters in our family, patriots in our nation, saints in the world, and divine sons and daughters in heaven and earth, by centering on true love." This is impossible without investment. (274-114, 1995.10.29)
In the family, those who are willing to offer even their lives for the sake of their parents are filial sons or daughters. Those determined to live sacrificing their lives for their nations are patriots. Those who are resolved to save the human race and who are willing to go the way of death several times over for the world, and who resolve to offer themselves even again are saints, and those living and dying for the sake of heaven and earth are divine sons and daughters. Those kinds of people are remembered in history. (275-136, 1995.12.4)
What do you think God wants from His children? Is it for them to make a lot of money and become millionaires? Is it to be the president, holding the most power in the country? What God wanted from His son and daughter, Adam and Eve, was for them to grow up to be children of filial piety, patriots, saints, and divine sons and daughters. (299-117, 1999.2.7)
Have you ever thought to become a child of filial piety in the family, to become a patriot in the nation, to become a saint in the world, or to become a divine son or daughter before heaven and earth in accordance with God's own thinking? From the viewpoint of history, all the saints have been teaching about becoming children of filial piety, patriots, saints, and divine sons and daughters. (287-23, 1997.8.10)
Next is life. How shall we live to become God's partner and return joy to Him? In other words, how shall we live to become children of God, people whom God delights to call "My son," or "My daughter," because He sees in us a divinity equal to His own? How can we become God's partners in completing the work of Creation, partners who will inherit the entire creation?
This is my answer: We should emulate the ideal that God set up at the beginning of His creative acts. At the beginning of the Creation, God acted upon the principle of living for the sake of others. In other words, He acted for the sake of those whom He created as His longed-for partners in true love. The practice of true love formed the core of His initial creative act.
Therefore, to become God's children, our first responsibility is to resemble Him. We need to embody true love. The way to embody true love begins with living as a devoted child, then a patriot, a saint, and finally a divine son or daughter of God. At that stage we can experience the innermost emotions of God's heart and resolve the grief that He has experienced for tens of thousands of years since the Fall of Adam and Eve. (Messages of Peace 1 -- 14, 2005.9.12)
Being parents who are dealing with a true, genuine, filial son or daughter is more difficult than dealing with the ruler of a nation. You must be careful about every word you say and everything you do. What does that mean? In your families, you must show how you would attend the nation's ruler. Once parents attend their children in this way, their children cannot relate with them in a rash manner.
Those children whose parents treat them with cautious respect tend to be careful in attending their parents and do not say even one word without thought. They will think things over several times before speaking. (285-16, 1997.4.19)
What do you have to become? You must become a patriot. What is a patriot? Does being a patriot mean devoting one's effort for the nation's ruler? No. You should know that those who know how to serve the people as they would serve the nation's ruler are patriots. What is a child of filial piety? They are not those who make devoted efforts for their parents. You should know that those who make devoted efforts for their brothers and sisters as they would serve their parents are children of filial piety. What is a saint? They are the people who have sacrificed themselves until now and died for the sake of all humankind. What is a divine son or daughter? Those who reach out to the world centering on God, who serve humankind as they would serve God are divine sons and daughters. The historical saints are those who have died for the sake of the people of the world. And who are the divine sons and daughters of God? They are loyal to God, but as they live for God they also live for the sake of all people. (133-241, 1984.7.19)
After becoming a child of filial piety, a patriot, and a saint, what is next? Being a saint does not make you a divine son or daughter; it doesn't make you God's child. You must become a divine son or daughter. No matter how much you have loved the nation's ruler and its people, you have to know the laws of the heavenly royal palace to be a divine son and daughter. You have to know the method of being in rhythm with the governance of the palace law. (147-281, 1986.10.1)
A child of filial piety lives on even when his household perishes. This is why there are epitaphs of children of filial piety, epitaphs of patriots, and epitaphs of saints. Divine sons and daughters are different from saints. Divine sons and daughters are people who know how to observe not only national laws in the human world but also the laws of the heavenly royal palace. Thus, that which can connect straight to the path of children of filial piety, the path of patriots, and the path of saints is the path of divine sons and daughters. This path is substantial and has a big circumference, but the flow of its core is vertical. (175-213, 1988.4.17)
When we condense the essence of our life course, we will find the fundamental core life paths walked by children of filial piety, by patriots, by saints, and by divine sons and daughters. Would they be paths driven by the heart of wanting to be together and live together regardless of the upper and the lower, transcending the front and back, left and right, and day and night, and going beyond one's own life? This is the conclusion that emerges. (148-258, 1986.10.1)
Among patriots there are numerous sons and daughters of filial piety. However, if you are a patriot, then you automatically receive the rank of being a filial child, even if you are unable to practice that role in front of your parents. In the same way, when you are able to become holy sons and daughters, you will be able to govern the saints. If you were unable to be a devoted child, a patriot or a saint, but gained the position of holy child, you will encompass everything below that.
It is not easy, however, to become a holy child. To become such a person, you must surmount all hardships in order to become the leading patriot among all patriots. As a devoted child, then as a patriot, and all the way up to sainthood, you have to overcome all kinds of difficulties. On the foundation that has the autonomous power to surmount an even higher level, the path of the holy child is achieved. Those who have not passed through each stage of such a course must receive global persecution within a short time. (196-125, 1989.12.31)
In the lives of people centering on love, the devoted child forms the innermost circle, the loyal patriot is the next bigger circle, and the circles get bigger and bigger. They start off small and become larger and larger. The circle of the saint is larger and the circle of the holy child is even bigger than that. That is why the central point of the circle is the devoted child. Children of filial piety are the first stage. The stages of loyal patriots, saints, and holy children follow. They constitute a total of four stages.
The center of these four is the vertical. They are centered on the vertical and the central point of all four circles is one, not two. The center of love is only one. That is why children who are devoted to their parents will not go to hell. People who are loyal to their nation will not go to hell. Even if they do not believe in the Messiah, everything will naturally be solved when they pass on. That is why saints will not go to hell.
I am saying that people who are not filial toward their parents cannot become loyal patriots. What happens with someone who wants to be filial, but has no parents? They would say, "I really want to be a devoted child, but I don't have parents. What should I do?" They have a serious problem. They can plead, "Heavenly Father, please give me parents!" but of course that cannot happen, because the laws of the universe do not work that way. Their parents may have died, or something else might have happened.
Even though you may wish to become a devoted child, if you cannot, then what should you do? You must become a loyal patriot or saint. The position of a saint is higher than that of a devoted child or loyal patriot. (197-44, 1990.1.7)
If, seeing your faithful determination, God takes heart and steps forward to declare, "I am going to tear down this evil world!" then, in that instant, His sphere of activity will expand due to your efforts. This will be a gift of joy from Heaven more wonderful than any coveted position, throne, place of honor, and even awards that would be heaped upon you over not only one but over many lifetimes.
You should determine to confront any kind of persecution in the course of human history and even beyond that. This is the path filial sons and daughters who take on the responsibility to represent the history of eternity should take. This is the way of loyalty to the eternal Kingdom of Heaven. (255-121, 1994.3.10)
Devoted children are people who love their parents and children. The first page is love, the process is love, and the final page is love. The family cannot become the core. Above the family there must be a nation, and its core is the way of the loyal patriot. What does that mean? It means loving your nation. Loyal patriots, saints, and holy sons and daughters are the core; but what kind of core are they all based on? Humankind has not known that the core, the essence, is love; it has never been explained clearly. All of this means that the stable point upon which we can settle in these Last Days and in the future is nothing other than love.
Owing to this, spouses must love each other in order to become children of filial piety. You can become loyal patriots after becoming people of filial piety, and you can become saints after becoming loyal patriots, and after you have become saints, you can become holy sons and daughters.
After becoming holy sons and daughters, you have all the rights of inheritance, and after you become God's sons and daughters, He becomes yours, too. Then everything that He owns becomes yours, and all the things that He can later create for a future filled with hope will become yours. You have to stand in the position of being holy sons and daughters for all things of the past, present, and future to be given to you.
When you stand in this position, nothing in creation will protest. You can then finally speak about the conclusion regarding a unified heaven and earth. (206-175, 1990.10.7)
Noah could overcome intense persecution amidst troubled circumstances by pouring every ounce of energy into his work. He went forth with a humble heart merely to obey God's laws as His faithful and filial child. The more Noah went before God, the more sorrow he felt from his heartless environment, and he would go to God shedding tears of repentance with a sorry heart. No one could block his path.
Just think about Noah who endured for 120 years. The satanic world set all sorts of schemes in motion to attack that one person, Noah, opposing him in every way possible; but he did not deviate in the slightest from the standard God had set. That standard established the absolute center of the cosmos, the man of righteousness of the universe, and the victor of truth. As such, God wanted to eliminate all elements of His enemies who opposed this standard. (18-159, 1967.6.4)
From God's point of view, you have to become a person who can make the internal heart of your people cry. You should also be a person who can realize the internal heart of the cosmos. The filial sons and daughters who can lovingly relate to God even in the position of great misfortune must comfort the heart of the unfortunate head of the household, whether it is the king or the parents. Then such a son and daughter should single-handedly tackle all the problems surrounding the situation and solve them. Those having such a mind of loyalty and filial piety will go to the Kingdom of Heaven. People who think that they can enter Heaven just by believing in Jesus shall in no way do so. These people have vilified and persecuted us to our exasperation and mortification, but we cannot take revenge on them with guns and knives. (19-300, 1968.3.10)
On your path of loyalty to God, you should have the conviction that you will not yield even an inch. Determine that you will go even one extra step more than any other person or loyal subject. Work harder than any person who ever lived on earth. You must live up to a higher standard than those who were loyal to their country and toiled assiduously for the public good. Go even the extra mile. This is an iron rule. (102-98, 1978.11.26)
What kind of people are filial sons and daughters in the family? Filial sons and daughters are those who want to love their parents no matter how much they sacrifice their minds and bodies for them and then still love them even beyond that. What is a patriot? It is someone who sacrifices himself for the nation again and again without caring about his own well being, and who invests and forgets about how much he has invested for the nation. Such a person is a genuine patriot. If there is a man who invests ten times for his nation and forgets about his investment and a man who invests eleven times and forgets about his investment, the one who has invested and forgotten eleven times is in the subject position. Following this principle, everything can be settled in peace. Without love and without the path of living for the sake of others, there is no way to achieve this. (255-190, 1994.3.10)
You have to wonder about whether there is someone else who is being more loyal to Heaven than you are. Would he be from the East or from the West? You have to wonder about this. If there is a loyal person, then what kind of person is he? What kind of work does he do? You have to evaluate this very carefully. (155-248, 1965.10.31)
The family needs filial sons and daughters. A son of filial piety is one who is absolutely one with his parents. A nation's patriots must become absolutely one with the central person of that nation. This is the reality of the universe. There are saints in the world, and people want to become absolutely one with them. Beyond that, throughout heaven and earth people want to become absolutely one with God, who is the center. (262-128, 1994.7.23)
Filial piety wants to follow filial sons and daughters. Although those devoted sons and daughters become old, they follow their heart for their parents, and even their descendants in the future and all their brothers and sisters want to entrust matters to them. We will determine to establish families and a world that move toward God and that God wants. Who will do it? Each of us! Even if it cannot be achieved, if we know God as a God of heart who can entrust us with things to do and support us, and if we have conviction, we cannot come to ruin. (263-170, 1994.8.23)
Walk the way of loyalty unswervingly all the days of your lives. As much as the people around you criticize you, to that degree our sphere of activity will expand toward the global level. Today we have to grapple with our local state of affairs, but as our situation eases, we will start to take on global issues. Let us therefore hasten the day on which God can proudly welcome and bless His sons and daughters who exemplify loyalty to the world. (155-263, 1965.10.31)
Because God wants his partner in love to be better than Himself, that partner can go up to the position where he can tell God what to do. If a devoted son asks his mother and father to come, will they go to the son or not? They will. It is the path of devoted filial sons and daughters, patriots, saints, and divine sons and daughters to have to do new things, whatever they may be. (263-183, 1994.8.23)
As it says in the second pledge, you should be filial sons and daughters in your family and patriots -- that is, loyal citizens -- in the nation. The filial sons and daughters are not the ones in the satanic world on earth. They are the ones who have appeared for the first time, having never existed in history.
God is in grief and sorrow over the loss of Adam's family. That is why God has struggled to find the True Parents. Therefore, you must understand how precious True Parents are. (263-204, 1994.8.21)
Those who live investing their entire life for their parents and then forget what they have invested are called true filial sons and daughters. A true filial son or daughter means that one is the truest among them all.
It is the same in nations; if someone aspires to become a loyal subject or patriot in front of the nation's ruler, he can be called a true patriot when he invests, invests again, even invests his very life, and then forgets what he has invested. Thus, a divine son or daughter is the one who can invest and invest his or her life again for the world, and those who invest even more and still want to invest more are called the most divine of all divine sons and daughters. That is how it is. (263-275, 1994.10.15)
Will a wife feel happy or unhappy if her husband is absolutely obedient in front of his wife's love? She will be absolutely happy. If the wife is also like that, her husband will be absolutely happy. Those who are absolutely obedient in front of the love of their parents are filial sons and daughters. Those who have the same heart for the sake of the nation are known as patriots. Those who have the same heart for the world are known as saints, and those who can have the same heart for heaven and earth are divine sons and daughters! Amen. All of this is our textbook, material for our education! (264-140, 1994.10.9)
No matter how difficult, you should think it is proper and natural to smooth out the path and go the way of filial sons and daughters, of patriots, of saints, and divine sons and daughters. You need the conviction to do so. You must have the mind to go the way of filial piety even if you sacrifice yourself for your parents and, in the family, even if you sacrifice not only yourself but your wife as well. When filial sons and daughters and parents together resolve to sacrifice even the parents to save the nation, they stand as patriots. Furthermore, if those patriots resolve to save the world and so sacrifice even their nation, they complete the path of a saint. That is the ideal of creation Adam was to have fulfilled. You must become filial sons and daughters, patriots, and saints, and willingly determine to fulfill the way of divine sons and daughters even if it means sacrificing all the members of your family. (266-105, 1994.12.18)
In a family, those sons and daughters who have made greater sacrifices than other children are known as filial sons and daughters. Those who have invested more for the sake of the nation than other tribes or citizens are known as patriots. Saints are those who have invested more than others for the sake of the world. Someone who has invested for the sake of heaven and earth can become a heavenly prince like Jesus Christ. If you do not live that way, you cannot go to the heavenly kingdom. The heavenly kingdom is where people go who have lived that way. If you do not live in such a way, you cannot enter the heavenly kingdom.
You do not work here just to make a living or to succeed in the worldly sense. You have gathered here to become the people of the heavenly kingdom, to fulfill the way of filial sons and daughters, patriots and virtuous women, saints, and divine sons and daughters of the heavenly kingdom. (269-253, 1995.4.30)
If you want to become Heaven's loyal subject, you must take revenge upon God's enemy. If you want to become a filial child, you cannot succeed as long as your parents' enemies remain, so you must subjugate and replace the sinful dominion with God's dominion. It is the same thing for a virtuous woman. Until the day you make the enemy account for his sins, if you are not prepared to go forth to fight at the risk of your eternal life, you will not be able to surmount the heartbreaking mountain of the Fall. It is only when you cross over this peak that for the first time God will be able to set His troubled mind at rest and say to you, "My loyal, filial, and virtuous child whom I have long awaited for six thousand years!" He will raise both hands to bless you. God cannot enjoy His Sabbath until such a standard of heart has been established. (9-122, 1960.4.24)
In the Last Days, above all we must become the people who understand God's heart. Humankind is imbued with the three key elements of intellect, emotion, and will, and it remains for us to attain heavenly emotion on the foundation of intellect and will. God's love flows through our hearts… our hearts must beat more strongly with ardor, filial piety, and loyalty for Heaven than those of any other race. (4-250, 1958.6.22)
Those who live continuously for the sake of others become the central people. This is a certainty. Filial sons and daughters in the family are the ones who live continuously for the sake of their parents. They can become the central figure in a family who can inherit from the family. It is the same with patriots. Those who live in service of the nation's ruler and invest and invest again, sacrifice and sacrifice again for the sake of the nation become those who can take responsibility for the nation. Presidents or prime ministers are such people. They should certainly be the central figures. For this reason your conscience tells you to go that far. Your conscience teaches you to be a filial son or daughter in the family, a patriot in the nation, a saint in the world, and even to go the way of a divine son or daughter in heaven and earth. (275-38, 1995.10.30)
Even though there are many children, and many citizens, there is only one greatest filial and loyal child. If it is natural even for parents in the fallen world to pay more attention to one of their children who is being victimized, do you not think it would be even more so for God?
God is not looking for any one particular race of people. He is looking for that filial son and daughter that He can love completely. He wants to be proud of them in front of all humankind. God moved the world to recover one people and set up Israel to recover one people. He then sorted out that one people to recover one family, and sorted out that one family to recover one person.
Recovering this one person is equivalent to recovering the world, and this person must be the filial child with the heart to dissolve all God's historical anguish. Only the emergence of such a truly filial son renders it possible for evil people to atone for their sins. (10-239, 1960.10.16)
A true child is a family king who centers on God. Therefore, one must become a true filial son or daughter from the beginning, and consequently that king can move up to the position of a patriot of the nation. The prince and princess of a nation are patriots. Then those who stand in the position of a prince or princess of the world are seeking to become a saint.
After that, when you say you are aiming to be a son or daughter standing as a prince and princess of heaven and earth, that is the way of a divine son and daughter. Do you want to become a divine son or daughter or to become a saint? Why would you want to be a divine son or daughter? It is because you can take pride in front of saints. Would you rather be a saint or a patriot? Why would you choose being a saint? It is because you can be proud in front of the patriots. So would you rather be a patriot or a filial son or daughter? Why? You would choose to be a patriot because you can be proud in front of the filial sons and daughters. A filial son or daughter follows the way of a patriot; a patriot follows the way of a saint; a saint follows the way of a divine son or daughter, and a divine son or daughter follows in God's footsteps. (280-117, 1996.11.11)
Those who live comfortably at home are fools. They inevitably have to remain within the bounds of the family-level heaven. That is exactly how it is. That is why your families have to become representative and central families. You must walk the path of filial sons and daughters, patriots, saints, and divine sons and daughters. That is the path you must inevitably walk.
That is why you must be filial sons and daughters in your families. You must be patriots in your nations. To be patriots, you must not stray from that dutiful path from the time you are born. You should maintain your focus day and night. My focus on God's will has never faltered throughout my life. I continue whether I am awake or asleep. I will keep going forever. (283-77, 1997.4.8)
The time for us to become God's filial children will not always be there. It will not exist in the spirit world after our death. In our earthly lifetime -- which, when viewed against the backdrop of eternity, is as brief as the tick of a clock -- we must establish the condition of having loved God and of having fulfilled our filial duty to Him.
Furthermore, we have to confirm our status as the children whom God absolutely needs, and we must accomplish this within our lifetime on earth. (26-114, 1969.10.19)
We say that we should become filial sons and daughters in the family, don't we? What should we do once we become filial sons and daughters? We may think that mothers and fathers who teach their children filial piety might be doing so for their own advantage, but that is not the case. Add your love to your parents' love! That is the way it should be. That is how the sphere of love can develop. It grows. Things that are in motion grow larger, don't they? Why would things in motion become larger? Because they are interacting based on love, they want to grow. (253-234, 1994.1.30)
Filial sons and daughters do not go to hell. Even in the case where they should have to go to hell, they wait somewhere other than hell until the Second Advent of the Lord. There are middle realms in the spirit world.
Do you want to be filial sons and daughters, patriots, saints, or divine sons and daughters? Even if you do not practice filial piety in relation to your parents, once you become a patriot you stand on the foundation of having perfected such filial piety. (246-188, 1993.4.16)
Adam was to become a son of filial piety and patriot of the heavenly kingdom; he should have become a loyal citizen and fulfilled the way of the divine son in the nation, but he could not fulfill his role. My regret is that I could not fulfill the way of a filial son while I was in my youth, in full vigor; I missed the chance. I could not walk the path of a patriot who stands in the front line to face any risk if it could save the nation, and who, though bleeding, remains grateful to God. (264-187, 1994.10.9)
Why do I weave together the strands of history in making such shocking proclamations or saying things to spur you on? This is God's situation, and it is not yet resolved. He has not been able to resolve the bitter sorrow in His heart. True Parents have not been able to resolve the bitter sorrow in their hearts.
Not being able to fulfill the path of the son of filial piety in front of God in my youth is my own bitter sorrow! Not being able to have the honor of being a patriot because I could not gain God's nation is my bitter sorrow! Not being able to fulfill the duty of a saint representing all nations is my sorrow! Not being able to have the victorious supremacy of heaven and earth and to liberate God as a divine son is my sorrow! These deep sorrows still remain. (264-63, 1994.10.9)
You must understand that True Parents are the first son and daughter of filial piety in the family. They have never existed in history. They stand in the position of patriots of the heavenly kingdom, the representative position of loyal subjects. Furthermore, they stand in the position of the divine son and daughter who have fulfilled the way of a divine son and daughter. That is why you must have the same thought as True Parents. As True Parents have fulfilled the way of a son and daughter of filial piety, patriots, saints, and divine son and daughter, you should inherit that same tradition of True Parents, and you must maintain an attitude of heart that you are the only son and daughter in the whole world.
The fact that you have received the blessing from True Parents as a son and daughter representing the world signifies that you are allowed to be in a relationship with True Parents. You need to understand that Blessed Families must have experiences of heart with my own family in their daily lives. (266-89, 1994.12.18)
A divine son is the son of God. To God's son, the existing world is not the only issue. He must bring together the spirit world and the earthly world, and rule by laws that are the same as those that come from the palace of Heaven. These are not the federal laws that a nation's people obey. They are the unified laws of the palaces of the heavenly and earthly realms. A divine son is one who stands connected to the love in these realms. Everything must be focused on love. (229-42, 1992.4.9)
As the only begotten, divine son, Jesus was the first ancestor centered on true love. (251-298, 1993.11.1)
Thus, the saints have spoken about God, not just about humankind. If you look at the people who are numbered in the ranks of the saints, have they revered God or not? Is there anyone who has become a saint without God? Moreover, the saints have taught not only the way of morality but also the way of heavenly law. (33-291, 1970.8.21)
To be divine sons and daughters, you must have the same love in your hearts as God does. (129-99, 1983.10.1)
A divine son is God's son. A divine son resolves to love not only God but also heaven and earth. He resolves to love not only the realm of love of heaven and earth, but also the laws from the palace of the heavenly kingdom. A divine son is a prince of the heavenly kingdom. He should keep the laws that come from the palace in the heavenly realm as well as the laws from the palace of the earthly realm. On that basis, he should love the royal descendants of the heavenly kingdom, the people of the heavenly kingdom, the royal descendants of the earthly kingdom, and the people of the nation on earth. When he loves the kingdoms and peoples of both worlds, he can be called a son of God. The people and members of the royal family on earth need God's son, and the people and the members of the royal family in the other world need God's son. That is how he can become a divine son. (229-183, 1992.4.12)
It is the same with religion. How did religions begin? Saints founded all of the religions. They are the lords of the religions. They all started out from positions where they could receive instruction from God through practicing devotion and reaching an enlightened state; however, after the religions developed to a higher level, they became more and more secularized. (253-13, 1994.1.1)
I am living in such a way that I am ready to die at any time. I have pledged myself before God. Because I have already determined to offer my life, I would have no regret even if it were my fate to die on the street. There is no greater blessing than to become filial sons and daughters for whom God Himself would come and take away our bodies, or to become patriots for whom the king would come and take away our bodies, or to become saints or divine sons and daughters of the heavenly kingdom like that. The places where our bodies lie will become places of historic interest. They will become sites for memorial services and festivals that can revive everyone in the world. On account of these sites that evoke sorrow, countless youths will be born anew in generations to come. As representatives of their countries, they will explode like erupting volcanoes. The Unification Church has numerous such resources. (227-260, 1992.2.14)
There are saints in history. Who are the saints? They are all founders of religions. There are people at an even higher level than that of a saint, however. The Unification Church calls them holy sons and daughters of God. The Christian churches also talk about holy sons and daughters.
Then who are the holy sons and daughters? Saints themselves do not clearly comprehend God. They do not understand in detail that God is a personality who represents the ideal of daily living. Who, then, are the holy sons and daughters? God is the head of all sovereigns and the center of the whole. Wherever He is, there is the law of the kingdom and the law of the palace. Palace law has to be obeyed. Without it, one cannot live as a prince in the palace with the king. Holy sons and daughters are the ones who desire to live with the king eternally, while keeping the law and then transcending it. The king cannot live without the son; nor can the son live without the king, his father. They want to live together eternally. Such a person is called a holy son or daughter. (148-59)
A saint is a holy person who can stand before God. From among saints holy son and daughters must come. There have to be ones who can be people of God's kingdom, and among those, there have to be ones who can be God's children. Holy sons and daughters are above saints. This historical background cannot be understood without knowing the spiritual world and God's providence. No matter how much knowledge one may have, he cannot reach his destiny without understanding God's providence. In following the road of love, what comes after being a saint? Saints are God's people, who can go to God, but when such people become numerous, holy son and daughters should emerge. The words "holy sons and daughters, which means that I am God's child, are words of great blessing in the history of the fallen world. They can be considered gospel. (136-206)
We should follow the way of children of filial piety. If God is serious about the world situation, is there someone who can experience this heart and struggle to become God's child, forgetting himself and forgetting sleep with even more seriousness? This is what the question finally comes down to. (62-35)
Saints are on a global level, although patriots cannot go beyond national boundaries. The saints have a loving heart, such that they desire for the world to become better and are willing to take responsibility for all the bad things of the world; with this heart, they sacrifice themselves throughout their entire lives. Thoughts of filial children, patriots, and saints are all centered on the world and on the earth,
When you are centered on God, who is the center of the universe, then you will want to embrace heaven and earth with love, and desire that all the beings in the universe become eligible to receive God's love.
Since I love God from this position, I transcend history and worry about the spiritual world. If someone can transcend time and space and worry about affairs of the spiritual world, of the earth, and of God with love, he would be the kind of person God desires. Our Unification Church gives the name holy sons and daughters to this kind of person.
Then what do you want to become? Filial children, patriots, or saints? (Saints.) All kinds of people want to be saints. Those who want to become holy sons and daughters, raise your hands. Is this easy or difficult? (Difficult) What do you call those who love and serve parents at home? (Filial children) How about those who love the country? (Patriots) How about those who love the world? (Saints) What is it that I am teaching? It is to become holy sons and daughters who love God, the world, and the universe. Which do you want to become? (Holy sons and daughters) Then you should have love that is like God's. (129-99)
The other day, a group of about 50 people from Japan came to Korea and visited the Holy Ground in Pusan. It is right next to a cemetery, in a stony place where no one lives. On that site I built a small hut of cardboard and mud many years ago. It was far from a glorious place, but even when I was sleeping there, I was walking the path of filial piety before God as His son. My quest was a deep, internal standard that no one else had been able to attain. At that time, I had no external possessions. I had no money.
I had a beard and an unwashed face, so I looked dirty, and I wore an assortment of Western and Oriental clothes. But everywhere I went, I spoke about very big things, things that were bigger than a cannon, more explosive than an atomic bomb so huge that everybody was surprised and ran away. I have endured tremendous hardship all my life, but you may not be able to understand it. It would take as much as 50 years to explain it. But my conclusion is that no matter how much suffering you may experience in your activities, and no matter how much you are persecuted by your environment, you should be able to always remain standing before the face of God.
Although Jesus left the earth through the cross, the standard of filial piety he impressed upon God's heart remained, and God had to respond to it. Although Jesus did not seek a reply from God, nevertheless, God's heart could not help but reach out to him. Jesus was the first true child of God after 4,000 years of biblical history. (God's Will -- 7, 1969.2.2)
In conclusion, God wants absolute families who have absolute loyalty and filial piety. Until now, absolute loyalty and filial piety have never existed. Without a global foundation of absolutely divine children, namely God's children, God cannot descend upon the earth. Alone, God cannot do anything providential on the earth. This is why we refer to Him as a sorrowful God deserving of pity.
It is an amazing fact that European members who follow me are realizing such families for the first time. Everyone without exception desires loyalty and filial piety. Until now God has had no other option but to be in a miserable state over this fallen world. How can we liberate God? It all depends on how we build the family, the tribe, the people, the nation and the world. (297-202, 1998.11.20)
What does it mean to say that Jesus is the only begotten son? He is the only son because he stands as a representative whom God cannot help loving when it comes to handling the law of love, which is most precious to God. Holy sons and daughters are the ones who know how to keep not only human laws but also the laws of the heavenly palace. The way of patriots directly connects to the way of filial children; the way of saints directly connects to the way of patriots; the way of holy sons and daughters directly connects to the way of saints. The essence flows on a perpendicular line. It is the only one. (175-214)
In becoming holy sons and daughters, what do we have to know first? Who should be the master? It is God. So pray for God. You should act according to God's desire and not your own. You should know that God is the master. Next, what is the purpose? The purpose is God's thought; we should act according to God's thought. This is God's will. We should live according to God's will and God's thought. This is the purpose. Do you understand? There should be the master and purpose. This is important. (161-141)
I fully knew of the extent of my mother's love for me. She was always sensitive to my feelings and used to study my face. There was no room for forgiveness if she did anything wrong. I really gave her a hard time. From the human point of view, what I did was exactly the opposite of filial piety. However, it was correct from God's point of view. I wanted to see my mother being the mother of heavenly values with full knowledge of heavenly principles. How could she act otherwise? I didn't let her off because I was in the public position, but could advise her on the personal level. I had to educate her although she was my mother.
What does it mean to be a filial son? "Mom, please do something and save me." Would that be the attitude of a filial son? I could have lived my life with such an attitude, but then I could never have become the founder of the Unification Church. (038-265, 1971.1.8)
What do you have to be? You should be a loyal subject. What is a loyal subject? Is the one who devotes himself to the king a loyal subject? No, he is not. It is the one who loves his people like the king does. Who is a filial son? A filial son is not the one who devotes himself to his parents. He is the one who devotes himself to his brothers and sisters like a loving parent. Then, what is a saint? A saint is one who has made sacrifices for the sake of mankind and the world. Who is the son of God? He is the one who is living for the world, centering on God. It is different.
A son of God is one who loves the people as he loves God. Do you understand? It is different. The historical saints died for the sake of mankind. On the other hand, a son of God not only devotes himself to God, but also lives for the sake of humankind, like God. What can we call such a person? A son of God. A son of God is different from a saint. What is a true filial son? A true filial son is someone who lives for his brothers as parents do. What is a true loyal subject? He is someone who serves the people of his country like he serves the king. What is a true son of God? A true son of God is someone who loves everything which belongs to God in the same manner as the loving God loves.
Therefore, True Father will go the way of a son of God. True Father loves God as well as humankind. True Father loves even America, which is like an enemy. Do you understand? In that case, God can say, "my son."
You are not the son of any country. Even though you were born in Korea, you are not the son of Korea. A person whom God can call His son is one who lives for the sake of humankind as God does. Such a person is a son of God. Since God loves humankind, forgetting about Himself, one who loves humankind while forgetting himself is a very filial son of God. We are seeking to find the way of a son of God, from the way of filial son and loyal subject. We are not seeking to find the way of a saint. Do you follow? Thus, if one of you became a loyal subject before the king, be one who is in the position of a loyal subject of the king for the sake of all the people of the country.
This is the point by which we can distinguish between a loyal subject and a treacherous subject. They are completely different in their tradition. A treacherous subject serves the king centering on himself, while a loyal subject serves the king for the sake of the people of the country. If a loyal subject comes before the king, a treacherous subject cannot exist in that environment. In this sense, the kingdom that is realized through the way of the son of God, through the ways of a filial son and a loyal subject is none other than the Kingdom of God on earth. Therefore, the way to realize the Kingdom of God is to begin from the way of a filial son and move up to the level of a son of God. This process is the original ideal of God's creation. (133-242)
Now, please allow us to be offered as the sacrifice to resolve the grief and suffering of Heaven and earth, creation and Jesus. I pray from the bottom of my heart, Father, that You will lead us to be children of filial devotion who will do their utmost. (Sermons 1 -- 30, 1956.5.16)
If you want to become a son of God, you have to resemble God's heart. Since God's heart is planted in the world, you have to love the people of the world. (The Way -- 243)
If there is a person who goes over the world and lives for the sake of God, he is the greatest loyal subject. Jesus is an example of that kind of person.
The greatest standard of the happiness that is granted to man is being a true servant of God, a true loyal subject of God and a true, filial son and daughter of God. These are the words of God's grace. What do you think? Have you become God's loyal subject, filial sons and daughters whom He can recognize? You must step over your family, your nation, and this world and seek God. (Sermons 7-243, 1959.10.18)
It is Satan who gives you a ticket for the Kingdom of Heaven. Thus, you have to win over him. You have to dominate him in the position of a son of God. (The Way -- 185)
You have to declare confidently before Heaven and Earth, before the entire universe, that I am, without a doubt, the Son of God centered on love. Is there anything that can contradict this? (137-304)
How can you ever be loyal, exemplary men and women and filial sons and daughters of Heavenly Father? (Sermons 7-60, 1959.7.19)
"We pledge to perfect the dutiful family way of… divine sons and daughters. Each family member, as an individual, should be able to attain the position of a divine son or daughter. When such divine sons and daughters who are members of the same family gather together, a family of divine sons and daughters is formed. This is what we are pledging.
We are pledging to represent and become central to heaven and earth by attending God and True Parents. For this, our family must determine to fulfill the dutiful family way of filial sons and daughters in the family, patriots and virtuous women in the nation, saints in the world, and divine sons and daughters in heaven and earth -- everything that Heaven desires. We are saying that we will, as parents, educate our children, educate citizens in the nation, educate saints in the world and make them qualified to become family members in the heavenly kingdom both in heaven and on earth -- that is, members of families of divine sons and daughters.
That is why we say, "Our family, the owner of Cheon Il Guk, pledges to represent and become central to heaven and earth by attending God and True Parents; we pledge to perfect the dutiful family way of filial sons and daughters in our family, patriots in our nation, saints in the world, and divine sons and daughters in heaven and earth, by centering on true love." (Messages of Peace 14 -- 211, 2007.6.13)
You can only become divine sons and daughters if you attend God in accordance with the law of the royal palace. (206-62, 1990.10.3)
1 Hsiao Ching, I (The Humanist Way in Ancient China: Essential Works of Confuscianism, ed. and trans. Ch'u Chai and Winberg Chai (New York: Bantam Books, 1965). pp. pp. 326-327.