The History of Restoration (Adam's Family)

So we're going to start looking at Adam's family. Adam and Eve should have made a foundation of faith and a foundation of substance, but they didn't. After the fall, Adam fell into what we call the Midway position. Depending on what he did, he would either go more towards God's side or more towards Satan's side. It says in the Principle that all fallen people have good and evil aspects, which then make a base for relationships with both God and Satan. Adam was very changeable; he couldn't actually make conditions. He would start doing something and then break the conditions, allowing Satan to invade. Because he was so changeable, God wasn't able to use him, and he was very unstable, leading to a lot of problems.

Adam and Eve had two children, and in that sense, God divided Adam. He had two sons: one called Cain and one called Abel. Cain, the older son, had inherited more of the fallen nature than Abel, who was in the position of Adam and was slightly better. If we look at the origin of the Cain and Abel positions, we see that there are two falls: a relationship between the Archangel and Eve, which we call the spiritual fall, and a relationship between Eve and Adam, which is both spiritual and physical. When we compare these two, we can say the spiritual fall, the relationship between Eve and the Archangel, was worse because it never should have happened. Adam and Eve's relationship was originally within the Principle, as they were meant to be husband and wife.

In terms of Eve's motivation, we can say that her motivation in the spiritual fall was less good and more unrighteous, whereas her motivation in the physical was less unrighteous, as part of it was to get back to God. Cain, representing the first relationship, had more fallen nature, while Abel, representing the second relationship, had less fallen nature. In that sense, Cain needed to go through Abel to reach God. One is further from God, and one is closer; it's just a relative thing. It's not that one is good and the other is bad. One stands in the position of the Archangel, being older and more knowledgeable, while the other is in the position of Adam, being younger. It's also like the relationship between body and mind; the body should follow our mind, and the fallen man should follow the Messiah.

How does evil grow within us? We can become good only if our body obediently follows our mind. All too often, our body rebels against the mind's direction, repeating, by analogy, Cain's murder of Abel. This is how evil grows within us. For this reason, the religious way of life requires that we make the body submit to the commands of the higher mind. Can anybody give me some examples of how your body dominating your mind leads to the growth of evil within you? When you don't resist the desire to eat whenever your body wants, you submit to it, and then you become weaker. What kind of person do you become? You become a greedy person because you're not able to delay gratification. You can't prioritize good actions even on your own personal level, making it much more difficult with others.

For example, if I'm constantly submitting to my body and there's a plate of food, I might eat somebody else's food. Or, supposing you have an appointment and you have to get out of bed early, but your alarm clock goes off and you don't get out of bed, you're late for the appointment. This can cause all sorts of problems, sometimes serious ones, because people don't arrive at the right place at the right time. If you're in an army and decide to sleep in, thinking you'll postpone the attack for an hour, it could lead to a complete wipeout. That's why Father talks about mind-body unity more than anything else in all his speeches. When the body dominates the mind, it leads to uncontrollable desires, whether in eating or sexual matters. People can't control their sexual desires, which can lead to seducing others, one-night stands, and even worse outcomes like rape.

This uncontrollable desire grows and leads to terrible things when people can't control their temper. They get angry, and when the body reacts, they give in and hit someone. This becomes a habit, and then they might even murder someone. This is how evil grows within us. All too often, our body rebels against the mind's directions, repeating by analogy Cain's murder of Abel. For this reason, the religious way of life recognises that we must make the body submit to the commands of the higher mind. That's why I have a certain kind of spiritual discipline. You go to Chong Pyong, and the schedule isn't easy to follow. What happens when you start following it? Your body rebels, and your mind says, 'Right, I'm going to follow this schedule and discipline my body.' I told you about the time I did the cold bath condition; that's when I discovered the importance of this relationship between mind and body.

Living a life of discipline, through cold showers, fasting, prayer, and all these things, is to get the proper relationship between mind and body. Otherwise, you find yourself in a really difficult situation. It's easy to react in the wrong way; it's easy to punch someone's lights out or say the wrong thing and cause offense. The Bible says the tongue is the most difficult thing to control; once you say something, you can't take it back. Words can create huge suffering and offense. So, that's how it works. Now, regarding restoration in Adam's family, Abel was in the position of Adam, and Cain was in the position of Lucifer. Abel was closer to God, while Cain was further away. What indemnity conditions need to be made to restore the fall? Adam and Eve should have made a foundation of faith and a foundation of substance. In restoration, Abel needs to make a foundation of faith, which means living a spiritual life, and they both need to make a foundation of substance, which means overcoming the fallen nature.

Cain was placed in the position to have the same feelings as the Archangel. Instead of doing what the Archangel did, he had to react differently. This is summed up by the command to love God and love your neighbour as yourself. That's a summary of the whole religious life: to love God, which means living a foundation of faith, and to love your neighbour as yourself, which is the foundation of substance. It's all it is, really, at the end of the day: love God and love your neighbour as yourself. However, the terminology can be quite complicated. Cain and Abel were brothers, and a common question arises when people look at their story: who did they marry? The Bible doesn't mention Adam and Eve having daughters, so who did they marry? In Jewish and Muslim traditions, it is said that each time Eve gave birth, she had twins: a boy and a girl. The Talmud and commentaries on the Quran state that Cain had a twin sister called Aklima, and Abel had a twin sister called Jelia.

The next question that arises is: who married whom? It's interesting to read a commentary on the Quran written by the first biographer of Muhammad. It states that Adam told Cain to marry his twin sister and Abel to marry his twin sister. Abel was pleased and agreed, but Cain refused, thinking he was better than Abel's sister and wanted to marry his own sister. This situation is very similar to the dynamic between the Archangel, Adam, and Eve. Right at the beginning, this whole situation was set up again for them to overcome their fallen nature and do the right thing. Cain argued and wouldn't accept what Adam and Eve suggested. They said, 'If you don't want to accept our suggestion, we'll let God decide.' Adam told Cain and Abel to offer sacrifices, and whichever sacrifice was received by God would have the more right to their sister. In other words, they let God decide.

I often wondered why Cain and Abel made sacrifices. It's not what people normally do, but when I read this, I understood why they did it and why they got so emotionally involved. 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. He went home in a mood, feeling down and depressed, and then he bumped into Abel, who was singing and dancing.

Abel was so happy, and Cain asked what he was so happy about. Abel replied that he had gotten up early that morning and made his offering, which God accepted. He could hear the angels singing and felt God's love all the time. Cain, however, was upset and angry, thinking it was unfair that God accepted Abel's offering and not his. As stated in Hebrews, by faith Abel made a better sacrifice and was commended as a righteous man. This story illustrates that one offering was made in a better way than the other. The Quran also reflects this, with Cain complaining that his offering was not accepted while Abel's was. Abel responded that Allah accepts only from those who are pious, implying that he was pious and Cain was not. How do you think Cain felt when he heard those words?

Cain then declared to Abel that he would kill him, stating that Abel would not marry his sister over his dead body. The question arises: why didn't God accept Cain's offering? It wasn't that God rejected Cain's offering because He hated him; God loved Cain just as much as Abel. However, Cain stood in a position that related him to Satan, which gave Satan rights over his sacrifice. According to the Divine Principle, God could not accept Cain's sacrifice unless he first made a condition justifying its acceptance. What was the necessary condition Cain needed to make for his sacrifice to be accepted? He needed to establish a foundation of substance, which meant he had to make the necessary condition to remove his fallen nature.

God counselled Cain, asking why he was angry and why his countenance had fallen. He told Cain that if he did well, he would be accepted, but if he did not, sin was crouching at the door, desiring him, and he must master it. Cain had to deal with his fallen nature, and if he could overcome it, God would accept him. If he made this foundation of substance, he would also be accepted. However, if he couldn't, Satan was waiting to claim him. It's important to consider how things could have happened differently. As Jesus said, if you are making your offerings and your brother has something against you, you need to reconcile with him. Abel should have woken up his brother Cain to make the offering together, showing love and respect.

Abel should have gone to Cain's house, gently waking him up and encouraging him to prepare for the offering. He could have helped Cain get dressed or even ironed his clothes. Abel should have missed his brother when he was at the altar and gone back to get him, not in a way that was demanding but with love in his heart. He should have aimed to win Cain's heart, rather than thinking negatively about him. Abel's responsibility was to help Cain overcome his fallen nature. This is similar to what Jacob did for Esau; he helped Esau overcome his fallen nature. Abel should not have made the offering by himself; he should have included Cain, rather than being self-righteous and thinking he deserved acceptance.

If Cain had gotten up early on his own and focused on God, making a perfect sacrifice, would it still have been rejected? Yes, it would have been rejected, but things would have turned out differently. Cain had to love Abel, and Abel had to be lovable. Abel needed to make it easy for Cain to love him, which required him to be humble and not arrogant. If Abel constantly compared himself to Cain, claiming superiority, it would be impossible for Cain to love him. Abel had to receive God's love through his younger brother, making it easier for Cain to feel loved. If Abel behaved like a younger brother, he could move Cain's heart and encourage cooperation rather than competition.

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.

When God asked Cain where Abel was, Cain replied, 'I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?' This fighting between Cain and Abel made God miserable, breaking His heart. God would be most pleased when brothers reconcile and come to Him together. According to this principle, it is essential for Abel to restore his brother. Unless Abel restores Cain, God will not accept him. Within this story, there are three smaller stories: the marriage issue, the offering issue, and the killing issue. These stories connect to our theology of the three blessings: individual responsibility, relationships, and dominion over creation. Abel established the first blessing by getting up early and making his offering, while Cain overslept, allowing his body to dominate his mind.

If Cain had made his offering correctly, he would have had mind-body unity and would not have felt so depressed or angry afterward. His feelings of guilt and blame stemmed from his awareness of his mistakes. The second issue relates to marriage; Cain's selfish desire for his sister led to his downfall. The third issue concerns dominion over creation; Cain failed to mend his fences, which allowed Satan to invade his emotional and spiritual life. Ultimately, Cain lost control and murdered Abel. If he had made the offering correctly, he might have still felt anger but would have been able to control himself and not resort to violence.

If he had a good mind-body unity, he would have mended his fences. These kinds of things wouldn't have happened. It still would have been difficult, but it would have been easier. What really should have happened is that Abel should have won the heart of his older brother and helped him along. If Abel had done this, they could have made the offering together. Abel could have suggested, 'Why don't we let God decide this? If God says your offering is accepted and mine is rejected, I'm happy for you.' If Abel had this kind of attitude and truly embraced and helped his older brother, things would have turned out so differently. Even if Cain's offering had been rejected, it would have been easier for Cain to accept God's decision that Abel should marry the sister.

Cain killing Abel is without any justification whatsoever because there is no excuse for murder. It doesn't matter how badly Abel behaved; Cain was not justified in killing him. However, Abel should have behaved differently and made it easier for Cain to overcome his fallen nature. As Father says repeatedly, we must respond to Abel to restore Cain at the risk of our lives, shedding sweat, blood, and tears to win his heart. This is the essence of witnessing: to save and restore our brothers and sisters and members of our spiritual community. It's easy to write people off when they stop coming to church or engage in behaviours we disapprove of. We might think, 'Let's forget about them,' but that's wrong. We are like Abel, and they are like Cain in that sense. Our heart should be, 'How can I help my brother or sister who is no longer here?'

Sometimes, it can be difficult for a person in the position of Cain, depending on how set in their ways they are. You could call it stubbornness, but it can be challenging for the person in Abel's position to reach out. Even though they try, it's not easy. As Father said, it requires sweat, blood, and tears. I must admit that I have never reached that point of making that kind of effort. This is a failure to establish a foundation of faith or substance. What lessons can we learn from Adam's family? God's will can only be fulfilled by a combined effort of God and human beings.

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. Eventually, God chose Seth, and we consciously search for Abel-type figures to honour, listen to, and follow.