Divine Principle
The Divine Principle or Exposition of the Divine Principle (in Korean, Wolli Kangron) is the main theological textbook of the Unification Church, held to have the status of scripture by believers. The term "Divine Principle" is also used by Unificationists to refer to a more metaphysical concept of divine truth, of which the DP text is only an imperfect human expression. The text follows the format of systematic theology, starting with God's purpose in creating human beings, the fall of man, and redemption—the process through history by which God is working to remove the ill effects of the fall and restore humanity back to the relationship and position that God originally intended.
History
The Divine Principle presents itself as a new revelation from God, given to the the Reverend Sun Myung Moon.
- [The new] truth must appear as a revelation from God. With the fullness of time, God has sent one person to this earth to resolve the fundamental problems of human life and the universe. His name is Sun Myung Moon. For several decades he wandered through the spirit world so vast as to be beyond imagining... Through intimate spiritual communion with God and by meeting with Jesus and many saints in Paradise, he brought to light all the secrets of Heaven.
Reverend Moon's first encounter with Jesus reportedly took place on Easter Sunday, 1935. For the next decade or so, he wrote down notes in the margins of his Bible express variious insights and revelations. These notes reportedly formed the basis of the original concept of the work.
The earliest manuscript of the Principle was lost in North Korea during the Korean War. Upon arriving as a refugee in Pusan, Moon wrote a manuscript which is referred to as Wolli Wonbon (meaning "the original text of the Divine Principle"), dictating the last chapter to Won Pil Kim, his first disciple. He then guided Hyo Won Eu, the first president of the Unification Church of Korea, to prepare more systematic presentations of his teachings with biblical, historical, and scientific illustrations.
Moon gave Eu special instruction regarding the content of these texts and then checked them over meticulously. These efforts resulted in Wolli Hesol (Explanation of the Divine Principle), published in 1957 (but never translated into English), and Wolli Kangron (Exposition of the Divine Principle), published in 1966. Since then, Wolli Kangron has been the basic text of Moon's teachings.
According to its preface, Wolli Kangron expresses universal truth; it inherits and builds upon the core truths which God revealed through the Jewish and Christian scriptures and encompasses the wisdom from the Orient. However, it does not claim either to be a perfect expression of truth, or to be a complete rendering of the teachings of Reverend Moon:
- The words proclaimed on these pages are only a portion of this truth. This volume is merely a compilation of what his disciples have hitherto heard and seen. We believe and hope that when the time is ripe, more profound portions of the truth will be published.
While no systematic treatise of Reverend Moon's subsequent teachings as emerged, many volumes of his speech, both formal and extemporaneous, have been publish. A recent compilation ---name here--- presents a topical sampling of Reverend Moon's sayings cover over 2,000 pages.
"Principle" is a direct translation of the Korean term wolli, and the word "Divine" was added to indicate that the material dealt with spiritual and religious principles. While some Unificationists speak of the "Divine Principles," plural forms are not normally used in Korean, and there is a sense that these principles fit together into a unitary whole. Unification Church members sometimes refer to the Divine Principle (or simply "The Principle") to mean not only the specific translation of Wolli Kangron, to signify an eternal truth already existed in the universe before the books were written. Indeed, sometimes "The Principle" is used to refer to the universal principles out there in the universe, apart from the books.
The first English translation by Mrs. Won Pok Choi of Wolli Kangron, named Divine Principle, was first published in English in 1973 and was subsequently revised in 1974. This book went through numerous printings and was widely distributed both among Unfiication Church members and the public at large. In 1996 the book was completely re-translated, primarily by Jin Goon Kim with the aid of Andrew Wilson, and re-titled Exposition of the Divine Principle.
Other Unification Church texts
Early DP in English
Before the publication of the 1973 edition, various version of the Principle were published by the first three Unification Church missionaries to the US. Young Oon Kim (first missionary to the US and considered the premier Unification theologian) published several version in the late 1960s, the most well known being "Divne Principle and Its Application" (1969). David S.C. Kim (and early missionary and later the first president of the Unification Theological Seminary) wrote "Individual Prepration for His Coming Kingdom," and Bo Hi Pak (then working as military attache at the Korean Embassy in Washington DC) wrote.
A lecture manual by Reverend Young Whi Kim (then president of the Unification Church in Korea) was widely used in the U.S. during the early 1970s while Reverend Chung Hwan Kwak (then International Director of Education of the Unification Church) published a series of lectures manuals in the late 70s.
Heavenly Scripture
The Introduction to the Divine Principle states:
The words proclaimed on these pages are only a portion of this truth. This volume is merely a compilation of what his disciples have hitherto heard and seen. We believe and hope that when the time is ripe, more profound portions of the truth will be published.
The Cheongseonggyeong (Heavenly Scripture) is a recent compilation of excerpts from the speeches Rev. Moon organized topically and representing his core thought and legacy. Although it is too early to say whether this book will gain the scriptural authority of Divine Principle in Unification tradition, its more than 2000 pages of Reverend Moon's words is clearly the most authoritate compliation yet published.
Many of Reverend Moon's sermons, speeches, and directives have been collected and archived by the Unification Church. In earlier years they were printed out and given to members. Since the 1990s many have also been posted on the Internet. Officials of his organizations point out that, except for speeches prepared in advance for official events, the English versions of Reverend Moon's speeches are transcribed from consecutive or simultaneous translation, often in summary form, and distributed without verification of the accuracy of the translation.
Structure
The book follows systematic theology in its structure: God's creation, the human fall, human redemption (called "restoration" in DP.")
The book has two parts, with a total of 13 chapters. The first part deals primarily with theological concepts, such as the nature of God and His creation, the human fall, the coming of the Messiah, and others. The second part deals with the historical process by which God continues to work to eliminate the ill effects of the human fall and restore humankind to the original "Ideal of Creation" that would have existed if the fall had not occurred.
- Introduction
- Part 1
- Chapter 1: The Principle of Creation
- Chapter 2: The Human Fall
- Chapter 3: Eschatology and Human History
- Chapter 4: The Messiah: His Advent and the Purpose of His Second Coming
- Chapter 5: Resurrection
- Chapter 6: Predestination
- Chapter 7: Christology
- Part 2
- Introduction to Restoration
- Chapter 1: The Providence to Lay the Foundation for Restoration
- Chapter 2: Moses and Jesus in the Providence of Restoration
- Chapter 3: The Periods in Providential History and the Determination of Their Lengths
- Chapter 4: The Parallels between the Two Ages in the Providence of Restoration
- Chapter 5: The Period of Preparation for the Second Coming of the Messiah
- Chapter 6: The Second Advent
Summary
Principle of Creation
God is viewed as the creator, whose character is revealed in the Creation. God thus has "dual characteristics" corresponding to the attributes we see expressed in his creation: masculinity and femininity, internal character and external form, subject and object.
God is referred to as "he" for simplicity and because "masculinity" is associated with God's role as "subject" in relation to huankind. God is omniscient and omnipotent, but is bound by his own principles and the logical consequences of human freedom. In order to experience a relationship of love, God created human beings as his children and gave them freedom to love him or not as they chose.
A fundamental teaching of the Principle is that God possesses both male and female attributes and that the most perfect substantial expression of God is to be found in a relationship between a fully perfected man and a fully perfected woman, living in accordance with the will of God. This love can then grow between parents and children. The family unit is a crucial foundation for the establishment of God's ideal for human beings.
The fall of humanity
Although the Divine Principle does not insist on a literal interpretation of Genesis in terms of when the first human beings might have existed, it portrays the Fall of Man as an actual historical event (rather than an allegory) involving an original human couple, who are called Adam and Eve.[1] The elements in the story, however, such as the Tree of Life, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the forbidden fruit, the serpent, etc., are interpreted to be symbolic. They represent, respectively, ideal man, ideal woman, sexual love, and Satan. The essence of the fall is that Eve was seduced sexaully by an angelic being (Lucifer) and then seduced Adam.[2] Although Adam and Eve were intended to be husabnd and wife, their love was consummated through sexual intercourse apart from the plan of God, and before Adam and Eve were spiritually mature.
They also regard Adam and Eve's son Cain killing his brother Abel as a literal event which contributed to humankind's fallen state. Unificationists teach that since the "fall of humanity," all of human history has been a constant struggle between the forces of God and Satan to correct this original sin (cf. Augustine and lust, concupiscence). This belief contributes to their strict moral code of "absolute love" and sexual purity, and the need for "indemnity."
Mission of the Messiah
The DP view of Jesus and his mission follows logical from its teaching about he Principles of Creation and the Fall of Man. The Messiah's role is essentially to fulfill the role of Adam, a doctrine also taught in the New Testament by Saint Paul, who refered to Jesus as the "second Adam." The Principle thus affirms that Jesus' original mission was restore Adam's position, to marry, establish a God-centered family, and expand this foundation to include a clan consisting his disicples and their families, then a tribe, nation, and eventually the entire world.
Divine Principle teadches that Jesus' death by no means a preordained necessity, but a secondary course made necessary by disbelief and rejection. Like traditional Christianity, however, DP teaches that Jesus death serves as a redemption of humanity's sins. DP teaches that Jesus resurrection was spiritual, not physical. It further teaches that the Trinty represents a spiritual manifestation of the original Trinity of God, Adam, and Eve, with Jesus in the position of father, and the Holy Spirit in the position of mother. Christians are thus the children of Jesus and the Holy Spirit, through whom spiritual rebirth is given. If Jesus had lived, the Holy Spirit would have incarnated in his wife, similar to the incarnation of the spirit of Christ/Adam incarnated in Adam.
DP's understanding of the mission of Elijah is a key to understanding its conception of the mission of the Messiah. Elijah had the role of harbinger or forerunner. He was to reveal to Israel and the world the identity of the Messiah, and the person fulfilling this role was slated to work with the Messiah to usher in the kingdom of Heaven. In particular, John the Baptist was to play the role of Elijah in relation to his kinsman Jesus. The prophecies concerning John's ministry ("in the spirit and power of Elijah" and "make ready for the Lord a people prepared"—Luke 1) are cited by the church in support of this view. DP strongly criticizes John for failing to provide active support for Jesus and asserts this as the primary reason why the Jewish could not recognize Jesus as the Messiah.
The History of Restoration
Foundation of restoration
History is viewed as God’s work to bring about the realization of his original ideal. DP outlines a basic principle by which this work was to be accomplished and then applies it systematically to Old Testament history, concentrating espeically on the Book of Genesis and continuing on through the history of Israel until the coming of Jesus, and then through Christian civilization in the New Testament Age.
The process of restoration began immediately in Adam's family. Cain and Abel's relationship was meant to restore the position of Lucifer and Adam. Just as Lucifer had to humble himself from the position of Archangel and approach God through Adam (but failed to do so), Cain had to experience the humiliation of having his offering rejected by God, while Abel's was accepted. The next step was for Abel to win Cain's heart and bring him, too, to God. This would have accomplished the "foundation for the Messiah" allowing the Messiah to be born as Abel descendant, probably in the very next generation. The murder of Abel by Cain, however, prevented this.
The next attempt at restoration came ten biblical generations later in the family of Noah. A righteous man in a wikced generation, Noah resored Adam's position by his course of faithfully building the ark and saving his family from the flood. His sons Shem and Ham then had to restore the positions of Cain and Abel. Unfortunately, Ham failed to inherit Abel's position when he responded shamefully to Noah's nakedness and spread this attitude to his brothers. Thus, the providence of restoration in Noah's family, too, ended in failure.
The foundation for restoration was finally accomplished through the work of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob together with their wives. Because more details are given in the Bible, the DP analysis of these events cannot be fully summarized here. The basic outline is that Abraham stood in Adam's position but failed to set up a successful foundation of faith during his first symbolic offering.If he had succeeded in this offering Abrham's sons Ishmael and Isaace would have stood in the position of Cain and Abel. Because of his failure in this offering, this providence failed. However, when Abraham was willing to offer Isaac as a sacrifice to God, he restored the foundation of faith and Isaac inherited the position of Adam from Abraham. Isaac then had two sons, Esau and Jacob, and these two together succeeded in restoring the position of Cain and Abel. This occurred after Esau lost both his birthright and Isaac's blessing to Jacob. Like Cain, he desired to kill his blessed young brother, but eventually overcame his rage when Jacob returned for 21 years in exile and won his heart through acts of humility and generosity. This successfully established the foundation for the Messiah and is the reason why God sent the Messiah to the Jews as Jacob's descendents.
National courses of restoration
The Messiah could not be sent immediately, however, as a national foundation was necessary. In the cases of Adam's and Noah's families, the Messiah could have been born immediately because no other nations existed at the time, but by Jacob's time a national foundation had become necessary.
The first course of national restoration began 400 years of slavery in Egypt Jacob's decesdants, the Israelites, left Egypt and eventually conquered Canaan under the leadership of Moses, Aaron, and Joshua. The crucial factor in establishing the national-level foundation for the Messiah was for the tribes of Israel to unite centering on the Ten Commandments and the Temple of Jerusalem. The DP traces several unseccessful attempts to accomplish this, culminating finally in successful establishment of the foundation for the Messiah during a 400-year period after the Jews returned from Babylon, rebuit the temple, and faithfully upheld the tradition of the Mosaic Law.
On this foundation, Jesus of Nazareth was born as the chosen Messiah. His mission, as explained about, was to restore Adam's position, find his bride in the position of Eve, raise a family, and establish the physical and spiritual kingdom of God in his lifetime. Because of the failure of John the Baptist and other key figures, however, Jesus could not gain the acceptance of the religious and political leadership of Israel. Instead he was accused of blasphemy and treason, and died on the Cross without ever establishing a family. After his resurrection, however, his disciples united with him in spirit and faith, even to the point of being willing to give their lives for his cause. On that foundation, Jesus could lead what the Principle calls the "spiritual course of restoration" until the time of the Messiah's Second Advent.
New Testament Age
The followers of Jesus henceforth would form the central people of faith in the providence of restoration, much as the Israelites had done in the previous age. Thus the Christian Church and the civilization it spawned are seen as the Second Israel in the New Testament Age. Divine Principle presents an anyalsis of the history of western civilization showing various parallels between the providence of restoration in the ages of the old and new testaments. For example, the coronation of Charlemagne is seen as a parallel to that of David, while the great saints of the Middle Ages are seen as parallel to the prophets, and the Reformation and its aftermath are seen as parallels to the rebuilding of the Temple of Jerusalem and the establishment of the Jewish tradition prior to the coming of Jesus.
The 400 year period from the beginning of the Reformation until the early twentieth century are thus seen as the period of Preparation for the Second Advent, and the current era is seen as the time in which the Second Coming of Christ has been fulfilled.
Reverend Moon's Role
In Divine Principle itself Reverend Moon's role as Messiah is only hinted at, and he is presented primarily as the messenger who has brought the teaching of the Principle to humanity. However, the majority of Unficationists view Moon as the actual historical Messiah or "Christ of the Second Advent," while his wife is considered as the new Eve. As the messianic couple, they hold the title of "True Parents of Mankind."
See also
- Unification theology
- Unification Thought
- Unification Church
- Sun Myung Moon
- Western world values
- religious pluralism
Other theology and philosophy
Theology, fall of man, theory of education
External links
- The Divine Principle in Plain Language
- Exposition of the Divine Principle
- Divine Principle and Its Application www.tparents.org Retrieved May 19, 2007.
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- ↑ However, some Unificationists interpret Adam and Eve to symbolize humankind, or that they were only the first "true" humans and not necessarily the progenitors of the species of homo sapiens.
- ↑ This is not to say that Eve and Lucifer had a physical relationship. Rather her relationship with Lucifier is seen as the "spiritual fall," which was consummated when she and Adam had sex prematurely outside of God's blessing.
