African Continental Summit & Family Renewal Festival in Niger
Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, affectionately known as True Mother, gave the main address at the Opening Ceremony of the African Continental Summit in Niger held at the Palais Des Congrès in Niamey, Niger on November 28, 2019.
Heads of state and leaders from different nations who love true peace! And particularly the president of Niger who has hosted this conference, the prime minister and members of the Cabinet! Yesterday, when I was saluted by the military guard of honor, I marveled at how handsome and manly the young people of Niger could be. As God’s Only Begotten Daughter and the True Mother, I wanted to make them my sons.
Today we are longing for peace. Unfortunately, the world is becoming more immersed in war, conflict, and confusion. This means that peace cannot come about through human-centered efforts, ideologies, or regulations alone. In order to achieve true peace, we must know the essence of the Creator, the Owner of this universe. Our Creator created this universe and all things in it in His image. At the end of His creation, He created a man and a woman as the first human ancestors. Then, he gave them a growth period to fulfill their responsibilities. However, when we look at the world today, we have become a fallen people who do not live up to the Creator’s expectations and hopes.
Our Creator is omniscient and omnipotent. His beginning and end are the same. He is unchanging and eternal. Hence, the issue arose from the fact that God gave humans responsibility. As a result, a man and a woman who have completed their responsibility as ancestors of humanity must emerge from among fallen humankind. God, therefore, had no choice but to lead His providence of salvation. From among fallen humankind, He chose a nation that at least loved God, and conducted His providence of salvation and of restoration through indemnity until the people grew from individuals into a nation. After 4,000 years, God could finally send His Only Begotten Son through the Israelites. Unfortunately, humanity did not fully understand the essence of God’s Only Begotten Son. Even Mary, who gave birth to God’s Only Begotten Son, did not understand it. As a result, God’s Only Begotten Daughter could not appear alongside God’s Only Begotten Son, whom God sent after 4,000 long years of preparation. Thus, Jesus was crucified, leaving with the promise to return. This led to the 2,000 years of providential history of Christianity.
Christianity began after the Pentecost when the apostles waiting for Jesus experienced rebirth through the Holy Spirit. After being acknowledged in Rome in 313 AD, Christianity spread from the Italian Peninsula to the European continent, reaching the island nation of Great Britain. Great Britain was also known as an empire on which the sun never sets. The British headed out to the world holding the Bible. Unfortunately, they also did not understand the true essence of Jesus. Jesus taught, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Instead, the British prioritized their national interests in the mission countries they went to, and their selfishness brought their civilization to an end.
God chose a people through whom He could send His Only Begotten Daughter. God conducted His providence through the Korean Peninsula in Asia and, in 1943, His Only Begotten Daughter was born within the Christian foundation. Thus, a new providential history began through the birth of God’s Only Begotten Daughter.
In the beginning, the Creator gave humans a period of growth. God’s Only Begotten Daughter was born in 1943. Korea was liberated in 1945. With liberation came the division of Korea into the communist North and the democratic South. The Korean War, however, broke out in 1950 when South Korea had yet to fully establish its democratic system. Back then, Korea was a country that was barely known around the world. Then, how could the 16 member-nations of the United Nations come to the support of South Korea? To bring about the completion of the last providence, God had to give His Only Begotten Daughter a growth period.
Back then, Christians did not know of Heaven’s providence. Even though God’s Only Begotten Daughter had finally been born after 6,000 years, emerging next to the returning Messiah whom Christians had so longed for, the Christian foundation remained asleep. Knowing Heaven’s circumstances, I could no longer wait for them and rose to the position of True Parent in 1960.
The True Parents
Throughout history, human beings have lived like orphans who lost their parents. As a result, not once have we been able to enjoy an era of peace, though we earnestly long for peace. The 6,000-year history has been plagued by a series of wars, conflicts and much bloodshed. Since God’s creation was to last for eternity, God could not do anything until victorious human ancestors emerged. As the True Parents, we had to guide fallen humanity back to Heavenly Parent, even in the absence of a supportive environment. How did we do it? Without being reborn through True Parents’ Blessing of rebirth and resurrection, humankind cannot become children of our Heavenly Parent and Creator. Next year marks our 60th anniversary of the first Marriage Blessing. The now 60-year history of Marriage Blessing, which began with three couples, has given birth to many blessed families across 190 countries in the world.
To find all of humanity, who are about 7.7 billion in total, and have them become Heavenly Parent’s children is actually no simple matter at all. I am already approaching my eighties, and there is a limit to how much can be done during our lives on earth. However, as God’s Only Begotten Daughter and the Mother of this universe, I go wherever I am needed.
In this final stage, when we must realize the completion of the providence, the only way to work together to solve all the different conflicts, including religious, ideological, and racial conflicts, is through the emergence of the True Parents in front of humanity. If the 200-plus countries worldwide can inherit True Parents’ tradition and become sibling nations, the world will become the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth that Heavenly Parent and humanity have so longed for. In order to do so, just as our Creator created one man and one woman as the human ancestors, the men and women of this fallen world must be able to be reborn as couples through the True Parents, becoming true children of Heavenly Parent. Only when the dream of one big family under Heavenly Parent is realized can true peace come about. There can be no more conflicts and wars among children that are attending Heavenly Parent.
I understand that several chiefs are attending this conference. If you go back down your family line as chiefs, you will find out that we all have one parent. Living as fallen humanity not attending Heavenly Parent has resulted in national boundaries and many barriers preventing us from uniting as one. However, the time has come. It has been seven Cheon Il Guk years since God’s Only Begotten Daughter, the True Mother, began a new history. If all people worldwide become Cheon Il Guk citizens who attend Heavenly Parent, all our worries and problems will be solved. I am particularly familiar with the hard work of the Prophet Muhammad of Islam. That is why I have many sons from among top Muslim leaders.
This movement is a movement that truly attends Heavenly Parent. It is a movement that seeks to realize Heavenly Parent’s dream and humanity’s hope of one big family under God. From such a perspective, the president of Niger is a wise president. I am confident that many great leaders who truly love their people and strive for peace will emerge from the continent of Africa. We may see that out there in the world some children are trying to maintain distance from their fathers, but they remain closely united with their mothers. Therefore, please remember that the way to receive eternal blessings from Heavenly Parent is by having your nations and all of you here today become one with God’s Only Begotten Daughter, who is the Mother of the universe. I sincerely pray for the eternal development of Niger and the rest of Africa. Thank you.
True Mother’s Blessing Prayer
Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, affectionately known as True Mother, gave the following prayer at the Family Renewal Festival for Peace in Niger held at the Palais Des Congrès in Niamey, Niger on November 29, 2019.
Beloved Heavenly Parent, to whom we are truly grateful! You have had to walk such a thorny path to seek out humankind, whom You love, until this day. However, the True Parents, who can complete Your ideal of creation, have finally appeared on earth with the power to guide fallen people into Heavenly Parent’s embrace through the Marriage Blessing. True Parents have had to walk an indescribably difficult path until they establish all people as children whom Heavenly Parent can love directly. You know how we have striven at the center of this vast desert where sandstorms rage to seek the righteous people Heaven has prepared.
In this country where 80 percent of the land is desert, You have prepared these righteous people from a very long time ago to create the environment in which a Blessing Ceremony can be held today. Through this Marriage Blessing, the dream of one family of humanity centered on You, Heavenly Parent, transcending the barriers of religion, race and culture, can be realized. And when those who have been Blessed today are able to stand in the position in which they have fulfilled their responsibilities in front of Heaven—that is, when they have fulfilled their responsibilities as messiahs of their own tribes—this nation will become one that can receive Heaven’s blessing and grace.
True Parents are grateful for this and hope that, through these blessed couples, this country of Niger will become the Heavenly Niger attending Heavenly Parent and become the center of the African continent and its beacon of light and pride. I pray that the blessed couples of these people and this nation will be able to take the lead in establishing the Kingdom of Heaven of freedom, equality, peace, unity and happiness on earth, which is the beautiful garden that You, God, originally created and the dream of humankind. I pray and proclaim this in the name of True Parents.
Read Dr. Moon’s messages from the Hyojeong True Love and Family Blessing Festival in Taiwan here.
Read Dr. Moon’s message from the 2019 World Assembly of the Chinese People’s Federation for World Peace here.