Let us take a moment to marvel at the miracle of both our True Father and True Mother sharing the same birthday. It is sometimes hard to believe such perfect instances of union.
As we celebrate this holy day, we can look to what our True Father said on their birthday celebration in 1997. True Father shares about tradition, and how important it is for parents to share holy traditions with their children. One joyful tradition that we can be reminded of is the tradition of sharing holy food with our children. This simple act can be a unifying moment between parents and children, and a wonderful way to strengthen the love within the family, centered on our Heavenly Parent. We can see True Parents’ wisdom and love in establishing such a tradition. Here is an excerpt from True Father’s speech:
True Parents’ Birthday Celebration at the World Mission Center, Korea
February 13, 1997
By sharing these rice cakes with True Parents this morning, we have to make sure that our minds and bodies become one. Also between husband and wife there should be absolute unity. Between families, nations and the world, absolute unity should be obtained before sharing this precious food with True Parents. As Blessed couples we offer Pledge service with our families. After the Pledge service we are supposed to share holy food among our family members.
Originally, Adam and Eve, without the Fall, were supposed to share this kind of food with their family members, centered upon God. But due to the Fall this did not take place. Therefore, as Unification Church Blessed couples, we are the ones who are doing the will of God which was originally the responsibility of Adam and Eve’s family.
As parents we have to make certain that we bequeath our tradition to our children and to their generation. Through the Sunday morning Pledge service we have to demonstrate to our children how much we respect our True Parents. Through this our children will learn how to worship and treasure True Parents so that the tradition can be handed down and inherited generation after generation. It should be our most earnest desire to keep this tradition in our family, worshipping together and offering Pledge service every Sunday morning with our family, centered upon True Parents. This is a most precious tradition.
No matter what our circumstances or where we might be in our daily lives, we should always remain faithful to maintaining this kind of tradition centered upon True Parents. Even if we are unable to physically do the Sunday Pledge service because we are up in an airplane or something, we should remember that particular moment and spiritually set that kind of tradition.
On each major holiday we gather and celebrate these holy days in almost exactly the same way. Many of you fly thousands of miles in order to attend this ceremony. What is the significance? That is the question. We have to understand that when we go our separate ways and return to our missions, usually our minds and bodies are divided, people are divided, there is conflict throughout the world. However, whenever this kind of major holy day comes, we know that we have to cleanse ourselves internally and externally. Then we attend this ceremony and we build our unity and harmony horizontally as well as vertically with True Parents, centered upon God. That is the significance.”
True Parents’ Birthday Pledge Ceremony – True Father, Feb. 13, 1997
