Message given by Rev. Doo Seung-yeon, Director-General of the World Mission Headquarters,
September 5, 2025
Respected and beloved blessed family members around the world, greetings to you all.
This is an occasion filled with grace. Before I begin, could you turn to the person next to you and give a smile? If anyone feels a little awkward, that very awkwardness relates directly to the topic for today. Please remember that this small smile we offer to one another marks the beginning of harmony and peace, and I thank you for sharing this time together.
Dear family members, I sincerely thank you for visiting our eternal homeland, Hyojeong Cheonwon, during this meaningful period commemorating the 13th anniversary of True Father’s Holy Ascension.
True Father said, “God’s creation of heaven and earth took twelve days, and on the 13th day God’s dream came to fruition.” Therefore, I believe that holding this “Prayer Meeting for the Opening of a New Era of Harmony and Peace” during this period marking the 13th anniversary of True Father’s Holy Ascension carries the special significance as a new beginning for realizing God’s dream.
On August 15, True Mother proclaimed the “Opening of a New Era and New History” and ushered in a new horizon in God’s providence. Then, on August 25, she bestowed upon the Pure Water youth, who are the leaders of the future, the mission and blessing: “I pray that you will become majestic trees, deeply rooted in Cheon Il Guk, growing into great trees that can embrace all humanity and be cherished by the world.”
For a tree to grow into a magnificent and towering presence, its roots must first extend deep and wide. Trees grow stronger in harsher environments, rather than in comfortable ones. As they extend their roots deep into the ground, seeking water, they acquire a strong vitality that enables them to endure and overcome any hardship or storm.
And just as the trunk and leaves of a tree depend on each other to complete a single living organism, we too must achieve harmony between our individual purpose and the purpose of the whole. This is the principle of a mutually beneficial relationships.
True Mother has emphasized that all blessed families, members, and providential organizations should unite and advance together in response to the call of the age for harmony and peace. This means that when we overcome the trials, crises, and selfish human relationships of our time, our faith will grow deeper and stronger, forming a precious foundation on which to prepare for the future.
No matter how successful or prosperous we may be in this world, our Heavenly Parent and True Parents, who are our spiritual root and origin, are constantly watching over us and loving us. Even when we seem to stand alone, in truth we are growing through the continual nourishment of love flowing from the root. The deeper our relationship with Heavenly Parent and True Parents becomes, the more we can grow into strong and steadfast trees that will not be shaken by any trial.
Our Goal and the Core Values of This Age
Beloved members,
Our goal is expressed in this year’s motto: “In the 13th year of Cheon Il Guk, when we attend the Creator Heavenly Parent substantially, let us, the blessed families around the world, become true sons and daughters of Cheon Il Guk who fulfill our responsibility as the chosen people in unity with True Parents!”
To fully realize this goal, the essential core values we must embody in this age are harmony and peace.
Harmony is the spiritual foundation that sets right our relationships with Heavenly Parent, with True Parents, and with one another. It goes beyond a mere absence of conflict or discord; it means restoring a proper relationship with Heavenly Parent and filling our relationships with our brothers and sisters with respect and love.
As it is written in 2 Corinthians 5:18–19, “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ…” the Bible emphasizes that harmony begins with the restoration of our relationship with Heavenly Parent.
Furthermore, as Matthew 5:23–24 teaches, “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.” This shows that before drawing close to Heavenly Parent, we must first restore our relationships with our brothers and sisters.
Beloved members, harmonious peace is the practical principle that brings restores and brings harmony to relationships and bears fruit in life. It is not merely the absence of conflict, but a substantial foundation that is realized through fulfilling our responsibilities and practicing true love.
Two thousand years ago, Jesus, the Only Begotten Son, proclaimed in his Sermon on the Mount, enshrined in the Beatitudes: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9) The peace referred to here is connected to the Hebrew word shalom—meaning not only peace, but also wholeness, harmony, and a right relationship with our Heavenly Parent.
As True Mother has said, “Those who bring harmony and those who make peace are precisely the ones needed in this age.” In this way, when blessed families around the world fulfill their responsibilities and put true love into practice, they themselves become a living testimony of what it means to be true sons and daughters of Cheon Il Guk. Harmony and peace are crucial virtues for the practice of true love, for which we have longed. Only when harmony and peace are realized in our lives can true love truly be practiced.
Beloved members, please offer your gratitude and a round of applause to True Mother, who has bestowed upon us the core values for this time—harmony and peace!
Practicing Harmony and Peace: The Story of Joseph
Beloved members, in life there are times when we are deeply wounded in our relationships with people, and we feel we cannot forgive. Let’s seek wisdom from the Bible on what we can do at such times.
Shall we take a look at the Old Testament together?
In the Bible, Joseph, was deeply wounded in his youth due to the envy and jealousy that had engulfed his brothers. They cast him into a pit deep in the ground. There, in the darkness, dampness and cold, he trembled in misery and loneliness, betrayed by those closest to him. With the dank chill seeping into his very bones and the stench of mold surrounding him, he must have tasted endless despair. Eventually, he was sold into slavery, and through that ordeal, the resentment and scars that had taken root in his heart must have grown ever deeper, as if reaching up to Heaven.
And yet, Joseph went beyond what we had imagined to be possible. He remembered the love of his father Jacob and God’s providential plan, and he had firm trust and belief in God in his heart. As a result, Joseph chose love and forgiveness instead of anger and resentment. His decision did not end merely in reconciliation with his family, but brought about a spiritual victory that saved not only his family but his entire people.
This story shows us that no matter what trials we face, if Heavenly Parent and True Parents remain at the center of our faith, we can transform division into harmony, conflict into peace. Harmony and peace are never things that can be achieved by one person alone. They are absolute values that are realized only when we all work together, respecting and loving one another.
This is precisely the essence of the give-and-take action that we learned in the Divine Principle. This implies giving well to my counterpart, and the counterpart receiving it well; then the counterpart giving well to me, and I, with a grateful heart, returning goodness again. In other words, this dynamic of give-and-take can be expressed and understood as harmony and peace.
Our Determination to see a New Era and a New History
Beloved members, True Mother has proclaimed the “Opening of a New Era and a New History.” The reason we have gathered here today is to actively create peace by concretely practicing the core values of this age—harmony and peace—in our daily lives.
When our small acts of good practice combine to create a fabric of harmony and peace within our families, churches, workplaces, and society, then we will at last be able to achieve our true goal. When we reach out to one another first, forgive one another, and dedicate ourselves to peace, we will be fully practicing true love as true sons and daughters of Cheon Il Guk, fulfilling our responsibilities.
Harmony and peace are not distant ideals. They are realized in our relationships with those right beside us. Each one of us is an agent of harmony and peace, and no one is an exception. To realize the harmony and peace that True Mother so earnestly desires is to fulfill our duty as filial children and to advance together as the rightful owners of Cheon Il Guk. When I called out to you, “Please help me!” you responded, “We will help!” Harmony and peace begin precisely with such small steps.
Beloved members, let us take small steps, leading by example, to prove to True Mother that we are truly filial sons and daughters, the ones who will build Cheon Il Guk. If you can do so, please answer with a resounding “Yes!”
Can you do this? (Yes!)
Will you do this? (Yes!)
If you all agree, then with thunderous applause, please offer your pledge to True Mother. (Applause)
Thank you. Truly, thank you. I love you, dear members.
From this very moment, harmony and peace begins with me. Before someone else reaches out their hand to me, let me be the one to extend my hand first. True Mother has said that the ones most needed at the start of this new era and new history are those who take the initiative to reach out first.
True Mother has profound love for her children. Even when she was gravely ill, she demonstrated unwavering love, determined to meet her beloved children at all cost. It is with such a heart, with such sacrifice and love that she embraces us.
Let us all resolve to take after the heart of Holy Mother Han by becoming people who can prioritize harmony and peace among members and neighbors. Let us encourage one another and, on the challenging path of building Cheon Il Guk, become the true children so urgently needed in this age—those who take the initiative to reach out first and lift others up.
Brothers and sisters, may I ask everyone to please rise from your seats? If you are standing, please take the hand of the member beside you. And once you have, turn to both sides and proclaim to them, “I love you!” Thank you! Now, together, let us offer our pledge to True Mother in Cheon Jeong Gung. When I give the lead, please join me in loudly proclaiming: “True Mother, we love you! We will protect you!” We will do this three times.
True Mother, we love you! We will protect you!
True Mother, we love you! We will protect you!
True Mother, we love you! We will protect you!
Now, while still holding hands, let us sing together with all our hearts the holy song “Pledge” as an expression of our resolution for harmony and peace.
My Pledge
1
My fallen figure shames the earth;
Once I was born, yet never I lived,
Never forsaking, You came to me
Giving my life and breaking my chains
Tenderly You gathered me up;
Filled with love and sweating blood,
Ever patient, You taught me the word,
Carved in my heart, it forever remains.
2
Never I knew what life should be;
All I can do is follow your way.
When on the path, I stumble and fall,
Turning, You give the courage I need.
Though the path is narrow and steep;
Cruel thorns leave a trail of blood.
Still I pledge I will follow the way,
Follow as far as my Father will lead.
3
Freed from a sleep so deep and dark,
gladly I wake to knowing your will.
Though death may stab me time and again,
Nothing can change a loyal heart.
This I pledge, my life is for You;
For Your will I rush forward to die.
This I pledge till the struggle is done,
‘Till we proclaim the victorious day.
Thank you!
In the name of our Heavenly Parent, I pray that each of you will put this precious will into practice so that it may be fully conveyed to those around you.
Benediction
Most Exalted Heavenly Parent, Creator of all,
Beloved True Parents of Heaven, Earth, and Humankind,
We thank you for gathering all blessed families and members from around the world, for granting us the era-defining values of harmony and peace through Holy Mother Han, True Mother, and for guiding us toward a new beginning as we usher in a new era and embark on a fresh chapter of history.
Heavenly Parent, we are grateful that here, hand in hand, with our hearts united, we can lay down our personal wounds, conflicts, anxieties, and burdens, and reaffirm our commitment as true sons and daughters united with True Parents, fulfilling our responsibilities and ready to start anew.
Through today’s prayer meeting for the opening of a new era and new history, just as Joseph chose harmony and peace centered on God even amidst trials and betrayal, guide us so that we may also transform all conflicts and divisions in our lives into love and forgiveness, and practice true love within our communities.
Heavenly Parent, allow us to truly experience the blessings of harmony and peace You have granted us, so that we may respect and understand one another, and become a unified community, bound together by trust and cooperation.
May we demonstrate the character and nature of true sons and daughters of Cheon Il Guk through each small act, each decision in our daily lives in our families, churches, workplaces, and society, and through the practice of true love and by fulfilling our responsibilities, may our lives and efforts bear fruit.
Today, we once again engrave the words of True Parents deeply in our hearts:
“To become sons and daughters of Heavenly Parent, we must live in harmony and oneness with one another. This is the doctrine of unity.” (September 14, 1969)
And in accordance with Heaven’s mandate, “Those who make peace, those who bring harmony—these are the ones needed in this era,” may we all become instruments of harmony and peace.
Just as the roots of a tree, even in dry and harsh soil, find deep water and grow strong, so may we, even in trials and crises, triumph with gratitude and faith, and through reflecting and being renewed, disseminate true harmony and peace throughout our communities, organizations, and the world.
Therefore, we resolve to do the following:
We choose harmony, not division, and commit to putting it into practice! (Amen)
We choose peace, not conflict, and commit to putting it into practice! (Amen)
Heavenly Parent, please guide us to embark on this new era and new history with hearts and bodies renewed, in a manner befitting this new age! (Amen)
From today’s “Prayer Meeting for the Opening of a New Era,” may all our hearts and resolutions offered before True Parents culminate into harmony and peace, and may we firmly stand as true children of Cheon Il Guk, fulfilling our responsibilities and responding to your call! (Amen)
We earnestly pray that this will be a time of grace, when all of us can reaffirm and renew our resolve.
Attending Holy Mother Han I offer this prayer in deep gratitude in my name Doo Seung-yeon of a blessed family.