The Words of the Song Family |
Father moved to Seoul when I was still in my second year of junior high school. I wanted to go out with my friends and have fun on Sundays. But every Sunday my elder sister insisted that I follow her to church. After saying no so many times, I finally decided to follow her.
There I saw Big Uncle and Small Uncle welcoming me very warmly. The church was a very low-ceilinged house located in Bu Ga Ja Dong, Seoul. About 50 people attended the service in a very small room. Once you kneel down and remain there for a half hour, your legs lose their feeling, because the blood cannot circulate.
The members spent three or four hours singing and listening to Father giving a sermon. I couldn't even stand up, because if I did, I would fall right down because my legs were paralyzed!
I didn't know the Divine Principle, but when the sermon was over and the hymns were sung, I liked the mood. Standing up, I could feel the blood beginning to circulate again, which felt very good. It was over. Another thing I liked at that time: as soon as the service was over they brought in Korean cake and kimchee. To me, it felt like we were eating in heaven.
As I followed my sister to the church for six months, I understood little by little what the Divine Principle was. Children may not realize the meaning of the Divine Principle immediately. It takes time, but they will come to understand.
A Divine Principle test was announced, and I studied hard. Forty-eight people took the test, and I got the 18th place. There were college students who flunked, who had no correct answers at all. It was the first Divine Principle test in the Unification Church, and I was the only junior high school boy.
After that, when I started praying, I could feel that God is a God of sorrow.
I was in the third year of junior high school, in 1955, when the first serious persecution came. We would sing loudly, and people who didn't like it would throw stones and other things at us. Our church had to change its worship location twice in six months. Because we were very successful in witnessing and our building was too small to take care of all the newcomers, and because we sang and prayed day and night, people started persecuting us.
Our third place of worship in Seoul was near Nam San Park, in the south of Seoul. At this third place, the persecution became worse. The church building was a Japanese-style house. We had a big, wide yard, but the roof was not very strong. We had to remain outside in the yard, since it was already crowded inside. I usually stayed out in the yard.
One day, members of other Christian churches made a plan and came to our church while our worship service was going on. Suddenly, the roof got very dark. Yet the darkness was not caused by clouds, but by stones the people had thrown. The window panes were all shattered. Stones falling on the roof broke through and fell down to the floor.
The photograph of Father praying was exactly from that time. "Heavenly Father, please, forgive them," Father prayed, "They do not know what they are doing!"
The stones which fell in among us did not hit A-members, whose faith was strong. But people who were scared and tried to escape were hit, sometimes in the face. The people who stayed calm were never hit.
I was in the third year of junior high school, about six feet tall, weighed 150 pounds and was a welter-weight boxer. I had been boxing and practicing judo three years, even with prison guards and police captains.
I was also protected and defended by the power of justice. When Father was praying inside the church, and the stones were falling, I couldn't waste even one second. So I jumped over the fence and ran towards the people who were throwing stones. I grabbed these guys and banged my forehead against theirs. North Koreans have a reputation for hard foreheads and hitting people with them. My uncles in North Korea fought against Russian soldiers. The Russians usually are bigger than the Koreans, so the Koreans would have to jump up and hit the Russians with their foreheads. After receiving a blow like that, the Russian soldiers always lost their strength.
On July 4, 1955 Father and three other members were taken to the police station: Rev. Won Pil Kim; the first president of HSA-UWC, Hyo Won Eu; and Mr. Eu's cousin, also Mr. Eu, now president of II Shin marble company.
By the way, the holy song, "My Promise," was written by the late President Eu in prison with Father. "I pledge I will go, go as my Father has gone." They were handcuffed and led together to prison. Mr. Eu wrote this song, promising in his heart that he would never, never change.
In the early stage of the Unification Church in Korea, we sang this song over and over. We could feel our skin shiver as we promised to ourselves that under no circumstances would we change.
On October 4 Father was found innocent and released, after 100 days in jail.
Our church then moved to its fourth location in Seoul: Chung Pa Dong. This is the old headquarters of the Unification Church. From that place, the providential work of Heavenly Father really grew and gained momentum.
The first summer pioneer witnessing campaign began in 1957. Members went out in pairs to 120 cities throughout Korea. I went out together with the Rev. Do Wan Kim, who is now in charge of the Chicago region IOWC.
We went to Kan Num, on the East coast of Korea. On our arrival, many village boys came over to us. I was not afraid of them, because I was a master of fighting. I knew that fighting begins with the eyes. My eyes are a bit like American eyes; they are set in. So if somebody threw a rock at my face, it wouldn't hit the eyes themselves. Most Korean people have their eyes standing out like crabs' eyes!
Because there were many village boys, I could fight them all. I picked out the strongest one. If I defeated him, they would all follow us. Since my time in Pusan, I had a lot of experience along these lines! So when I went out to do missionary work, my first activity was fighting.
Even though he was a college student and I only a first-year high school student, I was one head taller than him. Even now, Rev. Kim still talks about how I protected him.
My parents still lived in the village near Pusan, and I would return home for summer vacations. I was always close to Mr. Choi, a friend from the village, even though he persecuted me for going to the Unification Church. "They are no good" he told me. He used to tempt me and talk about the wonderful and exciting things I could find at his church.
On such occasions I would fight him with my eyes. I would ask him, "How can you try to give me advice? I used to be your boss! You have to follow me. How can a boss follow one of his men? I can't explain to you about the Unification Church, but I like it. It's beyond description. Why don't you just follow me?"
That kind of relationship continued for three years. We always stayed good friends, however. Perhaps I can explain our friendship this way: I was given money to travel to Pusan for vacation. The train fare was 1,200 won which is about $20. It took about 12 hours to reach Pusan from Seoul.
When I returned home, none of my family members came to the station to greet me, but Mr. Choi, because he was a member of my gang, was there to welcome me. He would wait for me by the passengers' line, but I didn't wait there. I jumped over the fence, sneaked up behind Mr. Choi, and asked him, "Who are you looking for?"
Mr. Choi was really good at Korean wrestling and had a special talent in painting, but he could afford only low-class paints. I wanted to see what kind of painting he could produce with expensive paints. Therefore I bought him first class watercolors. Also, he had a sharp mind, but not enough money to buy books. So I bought him an English grammar written by a Japanese man. After all that we still had some money left. And since I hadn't eaten in the past twelve hours (being on the train), we went to a restaurant and ate Japanese noodles. We went around Pusan and spent all my money.
After Mr. Choi finished junior high school, he could not move on to high school. So he became a factory worker. I heard that news in Seoul and felt very sorry. By that time, all my family members were in Seoul. I still had the spirit of being a boss, a leadership spirit. I wanted to bring him up to Seoul and go to school together with him. I knew he was such a smart boy, and I wanted to see how good a student he would be if I brought him back to school.
At that time my father was in charge of finances for the church. So I told him I wanted to bring my friend Mr. Choi to Seoul to study with me. I knew that the church's finances were tight, but still I asked him.
The response came easily: "Yes."
I wondered if I heard correctly. To make him give me a clear answer, I repeated the question, saying that I wanted to bring Mr. Choi from Pusan to Seoul and give him an opportunity to study in Seoul.
"Sure, sure. You are welcome to that."
Then I asked if I could send a telegram right away. "Okay." My father agreed with me on all points; he really trusted me.
The next morning he got the telegram, and by the following night he was in Seoul.
"Are you going to persecute me here also?" I asked him. This time he lost the eye fight. The next Sunday, he automatically followed me to church. He lived at my house, we studied and went to school together.
Father asked my father's opinion about including Mr. Choi in the 36-couple Blessing. My father answered with a clear yes. "He is a very good guy!" So he joined me in the 36-couple Blessing. True Father made him a representative of people who had a hard time as children, i.e. being an orphan, but who overcame all difficulties.
I really received many blessings from my parents. I belong to a group which was helped a lot by good ancestral foundation. At the time of the Blessing, I was only a few months over 21 years old, by American age, really too young to be married. I asked Father how come I was blessed so early. "You don't know now," he replied, "but later you will understand." It was like he had told me on Pom Il Dong mountain in Pusan, "You don't know how, but later you will."
For that, Father gave me the sister whom I think is the most beautiful sister among the 36 couples. (In Korea you are considered stupid if you propagandize about your wife, so I would be considered stupid for talking about her like this.)
At one time, I thought Unification Church members never would get married, because there was so much work to do. I never thought about a wedding. Our church training was so strict; the brothers didn't know the sisters very well at all.
The first sister Father recommended to me had worked together with me on student activities for almost five years, but I didn't know anything about her. I was so dumbfounded. So Father asked me to suggest someone, and I mentioned one sister who was teaching at a school founded by a cousin of Col. Pak.
Father kept asking me to make a decision quickly. But for one week I couldn't decide which one to choose. It was like having two rice cakes and having to throw one away.
"You should make a decision tonight," Father finally said. It was so difficult: one was recommended by Father, the other was chosen by me. I didn't know how to face those two sisters. I was very miserable.
One brother knew the sister Father had chosen for me very well and told me she was a genius at witnessing. She had shaken up the entire country while witnessing. She has a very small nose, but has strong leadership capability. He had been her leader and thought she should be included in the 36 couples, so he wanted to do something to help me decide. "Somebody is waiting for you outside," he told me.
Then he went to the sister and told her, "Your fiance is waiting for you outside." He didn't say any more because he didn't want to cause bad feelings between us.
I went outside and found her. Being an impatient person, I told her frankly what kind of things I like. And I asked her, "Do you like what I like?" Then I said, "Do you love me the most in all the world?"
She tried to fight me with her eyes, but she lost, "Sure," she replied.
Whatever I said, she kept answering, "Sure, sure," so I was very pleased. It looked okay: she liked what I liked. She would follow wherever I went.
Then she gave me a slight scare. She said she had many dreams. Heavenly Father came to her in her dreams and told her she should be included in the 36 couples. She also mentioned hearing a voice in the wilderness about the Blessing.
So I asked her, "Are you a spiritualist? I don't like anybody who is much involved in the spirit world." If she could perceive what I was thinking and start giving me a hard time, what kind of life would that be? I don't like anybody who can read my mind. Well, I was only 21 years old, and that was as far as my thinking went.
But I did not avoid asking the most important questions: "Will you like me the most in the world, and will you follow me in the Unification Church under all circumstances, in spite of all hardships?" She said, "Yes."
We walked back to the church building along a road with some potholes. I saw a pothole ahead and expected that she would avoid it; now I understand that she doesn't have good eyesight. Suddenly she tried to grab my hand to keep from tripping. "No, not yet!" I shouted. It was night, but I imagine she blushed.
I could feel her getting anxious as we got closer to the church. She wanted to ask, "Do you truly...?"
I told her, "You know one word of a man is weightier than the earth! Once I've said it, that's it. Perhaps she was asking me again because she really wished to join the 36 blessed couples.
It was about midnight. In Father's room at Chung Pa Dong, Father was seated, and other people were seated around him. The one sister I had asked for was between Father and me, but I decided not to look at her.
"Have you made up your mind?" Father asked me.
"Yes!"
"Who?"
I shouted out the name of the one Father had chosen.
She was participating in a 40-day workshop at that time. Immediately he called her inside. Around midnight that evening the Blessing was held. Father told me, "If you had waited any longer and if I could not have blessed you before midnight, I would have to bless all the other 36 couples all over."
"I'm very sorry, Father," I said. Actually I didn't really know the meaning at that time. I was just a young man and didn't feel all that sorry.
After I made up my mind, my wife looked like the most beautiful woman in the world. I could see only good things about her. I thought her small nose was really most beautiful. Now she is in Korea, and I know she will follow me wherever I go.
I was number 36. Mr. Choi was number 35. Tiger Park was number 34. The three of us formed a trinity.
My mission before coming to America was the itinerary worker for Africa. But on January 3, 1983 I came to Washington. Three days before I had gone to Baltimore and saw my sisters and brothers fundraising. I told them that the missionaries in Africa go through difficulties ten or twenty times as great as theirs. Our brothers and sisters in Africa are waiting for me. But Father must have heard something from Heavenly Father instructing me to go to this region. I thought maybe there was a strong Satan to be dealt with. So we have to beat the Satan of satans. In Korea I fought visible satans many times, and I won over them.
We should all be united. If we don't unite, that means we are not listening to True Parents. Let us unite our forces...
Our bodies are on earth for only a short while. If we don't do anything while living here, what will our destiny be? The world we are heading for is a world of eternity. Besides, the heavenly Kingdom is not a place where somebody sends you; it is your consciousness. There are people walking in the heavenly Kingdom and others who are walking in hell right here on this planet.
I am a very busy man, because I still have to take care of Africa. You can hold me here in Washington, or you can send me to Africa. If you show true, good achievements, Father can say Washington, doesn't need Rev. Song; he can return to Africa.
I couldn't help crying when I saw the fundraisers going out. We should finish that kind of task in our lifetime; we should not have to pass it on to our sons and daughters.
There is an old saying in the Orient that big things start from small. All members, brothers and sisters, should do everything well, even the small things. I know that African missionaries are waiting for me like thirsty people for water. I want to stimulate you and inspire you; please let me go back to Africa.