Great forgiveness is possible when you have understood the other person’s situation one hundred percent.
Sun Myung Moon
Great Forgiveness Is Possible
Topic: Virtue, Morality, & Ethics
Great forgiveness is possible when you have understood the other person’s situation one hundred percent. Because God knows our situations, He forgives us.
Sun Myung Moon, born on January 6, 1920, was a spiritual leader and luminary hailing from North Korea. He founded the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, better known as the Unification Church, in 1954. Drawing upon direct Prophetic revelation, influenced by the major faith traditions—especially Christianity, but also Judaism, Islam, Confucianism, and Buddhism. He also developed a political philosophy to resist the spread of the anti-religious Communist ideology. Reverend Moon's teachings centered on love, unity, and peace. He aimed to spark a global spiritual movement that transcended religious and cultural divisions, and his vision resonated with followers all over the world. Through the Unification Church, Sun Myung Moon also promoted interfaith understanding and collaboration, striving for harmony among diverse religious traditions.
Reverend Moon's teachings went beyond the realm of the spiritual to touch on the universal human themes of love and family. He emphasized the importance of nurturing strong, loving families as the cornerstone for a harmonious and peaceful world. To this end, he conducted mass wedding ceremonies known as the 'Blessing', symbolizing the unity of all people under God, regardless of their cultural or religious backgrounds. Moon also stressed the value of community service and encouraged his followers to actively contribute to their local communities.
Sun Myung Moon's partner in both life and work was his wife, Hak Ja Han Moon. As co-leader of the Unification Church, she is a pivotal figure in spreading their shared vision of a world unified by love and peace. Affectionately known as 'True Mother', she embodies the ideal of nurturing and unconditional love in their teachings. After Reverend Moon's passing in 2012, Hak Ja Han Moon assumed sole leadership of the Unification Church and changed the name to Heavenly Parent's Holy Community. In her leadership role, she has tirelessly carried forward their mission, upholding the church's emphasis on peace, interfaith dialogue, and strong, loving families. Under her guidance, the church has continued to flourish, spreading its message of unity and love to people around the globe.
Moon, Sun Myung. Wilson, Andrew, editor. World Scripture II. Universal Peace Federation, 2011, p. 683 [Sun Myung Moon 2:220, May 26, 1957].
Sun Myung Moon
Theme: Forgiving
About This Sun Myung Moon Quotation [Commentary]
Sun Myung Moon’s insights into forgiveness highlight its foundation in complete understanding and empathy. According to Sun Myung Moon, to forgive genuinely, one must fully comprehend the circumstances of the other, merging the acknowledgment of wrongdoing with deep empathy for human imperfection and shared vulnerability. He draws a parallel to divine forgiveness, where God’s mercy is based on an omniscient grasp of human nature, underscoring the critical role of understanding in achieving utter forgiveness.
In Sun Myung Moon’s view, forgiveness transcends a mere act, embodying a spiritual expression of love. He argues that this practice, rooted in divine qualities, should lead to perceiving others not as offenders but as companions in life’s journey. This spiritual engagement, Sun Myung Moon suggests, nurtures both personal growth and community healing, emphasizing that forgiveness is a compassionate response to the human condition.
Furthermore, Sun Myung Moon asserts that forgiveness is essential for mending divisions and building unity. By fostering a deep understanding of one another, forgiveness acts as a bridge for reconciliation, predicated on a shared humanity and divine love. Sun Myung Moon champions a worldview where understanding and forgiveness are the cornerstones of interpersonal relationships and societal harmony, advocating for a recognition of every individual’s inherent value.
Andrew Wilson’s Commentary About Forgiveness
A large-hearted attitude of forgiveness to those who have done us wrong is advocated in all the scriptures. Forgiveness is at the heart of Jesus’ message; indeed according to The Lord’s Prayer it is incumbent upon the Christian to forgive. God is most forgiving. It states in the Qur’an that people who seek to draw near to God should likewise be full of forgiveness. Forgiving is natural to a parent; therefore if we can take a parental heart towards others, akin to the heart of God our Father, we can forgive them. While it may be difficult to forgive people who do us grave injustice or injury, it is far preferable to holding a grudge, which would only fester and poison the spirit.
Yet how can we forgive? Forgiveness is not a natural thing. It will not do to simply forget a wrong or sweep it under the rug. Such easy or ritualistic forgiveness is phony and can mask deeper feelings of lasting resentment. As theologian Paul Tillich wrote, “Forgiving presupposes remembering. And it creates a forgetting not in the natural way we forget yesterday’s weather, but in the way of the great in spite of that says: I forget although I remember.” [Reverend] Moon teaches that we need to find a positive reason to forgive, a reason to make a new beginning in relating to that person in spite of the painful memory of previous wrongs. Thus he explores the reasons why God forgives us, and searches for that point of weakness and pathos in the wrongdoer that can evoke the heart of compassion.
—Andrew Wilson, editor. World Scripture II. Universal Peace Federation, 2011, pp. 682-683.
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