Liberia: We Unification Church Missionaries Counsel at a Christian Youth Camp

Unification Junior High School in Monrovia, Liberia: members, teachers, and students.

Today I am writing from a district deep in the jungle. From January 10-19 we participated as counselors and teachers in a Christian youth camp here in the area. We walked for a good part of two days “through the bush” to reach the camp. There are few motor roads in the interior. Its good training and excellent exercise. We are becoming veterans at living and travelling in an “uncivilized” manner.

However, as our plans become reality, the people will be encouraged to clear out the forest for motor roads and airstrips. When they know and see that the white missionaries are serious then they can really pull together to “lift up this work.” (President Talbert’s motto is “Total Involvement for Higher Heights.”) Yesterday we offered 12 acres of land for the Sun Moon Unification Mission of Gbuezohn, which will serve six villages. The people don’t like to send their children far for schooling and only those with money can give their children book learning in the coastal cities.

But they are suspicious of missionaries because of broken promises and disappointments in the past. The last missionaries to promise development here came in 1968 and haven’t been seen since that day! Eight years have passed — now it’s the year of restart. The man who owns the mission land is the same man who let us live in his home when we were pioneering Buchanan last November.

He has paid a price for this mission by losing his uncle and three-year-old daughter during December. His daughter was mysteriously poisoned on Christmas.

She died the same day. “God is really Somebody” is the expression of our Bishop Moses Doe Weah, the Kru man who turned over his 29 churches and six schools to Rev. Moon. I feel like Moses or Abraham or Esther because Heavenly Father is communicating so directly to us.

Every time we missionaries discuss things, Father pours out inspiration after inspiration. Our development is a testimony to Rev. Moon’s teaching: If you have the ability to carry out only 10 things

out of 100 God will fill in the other 90 if you are determined to fulfill all 100.

The five of us are trying to train and supervise over 2,000 people (mostly children) whose lives are directly influence I by our projects. God’s plan is to raise the children of Liberia to be “naturalized” citizens of His kingdom.

Last night we had a “Celebration of Life” campfire especially for the 30 or so children in this village who will be our students. We provided vocal selections as well as harmonica and violin music. Our Liberian “missionary in training” Ben was the master of ceremonies and taught the children some wonderful games.

There is one song we sing as we dance around the fire: “Gonna run, run, run to meet my Savior, Oh when he comes, when he comes!” Everywhere I go I take my pictures of Rev. Moon and our family and explain all about our movement. Everyone has received them because they are very pure-hearted people who “judge the tree by its fruits.”

Tomorrow we will be back in Buchanan and the battle for truth will continue. The fundamentalist American missionaries from the Buchanan Christian College — a mission school with grades 5th through sophomore year of college — know of our rapid development and it really has them bewildered because God couldn’t possibly give such blessings to a “false prophet.” They have one school in Buchanan; we now have three. We have to prevent them from developing resentment so I am praying for a strategy to bring closer unity and cooperation.

I just took a break for a lunch of palm butter, goat meat, and rice. We haven’t enjoyed any python steak as yet but we have seen various snakes forced out of the brush by driver ants. Other delicacies we have tried are deer meat, porcupine meat, goat, chicken, and calf meat. Eventually I will try monkey meat which they say is “too sweet.” But one must be careful of “stomach complaints” when trying something new. I experience “stomach complaint” almost continually but I will become immune to it soon.

“Take time” in Liberian English is the equivalent of “Be careful.” My stomach is adapting slowly. Next week I want to try ground pea soup which is actually peanut butter soup; a ground pea is a peanut. It’s been too long since I’ve had something like a PBJ!

The hill where we will have our mission is covered with thick jungle vegetation since it hasn’t been “brushed” for 15 years. Yesterday we chopped through it with machetes to pray at the spot where it will stand. I gave the prayer, asking Heavenly Father for His blessings so Liberia could truly liberate Africa.

Playing with the children is the most enjoyable witnessing in the world. Of course, many are terrified by white people. One little girl was screaming in Bassa: “Get away from me. I hate pink skinned ladies!” We love to make faces and do tricks for them. Even the grown-ups start to imitate us.

The kingdom of heaven is truly at hand. It is thrilling to enter each village along the way and be greeted by singing and rejoicing. Apo gede po zuo — We give thanks to the God (or Praise the Lord!) — is often heard in the Bassa dialect. We reply with in po jize zuo — I thank Jesus!