The Reading-Life Anthology

“Supposing, I mean, it's hard to imagine, just imagine you were living in your mother's womb. What do you think it would be like? Warm and cozy, and lots of space... But after a while, how does it feel? You feel a bit squashed... Then suddenly, one day, somebody lets out the plug. What happened to all the water?... You see a bit of light down at the end of this tunnel, and you think, I can't fit down through that. You probably feel that you're going to die. Then suddenly you come out into all this bright light, and it's harsh air. You start having to breathe, which is hard work. Then suddenly someone goes snip. That's my food supply you just cut off. Within a few minutes, you start to feel hungry, which you never felt before. This new world isn't as pleasant as life in the old world. It feels like dying, but actually, it's the entering into this new world.”

“I understand God as both masculine and feminine, harmonised into Oneness. However, when we consider the relationship between God and the natural world, God is relatively more masculine compared to nature. This is why we have expressions like 'Mother Earth', which describe the Earth as a sort of mother. This perspective is also present in various religions. At the end of the day, words are inadequate to describe what God is like. Just because a term is used does not mean it fully encapsulates the essence of God; we are trying to use our limited language to simplify and understand the relationship between God and the universe.”

“My mother always tells a story from when she was a little girl. One day, somebody came to the door, and her mother didn't want to meet this person. My grandmother told my mother to go and tell him she's not in. My mother didn't know what to do; how could she tell a lie? But how could she disobey her mother? So what's the way out of it? My mother said yes, she opened the door and said she's not in anyway. If your parents tell you to do something wrong, don't do it.”

“If I were to ask you, what do you think is easier to do: what is right or what is wrong?... Speaking for myself, it is far easier to be selfish because often there's instant gratification in selfish actions. To pursue goodness often takes more effort and sometimes self-denial. The way of evil is often the way of instant gratification, which is why many people, especially the younger generation, tend to be drawn in that direction, not knowing the long-term results or consequences... Just a few days ago, we saw the tragic end of Gaddafi. For many people, it wasn't a tragedy, but I'm sure in the last moments of his life, just before he was killed, he must have concluded that all his power, fame, and riches were worthless... It reminds me of the statement of Jesus: for what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul?”

“A lot of people who have heard this story or read it may take it at face value, thinking it was the literal eating of a fruit or, at the very most, perhaps just an act of disobedience. Irrespective of what the act was, simple disobedience was the problem. Of course, that's true, but we also see that there was an actual act which severed our relationship with God and resulted in our present-day people being born with original sin. This kind of situation leaves many unanswered questions, such as why it was possible for Adam and Eve to deviate from God. Did God know that they would deviate? If so, why did He allow it to happen?”

“Father gave lots of speeches about Cain and Abel in the late 70s and early 80s because there was a lot of misunderstanding. The person who lives most fully for the sake of others is the one who's closest to the central figure position. To qualify as a central person for the foundation of substance, you need to live for the sake of others. There's also something else we talked about. In order to stand as a central person in a spiritual relationship, you need to make a foundation of faith. If you want to be a religious leader, you need to make lots of conditions, fasting, and prayer. Through these things, you're making a foundation of faith, separating from Satan, and then people will feel something from you and naturally come to respect you.”

“Just as God loves fallen man, Abel must have the heart of love toward Cain and restore him at the risk of his own life. The way of Abel is the way of sacrifice. The history of Abel became a history of shedding blood; that's a fundamental teaching in the Bible. If you are better than somebody at something, you should think about how you can help this person improve. If you're playing tennis, think about how you can help someone to improve their game. Abel is supposed to shed blood and tears to open the way through which Cain can survive. This is the foundation of victory. You must reflect and answer the question: how much have you exerted yourself to raise a life for one person, considering it as the ultimate goal of your life?”

“So, Adam and Eve told Cain and Abel to make their offerings on the Sabbath. When the Sabbath came, Abel set his alarm clock for 5:00 in the morning. He jumped out of bed, had a shower, got changed, shaved, put on his best clothes, and went out into the field to find the best lamb he could find. He took it to the altar, slit its throat, and prayed. Fire came out of heaven and consumed his offering. Abel felt incredibly happy, thinking God had received his offering. He felt joyful and danced with the angels. Meanwhile, Cain overslept. When he got up, he put on his regular work clothes, had breakfast, and then remembered he was supposed to make an offering. He found some leftover cornflakes, put them in a dirty cloth, and went to the altar, saying, 'Here, God, here is my gift.' Birds of prey came down and took his offering, and Cain felt depressed, thinking God hadn't accepted him.”

“There is another story that goes along with this about Abel's sheep and Cain's crops. One day, Cain woke up early to bring in the harvest, only to find Abel's sheep had trampled his vegetables and destroyed his crops. Furious, Cain stormed over to Abel's house, demanding an explanation. Abel pointed out that the broken fences were Cain's fault, which made Cain even angrier. This led to a breakdown in their communication; they could no longer speak to each other peacefully. In the field, Cain attacked Abel and killed him. Abel, when confronted, stated that he would not retaliate against Cain, fearing Allah. However, Abel's failure to defend himself was a mistake.”

“Another important point is that God couldn't tell Cain and Abel how to make the sacrifices; it was their responsibility to work it out. They had to listen to their original mind and figure out how to make the offering. God didn't tell Abel to go and get his brother; that was something Abel should have discovered himself. It's the same with us; God doesn't provide all the details of what we should do. We have to work things out for ourselves. If we develop a spiritual life and a prayer life, God will reveal these things either through prayer or through someone else. This is another failure, leading God to choose someone else.”

“Abraham then stopped worshiping his ancestors and started bowing down and worshiping the earth because he realized it's the earth which gave birth to our bodies. After a while, he was doing that, and one morning he got up and wondered why it was so cold. The sun was hidden by clouds, and then Abraham realized that life doesn't come from the earth but actually comes from the sun. If there wasn't any sunshine, there wouldn't be any photosynthesis, and there'd be no plants growing or anything like that. So he started bowing down and worshiping the sun. But at the end of the day, the sun went down, and he thought, 'Well, the sun's not very strong; it's disappeared.' Then the moon came out, and he thought, 'Oh, what a beautiful moon! I'm going to worship the moon.' But then a cloud came over and covered up the moon. Abraham realized everything in this world is changing; everything changes, nothing is unchanging. But behind this changing reality, there must be an unchanging reality.”

“Father said this about the change of lineage: where's the change of blood lineage done? On the individual level, man has to go beyond the boundary of life and death. The individual has to go through a life and death situation for the sake of God and the future dignity of man. In order to change your lineage, in order to change your identity, you have to go through a life and death situation; it's something you have to go through at the risk of your life. Abraham went through these kinds of situations at the risk of his life. He changed his identity from being the son of an idol maker, the loyal servant of Nimrod, to being the son of God to whom he offered his allegiance and loyalty. God didn't find Abraham, but Abraham discovered God.”

“So we're looking now at Abraham's course... the big picture is that God wants us to send a Messiah. So in order for God to be able to send the Messiah, somebody has to make the foundation of faith and the foundation of substance to be able to create an environment in which the Messiah can be understood and can be accepted. And so God tried through to do that in Adam's family, it didn't work. Tried to do it. Noah's family didn't work. And so God found Abraham or Abraham found God rather. And then God started working through Abraham. And we saw there how he wasn't able to restore the foundation of faith through his offering. And so God then gave him a second chance.”

“First of all, did these things happen? What about the moral issues? God says He will harden Pharaoh's heart, which raises ethical questions. Is it fair to hold Pharaoh and the Egyptians responsible if God is hardening his heart? If Pharaoh is not a free agent, does that mean he is not responsible for his actions? Freedom and responsibility are intertwined; without freedom, there is no responsibility. These moral issues are important to consider.”

“Symbolic doesn't mean unimportant; symbolic is extremely important. Symbolic embodies everything which is going to come in substance and reality later. So, doing things symbolically is extremely important, and it figures largely in the religious life and different traditions... Water is just an outward sign; it's just kind of getting wet. From one point of view, you could say it's not so important, but we imbue it with meaning. Human beings can do that; that's a special quality that God gave us. We can give things meaning, and you know, with God's kind of approval, if it has that meaning, to that extent, Satan has to back off. Satan has to obey that too; it's approved by God in the hands of those people, then Satan has to back out.”

“Faith is a confident belief or trust in the truth or trustworthiness of a person or concept. It's based upon reason and experience. We believe in the truth that we believe something is true because of reason. If you're doing geometry, you know what the basic axioms are, and from that, you can deduce that the size of this angle is that. Yes, it's truth based upon belief, based upon reason. But also, trust is another aspect of it. You trust somebody because you know they are trustworthy. You know them, and you know they're reliable, and you know you can trust them. So faith then is based upon reason and experience. It's nothing to do with superstition. Faith has got nothing whatsoever to do with believing things that are hard to believe. It's got nothing to do with believing things that are impossible or illogical. It's got nothing whatsoever to do with superstition. So when people talk to you about having blind faith, that's not having faith at all; that's just being blind.”

“For example, if you read the Quran, it says that God told all the angels and jinn to bow down in front of Adam and Eve, and they all did except for Lucifer. He said, 'I'm not going to bow down to them; they're just made of clay. I'm made of fire; I'm better than they are.' Lucifer was unable to respect Adam and Eve. But if Adam and Eve had become the embodiment, the Incarnation of the word of God, then Lucifer would have respected them. After Lucifer tempted Eve and she gave in to the temptation, do you think Lucifer's respect for Eve increased or decreased? It decreased; he had less respect for her after she fell than before.”

“We looked last week at how Sarah was able to make that condition not to give in to the temptation from Pharaoh as Eve did with Lucifer, but to overcome that temptation. Abraham was able to reclaim Sarah from Pharaoh as if Adam was reclaiming Eve from Lucifer, and also reclaim Lot representing humanity. The Pharaoh gave them loads of wealth, which represented the creation. Abraham stands in the position of Adam and in the position of Noah, and he has to demonstrate the same faith that Adam had and the same faith that Noah had.”

“Emotions and he was subject. He was at peace with himself. So when he went to meet Esau, Esau could feel this person; he could feel that Jacob was completely at peace with himself. If Jacob had been in conflict with himself, this would have resonated with the conflict within Esau. But because Jacob was completely at peace with himself, this peaceful atmosphere in spirit went to Esau, and Esau then felt this kind of thing as well... If you realise actually what he's wrestling with, in that sense, with his fears, and he was able to overcome them and become completely an integrated person, he got victory over himself. That's what Father often says: before you can get victory over the world, you have to get victory over yourself. And so that's what Jacob was doing; he was becoming completely self-controlled, completely at peace. That does hark back to what God said to Cain; he said, 'Your sin is crouching at the door; you have to master it.'”

“He devised a cunning plan involving grand building projects like the great city of Ramses, paying people very well. Many people went to work building the city, including Hebrews who were well-paid for their work. Then he changed the legislation so that young people who could be in charge, the managers, could only be Egyptians, and Hebrews were not allowed to be managers anymore; they could only be workers... If any Hebrews tried to return to their old jobs due to low pay, they were intimidated and beaten. Gradually, their wages were reduced until they effectively became slaves. This is reminiscent of communism, where private property was abolished, and everyone had to work for the state, losing their freedom. The Hebrews lived in Goshen, where they ended up becoming slaves, but they weren't the first slaves; the Egyptians were the first slaves.”

“According to the story, that's not the case. People weren't paying attention to Noah; they just wanted to make fun of him until eventually, it was very unsuccessful in terms of getting anybody to listen to him. So what do you think about the flood? Do you think God sent the flood? Is it a natural disaster? I think it's something that would have taken place anyway. Earthquakes and tsunamis are just natural phenomena that take place. If there had been no Fall, there still would have been earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis. The difference is that people would have been much more sensitive to the natural environment. They would have adjusted themselves so they wouldn't build new conditions blindly.”

“Abraham's father, Terach, was an idol maker, and idol worship is a significant theme in the biblical tradition. One of the key points in the biblical narrative is the rejection of idols. Judaism and Islam particularly emphasise this rejection, often mocking idol worship. The prophet Isaiah criticises idol worshippers, highlighting the absurdity of worshipping something made by human hands. This critique is relevant today, as people still worship various idols, whether they be material possessions, political figures, or even nations. The danger lies in elevating these figures to a status that ignores their flaws, which is a temptation faced by all religions.”

“Abraham's practical mindset is evident in his concern for his family and the people he knew in Sodom. He reasoned that if he could find ten good people, perhaps they could be saved. This reflects his desire to protect those he cared about. The two angels then went down to Sodom, where they encountered Lot, who was very hospitable. However, when the mob demanded that Lot send out his guests, he faced a horrific dilemma. He offered his two virgin daughters to the mob instead of his guests, which raises significant moral and ethical questions. Lot's decision highlights the extreme circumstances he faced, and it prompts us to consider the implications of his actions.”

“The biblical world rejected ancestor worship, which raises the question: why? When you worship your ancestors, you create a connection with those who share the same lineage. This can lead to social consequences, as you may view those without the same ancestors as enemies. In a world where everyone worships their own ancestors, ethical and moral obligations become divided. However, the biblical perspective introduces the idea of one God, the parent of all humanity, which fosters a sense of unity. This means that every human being is a brother or sister, sharing the same divine parentage.”

“Abraham himself passed many tests. The Bible says he passed nine tests... This is often seen as the toughest, the hardest test. When God told him He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, that was a test. Abraham felt it was wrong, but what was he going to do? Was he going to keep quiet? He couldn't argue with God... He wanted Abraham to respond in the way he did, to argue with Him. You can imagine how Abraham must have had to pluck up his courage to confront God. By doing that, he went through a test and passed it. This is another kind of test, but this kind of test is completely different from all the other kinds of tests. Throwing yourself into a fiery furnace instead of worshipping Nimrod is a statement about yourself. This particular test, sacrificing Isaac, seems to be contrary to everything he believed.”

“One day, Esau went out hunting and came back empty-handed, starving hungry. He went into the kitchen and found Jacob cooking a bowl of lentil soup. Esau said to Jacob, 'Give me some food; I'm starving; I'm going to die of starvation.' Jacob replied, 'No, I can't give you this food; it's for Dad. I'm making a special meal for Dad.' Esau said, 'Why are you giving Dad such rubbish food? He's not a vegetarian; why give him a bowl of lentil soup?' Jacob explained that their grandfather Abraham had died, and Dad was in mourning, so he was eating this very simple kind of food.”

“When Rebekah came back, she saw Isaac and was so excited. When she saw Isaac, she fell off her camel, and basically, the story is that it was love at first sight. Despite the fact they loved each other very much, 20 years passed, and Rebekah didn't have a child, leading to a huge amount of heartache. Just like many fairy stories, they married for many years without having a child, longing for one. When people have children, it's like a blessing, a gift from God; it's not just a natural process.”

“Abraham's family had strict sexual morality compared to the ancient world. The Jews introduced sexual morality into that context. In the biblical narrative, Joseph is in the position of Adam, while Potiphar's wife is in the position of fallen Eve, tempting him. Joseph faced the temptation that Adam did not overcome. He had to decide whether to obey his master's wife or to follow his conscience, which told him that it was wrong to deceive his master and violate his moral principles. As Potiphar's wife spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to listen to her or to be with her. He tried to avoid her as much as possible to prevent being compromised.”

“God does not intervene directly in history; instead, He acts through us. He seeks individuals willing to take initiative and responsibility, acting as sons rather than servants or slaves. Servants may have some initiative, but they often refrain from fixing problems, choosing instead to complain about the situation. A leader, on the other hand, acknowledges the reality they face and asks how they can improve it. Moses was distinctive because he took action; he did not accept the world as it was but sought to change it. People often question why God does not intervene in crises like the Holocaust or starvation. However, God desires individuals who are willing to take responsibility and work towards making the world a better place, even if it is just in their immediate surroundings.”

“When Moses speaks to Pharaoh, he asserts that Israel is God's firstborn son, but he also implies that God loves the Egyptians as well, for they too are God's children. Moses does not tell Pharaoh that he intends to lead the people out of Egypt forever; instead, he asks to take them out for three days to worship God. Moses understands that Pharaoh is unlikely to allow his entire workforce to leave permanently, so he negotiates for a temporary reprieve.”

“The Bible is essentially a work of political philosophy, trying to work out how people can live together in peace. It explores the different ways that people attempt to coexist. The basic desire expressed in the Hebrew Bible is to create a peaceful world, to achieve unity while respecting diversity... A covenant is made when two or more people place themselves in loyalty to one another to achieve together what neither can achieve alone. A covenant is not solely about 'me'; it is about 'me' and 'you' who become 'us' together, creating a new identity. A traditional model for a covenant is marriage, which is why the prophets often compare the covenant between God and the people of Israel to a marriage.”

“Father Haines does this repeatedly; it is evident in the blessing ceremony, similar to the registration blessing. Since our original blessing or marriage, Father has called upon us to participate as a community in holy wine ceremonies. What Father is doing is akin to the founding event of the Jewish community three and a half thousand years ago, binding us together in our relationship with God and with each other, fostering a sense of community and fellowship.”

“Idealism, then, is really a self-centred form of idolatry. Some people have an idea of how the world ought to be; they have a picture of an ideal society and think, 'This would be an ideal society.' They try to implement this ideal society, and the result is often disastrous. That's what happened in communist revolutions. Communists had brilliant ideas, worked them out intellectually and abstractly, and thought that in order to create this ideal society, they needed power. When they lost the election in Russia in 1917, they seized power in a coup d'état and tried to impose their ideals on society. But what do you do with all the people who don't want to live out your ideal? You imprison them or, eventually, may even put them to death because they refuse to conform to your expectations of how you think they ought to be.”

“Charity is an act of love, a way of giving something to someone in need. Justice, on the other hand, is something you have by right; it is fair and just. This connection between doing the right thing and social justice highlights a moral obligation to share one's wealth with those who are less fortunate. It is not merely a choice but a responsibility to contribute to the community. In historical Jewish society, this moral obligation could even be legally enforced, making it more than just an act of charity. It raises an interesting idea about social justice; it is not fair for some individuals to be phenomenally rich while others are poor and homeless. Wealthy individuals have a moral obligation to use their resources for the benefit of others.”

“The biblical principle of dual legitimacy emerges, where authority comes from both God and the people. Up until this point, the people had been complaining, as they were in a state of dependency, relying on God for everything. When something went wrong, they expected God to intervene. However, this principle illustrates that it is not what God does for us that transforms us, but what we do for God. God was giving them an opportunity to change, moving from being mere recipients of His grace and blessings to being able to give back. This transition from being recipients to creators is crucial. God, the creator of the universe, is creating space for people to give something back, allowing them to become co-creators.”

“When someone does something hurtful, it is crucial to communicate that to them. If you remain silent and allow resentment to fester, you are the one who suffers. Often, the person who hurt you may not even realise their actions were wrong. By addressing the issue directly, you give them a chance to apologise and restore the relationship. If you do not speak up, the relationship may remain broken indefinitely. Moses emphasised that we should not seek revenge or hold grudges, as this only damages ourselves and our relationships... Following one's conscience is paramount, even if it means risking one's safety or position. It takes courage to speak truth to power and to stand up against wrongdoing.”

“The Hillel/Shammai precedent: the views of Shamai and the views of Hillel are both the words of the living God, even though they contradict each other. However, the law is in accordance with the school of Hillel. The reason God said that the law is in accord with the school of Hillel is that whenever the school of Hillel presented the law, they would always first present the view of Shamai with respect and accuracy. Then they would present their own view, allowing everyone listening to understand both sides of the argument and come to their own conclusion. It is this approach that God favoured. It was not a question of which one was right; it was about how they argued.”

“Cultural dementia is a term that describes how the West has lost its history and risks losing everything else. Many young people today do not believe in freedom of speech, viewing it as a right-wing idea. Instead, they embrace cancel culture, silencing those with whom they disagree. They forget what it was like under fascism or communism and why people fought for freedom of speech and religion. This cultural dementia is shocking. The biblical view is that memory is the basis for ethics... The Hebrew Bible, on the other hand, emphasises the importance of memory as the guardian of conscience. In Israel, the injunction to remember is felt as a religious imperative.”

“The 31 kings of Canaan were given peace terms first — only those who refused were attacked: Some groups, like the Gergashites, chose to emigrate, believing that the land rightly belonged to the Israelites. Others, like the people of Gibeon, sought peace with Israel and were granted safety. However, there were 31 kings who refused these terms and chose to wage war, ultimately falling in battle. Before entering Canaan, God instructed Moses to go to war against the Amorites, but Moses disobeyed and instead sent emissaries to offer peace.”

“How are we to judge these things? Are we to judge them by the best standards of today? I would say yes... Edward Colston, who lived in Bristol in the 17th and early 18th centuries, was a slave trader who made money through slavery. However, he gave away all his money and became a philanthropist, establishing schools and various buildings in Bristol. Recently, some individuals deemed it a scandalous outrage to have a statue of Edward Colston in Bristol and pulled it down... When Colston was alive and trading slaves, the idea that the slave trade was wrong was inconceivable. It was about 80 years later that the beginnings of the abolition movement started to develop. Colston was a philanthropist, and the statue was erected not because he was a slave trader, but because he was a philanthropist.”

“Saul came from the smallest clan in Benjamin, from the town where a terrible crime was committed. He has some kind of inferiority complex. After defeating the Amalekites, he built a statue to honour himself, which is often what inferior people do. If Saul had been a good king, he would have wanted a field marshal, someone better than him. A great leader surrounds himself with people who are better than himself. This requires self-awareness to recognise one's own weaknesses and find people who are better in those areas. One of the main qualities of good leadership is the ability to manage people and build a team that covers all the different bases, especially to make up for one's weaknesses.”

“Just as Abraham and Moses challenged God, Jonathan followed the same pattern and challenged his father. This was the most loving thing to do, as he realised that his father wanted to commit a terrible sin. The loving action was not to obey his father and commit a crime, which would bring shame upon his father's head. Instead, Jonathan stood up to his father, risking his life to challenge him. This model of critical fellowship is something we observed when we looked at Moses and the Israelites. Jonathan feared God and listened to his conscience, which is a principle we should all follow: to follow our conscience more than we follow the king, our parents, or our teachers. If any of them tell us to do something wrong, we must not do it.”

“David becomes withdrawn and paralyzed, unable to guide or confront his children. Everyone knows what he has done wrong, making it difficult for him to address their sins, which mirror his own. As a result, everything goes wrong in David's family after this... When you actually look at his other sons... one committed murder, one raped his half-sister, and another son, the brother of the half-sister, murdered his half-brother who killed his sister. Another son tried to lead an uprising and rebellion, and yet another tried to make himself king before David had died. You can see that it makes a difference who you marry. The wives that David had married up until now didn't have children who were really qualified to be the next kings of Israel.”

“Elijah's expectations of a swift transformation in Israel are shattered, leading to his deep despair. He had anticipated that Jezebel would be swayed by the miraculous events, but her unwavering fanaticism leaves him feeling defeated. This narrative serves as a reminder that significant change often requires time and persistent effort, rather than expecting immediate results from a single event. That's where the hard work starts. You may be able to fill a stadium with 50,000 people and think that's a great victory, but then the next day it looks like nothing's changed. That's the beginning point of getting involved in the hard work of educating people and teaching them about God, about the right way of life.”

“What it actually means in terms of the political culture: In the Mosaic vision of kingship, only the king is commanded to be humble. Upon ascending to the throne, he must write a copy of the Mosaic law for himself, reminding him not to consider himself superior to his fellow Israelites. This contrasts sharply with the political philosophy of Phoenicia, where kings held absolute power. Ahab, for instance, displayed humility by recognising that he could not seize Naboth's vineyard, despite his anger over the situation. This separation of religion and state was a significant innovation, as it prevented the king from being viewed as divine, unlike the Pharaohs of Egypt or the kings of Phoenicia.”

“The first thing to know about Jesus is that he was a Jew. He was born a Jew; his parents were Jewish. He lived as a Jew, was circumcised, ate kosher food, went to the temple to worship, and was buried as a Jew. He was as Jewish as one could be. Sometimes people think he came from heaven or was some kind of spiritual teacher, but actually, he was Jewish. The reality in which he found himself was that Israel was occupied by the Romans. That was the world in which he found himself; he was born a Jew and lived in Israel occupied by the Romans. That was the environment in which he acted and conducted himself, and we need to understand that to understand why he did what he did and why he taught what he taught. He wasn't teaching abstract spiritual truths; he was trying to address a reality that he found.”

“Mary and Joseph took him to Jerusalem for festivals. During one visit, they lose track of him and find him in the temple, engaging with teachers. Jesus expresses his need to be in his Father's house, indicating his deep connection to God and his desire to study the scriptures. This moment reflects the tension between his divine mission and his earthly family's understanding of him. The narrative suggests that Jesus was not just a passive child but actively seeking knowledge and understanding of his role. The depiction of this scene, including the body language of Jesus and his parents, highlights the misunderstandings and conflicts that arose from Jesus' unique identity and mission.”

“Who was Pilate? He was a Roman governor for ten years who disrespected Jewish traditions and was chastised by the emperor on several occasions. He took money from the temple for his own purposes, slaughtered Samaritans, and eventually caused so many problems in Palestine that he was withdrawn by Rome. Philo of Alexandria, a contemporary of Jesus and Pilate, wrote that Pilate's tenure was associated with briberies, insults, robberies, and constant executions without trial. Pilate was a very harsh ruler... However, scholars have found no evidence of such a custom of releasing a prisoner on Passover; it simply did not happen. Pilate was certainly not the kind of person who would do that.”

“All of Jesus' teachings and practices fall somewhere on the spectrum between two major schools of Pharisees: Rabbi Shammai, who was very strict, and Rabbi Hillel, who was more liberal. Often, the Gospels mention that the Pharisees criticized Jesus, but it would be more accurate to say that some Pharisees criticized him, as he was a Pharisee within that tradition. Jesus taught that the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat, and he instructed his disciples to do everything they say... Even if Jesus had original interpretations or different readings of the text, it would not have been a reason for him to be killed. In Judaism, there is no sense that people should be killed for having slightly different interpretations of the law.”

“John the Baptist was the son of the high priest; he would have grown up in the temple. Even though he left the temple to do his ministry by the River Jordan, he would have known the chief priests and probably knew Caiaphas personally. He could have approached Caiaphas and said, 'Hi, Uncle Caiaphas, I want to tell you about Jesus. You think he's a real problem, a threat, but actually, he's got a plan to try and solve this problem between the Roman occupation and the Jews. He's trying to teach the Jewish people not to hate the Romans, not to have a violent uprising, but to turn the other cheek.' If the high priest had understood what Jesus was really about, he would have realised that Jesus was safe... But the problem was that John the Baptist was not there.”

“There were 70 of his disciples or connected to him, would have become the king of Israel. Cyrus's policies allowed the Jewish people to return to their homeland and rebuild their community, marking a significant turning point in their history... a surprisingly modern understanding of religious freedom and tolerance, demonstrating that ancient societies could possess advanced ideas about governance and human rights.”

“The early Jewish-Christian tradition suggests that Jesus not only drove the money changers from the temple but also entered the Holy of Holies. His brother James, one of his disciples, is said to have donned the breastplate of the high priest, while John the Beloved wore the miter of the high priest. This suggests that Jesus was attempting to overthrow the priestly establishment and take control of the temple.”

“Coming back to the birth of Jesus, we see a synthesis of these two traditions. It is essential for the Messiah to be born from an integration of both the Hebraic and Hellenistic traditions. The Hebraic tradition should be in the subject position, while the Hellenistic tradition occupies the object position. For instance, while material culture, beauty, art, and music are wonderful, they should be informed by spiritual values. The high points of European culture have occurred when there has been a complete synthesis between these two traditions, as seen in the works of Michelangelo, Rembrandt, and Mozart. Their art and music were touched by the divine, evoking profound spiritual experiences.”

“The foundation of substance on a larger level, on a spiritual community level or national level, is one where there is freedom of thought and freedom of speech. The importance of this is that someone can come along with different ideas, and just because you don't like that person's ideas, you can argue with that person, but you do not have the right to shut that person up. You do not have the right to cancel that person, put that person in prison, or kill that person just because you don't like what they say. Nor does a king or the state have the right to do that. When the Messiah turns up and he might have different ideas, he can argue with all the existing people and their existing religious or philosophical ideas and debate with them, but they can't kill him or put him in prison just because they don't like what he's saying.”

“Christian Jews left Jerusalem for a place called Pella, while those who remained accused them of betrayal, claiming they had failed to stand with their fellow Jews against the Romans. This division created a deep rift and embittered feelings between the two groups, marking a traumatic period for the Jewish people. The destruction of the Temple was particularly traumatic, as it meant the end of sacrificial worship, which was central to Jewish religious life. The Jewish self-understanding at this time was that their exile from the land was a consequence of their sins. This perspective was transformed by Christian Jews into an accusation: 'On account of your sins, you are exiled from your land.' This shift in narrative contributed to the othering of Jews by Christians.”

“The Jewish vision was never that everyone should become a Jew. The Jews were to be a holy nation, a kingdom of priests, living according to a higher standard of holiness. According to Jewish thought, one does not need to become a Jew to have a place in the world to come; one only needs to observe the laws of Noah, which are universal laws. The seven laws given at the time of Noah, following the flood, were part of a covenant made with Noah and all his descendants. These laws include not worshipping idols, not cursing God, not committing murder, not committing adultery or sexual immorality, not stealing, not eating flesh from a living animal, and establishing courts of justice. This framework aims to create a decent, moral, and peaceful society.”

“Alternatively, you might be tempted to retain some remnants of Judaism but start reading the Old Testament upside down, where the God of Israel is now portrayed as the antagonist. This is evident in Gnosticism, which discusses figures like Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and Seth. In their narratives, the serpent is depicted as a good figure, bringing knowledge to Adam and Eve, while the God who created them is seen as the one who withheld that knowledge. This inversion of the traditional narrative is one of the origins of Gnosticism. In this Gnostic view, Yahweh, the God of the Old Testament, is seen as a bad god, a cruel and vindictive figure. Instead of being a good creator, he is portrayed as an evil god who offers a different kind of redemption — not the physical redemption that Israel had always hoped for, but rather a spiritual salvation.”

“Marcion was a Gnostic who was teaching that, and Irenaeus wrote volumes critiquing what Martian was teaching. The reality is that the Marcionites carried on until the 10th century; for a thousand years, there were Marcionite spiritual communities. You still find a lot of people within the Christian Church and in our own spiritual community who are basically Marcionites. They make a distinction between the God of the Old Testament, who is nasty, vindictive, and cruel, and the God of the New Testament, whose perfect love would never go around punishing anybody.”

“Why has European history been directed towards creating a united continent? Why has the whole history of Europe been this pursuit of empire, this pursuit of unity, this pursuit of uniformity? This is not the biblical vision at all. To understand this, we need to go back and look at European political philosophy, which means going back to the Greeks. The Greek approach involves asking the usual questions of ontology and epistemology. Plato's vision of an ideal society involved philosopher-kings who could grasp the nature of these forms and communicate them to others. This hierarchical society, reminiscent of feudal Europe, is based on the idea that everyone should conform to a single right way of living. This leads to absolutism and totalitarianism, where the state is seen as the ultimate authority.”

“Plato influenced various National Socialist intellectuals, including Hans Gunther, Werner Jaeger, Fritz Lentz, Adolf Rush, and Richard Dary, who cited him extensively. Some even wrote entire books on the subject, such as Jorkin Band's 'Hitler's Camp and Plato's State' and Kurt Hildebrand's 'Plato and the Camp'. Hitler's press officer, Otto Dietrich, would later express in his post-war memoirs that he had witnessed in National Socialism the miracle of a classless, leaderless state, akin to what Plato celebrated in his 'Laws'. Communists also competed with fascists in claiming the Platonic heritage, particularly Plato's noble lie.”

“Augustine asserted that sexual lust is an evil result of the fall, necessary for copulation, and therefore evil must inevitably accompany sexual intercourse. He suggested that without sexual lust, human beings would not engage in sexual intercourse, and consequently, the human race would not exist. He viewed sexual lust as an evil result of the fall, corrupting sexual relationships and ensuring that the next generation is born with the same corrupted nature. Interestingly, he claimed that before the fall, sex was a passionless affair, akin to a laborious task accomplished without any lascivious heat.”

“Alfred went into the Viking camp and made an agreement with Prince Guthrum. He said they would accept their surrender and spare their lives if they were baptised and accepted Christ. Alfred became the godfather to Prince Guthrum, and the entire Viking army was baptised and became Christians. This led to the Christianisation and anglicisation of the Vikings, who ultimately became English. This is why England is one country and not two, which is an important lesson about how to respond to foreign invasions. When faced with an invasion, what do you do? It's a perennial question. Do you try to drive them out, embrace them, or divide the land?”

“When the Russians embraced Christianity, they believed they had resolved all fundamental issues of faith and worship through the Greek tradition, accepting the Orthodox definition of faith without question. This led to a rigid preservation of tradition, which, while aiming to maintain purity, ultimately stifled the evolution of Christianity in Russia. The attempt to halt development resulted in a historical stagnation, making any eventual changes traumatic and abrupt, as seen in significant events in Russian history. The need for adaptability and flexibility is crucial for any tradition to remain relevant and responsive to the changing world, a lesson that has been painfully learned in Russian history.”

“When the Khazars defeated the Romans, they encountered remarkable architectural achievements and sought to understand them. Muhammad encouraged the pursuit of knowledge, stating that one should seek it wherever it can be found. In Baghdad, efforts were made to translate Greek texts into Arabic, with many Jewish scholars contributing to this intellectual revival. This knowledge later flowed back into Europe, particularly during the Renaissance, as translations from Arabic to Latin reintroduced classical knowledge. During the Muslim Golden Age, Islam was far ahead of Europe in culture, economics, technology, and literature, but the fatal change of direction led to gradual decline and the rise of Islamic extremism.”

“The Germanic tribes are considered the new chosen people because they lived outside of cities. In the Bible, the first city was built by Cain, while the chosen people were primarily shepherds. Figures like Abel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and King David were all shepherds. Shepherds are independent, responsible for their own decisions, and spend time alone with their sheep, often communicating with God. In contrast, city dwellers are busy and often lack time for spiritual reflection. This independence and desire for freedom were characteristic of the Germanic tribes, who valued their autonomy and resisted being ordered around.”

“Today, Muslim countries remain incredibly religious, but individuals who propose controversial ideas can easily be accused of blasphemy and face severe consequences. This mirrors the situation in medieval Europe, where heretics faced death. Since that time, the Muslim world has lacked a foundation to receive the Messiah. More educated and intelligent Muslim scholars recognise that this period marked the beginning of cultural, economic, and political decline in Islam. During the Muslim Golden Age, Islam was far ahead of Europe in culture, economics, technology, and literature, but the fatal change of direction led to gradual decline and the rise of Islamic extremism.”

“The bishop's connection to his church was likened to a marriage, meaning he could not be moved without the congregation's consent. When a bishop died, the church was described as 'widowed' until a new bishop was elected. However, as time progressed, the church structure began to mirror the bureaucratic hierarchy of the Roman state, leading to bishops being appointed rather than elected. The church's structure evolved, with bishops becoming administrative subdivisions of a greater whole, representing central church authority rather than their congregations. In the East, this authority was concentrated in the patriarchate of Constantinople, while in the West, it resided with the pope.”

“Vladimir, who became king in 980, sought a religion that would unify his people and serve the state. The Slavs and Russians adopted Christianity, they embraced the Byzantine form, which had reached a stage of finality, believing it to be perfected. This understanding shaped their approach to Christian theology and tradition. The intertwining of church and state created a 'poisonous theocracy,' as Russian Orthodox historians describe it, where national interests often overshadowed Christian values. This dynamic is reminiscent of the Church of England, where the church's alignment with national interests complicates its ability to critique the state.”

“When you have something which is completely stuck, when you want to bring about change, it always leads to a sharp break or fracture. You can see this over and over again in Russian history, even till today. So that's just the way Russia develops: a sharp break with the past because it's very hard for things to evolve and to develop in a sustainable way. The cost of the strong communal sense was paid in an evasion of personal responsibility and the failure to breed men of moral courage who would stand up and criticize injustice. Anyone who had an outstanding personality left the country; they went into exile. Otherwise, they'd be arrested and thrown into prison because any man who wanted to think for himself was in danger of departing from the traditional pattern.”

“Patriarch Sergius of Radonezh founded the Church of the Holy Trinity, which became the seedbed of Russian monasticism. Over the next 150 years, 180 Russian monasteries were built. His guiding philosophy was encapsulated in a beautiful Russian word, 'sabornost', which translates best as 'unity in freedom'. Sabornost represents the idea of unity and freedom under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, where individuals cooperate freely without legal or intellectual barriers. The community founded by Sergius attracted many because everyone was free to come and go, yet they worked hard together, fostering a sense of togetherness and harmony.”

“John Julius Maurice states, by bestowing the imperial crown upon Charlemagne, the Pope abrogated to himself the right to appoint the Emperor of the Romans, establishing the imperial crown as his personal gift while simultaneously granting himself implicit superiority over the Emperor whom he created. This is why Charlemagne was not pleased to be crowned by the Pope; if the Pope could crown Charlemagne, it meant he had the authority to decide who became Emperor. If one has the authority to appoint an Emperor or a King, one also has the authority to depose them, and no King wanted to have their title derived from the Pope.”

“Henry the Fowler founded the Ottonian dynasty, marking the beginning of a new era in Europe. Unlike the Carolingians, Henry did not seek to establish a centralized monarchy; instead, he aimed for a federated system of autonomous duchies. This tradition of decentralization continues in Germany today, where the federal structure allows for significant autonomy among states. For example, while Angela Merkel may have been Chancellor, she did not possess the same absolute authority as Emmanuel Macron in France. This pattern of governance has persisted for the last thousand years, deeply rooted in the Germanic political culture.”

“The accusations against Jews are often contradictory. They are labelled as lazy for observing the Sabbath, yet at the same time, they are accused of dominating the economy, which would require hard work. If they are seen as inferior, how can they also be accused of taking over the world? This incoherence extends to accusations of stubbornness in maintaining their separateness through faith and customs, while simultaneously being condemned for posing a threat to racial purity through intermarriage. Jews have been portrayed as both pacifists and warmongers, with Hitler claiming they did not fight in wars, despite evidence showing that Jews were overrepresented in the German army during World War I.”

“John Wycliffe in England preached against corruption within the Church. His teachings led to the formation of the Lollard movement, which sought church reform. Similarly, Jan Hus in Bohemia was influenced by Wycliffe's ideas and advocated for reform in his region. However, the Council of Constance, presided over by the Holy Roman Emperor, condemned Hus for his radical views. Despite being promised safe passage to present his ideas, he was arrested, tried, and ultimately executed. This brutal suppression of reformers like Hus contributed to a traumatic historical memory for the Czech people, leading to a high level of atheism in the region today.”

“Pope Boniface VIII took away all the privileges granted by previous popes to the kings of France. He demanded that Philip, the king of France, come before a council in Rome to answer certain charges he wanted to bring against him. Philip did not like this imperialistic papacy and responded, 'Your venerable conceitedness may know that we are nobody's vassal in temporal matters.' The pope, on the other hand, responded that it is necessary for the salvation of every human creature to be subject to the Roman pontiff. In other words, unless every person acknowledges and accepts the absolute authority of the pope, they cannot go to heaven.”

“If the function of the conscience were absent in fallen people, God's providence or restoration would be impossible. Sometimes people wonder why God doesn't do more or why He didn't send the Messiah earlier, but the reality is that it is not God's fault that the fall took place; it was human beings who must put things right. Therefore, God's providence only advances to the extent that people listen to and follow their conscience, sometimes at great personal risk.”

“John Milton wrote: 'Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience above all liberties.' He is not arguing for the freedom to libel or slander people; not at all. He states, 'Thou cannot touch the freedom of my mind.' Even though he was imprisoned several times, he realised that those who put him in prison could not touch the freedom of his mind. He maintained his inner freedom to think, pray, and worship God in the way he chose, and nothing could take that away from him. He would have nothing to do with the cancel culture we see today, where people are offended and opinions are silenced. Killing a good book is akin to killing reason itself, as reason comes from God. Therefore, destroying good literature is tantamount to destroying the image of God in humanity.”

“If you look at the Church of England, it is Catholic in structure, with archbishops, bishops, and priests, but Protestant in theology. Additionally, priests are allowed to marry, making it a sort of halfway house. The Catholics thought they could accept this because the apostolic succession was maintained. On the other hand, the Protestants believed they could manage the theology. This compromise is often referred to as a 'fudge.' You try to keep as many people happy as possible without being overly logical, accepting various contradictions, and living with them. The only qualification is that you have to enjoy having tea and biscuits afterwards.”

“Most Protestants in the Church of England resisted this return to papal control. As a result, 283 Protestant leaders, bishops, and archbishops were burned at the stake publicly. This really antagonised people, and some Catholic advisers warned that it was not a good idea, as it would only make people hate her. This is exactly what happened; 800 Protestants who didn't want to be burned at the stake left England and went into exile, many to Holland, but a significant number went to Geneva, where they came under the influence of John Calvin and became Calvinists.”

“Following the Reformation initiated by Martin Luther in 1517, Europe experienced a series of religious wars. The Reformation first split Germany, where the northern princes supported Luther, rejecting the idea that the Pope had the authority to appoint or dismiss kings. The Peace of Augsburg in 1555 allowed princes to choose either Roman Catholicism or Lutheranism for their subjects, recognising the need for compromise in a divided nation. The prince had the authority to decide on religious matters, and if someone did not want to follow the religion of their prince, they were given a certain amount of time to move to a principality that aligned with their preference.”

“Charles I, influenced by John Bodin, inherited this doctrine of the Divine Right of Kings, believing that his authority was derived from God. In other words, God had appointed him, and because of this divine right, he was above the law and not answerable to Parliament. He could do whatever he wanted, seeing himself as answerable only to God. This doctrine didn't go down well in England and was challenged by the English Parliament. It worked better in Scotland, where the Scottish Parliament was weak, allowing Charles to get away with more. However, Parliament wouldn't cooperate with Charles I, who tried to raise taxes without consent, which was illegal.”

“The Industrial Revolution is arguably the most important event in the history of humanity since the domestication of animals and plants. It marked the first time in history that the living standards of ordinary people began to undergo sustained growth. For ten thousand years, the global population remained relatively stable until the Industrial Revolution, which was preceded in England by the Agricultural Revolution. This period allowed for the production of more food and goods, enabling a rise in living standards for ordinary people, rather than just the elite. Everything we enjoy today is a result of that Industrial Revolution.”

“Hegel, another significant thinker, developed a religious philosophy that was not Christian, and his ideas influenced many disciples who, upon encountering French atheism and materialism, established left-wing Hegelianism. Thinkers like Feuerbach, who argued that humanity projects its best qualities onto God, laid the groundwork for Marx and Engels, who inverted Hegel's dialectical idealism into dialectical materialism, applying it to history and establishing a worldview that encompassed atheism. Nietzsche, a profound critic of Christianity, famously declared that 'God is dead', arguing that people's actions reflected a belief in a dead God. He viewed Christianity as a slave morality, unsuitable for modern society. This idealism, inherited from the French tradition and developed through Kant and Hegel, easily transitioned into communism.”

“The foundation to receive the Messiah should have been established in all Christian countries. However, the invasion of Judeo-Christian foundations by Satan in France, Germany, and Russia led to the rise of dictatorship, fascism, and communism. The horrors of the Great Terror in France and the death camps in Germany and the Soviet Union were direct results of these failures. The establishment of Satan's sovereignty in Europe through totalitarianism necessitated wars to restore freedom and break this hold. The high price of these ideas and their consequences is evident in the millions who suffered in concentration camps. The seriousness of the Enlightenment's impact on society cannot be overstated.”

“In Russia, the identity of being a Christian is closely tied to belonging to the Russian Orthodox Church. The prevailing sentiment is that it is better to be an honest Russian atheist than to be a Russian Catholic or Methodist. This national church concept creates a strong sense of identity. If one is Catholic, they are seen as not entirely loyal, as their allegiance is to the Pope rather than the Queen. This dynamic is significant in Russian Orthodoxy, which aims for a unified nation worshipping God in the same manner, fostering a rhythm of spiritual life that includes communal worship, fasting, and celebration of holidays like Christmas and Easter. This shared spiritual practice is foundational to Russian unity, as differing denominations disrupt the sense of community and rhythm.”

“The Russo-Japanese War further exacerbated tensions, as the Russian navy suffered a humiliating defeat, shocking the nation and leading to widespread criticism of the Tsar's incompetence. This defeat catalysed revolutionary sentiments, and the Duma was eventually dissolved. The subsequent rise of totalitarian communism in Russia can be seen as a continuation of the possessive mentality that had plagued the nation for centuries. The dissident tradition, represented by figures like Solzhenitsyn and Sakharov, began to emerge as a counter to this oppressive regime, marking a resurgence of the non-possessor mentality that had been suppressed for decades.”

“Liberal democratic traditions would have made everything so different in Korea compared to what it was in Father's life. Instead of living in hell, he would have been able to do something meaningful with his life, far more than he was able to do. I read that passage about how frustrated Father was that he couldn't marry into that tradition and inherit that foundation through marriage. He was deeply frustrated by how things turned out. However, he dealt with the hand he was given and accepted the reality of the situation. Father said, 'This is the way things are; where do we go from here?' Even though he mentioned how things could have been different, he didn't dwell on that. He focused on the present and the future, which is a key point in his teachings.”

“In the German church, there was a movement to present Jesus as not being a Jew. This is one of the reasons why the Gospel of Mark was proclaimed by German biblical scholars as the first and earliest Gospel, as it presents the least Jewish portrayal of Jesus. This movement within German biblical studies aimed to depict Jesus as a Galilean rather than a Jew. It is fascinating how this ideology affected all of academia, including the Martin Luther Church in Berlin, where there was an effort to replace traditional iconography. Instead of saints, one would find German stormtroopers depicted in stained glass windows, and the lectern where sermons were given featured carvings of German stormtroopers surrounding Jesus.”

“Politically, it was impossible for America and Britain to suddenly change and declare war on the Soviet Union if Stalin refused to retreat. There would have been no electoral support for that. If Churchill had said, 'Okay, now we're going to have an election in 1944, and now we're going to go to war with the Soviet Union,' he would have lost. So, from Churchill's point of view, he understood Stalin and realised that communism wanted to expand and occupy the whole of Europe. He thought, 'Let's see if we can try to keep American military forces in Europe so we can at least defend half of Europe against the Soviet Union.' It was a question of half of Europe or the whole of Europe. Churchill figured it was better to lose half of Europe than the whole of it.”

“It is one thing to dislike a group, but another to seek their extermination. Hitler's letter from Auschwitz: 'Oh Lord, remember not only the men and women of good will but also those of evil will. But do not remember all the suffering they've inflicted upon us. Remember the fruits we bore thanks to this suffering: our comradeship, our loyalty, our humility, our courage, our generosity, the greatness of heart which has grown out of all this. When they come to the judgment, let all the fruits that we bore be their forgiveness.' It's astonishing when you read about the attitude of many Jewish people when they went into the gas chambers; quite often they went in singing, praising God, and praying, knowing where they were going and what their fate was going to be, trying to be like a perfect offering.”

“Therefore, God has worked His providence to restore the heavenly sovereignty by degrees, not overnight, not in one go. It's taken many, many years. He sends prophets and saints to the fallen world to found religions and raise the level of morality, hoping that through this religious transformation, change can also come about — a peaceful social, political, and economic change as well. Sometimes it doesn't always work out like that, and religious people themselves get into wars and fights with each other. He establishes governments with higher standards of goodness which come to oppose and destroy regimes with lower standards of goodness to fulfil the providence of restoration. Therefore, conflicts and wars are unavoidable. It says God establishes governments for the highest standard of goodness. In reality, it's not God that does that; in reality, it's people that do that. But the people that do that are the people who respond to God's calling them through their conscience.”

“The final war between democracy and communism primarily takes the form of an ideological conflict. We witnessed this during what we call the Cold War, where the democratic world, particularly policymakers in America and Britain, decided to engage in ideological conflict rather than direct military confrontation with the Soviet Union. They utilised various platforms, such as the BBC and the Voice of America, to promote their ideology and challenge communism. This ideological conflict aimed to bring about regime change and the end of evil sovereignty through education and awareness. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, we have indeed seen more conflicts, indicating that the ideological battle is far from over.”

“Islam spread rapidly during Muhammad's time and continued under the first caliphs throughout North Africa and into Spain. The people living in North Africa and Spain were predominantly Christians, including various sects such as Arians and Orthodox Christians. When Islam spread, many Christians did not see it as a new religion but rather as a reforming movement within Christianity, as Muhammad recognised Jesus as the Messiah. This perception contributed to the rapid acceptance of Islam. The Sunni capital became Damascus, and the Islamic empire expanded into Spain until the 11th century, with the Caliphate of Cordoba representing a golden age of culture, science, art, architecture, and philosophy. This period was unmatched in Europe, where there was little to compare in terms of architecture and culture.”

“For over a millennium, the Muslim world had maintained a self-understanding of superiority over Jews and Christians. However, the rise of Western Europe brought about a cultural shock, as modernity began to challenge traditional Islamic values. The Muslim world continues to grapple with the extent to which Westernisation accompanies modernity, desiring Western technology while resisting Western values. This tension is particularly evident in contemporary Middle Eastern dynamics.”

“In 1920, the League of Nations gave Britain the mandate to administer Palestine and established a Jewish homeland. The Balfour Declaration was issued, which made certain promises towards the Arabs as well. The League of Nations allocated this area to be administered by Britain to establish a Jewish homeland, called Israel. Several important things about this: the Jews didn't invade and conquer Palestine; they didn't drive out the Palestinians living there and take control of that land. This land was actually allocated by the international community, as all the nations of the world that represented the League of Nations agreed that there should be a Jewish homeland established there and that Britain should facilitate this under a mandate. It wasn't a British colony; there was a mandate given to Britain by the League of Nations to administer this land for this particular purpose.”

“From Arafat's point of view, it was really difficult for him to negotiate because he realised that if he went too far in reaching a settlement with Israel, which naturally requires compromise on both sides, he felt he would get assassinated as well. So, he could only go so far. That's why education is so important. Leadership means you lead people in a certain direction; you can't go too far ahead of all the people you're supposed to be leading, or they'll kill you. Leadership means education. You have to educate people so they understand what it is you're doing, your vision, and where you want to take them. They need to support you, and the whole community has to move along.”

“The neoconservatives, or 'neo' meaning new conservatives, are a distinct group in America. There are two types of conservatives: the paleo-conservatives, who are old-fashioned, and the neoconservatives, many of whom were former socialists. They realised that socialism was not a viable ideal and shifted their focus to free-market liberal democracy, which they sought to impose on other nations. This idealism is problematic, as it assumes that they know what is best for others better than those people know for themselves. George Bush, an evangelical Christian and a moral person, did not engage in scandals like Clinton or Trump, but the consequences of his policies were disastrous.”

“The collapse of Iraq removed a significant barrier against Iranian influence, prompting Arab countries to form coalitions. The Abraham Accords, signed in September 2020 by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, marked a significant shift in relations between Israel and Arab nations. Other countries, such as Sudan and Morocco, soon followed suit. However, the political landscape shifted again with Biden's election, as he was less supportive of the Accords and sought to revive agreements with Iran. Despite Trump's controversial persona, his foreign policy brought about notable progress in the Middle East, fostering improved relations and economic cooperation between Israel and Arab nations.”

“Biblical political philosophy is based around two major experiences the Jewish people had. The first is the understanding that God saved the people of Israel twice. The first time was through Moses, who led them out of Egypt and delivered them from the tyranny of the state. When they were living in Egypt, Pharaoh was regarded as a god in a totalitarian society. They left Egypt, went into Canaan, and then followed the period of the judges. We looked at this when we examined the period from Joshua to Jesus, and we saw how it was under the judges that it quickly descended into anarchy, or what we would now call a failed state. Based upon those two fundamental historical experiences, the rabbis reflected on this and said the Bible understands the political order as oscillating between the imperial totalitarian state, which was the Tower of Babel, and Egypt and other empires that came later, and anarchy, which was the period of the judges. The first leads to bondage, and the second leads to civil war; neither can serve as a basis for the freedom of the people.”

“If we see ourselves as the sole responsible agents in human history, it is all too easy to imagine that we have taken God's place. This is a mistake made by many utopians and terrorists who persuade themselves that if only human initiative could be pursued with sufficient energy, the entire fabric of the world can be reformed once and for all, here and now. That was the motivation of the Bolsheviks: to stage a coup d'état with a plan to create an ideal society, an ideal socialist communist society. They aimed to rewrite history and create a new history from year zero.”

“The person who coined this word was someone called Alfred the Great. He was translating the Book of Psalms into English and couldn't find an English word that conveyed the meaning of the 117th Psalm, which talks about liberty and law. He thought, 'Okay, because he was a good Anglo-Saxon, I'll just take two different words, 'free' and 'dom,' and stick them together to create a new word: freedom.' So, freedom then is ordered liberty. You're free within the law; you have the rule of law. As long as you don't break the law, you can do anything you want. So it's ordered liberty. This means a headwing would be that; that's why the Principle talks about freedom and responsibility. In English, you can't have one without the other, really.”

“William's men not only slaughtered the inhabitants but also rendered the land infertile by salting it, causing long-term agricultural damage. The Anglo-Saxon chronicler Orderic Vitalis, writing about fifty years later, described the king's relentless pursuit of his enemies, noting the unprecedented cruelty displayed in the north. William's fury was unchecked, and he punished the innocent alongside the guilty, leading to the destruction of crops, herds, and food supplies. Over a hundred thousand people perished from starvation, and while I have often praised William in my writings, I cannot condone this brutal slaughter. This period of trauma in England is a historical record we seldom discuss, yet it is essential to acknowledge these events without holding grudges against those involved.”

“Looking at the background of the current situation between Russia and Ukraine, there was a time filled with hope and optimism following the collapse of communism and the Soviet Union. Major figures like Reagan, Bush, Thatcher, Gorbachev, and Yeltsin were all involved in this transition, and there was a genuine aspiration for a new era of peace. However, after elections, new governments often come in with different policies, sometimes ignoring or being ignorant of the policies of their predecessors. This ignorance about history has contributed to the current tensions.”

“Personally, I think it is very unwise for Ukraine to join NATO or the EU because the country is divided. Half the country wants to be close to Russia, while the other half wants to be close to the EU. The solution is for Ukraine to remain neutral, allowing it to have whatever relationship it wants with Russia without being dominated by Moscow. There is nothing wrong with being neutral; Austria is neutral, and Sweden and Finland were not in NATO until recently. Switzerland has not been in NATO since the Second World War. I believe Ukraine should remain a neutral country, but Zelensky was determined to join NATO, and Washington was encouraging this, especially Biden.”

“Looking at the last 400 years, we see that it started in Japan and Germany with Martin Luther and Protestantism, which went west to Britain and America, leading to the British Empire, free market, and liberal democracy, eventually arriving in Korea in 1945. From Germany, we had Karl Marx and communism, which went east to Russia and China, along with fascism and Nazism, bringing state control and totalitarianism. Just as Germany was divided, so too is Korea. Fortunately, there was a peaceful reunification of Germany, largely because of the Christian foundation there. It's hard to imagine a peaceful reunification of Korea due to the very little Christian foundation in the South and none whatsoever in the North.”

“How much are Koreans within our own spiritual community being told that they need to forgive the Japanese? They need to love the Japanese people, go the extra mile, turn the other cheek, and overcome all that historical resentment. The same applies to North Korea as well. The only country that has really benefited from the Russian invasion of Ukraine is Taiwan. If the invasion had gone well, I think China might have moved against Taiwan. However, the Russian military invasion of Ukraine has been a total disaster. It's much easier to invade a country with which you share a land frontier than it is to invade an island.”

“Peter Berger argues that neo-orthodoxy cannot persuade people to return to the pre-modern age, where they memorise everything off by heart. For some, that might be acceptable, but for many people in the world today, it simply does not work. Another possibility he suggested was to accommodate modernity. They no longer believe in miracles or the supernatural, essentially accepting the desacralisation of society. We no longer try to bring God into our conversations or politics; we accept, as Nietzsche said, that God is dead. An alternative approach that I advocate is service as an existentialist approach, starting from human experience. The first line of the Divine Principle states that every human is struggling to attain happiness and avoid misfortune. Starting from human experience, we can build towards everything else, including God.”

“Theology moves back and forth between two poles: the eternal truth of its foundation and the temporal situation in which the eternal truth must be received. Not many theological systems have been able to balance these two demands perfectly. It is easy to teach the truth without paying attention to the people who are supposed to be listening. One must consider the world we live in today and think about how to translate these eternal truths into a language that resonates with people today. How can we bring the Principle or this truth to people in a way that helps them find meaning in their lives and aids them on their journey in their relationship with the Divine?”

“Abraham was like a dissident for him. He would not compromise with the truth, even at the risk of his life. He would not say that right is wrong or wrong is right, or that black is white and white is black. He was like a dissident in the Soviet Union, committed to the truth of his knowledge of God. Even at the risk of his life, he would not deny what he knew to be true: that God is a reality, and that God was his friend and parent. I think that is the source of his faith.”

“In the biblical account, God grants Adam and Eve free will, allowing them to make choices. They could choose to eat from any tree in the garden except for one. This notion of free will and responsibility is fundamentally different from the deterministic views found in Greek mythology. The consequences of their choice led to a fall, resulting in dysfunction and corruption in their relationships. This narrative teaches that evil is a mistake, not an inherent part of the universe. If evil is a mistake, then it is possible to restore goodness and change the world.”

“It is really important to remember that we often have concepts of what God is like, and we expect God to fit those concepts. If we come across something that doesn't fit that idea, we might say, 'Well, that's just an angel; that's just a misrepresentation of what God is like.' Recent scientific advancements in epigenetics show that our thoughts can influence gene expression. Freud's psychoanalysis was based on Greek myths rather than biblical stories, which could have provided a more fruitful foundation. God is calling Abraham to embark on a journey, one that is linear and leads into the unknown, where the future is open. This journey reflects the essence of faith, hope, and love, as we step into the unknown, responding to what comes our way.”

“When God met Abraham, He said, 'I am God Almighty. Walk before me and be blameless.' This statement intrigued me because it suggests that God was following Abraham, not the other way around. To be blameless means to live according to one's conscience, following the original mind and heart. By doing so, Abraham would know where to go, as God dwelled in his heart. God seeks people who take the initiative, listen to their conscience, and follow the impulses of their original nature. He desires individuals who take responsibility, moving from a state of obedience like servants to the attitude of an owner.”

“Are we going to ban religions from teaching what they believe? Are we going to ban religions from teaching their traditional moral teachings? Or are we going to say, 'Right, you have to change your moral teachings, you have to change your Bible, you have to change the Koran, and edit the Koran, edit the Bible to remove these offensive laws, remove these offensive statements about homosexuality'? It's not the way to go. Maybe religions will be forced to marry homosexuals. If you read any Christian marriage liturgy, it's all about explaining the relationship between a man and a woman, the purpose and meaning of marriage. If churches and other religious institutions are going to be forced by the law, under equalities legislation, to marry homosexuals, it means they have to completely change the marriage service.”

“Children grow up with parents whose behaviour, personality, and preferences are more masculine might incorrectly conclude that she is really a male born in the wrong body. This can confuse her parents as well. In reality, that child simply exists at one end of a behavioural spectrum. Atypical behaviour is part of the natural variation exhibited within and between the sexes. Personality and behaviour do not define one sex in most cases. What is now called gender identity is simply an individual's perception of how their own sex-related and environmentally influenced personality compares to same and opposite-sex people. This conflation stems from a cultural failure to understand the broad distribution of personalities and preferences within sexes and the overlap between sexes.”

“The European philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz proposed pre-established harmony. This pre-established harmony solves the mind-body problem because it suggests that the soul and body interact and agree with each other. When your soul tells your arm to move, it moves not because your soul is moving your arm, but because the soul and the arm have already been pre-programmed to look like they are coordinated together. One is not causing the other; they are just programmed to be in coordination.”

“The philosophy of the Divine Principle and Unification Thought maps onto the natural world much better than materialism or other philosophies. When we examine the natural world, we find many phenomena that the film did not address. For instance, life exists several kilometres below the Earth's surface, where conditions are incredibly hot. Scientists have discovered bacteria thriving in these extreme environments. Modern science suggests that reality is not as predictable as previously thought; instead, it contains a chaotic element that allows for complexity and emergence.”

“Without a connection to God, certain family structures can devolve into pathological forms. The communitarian family with authoritarian fathers produces ideologies of equality plus authority (communism). The stem family with one favoured heir produces acceptance of inequality (fascism). The absolute nuclear family (English Anglo-Saxon) produces individualism and freedom but also social disintegration in modernity. As Hayek noted, the knowledge of earlier generations is communicated through language, and the structure of language itself implies certain views about the nature of the world. By learning a particular language, we acquire a specific framework for thinking, often without realising it.”

“Christianity is a consistently thought-out and complete view of things. One breaks out of it; the fundamental idea, such as belief in God, one breaks the whole thing to pieces. Christianity presupposes that man does not know, cannot know, what is good for him and what is evil. God alone knows. Christian morality possesses truth only if God is truth; it stands or falls with belief in God. If modern people really do believe they know of their own accord what is good and what is evil, if they think they no longer have a need for Christianity as a guarantor of morality, that is merely a consequence of the ascendancy of Christian evaluation. God and morality have long been forgotten, so the highly conditioned nature of this right to exist is no longer felt.”

“The theory of intelligent design doesn't seem to make much sense and isn't accepted by regular scientists. We also discussed William Paley and his argument from design, which doesn't hold up very well anymore. Darwin stated that he never denied the existence of God and believed that the theory of evolution is fully compatible with faith in God. He argued that the greatest argument for God's existence is the impossibility of demonstrating that the immense universe and humanity are merely the result of chance.”

“Jesus took this to another level as well. He said not to get angry with your brother or to get irritated. When we get irritated by someone, we may want to shut them up, but that can lead to verbal or even physical violence. We need to reflect on what it is in us that this person provokes. There may be others who are not at all irritated by that person. It's important to cleanse ourselves of that irritation rather than blaming the other.”

“There is a way of making sense of the nature of reality that goes all the way back to the Greeks, particularly Pythagoras, which has permeated the whole of the European cultural tradition. This way of understanding the world is often unconscious for many people. If we look at modern discourse, we can see that many divide the world into two classes: the oppressed and the oppressor, the poor and the rich, black and white, female and male.”

“By building the sanctuary, by building the tabernacle, it's their opportunity to say thank you to God by giving something back to God. As Jonathan Sacks said, 'It's not what God does for us that transforms us, but what we do for God.' Sometimes it's not receiving love that changes you; it's actually giving love. What they're doing here is moving from a position of being recipients to becoming creators or co-creators. When you're in a state of complete dependency, you have no dignity. However, when you become a co-creator, you are able to give something back, which restores your dignity. This transition is part of growing up, moving from dependency to responsibility.”

“When the Roman soldier demands you carry his luggage, you can respond with enthusiasm, asking him about his day, his family, and his life. By engaging him in conversation, you show interest and love. Over time, the soldier may start to see you as a nice person, and you might even carry his luggage for a second mile. This act of kindness can change the soldier's perception of you. He may begin to feel guilty for treating you poorly. By loving your enemies, you transform the relationship, turning enemies into friends and changing the dynamic between Romans and Jews. This was Jesus's political plan: to resolve the intense hatred and contempt characterising the relationship between these groups.”

“God is not saying He will dwell or live in a sanctuary; He is going to dwell among them. This means that they can all work together, overcome their conflicts and differences, and harmonise to build the sanctuary. The Israelites entered Canaan after leaving behind many things in the desert. Different tribes settled in various places, and they had to establish some kind of political structures.”

“Hayek's 'Road to Serfdom' is a concise and powerful exposition of political philosophy that was shocking when published. In 'Road to Serfdom', Hayek discusses the freedom to order our own conduct in circumstances that force choices upon us. He emphasises the responsibility for arranging our lives according to our own conscience, which is essential for moral values to grow. This resonates with the language and philosophy of the Divine Principle, highlighting the interconnectedness of freedom and responsibility, the rule of law, and moral life. Hayek's humanistic understanding aligns with the Three Blessings, and he urges people to embrace the challenge of building a free society as an intellectual adventure.”

“In a great society, most people do not know each other beyond a tribal level, yet they treat one another with respect, expecting the same in return. Although many pass by strangers in the street without knowing them, there is an underlying respect that governs these interactions. As societies interact, they form nations, and nations interact to create a world. The principal view is fundamentally bottom-up, guided by a universal prime force driving us towards greater complexity. This process occurs spontaneously and naturally, reflecting the way the world operates.”

“Most people who become politicians generally do so because they are good people; they want to improve things in their country and in the world. Most politicians I've met are sincere people who try to do the right thing.”

“MacIntyre suggests that we enter human society with certain roles assigned to us, such as being the oldest or youngest sibling. We do not choose these roles, but we must learn to navigate them. Understanding our roles helps us comprehend how others perceive us and how we respond to them... Stories help us understand these roles and the expectations that come with them. Fairy tales often illustrate these dynamics, such as the story of Snow White and her wicked stepmother. These narratives convey important lessons about relationships and identity, teaching children about the complexities of familial and societal roles. Depriving children of stories leaves them anxious and unscripted in their actions and words.”

“When we analyse the society a bit more, we find there's something called a caste system. At the very bottom of the caste system is a group of people called the untouchables... This belief system teaches people that the way things are is the way things are supposed to be. They are encouraged not to complain, not to think it's unfair, and not to try to change anything because it's completely fair and just. The world they're living in is the best of all possible worlds. This is due to the law of karma, and therefore, they should not criticise or challenge the status quo... This illustrates how myths support the status quo.”

“Ivan Illich, an Austrian priest, educator, and anarchist, stated that neither revolution nor reformation can ultimately change a society. We have seen revolutions and reformations, but often all that changes are the people in control. Instead, we must tell a new and powerful tale—one so persuasive that it sweeps away old myths and becomes a preferred story. This new narrative should be inclusive, gathering all aspects of our past and present into a coherent whole, shining light into the future. If we want to change society, we need to tell an alternative story.”

“In a new concept was born of a future substantially different from the past. From the time of Abraham, there is a restless attempt to reckon with the feeling that the way things are is not the way things have to be. We saw looking at the Hindu myth that the way things are is the way things are supposed to be. It's fair and just that there should be a caste system. From the time of Abraham, there's a strong sense that the way things are is not the way things have to be. In fact, the way things are is not the way things are supposed to be; things are supposed to be better, and the world is supposed to be based upon justice and upon fairness. This is where all the revolutionary movements to change the world and make the world a better place start from this point: recognizing that time is linear and the future can be different from the past.”

“The Hebrew word for blessing, 'barak,' means to kneel, which connects to the idea of receiving God's empowerment. Without God's blessing, individuals struggle to achieve mind-body unity and live meaningful lives. For instance, those battling addiction often find that acknowledging their need for help is the first step toward recovery.”

“The reality is that when people are engaged in this kind of relationship, they feel shame, disgust, pain, and humiliation, which is exactly what Eve felt afterwards. It led to a complete loss of self-esteem and self-respect. She felt like she had no value... Some survivors choose celibacy or choose partners who don't want sex because, for them, sex is associated with all this trauma... Sometimes they spend many years and a great deal of energy trying to find ways to avoid having sex. Some view sex as dirty or see it as an obligation they must perform. Survivors may force themselves for years to go through the motions, even though they're numb, absent, or in panic. It's very common for people who have been sexually abused to feel numb.”

“If Adam and Eve had a beautiful experience with their first sexual relationship, it would have imprinted positively on them. For me, I have a happy memory of my first sexual relationship with my wife during a three-day ceremony. Whenever I think about it, it brings me joy. Sexual love is something incredibly beautiful, pure, peaceful, and healing. Those are the associations one should have with sexual love. However, Adam and Eve did not have that, and their children inherited the damage from the abuse in their relationship.”

“Restoration occurs when you find yourself in a similar position to Adam, Eve, the Archangel, Cain, Abel, or your mum or dad, or one of your grandparents or your great-great-grandparents. You find yourself in a similar position to one of these people in history, either one of these archetypal biblical figures or one of your direct ancestors, and then you have to face the same temptation or a similar temptation to make the same mistake that they did. Of course, when you make the same mistake that they did, you continue the pattern of fallen history... But you choose not to do so, and instead of acting out of your fallen nature, you act according to your original nature and you follow your conscience. That's what restoration is: you break the cycle of abuse and the pattern of fallen history.”

“When I was about 17, I fell in love with my tutor's wife. I used to have all these fantasies about how I would marry my tutor's wife that I had fallen in love with, but I realised there was only one problem: she was already married. I thought, 'I wish her husband would die, then I can marry her.' I contemplated this for a while, trying to imagine different scenarios under which he might die or I might try and arrange his death by snipping the brake tube in his car so he'd have an accident. But eventually, I came to my senses... I felt completely liberated. They were both so happy that I had the freedom to express myself; I was free to be completely open, honest, and transparent about these unspeakable thoughts and feelings that I had. For me, it was very liberating. When I heard the Principle, I realised I went through a similar experience that the Archangel went through.”

“Nimrod, a person with a huge personality cult. His name means 'letters revolt,' and he was revolting against the idea that someone higher than him, before whom he would stand in judgment, would judge him—namely, God. He was an atheist in that sense and hated God. He built the Tower of Babel, wanting to reach the sky and shoot arrows at God. This project mobilised all the people living around him into a vast collective workforce, typical of dictators who like to undertake grand architectural projects for their own glorification. Nimrod is the archetype of all dictators throughout human history.”

“Father said exactly the same thing... The core of the biblical tradition is not obedience; it's about love—loving God with all your soul, all your heart, and all your mind. It's about listening, listening to the voice of God, listening to your conscience. Of course, it's very hard to listen to one's conscience. There are all kinds of distractions and noise going on. That's why developing a spiritual life is important. People like Moses and Jesus went to the desert. In the desert, there is absolute silence. At that point, you can begin to hear your conscience, your soul, and the voice of God. I recommend it. I once went to the Dead Sea, and I heard the silence. It's extraordinary; go there if you can.”

“In the Unification Church, we have one common rule about who is a true member of the church: he is the one who truly supports and loves his brothers and sisters more than he loves Reverend Moon. That's not right, is it? We are supposed to love True Parents more than anything else. Well, that's not what he taught. God Himself is that way; the same principle works at every single level. It's a simple principle. All Father's teaching here is exactly what Abraham practiced and what Abraham taught himself. But when you read this, you might think, 'That's shocking; this is not church teaching, is it?' But this is what Father taught.”

“Abraham confronted God. 'Are you serious?' Imagine speaking to God like that. 'Are you planning to get rid of the good people right along with the bad? That's not fair. What if there are 50 decent people left in the city? Will you lump the good with the bad and get rid of the lot?... Doesn't the Judge of all the earth judge with justice?' Imagine Abraham speaking to God, the owner of the world, the Creator of the world, the Judge of the world, and saying to God, 'Aren't you going to judge with justice? Isn't what you're going to do unfair?' Can you imagine speaking to God like that? There's no other conversation in the whole of religious literature like this. For most people, this is blasphemy.”

“Kierkegaard talked about the teleological suspension of the ethical; he wrote a whole book about it... He suggested that it is acceptable to sacrifice one's children if it is done out of love for God... However, the reality is that this logic resembles that of a religious fanatic—the inquisitor or the suicide bomber. What do Muslim suicide bombers shout just before they blow themselves up? They shout, 'God is great.' Are these religious people? Yes. Are they doing it for the sake of God? Yes. Are they doing it out of their love for God? Yes. This is a misunderstanding of the story; it reflects the logic of the religious fanatic. At the end of the day, it's important to remember that God never asks us to do anything unethical. God never asks us to do anything against our conscience.”

“Abraham partially cuts the heifer, sheep, and goat, but he does not cut the birds. It seems a bit severe that his descendants would suffer for 400 years just because he did not cut the doves... If Abraham successfully makes the offering, it can serve as a restoration of that mistake, allowing his descendants to prosper in Canaan for 400 years. If he fails, Satan can torment them for that same period... Had Abraham made the offering successfully, it would have established a condition of lesser indemnity, allowing his descendants to enjoy 400 years of blessings in Canaan. However, because he did not make it successfully, it became a condition of greater indemnity, leading to their suffering under Satan's influence for 400 years. This situation can be likened to receiving a heavy parking fine; it took 400 years for them to return to Canaan.”

“When Eve first gives birth, she says, 'With the help of the Lord, I have acquired a man.' The Hebrew word for 'acquired' is 'keniti,' which is why she named him Cain. Eve regarded Cain as her possession, saying, 'I own this son; God has helped me to have my son.' She was a very possessive mother. What do you do with a possessive mother? You either get crushed or rebel, and Cain rebelled. Khalil Gibran, a beautiful Lebanese poet, expressed this theme well in his poetry. He said, 'Your children are not your children; they are the sons and daughters of life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you, and though they are with you, they belong not to you.'”

“Father said that since God accepted only Abel's offering, Abel thought this was because he was better and that God only liked him. Thus, he must have bragged to his older brother... Father said Abel should not have bragged about being happy because he received the blessing from God... It's not enough to be anointed, appointed, and crowned; you have to win your older brother's blessing. When you get anointed and crowned by Father to be his heir, you have to go to your older brother and say, 'I'm really sorry. I have no idea why Father appointed me to be his heir. I'm so completely unqualified. You're so much better than me, so much wiser than me, and have done so many more things than me. Unless you support and help me, I'm going to tell Mum and Dad that I don't want the position.'”

“There is a Jewish story about a rabbi with many disciples. One day, the rabbi told his disciples that he had found out the Messiah was on the earth, and they were all excited. They asked, 'Who is it?' The rabbi replied, 'I don't know.' The disciples then asked what they should do, and the rabbi said, 'Go and treat everybody as if they were the Messiah.' This is what Father taught: treat everyone as if they are your Abel, treat everyone as if they are your Messiah, and treat everyone as a person from whom you can hear God's voice and learn.”

“Inner spiritual power leads individuals to rely on external factors such as titles, positions, or reputations to exert influence. They often resort to coercive methods to enforce obedience rather than convincing people to cooperate voluntarily. Such methods tend to breed resentment, ultimately causing leaders to be despised rather than respected. This misunderstanding of the Cain and Abel relationship has persisted from very early on. Father spoke about this, emphasising that those who raise their heads high and order others around are like Cain, while those who strive to fulfil their responsibilities, even in difficult circumstances, embody Abel's spirit.”

“If Cain is to love Abel, Abel must be lovable. If Cain is to respect Abel, Abel must be worthy of respect. If Cain is to be guided by Abel, Abel must provide good guidance. Only then can they unite in love. Unity is not the starting point; it is the result of a process involving love, respect, and guidance. Jacob, as I mentioned, overcame his fallen nature and restored the mistake he made. Esau did not make any mistakes; he realised he was not a good younger brother. Jacob took the risk of his life to return the blessing he had stolen.”

“Jonathan Sacks highlights that within every crisis lies a possibility of blessing. Difficult situations force us to confront who we are and what truly matters to us. They challenge us to make necessary decisions and can reveal strengths we did not know we possessed... The oldest question in religion is why bad things happen to good people. One way to ask this is, 'Why has God done this to me?' However, a more constructive approach is to ask, 'Given that this has happened, what does God want me to learn from it?' This perspective encourages looking forward rather than backward. It is essential to wrestle with our crises, refusing to let go until we find the blessing within them.”

“Through painful experiences, Jacob must learn a truth about love. The experiences that Jacob, Leah, and Rachel went through were filled with pain. Love can unite but also divide, as seen in Isaac's love for Esau and Rebecca's love for Jacob. This favoritism caused problems in their children's relationships. When Jacob married two sisters, their previous harmony turned into competition for his affection. Later, Jacob's preference for Rachel's child, Joseph, over his other sons led to further conflict. The lesson here is that parents must love their children equally; favoritism breeds jealousy and conflict. What Jacob learned, and what we learn from his story, is that love alone is not enough. We must also listen to those who feel unloved.”

“Joseph had grandiose dreams, which would have been better kept to himself. His brothers worked as shepherds, and occasionally, their father Jacob would send Joseph with lunch boxes to check on them. When Joseph visited, he noticed that some of his brothers were drinking at the pub, while others were sunbathing. Upon returning home, Joseph reported to Jacob that his brothers were lazy and irresponsible, which led to tension between them. When the brothers returned home after months of hard work, they expected a warm welcome, but instead, Jacob confronted them about their behaviour. They realised that Joseph had been telling tales, and they were furious with him.”

“When the brothers returned home to Canaan with food, they eventually ran out and Jacob told them to go back to Egypt to buy more... Eventually, Judah promised Jacob that he would bring Benjamin home safely, guaranteeing that he would take responsibility for him... This moment presented the brothers with a moral choice. They could have chosen to abandon Benjamin and save themselves, but that would have shown they had not changed since they sold Joseph into slavery 21 years ago. Instead, Judah stepped forward, willing to exchange his life for Benjamin's, demonstrating a profound transformation in character. This act of self-sacrifice is significant, as it reflects the essence of being a good older brother.”

“When the woman caught in adultery in John's story is brought to Jesus, his response illustrates that there is more to life than mere observance of religious customs. Joseph completely re-examined and reframed his life. Even when he was in prison, he felt he had been treated unfairly, but in hindsight, he realised that perhaps this was God working in his life. Often, we cannot see the future when we are going through difficult situations; it is only when we look back can we see how God was working... Joseph's life exemplifies how we can overcome tragedy by viewing our experiences as part of a divine plan, rather than merely a series of unfair events.”

“Rahab's loyalty shifts from the king of Jericho to the Israelites, declaring that the Lord their God is the God of heaven and earth. By doing this, she changes her lineage and source of identity at great personal risk. When Jericho is destroyed, she puts out a red cord, and the Israelites spare her and her family. According to tradition, Rahab is mentioned in Jesus' lineage in Matthew, where she is said to have married Salmon, a descendant of Perez, who was the youngest son of Judah and Tamar. This indicates that she married into Jesus' lineage, having undergone her own personal change of lineage and loyalty to the God of Israel.”

“I brought up a quote a few times regarding Abraham, where he asked, 'Where is the change of blood lineage done?' It's when people go through a life-and-death situation for the sake of God and the future dignity of man. You can see these individuals facing a challenge, either to follow their original mind and conscience or to give in to their fallen nature and repeat the pattern of fall in history. Each time they go through this, they eliminate various evil elements from their character and personality, which means their descendants are born with less fallen nature than they were. This gradual, incremental purification of lineage starts within the individual and then spreads to a family, from a family to a tribe, from a tribe to a nation, and from a nation to a worldwide level.”

“Abraham loved his wife so much that he let her go in this way to the king. Is that normal? Why do you think they wrote this in the Bible? Because this is a very important point. The fact that Sarah not only loved her husband but believed and trusted him as if he were God is significant. She believed in her husband's faith, and she leaned on him as someone who completely trusted God... Once she trusted God and also trusted Abram, just like Eve should have trusted Adam, then at that point, she was able to succeed. That's how she came out successful... Because Sarah was able to become one with Abraham, she was the first successful woman after Eve.”

“First, Tamar married Er, but unfortunately, he could not father any children and died after seven months. At that time in Israel, there was a cultural expectation that if you married into a family, you could not have your children in another family. This meant that Tamar had to have children from that family because she was married into it. This practice is not common today, but it illustrates how Israel was a very providential country. Tamar then married Onan, who was also from that family, but he too was reluctant to fulfil his duty and died as a result of his actions. He would not allow his seed to go into Tamar, which led to his demise.”

“Now, let's discuss the second wife of True Father. After divorcing the first wife, True Father waited seven years. During this time, many spiritual ladies came to pray at his house... She had a mission to go to Japan and have a child there. After having the baby, she faced challenges returning to Korea due to not having a passport or official visa, as she had gone to Japan secretly during the occupation. While trying to return, she encountered a Korean man who turned out to be a bad person and raped her. She wrote a letter to True Father, explaining that she could not accomplish her mission under these circumstances. True Father cried and promised to restore her, no matter what had happened. The mother of Hijin knew that her return would complicate True Father's path, so she hid in the mountains for seven years, living off whatever she could find.”

“So once the old ones and the new ones came together then the new kingdom was was recreated. So what was the first thing that they they said when uh they left so so the first thing was to build their church when they came back. So we need a place to be able to we need a house to be able to um pray to our God. So then again they started the new recreation of their country. What is the second thing that they did? They had they made a second. So the first one was the the restoration of the lineage and family. And then uh thanks to thanks to uh Solomon again they did the restoration of uh the nation. So if you look at this is very very similar to um true father's life or true father's preparation to come.”

“Even though we are deceived, we still believe. Though we are betrayed, we still forgive. Love completely, even those who hate you. Wipe your tears away and welcome them with a smile. What do you think? Even if I don't believe, what is wrong with me? As I am the Messiah, God chose me because I came to help, and I have the responsibility to restore people. With this kind of heart, even if I get deceived, I will believe you. I will understand everything that happens to human beings. Anything you do to me, I will not ask. Even if you put me on the cross, I will still believe you.”

“In Japan, True Father faced significant tests that were essential for someone in his position. He completed various providential tasks... I responded by pointing out that Adam, before the Fall, had no sin. Therefore, the children of an unfallen Adam would not inherit original sin, but they do have personal responsibilities to overcome their limitations. True Father himself did not come with original sin, yet he had to face similar challenges. Thus, even though the True Children are born from someone without original sin, their journey involves personal responsibility and overcoming their own limitations.”

“True mother as Eve when on when once she was chosen true father asked her three things three times will you have absolute faith love and obedience to me and of course shakes he explained all the different uh what absolute faith love and obedience is from God's point of view So then he asked again a second question and then will you have one will you have absolute faith love and obedience without even thinking about yourself 1%. And then he asked a third time, are you sure? Can you be able to to have absolute faith, love and obedience while I complete while completing if's um mission and when he she answered yes, he became she chose him.”

“The God of night is invisible, spiritual, and has no form; he cannot expand. But the God of day, as I said, is our true father; he's physical, he has a form, and he can recreate because he's the completed Adam and Eve. The God of night and God of day become one. When they unite, they become God. As true parents, Adam and Eve, after the completed Adam and Eve have come together united, they become one with God. God can live in them; then they become God. The God of night can be seen as the God of mind, and the God of day can be seen as the God of body. So basically, this is the mind and the body of God coming together as one... True parents do not need to bow to God again because God has entered them; they have become one with God.”

“So with this eight with this eight textbook you are able all the you can you are able to actually feel God's understand how you can be able to get your your partner to be completed everything you can understand how to recreate because this 430 30 couples with that uh new book, the eight the eight textbooks. If you read them, then you would understand how to be able to recreate and what I did and how I did to recreate this uh 430 couples and how I understood and feel and you will also feel um God because the human um completion is cannot be done cannot be done by oneself.”

“Just like you eat food for your physical body every day. Every day you have to also feed your spiritual body because your spiritual body is leaning on your physical body. Are you guys animals? Are you human beings? Yes. Human beings. Human beings have to help the spiritual body to grow and feed them. feed the spiritual body for it to grow. You have to understand the the the hunger of the spiritual your spiritual self. True father does 20 21 22 hours for of h just keeps doing it and then he's even he is more hungry. He doesn't sleep. He try and stay awake because of that because he still is hungry spiritually... So this spiritual body they they're fasting for one week then and then if you don't come for for one month to church then it's like this fasting for one month.”

“If I want to make my wife complete, if I want to help my children or my members reach a certain level, I have to be in that position. The same goes for parents, wives, and husbands; they are the ones that will help me reach my level because they acknowledge me and help me get to that level. Do you understand?... It is only my partner. How can you become a wife if the husband doesn't approve of your position? Who makes you a parent? Your children. They are the only people that can call you father and mother; they are the ones that make you a parent... You cannot become a parent in that way. In order to be complete as a parent, you have to let your children complete you, and then it will work both ways.”

“Lucifer had no ground to continue his evil work. He surrendered to True Mother because she removed the ground where he could plant his seeds of evil. This surrender occurred on March 21, 1999, during the blessing of 360 million couples, which was a recognition of True Mother's hard work and the victorious foundation she had established. True Father rewarded her for her efforts, marking a significant moment where True Mother was no longer just a wife but stood in an equal position with True Father as a true mother.”

“So the Sunha festival contains three things — birth, marriage and death. If you take away the death and just leave the others, then it becomes a ceremony, not a festival. So the difference between the Sunha festival and the Sunha ceremony... for the messiah, we do the same ceremony — we have people pass away, we do the same as outside people. But because of our true parents after they became kings of kings, because they could overcome to and get to some victories and level, then of course we also were able to change differently. Because of our true parents the Sunha ceremony has changed even when Hjin died.”

“The first thing is there will forever be one God. That goes back to Abraham and traditional Jewish teaching that there's only one God. 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one.' There is only one God, and God is one, not a divided being. There will only forever be one true parents, which is fairly new compared to what it was like 50 years ago. There will forever be only one begotten son, and there will forever only be one begotten daughter. So, I'll explore what those mean. What does 'only begotten son' and 'only begotten daughter' mean? Does anybody here have any ideas? One thing is this is not defined anywhere in the slides, and no lecturer has explained what the phrase 'only begotten son' and 'only begotten daughter' means.”

“The Nicene Council and urged all the bishops to agree upon what they believed. Anyone who claimed to be a Christian had to believe this, this, and this. They needed to stop all the arguments. Anyone who didn't accept it would be expelled from the Roman Empire. That was the context of intense discussion about who Jesus was. People thought it was really important to believe the same thing about Jesus, because if you didn't, the Gospel of John states that if you don't believe Jesus is this or that, you will be condemned. That was how it worked. People thought what was more important was not how you lived your life but what you believed.”

“He did it to combat Arianism, which taught that Jesus was created and not of the same substance as the Father. These are the big arguments going on over the Creed. The Nicene Creed: Is Jesus of the same substance as the Father or similar substance to the Father? The followers of Tertullian and the followers of Arius, you know, and there's a big conflict and big argument. He wanted to change it from 'only son' to 'only begotten son,' and then it fits into the Trinity... So when Father comes along and says, 'Well, Jesus wasn't God,' did that go down well? No, because it's not what it says in the Nicene Creed. So that's why we were told, 'You're not Christians because you don't believe Jesus is the only begotten Son of God.'”

“Then he ends up stating that something is true because of how it's phrased in the Bible. No, I don't think I'm saying that. CS Lewis, yeah, he's a philosopher and a figure of English literature as well, so he explains what these words mean. That's the classic Orthodox Christian view of what the words mean. That's what's important, and I think what he said is true in the sense that it is really what the word 'beget' and 'begotten' means. That's what the word 'create' means, and that's how there is this distinction within Christian theology. Not that I agree with that, because I don't think Jesus was begotten, but that's what he said, and I think that's accurate in that sense.”

“Adam and Eve were not gods; they were not of the same substance as God. They didn't have God's flesh and blood because God doesn't have flesh and blood. They don't have God's DNA because God doesn't have DNA. God is Spirit, pure Spirit. The relationship we can have with God is a relationship of parent and child. We can experience God's love as a parent, a father and mother for us, and we feel like we're God's sons and daughters, but that's a metaphorical use of the language; it's not literal.”

“When I joined the church, there was a general understanding from the early disciples of the Father that many people had been approached by Jesus, who tried to recruit them, you might say, or get them to inherit his position. The Father was the only one willing to do that, even though he refused three times before eventually saying, 'Yes, okay, I'll do it.' That's not what we teach in our church anymore, but that's how it was understood within our early church community.”

“The first blessing is Mind-Body Unity as an individual with God at your centre. The first blessing in a country is freedom of religion; you have to be able to worship God in the way you want to worship God... The second blessing is about family; it's about the four great realms of heart and three great kingships... The third blessing is over creation. How does that work? It has to be private property, so the state can't come along and confiscate people's houses, homes, farms, and factories. You have a free market... So, which is the first country in the world to establish the three great blessings? Britain.”

“To marry an English princess, he would have had to come to school here, to Eton or Harrow School, and mixed in those social circles. He could have met a British princess. Being the kind of person he was, which was something extraordinary, I'm sure without a shadow of a doubt he could have won the heart of an English princess and married her. I have no doubt about that whatsoever because of the kind of person he was. But that could only have ever come about if he'd actually had the opportunity to meet such a person.”

“At the heart of Christianity lies a significant lie: the belief that the crucifixion was the will of God, allowing for salvation through the forgiveness and rebirth made possible by the blood of Jesus. This myth, based on a misunderstanding of Divine Principle, is one of the foundational lies of Christianity. Another lie is the concept of predestination, which suggests that the fall of Adam and Eve was part of God's plan to demonstrate His love through the crucifixion and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. St. Augustine taught that the fall was God's will, arguing that without sin and suffering, there would be no opportunity for God to show His love and compassion. I often question why God waited 4,000 years to enact this plan, as there seems to be no satisfactory answer.”

“This is again something that made me feel uncomfortable when I was reading 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'. The lion, Aslan, was killed on the altar and then came back to life. I could never figure that out. I read a lot of C.S. Lewis, and he said the reason why he told that story in the way he did—with Aslan being put to death by the White Witch and then coming back to life—was that it was very difficult for children like himself to understand the crucifixion and the resurrection. A, it really happened, and B, it was God's will. That was his difficulty as a child. So he said, okay, I'm going to write 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' so that children can enjoy this story.”

“Abraham argued with God, Moses did, Jeremiah did, and Isaiah did. The wonderful thing about the Hebrew Bible is that all these arguments and discussions are recorded. The prophet said that to God, and God said that in reply. You don't see that in the New Testament. Obviously, Jesus has an incredibly profound relationship with God, but unfortunately, those conversations are not recorded in the New Testament; they're only recorded in the Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible. This is one of the reasons I love the Hebrew Bible so much. What God said and felt is all recorded there; it's not recorded in the New Testament.”

“Jerome, who went to Rome in 382 AD and undertook a revision of the old Latin version of the Bible, made changes specifically to verses in John, which is where the whole idea comes from. He changed the Latin word 'unicus' to 'unigenitus,' which means only begotten. Why did he do that? That's the important thing... He did it to combat Arianism, which taught that Jesus was created and not of the same substance as the Father.”

“Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life.' He didn't say, 'What I'm saying is true.' He never said, 'I'm teaching the truth.' He said, 'I am the truth.' Yeah, he himself, that's his whole idea. It's who, not about what. It's about who. Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life.' He was a true person, and in the Unification thoughts, especially, it talks about an individual truth body. That's what Jesus was; he was an individual truth body. He was an embodiment of the truth, and that's why when he spoke, he wasn't just talking about things he learned off by heart; it was coming from him. And that's why when he spoke, it touched people's hearts because he was speaking from there.”

“My own view is that the Divine Principle book should have just been revised with a few sentences and paragraphs added. It states that Adam should have made a foundation of faith and a foundation of substance. Shouldn't Eve have made a foundation of faith? Yes. Shouldn't Eve have made a foundation of substance? Yes. So why isn't it in the book? You don't need to produce a whole new lecture series; you just need to correct the Divine Principle book... When I teach the Bible stories, I don't just talk about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; I talk about Abraham and Sarah, Hagar, Isaac and Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, and Moses' sister Miriam, who is an incredibly important figure.”

“Abraham and Sarah, as the ancestors of humanity, are significant figures in this discussion. In Isaiah, it is written, 'Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and seek the Lord; look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn. Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who gave you birth.' This highlights their importance, as more than half of the world's population, including Jews, Christians, and Muslims, are physically or spiritually descended from them. Within Judaism, Abraham is considered the father of faith, while Sarah is regarded as the mother of faith. God spoke to both Abraham and Sarah, making promises to them, and also spoke to Hagar regarding her son Ishmael.”

“Couples, as embodiments of the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother, represent all men and women of humanity. By becoming one, they come to resemble the Heavenly Parent. Therefore, it is crucial to be precise in our language; referring to the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother can imply two gods, which is misleading.”

“I personally don't like theology. I don't do theology; I don't teach theology... I'm Jewish by birth but never received any Jewish kind of education. I was brought up a Christian, but I stopped being a Christian when I was a teenager because I didn't like Christianity. I went to church every day; I went to that kind of school, and every Sunday I had to recite the Nicene Creed, which I know off by heart. I remember going to my RE teacher and saying, 'Well, I don't understand this. What does it mean? I'm supposed to say I believe it.' Oh, well, you just have to know it off by heart and recite it, and that means you're a Christian.”

“Like the eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, God spreads wings to catch you and carries you on pinions. So again, God is mother. And again, Isaiah, many times it comes up in the prophets, the emotional depth of God's heart. Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she is born? Though she may forget, I will not forget you... And again, Hosea, like a bear robbed of her cubs, I will attack them and tear them aunder. You know what bears are like? Mother bears alike.”

“So that's why within Judaism there is no mediator. Every single human being forms their own personal relationship with God. There's no idea of a mediator. Yeah. No mediators, unnecessary. At Mount Si, God made a covenant with every single human being, all the Israelites who were there personally. They had no mediators. This idea of a mediator comes with a very pagan idea uh which has been adopted into Christianity. And again, in the Quran, it's the same thing. It is we... It is we who created humankind and fully know what their souls whisper to them and we are closer to them than their jugular vein.”

“So Christianity then in that sense is a return to paganism. Jesus is God. Okay. And then you got the vicar of Christ. And then you got the cardinals and the archbishops and the bishops and the priests who are all mediators. And there's this whole hierarchy. And each one has some authority to decide whether you go to heaven or you go to hell, whether you're going to be excommunicated or not excommunicated, you know, etc., etc. That's the way it is for much of Christian history until the reformation came. people could have their own personal relationship with God through faith be saved by God individually irrespective of and so we'll look at that later how Christianity then became this kind of you know through the interaction between early Christians particularly St. Paul and the pagan ideas he came across.”

“The Christian alternative though was to submit to paganism by Judaizing the Greeko Roman mystery cults... Instead of a gnostic suffering Gnostic suffering of or dying savior gods or demigods who would rise again or otherwise triumph and help their followers do the same. deities such as Oserius which is Egyptian Bal which you find in the Canaanites Dionis who's Greek there was God the son Jesus who was crucified but who rose in glory from his tomb so they decided anybody read oh god Frasier I can't even remember the name of the book now it's all about this he wrote it 19th century anyway. And uh that's just the way it was. The whole idea within these pagan gods, you had a god that existed in the spir in the spiritual world, you might say, comes down to earth, gets killed, and is resurrected.”

“From a Jewish perspective, Christianity is the blasphemy. Since Christians worship a man of as God, they worship Jesus. That's idolatry. Christians have multiple divine persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit instead of just one God. So, they're not monotheists. And Jews say they have a false messiah who failed to usher in a messianic age of universal peace and brotherhood. The Jewish view is the job of the Messiah is to bring about peace and justice. They look at Jesus and say, 'Well, you know, 2,000 years later, there's a world we're living in, a world which is peaceful and just. Did Christianity bring peace and justice into Europe or anywhere else in the world?' They say, 'No.'”

“So what should have happened is this that when they woke up in their sleeping bags or the massive comfortable beds they should have started off the day together... So Isaac and Rebecca then when they started off the day should have started off prayer and hund what are we going to do today and Isaac said well I was thinking why don't we bless I want to bless Esau oh why do you want to bless Esau and then Isaac would explain the plan okay so obviously Isaac had an idea in his head and the main problem is he hadn't discussed it with Rebecca so Rebecca only found out about Isaac's plan for that day when she eavesdropped she overheard him talking to Esau.”

“So Jacob should have thought, 'Oh, my my older brother, he's really strong and brave. He goes out and hunts the hunts deer where the wild animals are. I'm too scared to do that. I really He really looks up to his older brother. I admire your older brother. I think you're a hero going out where the wild animals are and you bring back the meat'... So Jacob could have said to Esau, 'Look, Esau, older brother, I had an idea. How about finding out where the animals walk... dig a hole, big hole in the ground, and then cover the hole with branches and leaves'... And then as they were working together, Esau, the muscle, Jacob with the brains, then he sort of thought, I'm the oldest son and one day mom and dad are going to die... I want to give my birthright to Jacob. That's what should have happened.”

“21 years before Judah organized Jacob to be sold into slavery. Now Judah is saying I will go to prison instead of my younger brother. He's exchanging places. So why did he go through that remarkable change within his own life? He obviously changed. He was no longer the same person as he was 21 years before. So what had changed? So one of the interesting things in that particular story in Genesis which nobody will be able to explain before was the story of Judah and Tamar.”

“How do we know that Ham and his wife had sex on the ark when they shouldn't have done? It's not because they didn't open up and admit it and apologize. Yeah. It's only written in the in the oral Torah, the Midrash. In the Quran as well. I'll have to look that one up. I didn't know that. You can read it in the divine principle if you look in different chapters. It's not in that chapter about Noah and the flood. There's a there's one sentence... To understand what that sentence means. You have to use your imagination.”

“After Jesus was born and then Herod found out about it and when Herod saw that he'd been tricked by the magi, so there's three magi who came from the east who came looking for following the star to to find the Messiah who they heard was going to be born... When Mary heard that the infants were being killed, she was afraid. She took her son, wrapped him in cloths, and put him in a manger for cows. And then later on, as we know, they went to Egypt to escape. And when Elizabeth heard that John was sought, she took him up into the hills and looked around for somewhere to hide him. But there wasn't a hiding place. That's why John actually grew up in the wilderness according to this uh account.”

“The Bible doesn't say Jesus was celibate or unmarried. And Jesus's disciples are married. And so if we read the gospel what it says when the Sabbath was over Mary Magdalene Mary the mother of James and Salom Mary's sister Jesus's aunt as Mary his mother's aunt his mother Mary's aunt sister bought spices so they might go and anoint Jesus's body... Was Jesus married? Well, the reality is the historical reality is that every rabbi was married and had a family. You couldn't be a rabbi without being married.”

“Jesus then he went into Jerusalem. On the gates of Jerusalem you have policemen and you have soldiers... So if you're a guard, a soldier, Roman soldier or a policeman standing outside the the gates of the of the um Jerusalem and someone enters in with a huge crowd of people being proclaimed as the king of the Jews, the king of Israel and of course you report back to your officer and it works all its way it works its way up through the the hierarchy. Then the people in charge have to decide what are we going to do with this person who's come to try and overthrow us. What would they do in this country? Well, in days gone by, they used to arrest them.”

“And so if you love this Roman soldier who's asked you to carry your luggage, you can say, 'Where have you come from? You just got off the train or off the donkey or whatever. Where did you come from?' You know, have you been here long? Who's your commanding officer? You know, where do you uh have you got a family at home? You know, take an interest into this person... And it's like a counselor, like a psychiatrist. Jews invented psychiatry. And um you know, then the end of the two miles, Jesus said, 'Love your enemies. Take an interest in them. Care about them. see if you can solve their any psychological or other kind of problems they might be having... And then he would have prayed for this Roman soldier and bless this Roman soldier and the Roman soldier would have said why don't we meet up in Starbucks next week. I want a friend like you. That make sense?”

“So child sacrifice is condemned in the Mosaic law. For Jesus, for God to sacrifice his son would be a violation of the Mosaic law. That's why God told Abraham, 'Do not sacrifice your son. It's not allowed.' So child sacrifice is condemned in the Mosaic Lord... So that's why God told Abraham, 'Do not sacrifice your son.' That's God doesn't want other people to sacrifice their sons and he's certainly not going to sacrifice his children himself. He tries to avoid all that sort of thing going on. Why? Because every single human being is a son or daughter of God. No parent has the right to sacrifice their children because children are not the property of their parents. Children are the property of God.”

“Contrary to the anti-Jewish stereotype, Amos. So Amos is one of the most outspoken prophets of God. He is one of the most outspoken, judgmental in some ways prophets of God. And so it's interesting to see what does he say. Amos's God is furious with Israel. God is furious. God is wrothful with Israel. But the question is why? Because the people have failed to uphold the intric not not because the people have failed to uphold the intricacies of hairsplitting laws, i.e. being disobedient. It's not about that. Rather, he is furious with them because they have flagrantly flouted the most basic standards of human decency because the people haven't been keeping the law and they haven't been treating each other fairly and justly... God rages against the powerful who oppress the powerless. For Amos, divine wroth is inseparable from divine justice.”

“So pilate then he had Jesus brought before him and pilate took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, 'I'm innocent of this man's blood. See to it yourselves.' Then the people as a whole answered, 'His blood be on us and on our children.' So that's the most important verse in the New Testament in many ways. Pilate says, 'I am innocent of this man's blood. See to it yourselves.' Actually, the Jews didn't kill Jesus. The Romans executed Jesus. He was executed by the Romans. On top of the cross was the king of the Jews. He was executed for a political charge trying to lead an uprising, insurrection. That's how it's seen from the Roman point of view. But then it says here, the people as a whole answered, his blood be on us and upon our children. How's that impacted the whole of Christian history, European history especially?”

“So what is a slave? In a slave society, a slave is somebody else's property. You can be bought and sold; you belong to someone. You have no freedom of movement, no freedom of religion or work, and no family life. All these aspects are under the control of the slave master or slave owner. Do you think slaves work very hard? If you were a slave, would you work hard? They were under duress to do so because they would be beaten. But supposing the slave driver is not watching, what do you do when the person with the whip turns his back? You take a break. Basically, slaves don't work very hard unless someone is watching. They try not to work hard because they see no benefit in it. Nobody wants to be treated like a slave... So do slaves generally take the initiative when something needs doing? No, they wait around to be told what to do. If something goes wrong, they don't think, 'I better sort that problem out.' They might think, 'Get out of here before I get accused,' or they might blame someone else. This leads to a very complaining kind of attitude.”

“This equality meant that everyone became equal; you didn't need to ask the priest what the law said because anyone could read the law for themselves. If anyone can read it for themselves, you do not have the situation where some people can read and leave out the bits they do not want to tell you. In Jewish society, there was incredible egalitarianism; everyone was equal, everyone was a son or daughter of God. The Jewish law was unusual in the ancient world in that there was only one law which applied equally to everyone. In other parts of the ancient world, if you owned a slave and killed that slave, you would not be punished because a slave is your personal possession. If you killed someone else's slave, you would have to pay them compensation for damaging their property. If a slave killed his master, he would be put to death. Different laws applied to different groups within society. Do you think that is the way God wants it? In front of God, every human being is equal, and God's law applies and protects every single human being in the same way. This is an incredibly radical revelation at Mount Sinai: the equality of all human beings before God and the law.”

“God says, 'How long will these people despise me? I will strike them and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.' Do you think God is very patient or very impatient? That's right. God likes Moses and says to him, 'Look, I will get rid of this lot; we will find a better people for you to lead.' It's a bit like saying, 'Okay, you're a great manager; I'll get rid of all these players and find some better ones.' Moses then says to God, 'If you do that, the Egyptians will hear about it.' In other words, he is thinking about God's reputation. Moses challenges God and reminds Him... God is happy because Moses really cares about the people. He is arguing with God not because he disagrees with Him but because he genuinely cares about the people.”

“All the people who could remember Egypt, who still had the slave mentality, were to die because God didn't want slavery to be taken into Canaan. He wanted only the people who grew up in the desert, in a different society governed not by a slave driver but by the rule of law, to go into Canaan and create that kind of society. God was changing them individually, as a family, and as a society so they were ready to live and go into Canaan.”

“Jonathan's loyalty is noteworthy. When Saul commanded Jonathan to help him kill David, Jonathan faced a dilemma. He loved his father deeply, but he also knew that what Saul wanted was wrong. Following his conscience, Jonathan refused to assist his father in committing such a sin against God. He protected David out of love for him while remaining a devoted son to Saul. Jonathan did not abandon Saul; he fought alongside him and kept his promise to David. This illustrates an exemplary model of filial piety, where one can love their parent while also standing against wrongdoing.”

“I know Dad, let me help you. I leaned over and took the fork from him. I put some fish on it, and when you're ready, just lift it up. I'll replenish it again for you, okay?... Yes, dear boy, I'm very grateful. Don't let me make you think otherwise, but you know my eyesight is gone, and it makes life very difficult. Yes, Dad, I know. Six dribbles later, we walk slowly and carefully, arm in arm, down the steps outside the restaurant, leaving behind a half-empty plate and a messy tablecloth. The next day, my dad had his final stroke. So, that's what attendance is; you understand, right? It's not bowing; it's not saying the right things or doing the right thing. It's actually very deeply to do with heart.”

“God warned humankind that there would be seven years of great chaos in the last days. During this time of great difficulty, the faithful will face circumstances in which the bonds between human beings will be severed completely, and they will be unable to trust anything. It will be a time when you cannot insist that you are following your course of life based on your conscience, no matter how much you have lived faithfully according to your conscience... It will be a time when ideologies, religion, conscience, and the parental heart will be shaken. That is why you should not be sorrowful if you see the church sway or if you see an ideology create disturbance. Do not be sorrowful if you see a sovereign collapse or if you see your parents change. Even if everything you have relied on and trusted sways, your heart should be composed.”

“We know very well what is true. We understand we've been living the principle for a long time, at least all our lives, and we understand what's right and wrong. We can see the value that Father has. I would say that if there's one book you should read, if you don't read anything else, it is World Scripture, second edition. It's an amazing book. Not the least because Andrew Wilson has compacted everything in a certain way and explained it, but every chapter brings out very deep points that Father said about everything.”

“John Adair, whose theories of leadership I have drawn upon, said you can be appointed a commander or a manager, but you're not a leader until your appointment is ratified in the hearts and minds of those who work under you. You may have got the job, but you have to win the hearts and support of the people. They are the ones who decide whether you're the leader or not; you don't say, 'I'm the leader.' The people following you decide that you're the leader.”

“Lzu, the Chinese philosopher. He said the best leaders are those the people hardly know exist. Yeah. The best leaders are the ones that people hardly know they exist. The reason is because they set everything up so well that it just takes on a life of its own. If they didn't turn up for work, everything will carry on working because everything is set up. Everybody's motivated. Everybody knows clearly what they should be doing. Everybody feels this is my task. This is my responsibility. I want to do it because I find meaning in it for its own sake. And then if the leader isn't around, everything carries on... When he or she has accomplished their task the people say amazing we did it by ourselves.”

“Have you read the book 'Blink' by Malcolm Gladwell? He discusses those snap decisions that people make. The conscious mind can only hold about seven pieces of information at a time, which limits our ability to process complex situations. In contrast, the unconscious mind is filled with experiences and knowledge, which can inform our intuition. This means that intuition is not just a random feeling; it is educated by past experiences, reading, and studying. The more we draw on this unconscious reservoir, the better our decisions can be, often leading to better results.”

“In a free market society, individuals must make their own decisions and live with the consequences, whether good or bad. To make effective decisions, one must possess certain qualities, such as experience and the ability to analyse situations. This involves weighing the pros and cons of various options and considering the potential consequences of each decision. Imagination plays a crucial role in this process, as one must envision the outcomes of their choices. Additionally, intuition can be equally important, allowing individuals to tap into their feelings and emotions when making decisions.”

“Penrose, a mathematician, calculated that the chance of a smooth beginning is one in 10 to the power of 10,123. That is a huge number. The likelihood of that happening is so remote that you are actually more likely to win the lottery every day of your life. If someone won the lottery one day, you would be surprised if they won two days in a row. If someone claimed to have won the lottery every day for the last ten years, you would think they were cheating. For the Universe to have a smooth beginning is basically impossible. You would think someone is cheating; it is not what you would expect.”

“If you look at the weak nuclear force, it controls proton-proton fusion. If this force were a bit stronger, all matter would become helium and heavier elements. If it all became helium and heavier elements, there would be no water because water requires hydrogen, which is a single proton. If the weak nuclear force were a little bit weaker, there would only be helium since it makes neutrons decay into protons. This weak nuclear force had to be exactly the way it was; otherwise, we wouldn't have hydrogen, and there would be no life... A double strength would mean 10 to the power of 62 years would be needed for life to evolve, by which time all the protons would have decayed. Just doubling the force would mean no possibility of life in the Universe.”

“There is a structure in music that resonates, and if you try to step outside that and create something arbitrary, it may never resonate. It's not just a question of whether our ears are tuned to it; some modern operas attempt to break away from classical traditions, using dissonance and unconventional chords. This dissonance is often associated with conflict, as seen in horror films where dissonant music accompanies scenes of chaos. However, Stockhausen's work feels entirely different; it doesn't fit together in a way that resonates with me. Compatibility plays a role in our musical preferences; for example, if you're feeling angry, you might find beauty in loud, dissonant rock music because it aligns with your current state of mind.”

“In Shakespeare's 'Henry V', when Henry tries to rally his troops, he talks about English men in two different ways. When they're at home, they're calm and peaceful, but when they're at war, they're like this. He's talking about the same being that has totally different natures... male and female aspects are secondary and malleable... You can have a straight piece of metal, and you can press something into it, creating concave and convex shapes. As we know, when men get older, their estrogen increases and testosterone decreases, and they become more emotional and sensitive, like me. Vice versa, even in a few short decades of life, you see a swing.”

“The heart of the Father is that God created human beings, Adam and Eve, as His children. Because of the Fall, God's heart was broken. Even though God is love, almighty, and all-powerful, He can actually be broken-hearted. God grieves. This theme runs through the Bible; God grieves with every single child who suffers. He is suffering and feeling that person's pain and agony as His own. In that sense, God is a God of grief, but He also loves each person and wants every human being to be happy. This idea of the heart of restoration is that God has been working to make the world a better place.”

“The Quran assumes knowledge of the Bible, particularly the Old and New Testaments, as it refers to figures like Noah without recounting their entire stories. Many of the people Muhammad spoke to were familiar with these biblical narratives, including Jewish tribes and Christians. The Quran sometimes provides additional details about these stories, filling in gaps found in the Bible. For instance, it elaborates on the story of Abraham, Ishmael, and Hagar, offering insights that are not present in the biblical account.”

“In Medina, he established a constitution, one of the oldest in the modern world. This constitution laid down basic rules that applied equally to all tribes, outlining processes for laws and conflict resolution, which were quite modern for that time. The people of Mecca were not pleased with Muhammad's presence in Medina, leading to conflicts between the two cities. When Muhammad and his followers arrived in Medina, they were not part of the established clans, which created challenges as they lacked land and property. The Muslims in Medina, who converted to Islam, welcomed them and sought ways to integrate them into the economy. They also engaged in caravan raiding, which the people of Mecca viewed unfavourably. This led to the Battle of Badr, where the Muslims were victorious, followed by the second battle at Uhud, where they were defeated.”

“Muslims say that if every single Quran in the world were burnt, they could recreate it the next day exactly as it is because so many people have memorised it. The Bible was written down, but these stories were passed on orally and retold, with people memorising them. In the past, people were accustomed to memorising, much like how we memorised poetry in school. Now, it is often seen as child abuse, but many still remember some poems from that time... I remember when I lived in Russia for many years; people would sit around reciting poetry together and singing songs they had learned 40 or 50 years before at school. They had all learned the same poetry from Pushkin and other poets. They would gather around the dining room table, reciting poems to each other. It was very much an oral culture, though they were literate as well.”

“Preparation for prayer is essential. It involves washing hands, rinsing the mouth, sniffing water into the nostrils, washing the face, arms, hair, neck, and feet. This outward cleanliness symbolises the inner purity of heart and soul necessary to enter into the presence of God. Just as one would prepare to meet someone important, such as the Queen, by bathing and dressing well, Muslims prepare their hearts and minds for prayer... By praying five times a day, Muslims regularly pause their daily activities to enter into the presence of God, which can be challenging, especially when engaged in enjoyable tasks. This practice confronts their fallen nature and encourages them to restore their relationship with God.”

“In Sharia, only God can forgive sins if one sincerely repents. However, God can only forgive sins committed against Him; He cannot forgive sins against others. If you offend someone, only that person can forgive you. This is different from the Catholic idea of confession, where one can seek absolution from a priest for various sins. In Islam, the only person who can forgive you for offending someone is the person you have wronged.”

“When they conquered these other countries, they thought, 'Wow, these people have better buildings than us; they have more knowledge than us. We want some of this.' A lot of the mosques that were built were constructed by Christian Greek architects, based on Roman and Greek technology. The Arabs, the Muslims, inherited all this knowledge from Greece and also from India. For example, the numbers we use today are called Arabic numerals, in contrast to Roman numerals, which were quite different. The idea of zero was also introduced; the Romans and Greeks knew nothing about zero. This concept was inherited by Muslims from India, where Indian mathematicians had developed the idea of zero, and the Arabs spread this mathematics to Europe. Consequently, Europe inherited mathematics from the Muslim world, and science was predominantly developed in the Muslim world as well.”

“Charles Kingsley, a contemporary of Darwin, expressed that it is just as noble to believe that God created primal forms capable of self-development as it is to think that God required constant intervention to fill in the gaps. This perspective suggests that God created the universe in such a way that it would naturally develop into complexity, consciousness, and life. The traditional Jewish and Christian understanding posits that everything has both an internal and external dimension. Matter is not lifeless; it has an inherent direction towards greater complexity. This contrasts with the Greek view that matter is inert and requires external imposition of order. If we understand that matter has an inherent direction, we can see that there is order within chaos, rather than chaos needing to be imposed upon.”

“God anticipated that life would eventually appear somewhere in the universe, and that this life would possess consciousness. Human beings would emerge as temples in which He could dwell in His image and likeness. While God may not have known exactly what we would look like, He knew that beings capable of forming a relationship with Him would arise. I find it fascinating that wherever scientists look, they discover that life appears wherever conditions allow. The universe is teeming with life wherever it is possible, as everything is imbued with the Universal Prime Force. It is quite conceivable that life exists on other planets and in other parts of the universe, as this is how God designed it.”

“In warfare, soldiers may kill enemy combatants intentionally, but this does not constitute murder unless there is a violation of the rules of engagement, such as shooting an unarmed opponent. The motivation behind the act is crucial. Life is precious, and the commandment against murder underscores the value of life. Murder involves a premeditated, illegal action driven by negative motivations, such as hatred or greed, which is fundamentally different from justified killing in self-defence.”

“When we were living in Russia, all the windows of the first two or three floors had thick iron bars, and the doors had thick steel doors. That was the way it was. The main fear in Russia was just other people breaking in, stealing, and killing. There wasn't respect for property because communism abolished private property, which led to a lack of respect for this sense. On the other extreme, you could pick someone's flower from their garden, and they would shoot you for defending their property rights. This is how the biblical attitude towards the law is expressed: 'How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.' This sense of tasting the word of God is significant.”

“Jan Hus turned down the invitation because he was afraid for his life. However, the emperor said, 'Don't worry, I'm issuing the invitation. I guarantee you a safe passage to Constance to speak, and I guarantee you a safe passage to go home again.' So Jan Hus thought, 'If the emperor has promised me a safe passage, then I'll make use of this opportunity to go and speak to them.' He went to the council, addressed all the Cardinals, Bishops, and Archbishops, and told them what he thought about the problems and corruption within the Catholic Church. They were so outraged that they took him outside the council and burned him at the stake, even though he had been promised safe passage. You can imagine the foundation to receive the Messiah here. What would have happened if the Messiah had been born into Medieval Europe? He would have been burned at the stake.”

“The wars of religion, marking a tragic turn in the Reformation. Despite earlier reform movements within the Catholic Church, the church itself was not reformed, leading to a split in Christianity across Europe. Germany became divided, with the north turning Protestant and the south remaining Catholic. This division resulted in devastating wars, significantly reducing the male population in the German states by almost half. The wars caused immense destruction, with the Swedish armies alone destroying thousands of castles and villages, leaving Germany fragmented into numerous territories.”

“Our founder, Trevor Moon, posed an interesting question: Is it easier to create a new apple or to take a rotten apple that has fallen off the tree and make it whole again? Both tasks are extremely difficult. Even the best scientist cannot create an apple from scratch, but nature can. Once an apple has fallen off the tree, there is no natural process to restore it to its original state. This analogy reflects the human situation; if our hearts are corrupted, putting that right is not simple. It may even be easier for God to create human beings afresh, but that was never His intention after the time of the flood. This task, even for God, is very difficult and requires the cooperation of fallen human beings every step of the way.”

“An interesting part of the ceremony is the chastening ceremony, which symbolically ends any history of violence in the couple's ancestry. Regardless of our views on our lineage, we can be sure that there are instances of mistreatment in our family histories. This ceremony serves as a commitment to stop such cycles and to teach future generations to do the same. The blessing ceremony also includes a sprinkling of holy water, a tradition borrowed from various world religions, symbolising a new start. Wedding vows are recited, renewing promises and expanding upon them, while the exchange of rings serves as an external sign of inward grace and eternal love.”

“Right at the very beginning, you can see justice is very important. We looked at different kinds of justice before; one is the rule of law, where criminals get punished and sent to prison. The other is about fairness; it's very unfair for some people to be incredibly rich while others are incredibly poor. The importance here is distribution, so that everybody has enough to live a dignified life. This idea of justice has two different aspects, which are incredibly important in the biblical tradition. What upsets God and breaks His heart more than anything else, causing Him to grieve, is violence. Several times it says God saw that violence, violence, violence, and it's that which broke God's heart because there was no justice; people weren't receiving what they deserved, and there was no rule of law.”

“Different types of property exist, including common ownership, where land belongs to everyone. In England, for example, there are commons where anyone can graze their sheep or cows. However, this often leads to neglect, as no one takes responsibility for the land. This phenomenon is known as the tragedy of the commons, where shared resources become overused and damaged because individuals act in their own self-interest rather than caring for the collective good. The most extreme form of collective ownership is communism, where everything is owned by the state. In this case, the question arises: who truly owns it? In communist societies, control often lies with the members of the communist party, who manage resources for their own benefit.”

“The Divine Principle talks about this in this kind of language. It says that God wanted Adam and Eve to grow up and become lords of creation. Ultimately, God is the Lord of creation, the Lord of hosts; He created it, but He wants us to become the lords of creation in His place. The reality is that God doesn't have a physical body; He can only interact with the natural world through human beings. God wants us to be His body, and through us, God is able to do the weeding, feel the soil, pick the apples, eat the apples, and enjoy the apples. Part of the point of the third blessing of being a true owner and lord of creation is to inherit God's creativity. You can only inherit God's creativity if you have the freedom to be creative, which means the freedom to experiment.”

“When you make a plan, you have to decide what values should guide it, and this cannot be determined by democratic means. It has nothing to do with what ordinary people want; instead, some bureaucrats sitting in an office decide what everyone should wear or what colour all cars should be. The direction of the planned system imposes a hierarchy of values, and whoever is running it decides what is most important, what is of middle importance, and what is least important. In Soviet times, when Stalin was in power, he decided everything. There is a famous Soviet composer named Shostakovich, a brilliant composer who wrote a symphony. From what I understand, Stalin picked up the phone to Shostakovich and told him there was something wrong with his symphony; certain parts needed to be rewritten to make it much more optimistic in tone.”

“Reflecting on our own spiritual community, I recognise that while it is fundamentally rooted in guardian ethics, it also engages in commercial activities. Unfortunately, this can result in poorly managed businesses, as individuals may be appointed to leadership roles for spiritual reasons rather than business acumen. This overlap can create significant challenges, as the necessary commercial values and ethics may be lacking.”

“The family is an ancient institution, predating the state. Marriage and family law were not created by the government; they are human institutions that have existed for millennia. Understanding the origins of marriage is essential, as it has been a topic of much debate. Marriage originally developed as a social contract between a man and a woman, primarily for the purposes of love, sex, and raising children. The state merely recognised existing arrangements, and any changes to marriage laws must consider the implications for the institution itself.”

“Michael Oakeshott, another English political philosopher, observed that individuals support liberty not because they have an abstract definition of it, but because they have found a particular way of living that they deem good. The inquiry into liberty should focus on understanding what we enjoy, recognising what is hostile to it, and discerning how it can be enjoyed more fully. Oakeshott argues that liberty does not stem from any single institution, such as the separation of church and state or the rule of law. Instead, it arises from the absence of overwhelming concentrations of power. A free society is characterised by a diffusion of power among various institutions, ensuring that no single entity can dominate.”

“In a civil association, individuals relate to one another not through a shared goal but through mutual respect for the law. People may not have common objectives with their neighbours, yet they interact within the framework of the law. The distinction between corporate and civil associations is crucial. In a corporate society, individuals become instruments of the government, while in a civil association, the government serves the people. A free society is characterised by the government's role in maintaining institutions that allow individuals to pursue their ideals.”

“Alasdair MacIntyre, a Catholic Marxist philosopher, once said that man is essentially a storytelling animal. He becomes, through his history, a teller of stories that aspire to truth. You might wonder what a story has to do with truth. Some people dismiss stories as mere fairy tales, but actually, fairy stories can convey truth in a special way... I can only answer the question of what I am to do with my life if I can first answer the question of what stories I find myself a part of. I remember the first time Prince William gave his interview at age 21. A journalist asked him when he realised he would one day become the King of England. He recounted how, as a little boy, he noticed that his grandmother lived in a bigger house than anyone else, a palace. He realised she was a real queen, not just a make-believe one. As he grew older, he understood that one day, when his grandmother passed away, his father would likely become king, and eventually, he might become king himself. This realisation narrowed his options in life; he could no longer choose a career like others. His life became dedicated to preparing himself for kingship, and in discovering his place in the story of his family and country, he found his identity.”

“Bertrand Russell stated that he did not know of any other man who has been as influential as Pythagoras in the sphere of thought. The whole conception of the eternal world is derived from him, making him the most influential philosopher in the entire European tradition. Plato and Aristotle, along with all the Greek philosophers, were influenced by Pythagoras, who shaped a significant part of the European cultural and philosophical tradition. One of the key distinctions made by Aristotle was between good and bad, associating moral prestige with the left-hand column, where good things appeared. This basic assumption has informed the entire European cultural and philosophical tradition, suggesting that everything in the left-hand column is good, while everything in the right-hand column is bad. Consider the treatment of left-handed people in Europe. The Latin word for left is 'sinister', which in English means evil. Throughout European tradition, left-handed individuals were often treated with suspicion, and left-handedness was associated with being crooked or evil.”

“Something called scientific determinism. This is Ilya Prigogine; he was a Nobel laureate for non-linear thermodynamics and passed away a few years ago. He said the basis of the vision of classical physics, what you probably studied at school, was a conviction that the future is determined by the present. Therefore, a careful study of the present permits an unveiling of the future. We may perhaps even call it the founding myth of classical science. Scientists say if we knew everything about the way the world is today, we would be able to predict the future accurately. The only problem, the only reason why we cannot do that, is because our knowledge about the state of the universe today is limited. But actually, the future is already contained within the present, and the present is contained within the past. This is the basic myth of classical science. Sometimes people say, well, science is not a myth; science isn't based upon myth. But actually, science is based upon that basic assumption, which goes all the way back to the Greeks. This is determinism.”

“Sometimes, when people read the Principles, they impose Greek categories onto it. For example, when discussing positivity and negativity, people often conflate these with moral values, deriving from the Greek understanding of reality. We need to purify our language and vocabulary to align with the Principle. A human being, like in the Bible, is composed of an outer form, the body made from the dust of the earth, and an inner quality, the mind. You can't have a mind without a body, and you can't have a body without a mind, unless a person has died, in which case the physical form starts to decay because the inner quality that gives it shape is no longer there to sustain it.”

“The marshmallow test, developed by educational psychologists. In this test, children are given a choice: eat one marshmallow now or wait and receive three when the adult returns. The children who manage to wait demonstrate the ability to practice delayed gratification, which correlates with better focus in their studies and improved life outcomes. Those who cannot wait often struggle with health and financial issues later in life. Thus, teaching children to practice mind-body unity is crucial for their development. Mind-body unity is vital for making commitments, particularly in marriage. When people marry, they promise to love their partner through all circumstances, which requires a level of maturity and integrity.”

“The Divine Principle states that when Eve responded to Lucifer's temptations, the angel felt the stimulation of being deliciously enticing. Lucifer began to engage with Eve, who responded by becoming infatuated with him, admiring him and giving love to him. Lucifer enjoyed the infatuation he was receiving from Eve and grew increasingly possessive of her. His desire became an unprincipled design, akin to a teacher who becomes attracted to a student and begins to groom her, giving her special attention and compliments. This dynamic awakened in Eve emotions and feelings she had never experienced before, as she was just a young teenager. She had never encountered a man paying her this kind of attention, which stirred powerful romantic feelings within her.”

“In this story, painted by Rembrandt, we see the father and his two sons. The youngest son, eager for independence, asks his father for his share of the inheritance. He feels that if he has to wait until his father dies, he will be too old to enjoy life. Shockingly, the father agrees and gives him the money... Some may view the father as foolish for allowing his son to leave, but he understood that if he denied his son, he would lose his heart. The father took a significant risk, trusting that his son would learn from his mistakes and return home. When the son does come back, their relationship is strengthened, becoming unbreakable. This mirrors the attitude God had towards Adam and Eve; He took a risk, believing they would eventually recognise their mistakes and return to Him.”

“Restoration occurs when you find yourself in a similar position to one of these historical characters and face the same temptation to make the same mistake they did, continuing the pattern of fallen history. We inherit certain kinds of memories, impulsive reactions, and behaviours. Scientists have studied whether human beings are really free. They attach electrodes to different parts of a person's brain and ask questions. They discovered that even before a person answers a question, the answer appears subconsciously in a deeper part of the brain. This inherited memory then becomes conscious and influences what the person says and does. In this sense, some scientists question whether we are really free or just responding based on inherited patterns of behaviour... This person told me that when he was a child, his dad used to beat him when he was angry. His grandfather beat his dad, and his great-grandfather beat his grandfather. One day, when one of his sons was disobedient, he became so angry that he raised his hand to hit him. Then he suddenly realised he was about to repeat the cycle of abuse that had been passed down through generations.”

“If we look back at this story, we see that it is about restoring what went on in Adam's family. Before the Fall, Adam and Eve were naked and unashamed because they were innocent. After the Fall, they felt shame and covered themselves... When Ham saw Noah lying naked in the tent, he projected his own feelings of shame onto Noah. Ham accused Noah of his own sin. Noah hadn't done anything wrong; he had merely gotten drunk. If Ham had not done anything wrong, he would have simply seen Noah naked and that would have been fine. Instead, Ham's shame led him to judge Noah. We can imagine that during their time on the Ark, Ham and his wife, unable to sleep, met on the deck and shared a romantic moment. This led to a sexual relationship, which they did not confess to Noah and his wife the next morning, despite knowing they were supposed to maintain sexual purity during the 40 days.”

“When he went to meet Esau, he was at peace with himself, radiating peace. If he had conflict within himself and was afraid, Esau would have sensed the fear and wouldn't have respected him. It's like a dog biting someone who's afraid... After wrestling with the angel, the next morning, Jacob went bowing himself to the ground seven times until he came near to his brother. Esau was overwhelmed by emotion; he couldn't control himself and ran to meet him, embraced him, fell on his neck, and kissed him, and they wept... What Jacob is doing here is restoring and giving back to Esau the blessing he stole by enacting it, giving Esau wealth and bowing down to the ground before him. Esau sees this and realises that his brother is sorry for what he's done. Jacob regrets stealing Esau's blessing and is giving it back to him.”

“Lucian Freud's 1995 painting 'Benefits Supervisor Sleeping' set a world record price for a work offered by living artists when it was sold for 33.6 million dollars. It is said that he did not speak to his brother Clement, who is 84, in more than 50 years. Last week, he was quoted as saying that they would not exchange another word. 'Why on earth would I want to speak to him or see him again?' he said. 'Family is not important to me.' He added, 'It doesn't bother me in the slightest.'... Sadly, that's often the way it is in families. The greatness of Jacob is that even after 21 years, he felt he had to make it up with his brother, even at the risk of his life. It's so important; that's what it is to be a tribal messiah.”

“In Germany, the Enlightenment had religious beginnings, with figures like Spener, a Pietist who influenced John Wesley and the development of Methodism. However, the Enlightenment in Germany evolved outside the church and into universities, where figures like Kant emerged. Although Kant believed in God, he did not adhere to Christianity in a profound sense. Goethe, another significant thinker, produced extraordinary literature that lacked Christian values, leading many young German intellectuals to despair. The rise of romanticism, emphasising emotion over reason, reacted against French rationalism, promoting pluralism instead of universalism. This shift allowed for the emergence of nationalism, anti-Semitism, and authoritarianism within German philosophy, particularly through Hegel... The influence of French atheism on Hegel's followers led to the rise of left-wing Hegelians, significantly impacting Marx and Freud, and contributing to the development of atheistic materialism. This trajectory ultimately led to communism, fascism, and Nazism, with a tragic lack of a foundation for the Messiah in Germany.”

“The culmination of God's providence appears to converge in Korea, where the founders of the movement, Sun Myung Moon and Hak Ja Han, were born. This region represents a meeting point of divine and satanic providence, presenting a significant challenge: which side will prevail, the communist ideology or the Judeo-Christian liberal democratic society? This ongoing conflict reflects a larger struggle in the world today.”

“The reason people have children is so that they can have grandchildren to enjoy playing with. Most people then want to live a creative life or at least be prosperous and wealthy. This is also connected to the existential reality of growing up, becoming a mature person, what kind of relationships we have, and our relationship with the natural world. These are all about desires, and when these desires are fulfilled, they may experience joy. This is what it says in the Principle: desire, which people often consider sinful, is actually God-given. Joy is the purpose of creation, and joy can only be obtained when desires are fulfilled. Some religions regard desire as being sinful. A sort of misunderstanding of Buddhism says that desire is sinful, but actually, it would have said it's craving that leads to suffering, not desire itself.”

“The original mind, which is the fertile ground of God, must be nurtured. The engrafting process is technical and requires healing. The stages of engagement and the holy wine ceremony are also significant, as they represent a change of lineage and identity, connecting individuals to God's lineage and away from Satan's. This transformation is fundamental to the journey of faith... If we hadn't received it when we did, we would have been too old anyway. This is how it worked: we stood together as couples, and then someone handed a glass of wine to the woman. She drank half, gave it to the man, who drank half, and then gave it back again. This signifies a change of lineage.”

“She walked up and down, inspecting all these young men, and kept coming back to me. Father was leaning against the wall in Camberg, smiling, thinking it was hilarious to put this young woman in this impossible situation of choosing her own spouse. Eventually, she turned around and asked Father if he could choose for her. Father pointed to me, saying, 'What about that young man you keep looking at?' So we got matched.”

“The place where we are really free to realise our dreams is holy ground that's all around. We live in a very visual world; actually, people almost don't want to read too much text anymore. They just want to see the image of what you're trying to tell them. They want everything explained to them in images. Our eyes are often a gateway to what we take in, and they're the gateway through which we perceive the world around us. God wants to look at this world through our eyes, and He wants to show you how to look at this world and what He sees when He looks at the people around you.”

“The amazing thing about children's eyes is that they are so clear because they're so innocent. They may not have the wisdom or the experience that people gain with age or the ability to evaluate or calculate many details or complicated things, but at the same time, they're free from the baggage that we accumulate in life with experience. They take things at face value, and that's why people feel comfortable with children. God wants to see through fresh, bright eyes, not tired, mistrusting eyes.”

“I think the feeling of the meeting is good, but generally, I think the meetings kind of miss the mark. We ought to be about something, and that something should be a point of continuity between every meeting so that we develop that and ultimately reach a goal based on what it is that we're having the meeting about.”

“During a workshop, someone said to me that you want to go out and go on the front line somewhere; you just want to do SDF straight away. That's the type of feeling you have; you're kind of inspired. But then often afterwards, the support isn't felt that much, even though people say it. The actions don't always come through.”

“Among a group of ten people, one would act as the group leader or facilitator. If there was an argument, this leader would act as a judge. It was essential that this person was trustworthy, as the group needed to decide who they could trust the most. If the leader was unsure about a decision, they could consult the person in charge of the fifties, and if they couldn't resolve it, they would go to the person in charge of the hundreds, and so on. This system allowed for consistent decision-making and justice throughout the community. It was not a one-man band; had Moses tried to do everything himself, he would have become completely worn out. In our own movement, leadership has often been a one-man band, with one person expected to do everything. This leads to burnout, and often, when asking for volunteers to take on leadership roles, the absence of hands is noticeable.”

“Abraham's story from the Midrash is particularly illuminating. After leaving Haran, he encountered a burning palace and was perplexed as to why no one was attempting to extinguish the flames. This moment led him to realise that while the world is filled with beauty, it is also rife with evil and injustice. Abraham understood that he could not simply accept the state of the world as it was; instead, he took it upon himself to act against the wrongs he witnessed. This proactive stance is what inspired movements throughout history that sought to address societal injustices, refusing to accept the status quo as divinely ordained.”

“As the Hebrews faced the Amalekites, Moses instructed Joshua to lead the fight while he sat on a hill, stretching out his arms. When Moses' arms were propped up, the people gained courage and fought valiantly. This was the first time the Hebrews took responsibility for their own battle; God did not fight for them. The lesson here is that if you look up to God and your heart is lifted, you can fight and win. The size of the army does not determine the outcome of a battle; a small group with hope and determination can defeat a larger force. This is why God commanded that a census should not be taken among the people; He wanted them to see themselves as a holy nation and a kingdom of priests, capable of making a difference.”

“Building a golden calf is like putting your trust in material things instead of recognizing that it's God who works in amazing ways. After the battle of Dunkirk, what did the British Parliament do? They all went to the church and prayed and thanked God for the amazing miracle that the sea had been exactly like a milk pond, and the cloud cover had been right, allowing the British army to be evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk. After the victory at the Falkland Islands, Mr. Thatcher took the whole Parliament into St Margaret's Church, Parliament's church, and they had a worship service there to thank God. This is important. The Hebrews at this time had forgotten; they lost sight of this. Even though God had done these amazing miracles, nothing really had changed within them. If someone does something for you, does it change you? What changes you? When you do something yourself.”

“Sometimes when we look at the story of Moses and the Hebrews, we can be critical. We have to think, where were they coming from? They were coming from living in a slave society, and God wanted them to become a free people. How many people are able to change their way of thinking so radically? Is it easy? No. Sometimes people get liberated from slavery, but for generations, they carry on with the same kind of mentality. Within a very short space of time, God wanted them to move from a slave mentality to the mentality of being a free people responsible for their own lives. That's a huge jump, and they made it. I don't know anybody else who ever made it, but they did. They made a huge transformation.”

“What's the great thing about having God as your king? The best thing is that he's invisible. What does that mean? It means you have to be responsible for yourself. You have to form your own relationship with this invisible God through your original mind and conscience. What's easier: to follow an invisible God or a visible king? It's much easier to follow a visible king. It's easier just to do as you're told, but God didn't want people just to do as they were told. He wanted to rule them and guide them through their hearts and original minds. This meant they had to make an effort, live a life of prayer and study, and develop their original minds and consciences to have a personal relationship with God.”

“Solomon's reign marked a significant shift; he became like another Pharaoh, reducing the people to servitude. He had an extravagant lifestyle, with around 300 wives and 700 concubines, all of whom were supported through heavy taxation. The burden of maintaining such a royal household would have been immense, leading to widespread discontent among the people. When Solomon died, his son Rehoboam faced the consequences of this discontent. The people sought relief from the heavy taxes imposed by Solomon, hoping for a more reasonable approach from Rehoboam.”

“The synthesis of Hebraism and Hellenism in Britain established a foundation for democracy, the rule of law, and private property. This environment was seen as divinely prepared to protect Christ at the Second Advent. The British Empire, at its height in the 1920s, expanded these principles to the United States and beyond, influencing various parts of the world, including Korea. In contrast, the French Enlightenment, spearheaded by figures like Descartes, adopted a rationalist approach, positing that truth is derived from reason. This rationalism often led to dogmatism, as exemplified by the rigid answers found in mathematics and geometry, which contrasted with the empirical tradition that embraced diverse approaches to societal development.”

“Nietzsche later rejected Christianity, labelling it as a slave morality and famously declaring the death of God. This trajectory of German idealism ultimately degenerated into communism, fascism, Nazism, and anti-Semitism, creating a lack of foundation to receive the Messiah in Germany. God intended to establish a foundation for the Messiah across Europe, but unfortunately, Satan invaded the providence in Russia, Germany, and France, disrupting the Enlightenment in these regions. Only in Britain did a foundation exist to receive the Messiah, leading to ideas and consequences that shaped the course of history.”

“The foundation for the Messiah was established in part due to the sacrifices made during the world wars. The lives lost in these conflicts created the conditions for the Messiah to be born and to begin His work. On Remembrance Day, we honour those who gave their lives for our freedom and the opportunity for the Messiah to fulfil His mission. It is essential to remember and appreciate their sacrifices, as they laid the groundwork for a society where the Messiah could thrive.”

“A lot of intelligent people became very sceptical about religion because of the intense religious fanaticism that led to people killing each other in the name of God. This skepticism gave rise to the expression that religion causes wars, which resonates to this day. People became sceptical and sought alternative bases for deciding what is true. They could not rely on religious fanatics to tell them what the truth was, as it was based on their particular interpretation of the Bible. This led to the Enlightenment, sparked by the wars of religion. Enlightened thinkers began questioning all traditions and texts. A father might do something, and his son would ask why. The father would say it was because his grandfather did it that way. The son would question that reasoning, suggesting there might be a better way to do things.”

“In exploring structuralism and post-structuralism, we encounter thinkers like Ferdinand de Saussure, who introduced the idea of binary oppositions as a fundamental organising principle in human philosophy and culture. This binary framework categorises reality into opposing terms, such as good and evil, order and chaos. However, critics argue that this creates a violent hierarchy where one term dominates the other. The historical treatment of left-handed individuals, for instance, illustrates how cultural biases can shape perceptions of value and morality, further complicating our understanding of universal truths and ethical frameworks.”

“At this point, we can start to bring in the idea of meaning in life and the need for God's blessing. Experiencing God can make all these challenges manageable and lead to joy. A person may come to the realisation that they are absolutely dependent upon God for their life. The best way to overcome alcoholism, for example, is to join a 12-step programme. The key realisation is that you can't help an alcoholic until they want to be helped, and they won't want help until they hit rock bottom and realise they need it. The first step is to acknowledge that they cannot do it by themselves and that they need help from a higher being, which we call God.”

“The state also controlled the arts and creative expression. You weren't allowed to get your poetry published unless you belonged to the Soviet Society of Authors, and you had to be a member of the party to do anything or get anything published. The implications of this are significant. If the state owns everything, it becomes impossible to become a true owner. Without ownership, it is impossible to become a lord of creation. If you cannot become a lord of creation, it is impossible to inherit God's creativity. Renting something means you do not have the authority to change it or express your creativity through it. People like to own their own homes and cars because it allows them to shape and make things the way they want as an expression of themselves. With communism, the abolition of private property leads to the impossibility of living a creative life.”

“Alexander Solzhenitsyn remarked that in our country, the lie has become not just a moral category but a pillar of the state. In a society where you are not allowed to believe in God or teach your children about God, you face a choice between telling the truth and being arrested or lying. If you lie, there is a disunity between what you think and what you say and do. Solzhenitsyn's point illustrates that you cannot live in a communist society without telling lies unless you are willing to be arrested and have your children taken away.”

“The student leaders of the 1968 protests in Germany, despite their initial failure, sought to understand why they did not succeed. They concluded that the establishment's resistance was the primary obstacle. Rudi Dutschke proposed a strategy of a 'long march through the institutions', advocating for engagement within established systems to effect change. Many of these students later became influential figures in academia and politics, embedding their radical ideas into the fabric of society. This generational shift has led to rapid changes in cultural norms, including attitudes towards marriage and gender fluidity, as the ideas of the 1960s continue to resonate in contemporary discourse.”

“The big thing I find with science is that you're introducing young people to a sense of reality, a sense of what is out there. There are lots of debates about what we mean by reality, but the fact is that we learn about the world around us, and in that way, we learn about ourselves. There are many lessons learned not just about the physical world but also about ourselves. When I'm teaching science, I'm very aware of the parallels between what I teach and more internal things about being a person and what my beliefs are, as well as what other people's beliefs are.”

“I presented the idea of life, love, and legacy, framing it as three blessings. I created a visual representation to illustrate how individuals aspire to ideals and dreams, which are influenced by their reality, family, and community. This framework aimed to spark discussions among students about their values and aspirations. However, I found that directly trying to teach the principles often resulted in blank looks or disinterest. Instead, I believe that the principles should emerge naturally through how we interact with others and understand the world around us.”

“The Pivotal approach encourages teachers to praise students publicly for good behaviour while reprimanding them privately for misbehaviour. For example, if a student is talking when they shouldn't be, I would give them a caution privately rather than calling them out in front of the class. This shift has been challenging for many teachers, including myself, as any change can be difficult. The idea is to encourage positive behaviour rather than publicly punishing students, which sounds good in theory, but there are pros and cons to consider.”

“Equally important is giving students more autonomy and freedom. The biggest success I've had this year has been setting up autonomous homework for my Year 11 students. Instead of assigning specific tasks each week, they choose three mini-homeworks from a list of suggestions and resources. This approach has worked remarkably well; most students complete their homework weekly and learn which tasks benefit them the most. By allowing them this freedom, I foster a sense of responsibility and engagement in their learning process.”

“The risk is that instead of teaching children how to think critically, they may be instructed on what to think. This is a concern when teachers simply follow guidelines without engaging in meaningful discussions. The guidelines should safeguard children, especially those from the LGBT community, who often face bullying and exclusion. The aim is to create an environment where all children feel accepted, but there is no guarantee that this will eliminate bullying. As a kindergarten teacher with 17 years of experience, I have always signed non-discrimination agreements without fully understanding their implications. It is essential to foster teamwork and harmony among staff, but there is a risk of bullying among teachers if differing opinions arise. The focus should be on the mental health of children and whether the new subjects introduced will genuinely benefit their development.”

“There are various programs aimed at teaching children about relationships, but some may introduce concepts that are too advanced for their age. For example, children aged four to five should not be learning definitions of complex terms like bisexual or transgender. Education should be age-appropriate, and children can only grasp concepts they are ready for. In my experience, children naturally form friendships without the complications that adults impose. When there are parents concerned about their child's gender identity, there should be a clear procedure in place to handle these situations. However, the current approach seems to mandate that all children be educated on inclusivity, which can create confusion rather than clarity.”

“In this world of the cultural war, the state creates legal rights for certain groups of adults, which inevitably leads to the suffering of others. When the state intervenes in sexual issues and grants rights, it often comes at the expense of children, who cannot voice their complaints. Adults may speak on behalf of children, but the state's actions often prioritise adult desires over the well-being of the child. This trend has been evident over the last fifty years, where the well-being of children is sacrificed for adult happiness. The energy of the state seems to favour adult desires, allowing mothers, for instance, to make decisions that can terminate the life of their child without the child's consent or even the father's input.”

“People are leaving religions that teach them to sacrifice for their children and are joining those that suggest sacrificing children for adult desires. This shift dooms our cultures to decay. The current teaching implies that it's acceptable for adults to harm children, and that the trauma inflicted on children is tolerable. By accepting this, we are told we will build a better society, and anyone who disagrees is labelled as intolerant. The Christian faith, however, teaches that it is not acceptable to sacrifice a child of God for adult desires, yet this belief is now branded as hate speech. Those who advocate for the destruction of a child's attachment and bond are seen as promoting a healthier approach, which is deeply problematic.”

“My wife and I strive to provide the best for our children, sacrificing our own happiness when necessary. We understood that if we walked away from each other, our children would suffer far worse. We persevered through difficulties, and I am grateful we stayed together. Many marriages can attest to the same; staying together leads to happier children. This is the essence of the Christian tradition, which has shaped Europe. When we begin to accept that children can be sacrificed for adult happiness, we reverse the order of creation, leading to societal decay. In contrast, some cultures, like Islam, teach the importance of sacrificing for the sake of the child.”

“So why should there be different nations and lands? People need a land, a home, a location in space where a nation can shape its own destiny in accord with its deepest aspirations and ideals. Different nations have different aspirations and ideals, different customs, traditions, and laws. This is very much the Old Testament vision. When God gave the people of Israel the promised land, there were clear borders. It wasn't about expanding and conquering the entire world, but clear borders: this is your eastern border, this is your northern border, this is your western border, and this is your southern border. Every nation should live within its own territory and not try to invade and occupy other lands, creating empires, while at the same time respecting strangers and foreigners.”

“Andrew Roberts, a prominent British historian, stated that the Israel Defense Forces killed fewer civilians per combatant than any other army in the history of warfare. He noted that less than two civilians are killed for every combatant, which is an astonishingly low ratio for modern urban warfare, where terrorists routinely use civilians as human shields. This reflects the professionalism and ethics of the Israel Defense Forces. The media in this country is unfortunately very anti-Semitic. However, Father says that Judaism and Christianity should unite, as this is God's side versus Satan's side. Today, we have the Christian world supporting Israel, while Iran, Syria, Hamas, Hezbollah, China, and North Korea oppose it.”

“In my opinion, every nation should be independent, including Israel. As for Palestine, when Gaza was part of Egypt, the Egyptians should have decided how to manage that situation. It is desperately unfair for Egypt to refuse to take Gaza back while expecting Israel to administer it. Similarly, it is unfair for Jordan to leave the West Bank governed by Israel. The idea of a right of return should be abandoned, as it is not a practice that any other nation follows. Egypt should take back Gaza, and Palestinians should not be raised to hate Israel. Jews in Israel should treat Palestinians with more respect than they currently do. The narrative needs to change.”