When I was 7 years old, my priest was convinced that I would become a nun. At fifteen I wanted to lock all the heads of state in a single room and only free them after they had created a plan for peace.
At 20 years old and already a practicing registered nurse in France, I met with my priest and asked him questions that he could not answer. Confused about my future I prayed to God on a regular basis, especially on my way to and from work. While driving I sang the same song over and over and I would cry as I sang.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccáta mundi: miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccáta mundi: miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccáta mundi: dona nobis pacem.
One evening in September of 1972, feeling lonely, I drove for a couple of hours after work to see Monique, a friend of mine who also a nurse. When I arrived at midnight she had a guest, Genie, an American girl. Genie was speaking about God in ways that I had never heard of before. Cautious, I nevertheless purchased the book she was promoting and promised her I would contact Jacques, a friend of hers in Paris, if I had any questions.
A month later, after having read a couple of chapters, I went to Paris. It is a very big city; I had never been there before. It was an adventure, a little scary. I went by train on the first weekend of November. I arrived on a Saturday and managed to arrive safely at the address Genie had indicated. Even though I had read beyond the second chapter, Jacques wanted to go over it again for some reason. So, we did.
At that time, I had a boyfriend; I was going to stay with him that night. Jacques knew that. So, chapter two we read. That day I realized that my life was forever changed. The questions that could not be answered by my priest started to get answered. I was overwhelmed yet calm at the same time. I had wanted to live a life that would create a peaceful world, and I had found the person and the teaching that could make it happen.
That night I found myself alone in the corner of a closed train station at midnight. I was trusting that God would take care of me if I would make the effort to understand and live my life as He wanted. Four dangerous youths noticed me and started to come in my direction. Then, a man came forward slowly, determined to reach me. The punks took note and walked backwards as they disappeared in the dark. The man told me not to stay there because it was dangerous. He directed me toward an open diner where I could safely wait for the morning light. After several decades I still remember this man walking towards me. God sent him to protect me and to tell me that He was there.
To this day, I have never read a more powerful revelation than the one revealed in the book Genie gave me titled "The Divine Principle". Having been a Unificationist since 1972, I have never met someone more stubborn and more determined to make this world a better place, than the Rev. Sun Myung Moon. I look at our world and wish that an effort was made individually and collectively to study his teaching. What do we have to lose? We live in a world of conflict that we do not seem able to resolve. Those of us who are kind and compassionate feel powerless to relieve the pain of millions, so why not listen to a teaching that may give us the tools we need to build an everlasting peace?
From the time I joined, I saw the light at the end of the tunnel; I knew the path forward to peace. I did not understand everything. I would learn later but I had glimpsed a revelation that would forever change my world view of who we are as individuals and collectively as societies. The key to a peaceful world, a loving world, was in this book, “The Divine Principle” by Rev. Sun Myung Moon. Of this fact I had no doubt.
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