Rearing Monarchs #20:

Dominion and Creativity, part 4
Unification Thoughts, December 2022

Welcome back
In case you’re joining us for the first time, it’d be best to take a look at the purpose and focus of this Rearing Monarchs series, of which this article is the 20^th.¹

Where we left off and where we’re going

Last time, we’d explored the idea that our creativity should be guided by “object consciousness”. Though that’s not a term normally associated with creativity, it’s an original state of mind, and thus it nurtures truly inspired creativity. So it’s a critically different perspective that needs to be gradually introduced to our young ones, in order that they can fully manifest and enjoy their God-given creativity in their adulthood.

Today, we'll look at another essential characteristic of creativity that’s quite specifically personal: their own individuality.

We’d previously mentioned that self-expression isn’t the main purpose of creativity, but that’s not to say it’s selfish or of lesser value. In fact it’s exhilarating when expressed properly. So if a child’s creativity is carefully encouraged and wisely guided, their uniqueness will be naturally expressed. And over time, this can blossom into a growing confidence in their creative powers and in later years, a grateful appreciation of it.²

A child’s individuality

But if you’d not read that article, or need a refresher, it’s here. And as that article points out:

Every human being possesses a unique individual character. No matter how many billions of people are born on the earth, no two will ever have exactly the same personality. Each person…manifests a distinctive aspect of God’s dual characteristics. Hence, that person is the only one in the entire universe who can stimulate that distinctive aspect of God’s nature to bring Him joy.

• Exposition of DP, p. 164

Expanding on that quote from the Principle, here’s a quote from a chapter in a later text on Unification Thought:

Each person is a being with individuality, created in resemblance to one of the Individual Images in God. Accordingly...creation is an expression of…individuality…. (A creator) gives joy to God and to others by manifesting his or her individuality.…

• New Essentials of Unification Thought, p. 314

If you’ve ever experienced the excitement of a child when they succeed on stage or in a sports competition (manifesting creativity in a broad sense), perhaps you’ll remember the exciting feeling: a physical and audible explosion of joy over that special child! It’s for that reason then, that we want our young ones to discover their uniqueness and one day enter a field where they can creatively and fully exercise it. And so Godism advises: …the field a person chooses varies depending on that person’s preference and aptitude. (UT Theory of Education, p.189) ³

Because of this understanding, I felt really obliged as a new parent to pray for Heaven’s guidance to identify my children’s abilities. And then I observed their interests and tried to provide related activities to explore; and later still, to secure the education and training that would develop their gifts. This notion is complemented by another Unification Thought position that every child is somehow gifted. That idea is so critically important that an entire article was devoted to explaining it, a year ago.

A special part of our individuality

There’s one other remarkable dimension of individuality mentioned by Unification Thought, which I think isn’t commonly discussed. But it’s critical as well as fascinating and so let’s look at it. It comes up in the context of discussing the “new culture”:

…culture will be formed through a universal spirituality and expression of art on a higher dimension, while at the same time preserving the essences of different national cultures, each with its own individuality.

• New Essentials of Unification Thought, p. 325

When I first read this many years ago, I was actually stunned because throughout my spiritual youth I’d had the distinct impression that there was only one “heavenly” culture. So I was extremely intrigued to learn about this unexpectedly inclusive notion in Godism. Here’s the quote that spelled it out most clearly:

If it is our aim to construct a new culture…we must protect the cultural heritage we already have. This heritage includes architecture, sculpture, music, painting, industrial design, and so on… When we consider such things, we feel responsible not only to inherit our own culture, but to keep it alive, and on this foundation, develop a new culture. This new culture will come about through the integration of the best elements within the cultures of various nations and racial groups. So, keeping our national cultural heritage is a sine qua non for building a new culture.

• Explaining Unification Thought, p. 246

When I contemplated this surprising passage, I was deeply impressed because it altered and greatly expanded my concept of the world that we aspire to build! The Latin term sine qua non means a non-negotiable requirement,⁴ so I was very excited to discover that Godism definitively promotes respect and reverence for the uniquely valuable achievements of different cultures in history. And that I was held responsible to know and preserve the best aspects of my ancestral culture and “bring it to the table” of the new world! And years later, I found Father Moon’s own words:

We already exist in 185 countries worldwide. It is my hope that Cheongpyeong will become the place where all the historical traditions of each of these countries can be displayed.  Moreover, on this foundation we will build a training center and educational institution that will teach people how to renew the traditions of various national cultures, and show how to connect them with heaven.… (282-046, 1997/03/10)

• Chambumo Gyeong, Book 5, Chp1, Sec 6, p 4

And from that time—starting in 1984 when I first read Explaining Unification Thought, up until 2016 when I read Father Moon’s above statement from 1997—I’ve earnestly advised our young people to know their roots. If they would identify the most inspired and beautiful creations and traditions, “inherit them and keep them alive”, and bring them to the rest of the community, that would be a substantial contribution to the genesis of a new culture.

I was then of course inspired to look into my own racial roots for heavenly traditions and I quickly remembered one that has always impressed me. This custom is a young person’s gesture of respect for elders: they take the elder’s hand and bow to touch it to their forehead. For that reason, it’s called Mano (Spanish) and if you’ve some time to spare, there’s a very nice description here.

For the same reason, noting that many of the young people in our workshops had Japanese roots, I referred them to a film about their racial culture that was very popular at the time. The key bit of dialog that I asked them to reflect on was this one, spoken by the character of a young Emperor:

I have dreamed of a unified Japan, of a country strong and independent and modern. And now we have railroads and cannon, Western clothing. But we cannot forget who we are or where we come from.

My roots aren’t Japanese, but I believe the words transcend that and apply to all peoples. Godism clearly advises us to respect the finest things about where we come from.⁵

And last but not least, when I was watching a PBS special on “roots music”, a young Native American composer said this about his calling to uphold and preserve his beloved but endangered Pueblo culture:

All my life as I was growing up, looking at the TV, I wanted to see somebody that was like me. If you don't see that in this age of Information, then who do we become? We emulate other people and other societies, and we become what we really aren't.

• Robert Mirabal, Native American composer, about his piece The Dance⁶

Mirabal’s observation stopped me cold, because I recognized that so many of our young ones were exhibiting this very behavior—in their dress, their music, their posture, their language, their attitudes! And in doing so, they were becoming something other than who they really are! (In fact, I’d even experienced this in my own youth—so it was a continuing and still widespread malaise!) And so I’d urge our young ones to take heed of this position in Godism: It’s actually crucial that they look into their own national cultural heritage with respect and intention, and actively find, inherit, and keep alive the unique treasures therein.

And again, it’s not only a public matter, but in fact a directly personal one: such inherited cultural values are formative elements of who we are; i.e., they're crucial parts of our unique individuality. Lose them, and we lose a bit of ourselves.

Conclusion

As with the ideas explained in the previous article, I don’t at all expect that we would explain the concepts of individuality or reverence for cultural heritage to an infant. Their education in Godism must be age-appropriate, fitted with care to their stage of growth.

But even in their infancy, they can learn from the way we treat them and by observing our respect for the most Principled aspects of our own national and racial cultures. In this way, through example rather than reasoning, we can prepare the ground for their deeper understanding and gradual appreciation of their full unique individuality. Besides, to be grateful for who each other is and appreciative of where we come from would be a beautiful offering to the widely diverse members of our community, to our ancestors, and ultimately to Heaven.

In our next installment, we must highlight the very last part of the words Father Moon explained in a quote mentioned above:

…we will build a training center and educational institution that will teach people how to renew the traditions of various national cultures, and show how to connect them with heaven.… (282-046, 1997/03/10)

• Chambumo Gyeong, Book 5, Chp1, Sec 6, p 4

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