Why Unification Thought is More Urgently Needed for Thought and Life than Ever
By David Carlson
“I wish to emphasize the urgent need for the worldview of Unification Thought. While much of this chapter is philosophical, this vision is meant to be lived to create a peaceful world. We do not live in a neutral environment; we are in the midst of an intense ‘culture war’ and face tangible global threats. In this climate, Unification Thought is more than a philosophy—it is a necessity. I appeal to leaders, scholars, and people of goodwill across all sectors to study this vision. I believe it alone holds the potential to resolve our current conflicts, clarify essential values, and realize the world of peace for which we have all longed.”
Part 6 (Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5)
17. The Power of the Truth
Who, then, has the ability to confront this Kingdom of evil and emerge victorious? The churches may seek to be such but, as just mentioned, they are not able to do so. Oftentimes, the scholars are locked into their own intellectual worldviews, and are more “scholarly” than “activist,” especially if they are “dupes” of the socialist program. I believe that it is only individuals equipped with the Divine Principle and Unification Thought who can measure up to the task. Sadly, rather than being a “bastion of the truth,” as they could have been, with a more thoughtful study of Unification theology and Unification Thought, the Christian churches have tended to persecute Rev. Moon and members of the FFWPU. This persecution was certainly applauded by the cultural communists. Initially, the Church’s reaction may be somewhat understood since their theologies are different from Unification theology, and they may have been worried about a “new” theology. But, what was to prevent them from sincerely studying Unification theology to find out what it really was saying? I think the answer to that question is abundantly clear. Many young people who came to study Unification theology and Unification Thought found in this worldview new hope, new life, and the inspiration to work to establish a better world. Couldn’t Christians have done the same? Sadly, too many of them were and are blinded by their theology.
The Divine Principle and Unification Thought are very clear and logical. I have been privileged to have had the opportunity to study both of them to some extent, and to teach them for a number of years. Among scholars, I am reminded of a professor, Dr. Sebastian Matczak, who taught philosophy for many years at the Unification Theological Seminary. He also read and studied Unification Thought, and came to realize its value for our world. He would often “chastise” us for our lack of understanding. The reason I mention him is that he is an example of how Unification Thought can inspire a true academic. People may not be concerned with religious concepts as they are presented in the Divine Principle, or they may be biased for or against, as many Christians are, but any modern, rational person who is concerned about the society and world can find in Unification Thought a new source of energy and understanding, as did Dr. Matczak. If and when scholars begin to see the value of its teachings on God, on education, on the family, on values, on the human being, etc., then Unification thinking can sweep the world like an intellectual tsunami. Once that happens, many things can start to change, this time in a good direction; we can begin to counter the demonic forces at work, and we can bring the presence of God and godliness back into the world.
I see no conceptual or pragmatic (related to practice) worldview aside from Unificationism, with the vision set forth in Unification Thought and Divine Principle, which can adequately cope with such an evil world, and the forces acting within it. The practice of true love and living for the sake of others is the most powerful philosophy, especially when it is practiced, or lived. Especially, Unification Thought has logical and systematic ideas, presented philosophically, which can compete with, and win over, any other worldview. The issue is the practice. We must begin to live the ideas, to embody them in our lives, and in our families.[1] True Father, Rev. Moon, has poured his heart out hundreds, if not thousands, of times teaching us what we must do, and still people have not really responded that much. That is a great shame.
18. The Problem
People are too much influenced by liberal ideological concerns. Their theology, or philosophy, or other views they may hold have been “tainted” with various degrees of liberal or dogmatic ideas. It is pointed out in the Divine Principle that those people who live in the time of the Last Days:
should not be strongly attached to conventional concepts but rather should direct ourselves to be receptive to the spirit, in order that we may find the new truth which can guide us to the providence of the new age. We should cultivate a humble heart and make the utmost effort to receive divine inspiration through prayer.[2]
How many Christians have such an attitude today? The minds of many people, even religious people, have been influenced by demonic forces. Of course, they don’t always appear as “demonic,” and believers would rarely, if ever, imagine that they have been, or even could be, “influenced” by “demonic” forces. That would be too obvious. But these demonic forces affect them, nevertheless, and appear more subtly through people’s pride, jealousy, arrogance, complaint, lust, and other aspects of their (fallen) nature. That is one way, among others, in which evil works.
19. Our Calling: to Save a World
Unlike Marx, who wanted to “change” the world, we are called by God to “save” the world. In more colloquial terms, we are called to become good, moral individuals, to establish wonderful ethical families of love, and inspire other people to do the same. But, in order to do so we must fulfill our portion of responsibility. We must market the good ideas we have, and get these amazing ideas into the minds and hearts of people, so that they can be inspired to change their lives. On an academic or intellectual level we must inspire philosophers to understand the profound concepts being presented by Unification Thought. Rev. Moon says that the key issue throughout history has been the existence of God. He says, too, that “the final destination of philosophy is the discovery of God.”[3] Today, even while atheism has been promoted by scientific authors,[4] there are appearing important new ways to think about the existence of God. For example, among the relevant books promoting a more theistic viewpoint are Antony Flew, There is a God and Eben Alexander, Proof of Heaven.[5] Flew is a philosopher, and Alexander a medical doctor (neurosurgeon).
20. What Will Happen in the Future? It depends on Us, and It Is A Serious Responsibility
The Divine Principle states that:
It is inevitable that the Third World War take place; however, there are two possible ways it may be fought.
One way to bring Satan’s side to surrender is through armed conflict The other way this war may be fought is as a wholly internal, ideological conflict, without the outbreak of armed hostilities, to bring Satan’s world to submission and unification in a short time. By which of these two ways will the Third World War actually be fought? It depends upon success or failure in carrying out the human portion of responsibility.
From where will the ideology essential to the resolution of this conflict and the establishment of the new world come?…It must arise out of the democratic world, which is rooted in the Abel-type view of life a hitherto unknown ideology will emerge from within the democratic world.[6]
The culture war in which we are now engaged could degenerate into a hot war, fought with fearsome weapons, such as nuclear bombs, some exotic germ, or a deadly chemical substance. Or it might be fought as a war of words or of values, based in a worldview. The latter option is obviously far more attractive than the former. No one wants war, with its untold death and destruction. It is clear that we must win the battle of worldviews in this culture war. James Canton, a futurologist makes our situation crystal clear:
This will be the decisive battle in the twenty-first century, waged by America and its allies against the forces seeking to turn back the clock. The authentic threat that lies at the heart of global terrorism, and even more conventional wars, is not the battle over religion, power, or even politics. It is the battle over the ideology of the future-whose idea of the future will dominate the planet.[7]
One’s worldview is very important. Unification Thought is such a worldview, and it is thus necessary to disseminate its ideas, its values, and its view of the world, as widely and as quickly as is possible.
21. Unification Thought Can Solve All Personal, Psychological, and Social Problems
Unification Thought important, not just as a worldview, but as a practical philosophy, one that can be applied in everyday life, to solve practical issues.
The purpose of Unification Thought is to achieve the goal of creating a global family and to realize the everlasting ideal world of God’s true love by solving fundamentally and once and for all-all the numerous and difficult problems that afflict humankind.[8]
Thus, Unification Thought has the philosophical acumen to be able to address all the problems mentioned previously: Islamic jihad, communism, media, politics, economics, etc. That is on the theoretical level. The problem is with practice, how we apply that philosophy in our daily lives. Even within the Unification Movement, Dae Mo Nim, at Cheongpyeong, repeatedly emphasized to us the fact that we “know Divine Principle, but we do not practice true love.” This is a very serious issue, and must humbly be reflected upon by every member of the Unification Movement. To the extent that we truly practice true love, people will be drawn to our blessed families and, in time, people will be able to see the value of this worldview.
Unification Thought shows us what must be done in order to become good people of true character, with mind and body unity (unity between spirit mind and physical mind). It also shows very clearly how to construct an ideal family that is filled with the love of God, and extend that tradition over the generations into the future. It shows us what an artistic life is like so that we may begin to live lives of beauty and prosperity. It explains what a true society is like, and a true nation. Unless and until all nations in the world understand clearly about the worldview and vision of Unification Thought, and begin to practice or realize that worldview, all of the Cain-type mentalities and forces actively working in the world at all levels will hold sway, and there will only be increasing misery, poverty, violence, and corruption. No one has the mental, intellectual, and spiritual equipment necessary to overcome such forces except the blessed families of the Unification movement. This is the great responsibility to which we are called, and which we must absolutely accomplish. We have no other option. “I” am called by providential history to fulfill “my” destiny.[9]
The problem that we face, practically, however, is that most blessed families are under considerable stress. They are struggling with family problems, health problems, financial problems, and many other problems. If we can overcome these problems and move forward, there can be a bright future. The only way to defeat the kingdom of evil, and to genuinely save the world, is to practice true love and demonstrate to the world the value of a life of true love. That is an enormous task, and I do not know if Unification Church members are capable of rising to the occasion and accomplishing their responsibility. We are sincere people, and trying to do well, but it is very difficult, and we are burdened with fallen nature, not to mention financial and spiritual challenges. Beyond that, our society is a challenge.[10]
I began with Marx, and I will close with Marx. It is true that philosophers have only understood the world, whereas the point is to change the world. That much is true, but it was not until Unification Thought came on the scene that we were able to truly understand the world. Unification Thought gives us, for the first time, the correct worldview, the true worldview. Now our responsibility, indeed, is to the change the world, but do so in accordance with the truth that we now understand so clearly. I will close with an exhortation echoing Karl Marx: “Unificationists of the world unite! We have a world to save!
[1] In virtually every speech she delivers these days, Hyo Nam Kim (Dae Mo Nim as she is known by FFWPU members) emphasizes the importance of practicing, not just learning. The practice of true love is what will “save” the world
[2] HSA-UWC, Exposition, 108.
[3] FFWPU, Cheon Seang Gyeon, 63.
[4] Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, John Hitchens, god is not Great, etc.
[5] Antony Flew, There Is A God; Eben Alexander, Proof of Heaven,
[6] HSA-UWC, Exposition, 376-77.
[7] James Canton, The Extreme Future, 351
[8] UTI, Essentials, 8.
[9] HSA-UWC, Exposition, 187
[10] Reinhold Niebuhr, Moral Man and Immoral Society, New York: Scribner’s, 1932. He argues that although individuals might be righteousness and moral at the beginning, once they become involved in an immoral society their efforts are largely neutralized. That is to say, individual Christians can love, but it is impossible to apply Christ’s law of love to large social groups. Society is always more immoral than its members as individuals. A society may never become loving, but at leas it can it can be just. Niebuhr was a life-long advocate of social change. As Unificationists, we have a whole new concept of love, true love, and we know how that is realized. Unification Thought also claims that justice is the practice of love (true love). That is an insight not available to Niebuhr. We have the means of going beyond Niebuhr, and to actually realize a moral. society, filled with moral (loving) people.