The Divine Principle or Divine Law [1] (more precisely, “ Description of the Divine Principle ”) ( cor. 원리 вол , Wally Cannon ) is the main doctrine edition of the Unification Church , which, according to the history of the organization, was written by Moon Song Myung after his revelation from above. The “divine principle” among followers has a status similar to that of the “ Holy Scripture ” along with the Bible , speeches and speeches of Moon and some other books. It follows the format of systematic theology , starting with God's goal of creating a human being, then to the fall of man and redemption - as a historical process by which God works to eliminate the consequences of the fall and restore humanity - to return him to such relationships and position that originally assumed by God. The book is a mixture of the dogmas of Christianity , terms borrowed from Eastern cults , as well as other religious systems. [2] [3]
Content
- 1 Contents
- 2 Key points
- 3 Additions
- 4 book reviews
- 5 notes
- 6 Literature
- 7 References
Contents
- Introduction
- Chapter 1. The principle of creation
- Chapter 2. The Fall
- Chapter 3. Eschatology - the completion of the history of mankind
- Chapter 4. Purpose of the Messiah
- Chapter 5. Resurrection
- Chapter 6. Predestination
- Chapter 7. Christology
- Chapter 8. Overview of the principle of recovery
- Chapter 9. The family of Adam in the providence of restoration
- Chapter 10. Noah’s family in the providence of restoration
- Chapter 11. The family of Abraham in the providence of restoration
- Chapter 12. Moses in the Providence of Restoration
- Chapter 13. Jesus in the Providence of Restoration
- Chapter 14. The history of mankind in terms of the providence of restoration
- Chapter 15. The Age of Preparation for the Second Coming of the Messiah
- Chapter 16. The Second Coming
Key
The “Divine Principle,” which is Moon’s own interpretation of the Old and New Testaments, teaches that God created Adam and Eve to get married and create a family with his children, placing God at the forefront ( Eng. God-centered family ). In the Munian interpretation, the fall occurred due to the fact that while Adam and Eve were preparing to accept the blessing of God for marriage , the “ Archangel Lucifer, ” envious of God’s love for people, seduced Eve and entered into unlawful sexual relations with her, and Eve then seduced Adam by entering him into bodily sexual intercourse . The consequence of this connection, according to Moon, was that the family created from this union did not put God at the forefront, but Lucifer, and from here came the “fallen nature” (meaning Fallen Nature in Church terminology), transmitted from since then from generation to generation. Thus, the cause of the fall was not the disobedience of Adam and Eve, but the abuse of love, which is the most powerful force that has been and continues to be responsible for all evil in the human world. [2]
The "Divine Principle" interprets the entire history of mankind as a series of attempts by God to restore the kingdom of heaven on earth. And ultimately, according to Moon, this can only be accomplished through the coming of the Messiah , which would be the likeness of Adam and complete what Adam failed to fulfill - to create a family with God at the forefront. ( Eng. God-centered family ). It was this task that, according to Moon, was before Jesus Christ . Partly because, according to the book Divine Principle, John the Baptist did not call his disciples to follow Jesus, and therefore Jesus was killed before he could marry. [2]
The presentation of the entire subsequent history of mankind in the “Divine Principle” shows notable attempts to find a similarity between what happened 2000 years ago and today. Namely, he calls to recognize that the Second Advent has already taken place in Korea during the time interval between 1917 and 1930 . That for 2,000 years the preaching of Christ was the highest spiritual attainment that a mortal man could contain. But today, according to the theology of Unification, human consciousness has moved far ahead and the time has come when modern society is looking for a higher level of understanding that could satisfy current spiritual quests. That is what the “Divine Principle" should be. The Munits believe that Moon is the one who pretends to be the “Messiah” and that he laid the foundation for the restoration of the Kingdom of God when he married his current wife, Hak Ja Moon, in 1960 . [2] [3]
According to the teachings of Moon Song Myung (described in the book "Divine Principle"):
A review of 12 ideological concepts of teaching was written by thirty-eight students of the Theological Seminary of the Association . [four]
1. God. There is one living, eternal, true God, a Person outside of time and space, possessing a perfect mind, emotions and will, whose deep nature is love and cordiality, which combines both the masculine and the feminine, which is the source of all existing truth, beauty, kindness, and who is the creator of humanity and the universe, the visible and invisible worlds, and which supports life in all this. Man and the universe reflect his individuality, nature and purpose.
2. The man. Man was created by God as a special creation, in his eyes a man appears as his child, similar to him in character and nature, created in order to respond to his love, to be a source of his joy, and to share his creativity with him.
3. God's hopes for man and creation. God's hope placed on man and creation is eternal and unchanging; God wants men and women to do three things: the first is that everyone grows to perfection so that they can be united in soul, will and action with God, so that their body and soul are in perfect harmony and in the power of God's love; second, to unite with God as husbands and wives and give birth to sinless God's children, thus building sinless families and, ultimately, a sinless world; and third, to become masters of the created world by creating the dominion of love on the basis of ideal relationships.
4. Sin. The first man and first woman (Adam and Eve), before becoming mature personalities, were tempted by the archangel Lucifer to an unlawful and forbidden act of love. Through this, Adam and Eve consciously turned away from God's will and their purpose, thus condemning themselves and the entire human race to spiritual death. As a result of this fall, Satan usurped the position of the true father of mankind, so that subsequently all people began to be born in sin, both physically and spiritually, and acquired a sinful disposition. Because of this, a person has a tendency to resist God and His will, and live in ignorance in relation to their original nature and family tree, all that they have lost. God also mourns for His lost children and lost creation and is forced to constantly suffer in order to return them to Himself. Creation is in agony, awaiting return through mediation with the true children of God.
5. Christology. Fallen humanity can return back to Godhead and be restored only through Christ (the Messiah), who comes as the new Adam to stand at the head of the human race (replacing sinful parents), through which humanity is reborn into a family of God. In order for God to send the Messiah, humanity must fulfill certain conditions for the restoration of all that was lost due to the fall.
6. History. Restoration takes place only in the case of atonement (the process of correction) of sin. The history of mankind is the history of God's and human attempts to pay for the atonement for a long time so that, as a result of the created conditions, the Messiah could be sent by God, who in turn comes to initiate a complete restoration process. When any attempt to fulfill the atoning condition fails, it must be repeated, usually by someone else after a certain period of time; thereby the story moves in a spiral. History reaches its climax at the time of the coming of the Messiah, at which time the old era comes to an end and a new era begins.
7. Resurrection. The process of resurrection is the process of restoring spiritual life and spiritual maturity, leading to the complete unity of man with God; it leads from spiritual death to spiritual life. This is accomplished through the participation of a person in part (through prayer, good deeds, etc.), which the saints help in the spiritual world, and ends with God's activity aimed at leading a person to rebirth through Christ (the Messiah).
8. Rebirth. God's will to ensure that all people were returned back to Him is absolutely predetermined, and He chose all people to be saved, but He also endowed people with a part of responsibility (which the latter should cope of their own free will) in order to fulfill His the original will and His will to complete the restoration; this responsibility remains with people constantly until completion. God ordained and called certain people and certain groups of people to fulfill certain responsibilities; if they fail, others must take on their role and pay even greater redemption.
9. Jesus. Jesus of Nazareth appeared on earth as Christ, the Second Adam, the only begotten Son of God. He appeared to be one with God, carrying the Word of God and doing the work of God and showing God to people. People, however, rejected him and crucified him, thereby preventing him from building the kingdom of God on earth. Jesus, however, triumphed over Satan in his crucifixion and resurrection, and this gave him the opportunity to give spiritual salvation to those who were reborn through him and through the Holy Spirit. The restoration of God's kingdom on earth has been delayed until the Second Coming of Christ.
10. The Bible. The Old and New Testaments are a chronology of God's revelations to humanity. The purpose of the Bible is to bring people to Christ, and to understand God's heart. Truth is absolute, eternal, unique and unchanging, so any new message from God will be in accordance with the Bible and will reflect it more deeply. So, in the last days a new truth must come from God for the completion of unfinished humanity.
11. Full recovery. A correct understanding of theology is simultaneously based on the relationship of man with God (vertical relations) and on the relationship of man with man (horizontal relations). The sin of man has broken all these types of relationships, and all the problems of the world have their origin. These problems are solved through the restoration of man and his return to God through Christ, as well as through the adoption of measures such as the initiation of proper moral standards and ethics, the creation of true families, the unification of all peoples and races, the end of friction between science and religion, the restoration of economic, racial , political, educational injustices, and defeating God-rejecting ideologies like communism, for example.
12. The Second Coming or Eschatology. The Second Coming will occur as during the First Coming, as a man in the flesh, and will create a family through marriage to his Bride, a woman in the flesh, and they will become True Parents of all mankind. By accepting True Parents (the Second Coming of Christ), by following and obeying them, the original sin is eradicated, and people ultimately become perfect. True families will be created that embody God's ideal, and the Kingdom of Heaven will be founded in heaven and on earth. Such a time is not far off.
Add-ons
- Chhonsonggyun - 360 volumes of author's speeches.
Book Reviews
Doctor of historical sciences , corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences Joseph Grigulevich about the book of Moon responded as follows: [5]
Moon's “Holy Book” “Divine Principles” consists of a set of empty-bellied, absurd parables and teachings that can only cause bewilderment in a normal person.
Doctor of Philosophy, senior researcher at the Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences E. G. Balagushkin noted the following: [1]
Most non-traditional religions are formally apolitical, with the exception of Moon’s “Unification Church,” which openly proclaims its ultra-right-wing political ideas and militaristic slogans. The religious canon of this sect - “Divine Law” - justifies its irreconcilable hostility to the world communist movement, and the eschatological concept contained in it is stated in the form of apocalyptic ideas about the inevitability of a third world war , which should be unleashed against the countries of socialism by the forces of imperialism inspired by Moon’s teachings.
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Balagushkin, 1986 , p. 270-271.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Barker, 1998 .
- ↑ 1 2 The Divine Principle // Religious Dictionary of the Russian Humanitarian Internet University
- ↑ Sontag, 1977 , p. 102-105.
- ↑ Grigulevich, 1983 , p. 80.
Literature
- in Russian
- Balagushkin EG Criticism of modern non-traditional religions (sources, essence, influence on the youth of the West). - M .: Publishing House of Moscow State University , 1986.- 286 p. - 12,300 copies.
- Grigulevich I. R. Prophets of the “New Truth”: Essays on the cults and superstitions of the modern capitalist world. - M .: Politizdat , 1983 .-- 303 p.
- in other languages
- Barker E. Unification Church // Encyclopedia of religion and society / William H. Swatos, Jr., editor; Peter Kivisto, associate editor; Barbara J. Denison, James McClenon, assistant editors. - Walnut Creek, Calif .: AltaMira Press, 1998 .-- P. 532-535. - xiv, 590 p. - ISBN 0-7619-8956-0 .
- Sontag F. . Sun Myung Moon and the Unification Church . - Nashville: Abingdon Press , 1977 .-- 224 p. - ISBN 0687406226 .
Links
- - Divine principle online in Russian
- - Divine principle in different languages (Russian, English, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, Spanish)