CARP Las Vegas Hosts Online Two-Day Divine Principle Retreat

Can’t host gatherings of more than 10 people? That didn’t stop the Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles (CARP) in Las Vegas from hosting its first-ever virtual Divine Principle retreat from March 24-25. They welcomed 27 participants including CARP Bay Area and CARP Arizona members.

Co-Founder of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU) Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, affectionately known as True Mother, mentioned that in the age of the internet, we have the ability to connect with the rest of the world in an instant. CARP Las Vegas wanted to seize this time of staying at home as an opportunity to explore ways to stay connected with friends and spread the word and love of God. The team discussed at length how they could convey the spiritual message online and at the same time communicate the spirit, heart, and love of the Divine Principle.

Augustine Maddox, Jennifer Silerio, Juan Morales, and CARP University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) Vice President Ryota Naito gave the lectures. Ms. Silerio and Mr. Morales are both recent CARP graduates who had studied the Divine Principle and joined CARP while they were attending UNLV. Both having transformational experiences themselves through studying the content, they committed to give similar life-changing experiences to others by volunteering as lecturers. They were able to share their personal experiences of how the Principle transformed their views about life and the world, making some essential concepts of the Principle more relatable and relevant to the daily life of young adults. Discussions after each lecture allowed participants to gain deeper insight by asking questions and listening to what others learned.

Though a virtual workshop can limit interaction with participants, in the end, everyone was happy to connect in the heart beyond the limitation of distance. One participant shared, “Even though the virus was spreading and the workshop was a virtual one, I still could feel the love from everyone and realized nothing can block the power of LOVE. It was a great workshop and it was a nice opportunity to meet various people from other areas.”

The CARP team is working to improve future monthly retreats and plans to host the next one from April 17-18. Nothing is going to stop God’s love from spreading to the world!