UNITY OF NORTH AND SOUTH KOREA: SEATTLE COMES TOGETHER FOR THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE

“A country that is always ready for war, always calling on its young men, is not a healthy environment, one that doesn't build hope.”
- Rev. Inchan Park

The International Day of Peace event in Seattle was very well attended. Many people came together to support peace. I kicked off the event by speaking about Mother Moon and her “Peace Starts with Me” campaign. I feel that the "Me" stands for God — peace depends on how much we can feel God's love, how much we can Live for the Sake of Others within ourselves, our neighborhoods, and among nations. We are like pebbles dropped in the water, and we can send out waves of God's hope and ideal. In our families, our husband or wife and our children are the pebbles. We radiate interconnected circles in the water. Who is dropping the pebbles?  God, our Heavenly Parent is. We can spread God's ideal and hope within our family, community, nations and the world.

We had just finished the Day of Atonement, the Jewish Holiday of Yum Kippur. Turning from our mistaken ways, atoning is truly At-one-ment, being one with God, in our surroundings while spreading God's hope and ideals. I then shared recent news clips that show the heartbreak of families of North and South Korea meeting together for the first time and the great pain of those who have not found their loved ones yet.

Rev. Inchan Park spoke to us from the heart, the heart of a parent, the heart of God. He spoke of the history of the North and South Korean division, as well as the similarities and differences between the Korean peninsula, the American Civil War, and the division of Germany. He spoke of the importance of a united Korea for the sake of its young people: This is, of course, true for young people in the North, but also true in the South. Amazing growth is possible on so many levels with a unified peninsula.

There followed a rich Q&A session and we concluded by singing a beloved Korean song, Tong-il, which means “unity.” The spirit of the talk continued, however, as we continued to share together with much hope about this deep topic over kim bop and rice cakes, traditional Korean food.

Peace is possible, it starts with Me.