Dr. Theodore Tadaaki Shimmyo’s Testimony from the 7-Day Japanese Revival Workshops
I decided to come to the workshop primarily because I wanted to learn what kind of education is being given in Japan by top lecturers such as Mr. Nakamura and Mr. Kachi. I wanted to use it to help educate and inspire Unificationists in America. My purpose of coming to the workshop was greatly accomplished, and I am happy about that.
For my reflection, I want to show here several striking points that I was able to learn from the workshop.
First, Mr. Nakamura’s lectures were refreshing, in that they presented the Divine Principle from a new yet important perspective which can be useful for our approach of confession and witnessing from now. Usually the Christian confesses with much confidence that he or she has already been saved through Jesus Christ. Mr. Nakamura’s lectures taught that in much the same way the Unificationist should confidently confess that he or she has already been saved through True Parents. His lectures, therefore, dealt with Principle of Creation, the Human Fall, and the Principle of Restoration from the perspective of the ideal of the Marriage Blessing centering on God’s true love. The purpose of creation was to realize the ideal Marriage Blessing of Adam and Eve to build an ideal world; the Human Fall was the frustration of this purpose through illicit love motivated by Satan; and the goal of restoration is to restore the Marriage Blessing by True Parents (also by Jesus and the Holy Spirit spiritually) and also to have all of humankind blessed in marriage and linked to the lineage of True Parents (also to Jesus and the Holy Spirit spiritually).
Second, the humble and loving personality of Mr. Nakamura truly touched us. When lecturing, he cried so many times. I think he acquired such a personality after many years of experiences. We understand that in Japan he is not just lecturing but caring for workshop participants, especially young participants such as second-generation Unificationists who have much trouble in their lives, and that they feel resurrected through his workshops to make a new start. We also understand that he takes pains to connect their parents with the young participants in such a way as to encourage them to spend more time with their children. I was personally so moved that at one point I burst into tears and wept with a loud voice. It happened when we engaged in unison prayer right after Mr. Nakamura finished his lecture on the sacrificial love of Jesus on the cross. Here in America, we need lecturers like Mr. Nakamura.
Third, Mr. Kachi is another amazing lecturer. He has been dedicating his life for many years to research True Parents’ life course so seriously that he not only knows True Parents’ words well but also receives numerous insights which I think are authentic and orthodox. His lectures during the workshop were convincing. This time we were particularly moved by his lecture on True Father’s course of sacrificial love in Heungnam Prison in North Korea, which was equivalent to Jesus’ crucifixion. We all cried. Mr. Kachi also clearly explained about what happened providentially during the crucial period from 2001 to the present, and during which time True Father ascended. That gave us a strong sense of mission, so that we might be able to work with True Mother as our central figure.
Fourth, Mr. Kachi explained the difficult situation of True Parents in which they as True Parents had to love the world more than their own children, which resulted in their children feeling left out and developing a sense of han (resentment) within themselves. We, who received love from True Parents, should have loved their children by becoming true human beings, but we couldn’t do so satisfactorily. After hearing Mr. Kachi’s explanation, we were all determined to become genuine and true human beings able to show love to people. That way, much of our problems will be solved.
Fifth, I was deeply impressed with Mr. Kachi’s explanation of the term hyo jeong (효정, 孝情, heart of filial piety) which True Mather started to use fairly recently. I understand that some people have wondered why she created such a new term. Mr. Kachi addressed the question, saying that it is her response and the response of all of us as well to True Father’s cheon jeong (천정, 天情, heart of heaven). As everyone knows, True Father used the term cheon jeong many times. He even named the Pine Ridge Resort “Cheon Jeong Won” (천정원, 天情苑) in 2008. Now, True Mother is assigning the term “Hyo Jeong” to virtually everything. According to the Divine Principle, there is a relationship of give and take of love and beauty between a subject and object partners. Love is the emotional force the subject gives to the object, while beauty is the emotional force the object returns to subject. It is our turn now to return our beauty to True Father who worked so hard before us! Cheon jeong and hyo jeong are emotional forces of love and beauty, respectively, as they both contain the word jeong (정, 情, emotion). From this explanation by Mr. Kachi, we understood that True Mother is truly working in harmony with True Father.
Finally, we learned the seriousness of the Family Federation National Ministry Team centering on Dr. Ki Hoon Kim and Dr. Michael Balcomb about Tribal Messiahship activities in America. In a way, it was the real conclusion of the workshop. We should not just intellectually study the Divine Principle, True Parents’ words, and the meaning of the providence through the workshop but go beyond the level of the workshop to do action. Thank you so much for the inspirational yet realistic talks by the National Ministry Team on this topic.