God’s Will and the Ocean: Episode 79

God’s Will and the Ocean
True Father Speaks on: “True Parents” and “Indemnity”, page 256-260
August 1985, Berkeley

The Ocean is Our Foundation for the Future

Since I came here, I have been fed very well in this house and that wasn't easy to take. In prison, when it was time to eat, you had to eat whether you truly desired to eat or didn't feel like it. You get used to the schedule, but here in San Francisco the food came at all different times of the day.

Anyway, what is your impression so far from this talk? Do you think I still might love Unification members? Maybe? Maybe not? I found the word, "maybe" to be very useful in prison. When I wanted to say "yes," I said "maybe," and when I wanted to say "no," I also said "maybe." It was a very convenient word. While I was in prison, I studied the system very closely and I could not respect that system at all. After a careful look at it, I concluded that it serves no real purpose, it wastes a great deal of time, and it only creates a desire for revenge against the government within the inmates. That's no good.

Many of the inmates wanted to call and visit me when they also got out. Many of them came and asked me if they could do so. I couldn't say "yes" because they don't understand my life and my work so well, and I couldn't say "no," because I didn't want to offend them. So, I had to say "maybe." You understand why I did that, don't you? However, with you, there is no such thing as "maybe." I don't like "maybe" and you should not like it either. With our way of life, it is "yes," or "no." We have to be clear. Now you understand that you are either "yes" men or "no" men, but you are not "maybe" men.

It's truly good to see you, but it's getting cold here. Don't you want to go? It's too cold to stay here, so let's go inside. You are here with me and I think it would be nice to eat together, however, I'm going to have some raw fish, some sushi. I don't think you want to eat that. Let me ask you, would you rather eat it or sell it? We have Ocean Church now in our movement, don't we? When did we start that project? Almost five years ago. Do you know which mission Unification members care least about? The wives tell their husbands, "Don't go to Ocean Church; they have to eat sushi and I don't like that." Well, I don't like that kind of woman.

Do you know how the foundation for Ocean Church was made? I made that foundation. I had to do it by myself; I was completely alone in the beginning. Now, we are catching shrimp, lobster, and halibut. Many Americans like that kind of seafood and I knew that, so I pioneered and developed every aspect by myself. Then, I had to convince the members. I watched many of them escape from Ocean Church during these past five years, but I kept going on. Now, we have a lobster pound in Canada and we have fishing in Alaska and shrimping in Alabama. We are developing fishing on the East Coast as well. No one wanted to do this mission; no one really liked this kind of work. I was the only one working, in a lonely way, building this foundation.

In Alaska, we have an automatic system for processing the fish, otherwise, it would be far too expensive to run. I had to plan for that and even design how the factory should be laid out. No one had any interest in it at first. I had to think about how much fish it could handle at one time; I had to think about every detail. We went into a large debt in order to set up this automatic system. However, I knew that such an investment would someday be successful.

In Seattle, we will have to create a factory that can make surimi out of any kind of fish. From that kind of factory, we can make any kind of seafood. That kind of foundation is very important. In the beginning, I had to tackle this project on my own. Now, you are coming to understand it and you can inherit it. That's why I'm telling you to grab raw fish with both of your hands, grasp the providence of it with all your enthusiasm. Be excited about it because it tastes so good and it's very good for your health.

That's true. Meat is not the best thing to eat all the time. Doctors are now testifying about this point. They are telling people to eat more fish. Americans should eat more fish for their health. That's why we should make Japanese restaurants and a delivery system for fresh fish. Many people will get upset about Moonies doing this kind of work, but we are saving the fishing industry with this effort. They will come to see that.

You know about Gloucester, don't you? When I first went there, the cost of tuna was less than ten cents per pound. Now, one tuna is more than $4.50 per pound. When I came onto the scene, the wholesale people raised their voices against me. I didn't mind. That's good. I raised my voice as well, telling them that they exploited the fishermen. That is exactly the case. The fishermen began to see my true motivation.

After a while, when I went out on the New Hope, I heard many calls come over the radio, "Hello Reverend Moon! I don't hate you anymore. Have a good day!" That's true. Fishermen don't make much money at all. They are in a miserable situation. You think about the costs of going out on the ocean. The ocean towns are in a miserable situation. Why? The young people are escaping from those towns and moving inland. They can't make any money working on the ocean. Maybe they tried one time, but the boat went out and was caught in a storm. That's a miserable experience and many people don't want to repeat that, especially if there isn't all that much benefit for them. The young people leave those towns, looking for an easier job inland. Young people are the future. It's as simple as that. For these towns, it means they will eventually decline and perish. It's a serious question for them. I thought about this and asked myself how we could attract young people back into these towns and back into the ocean way of life. That is why I chose tuna fishing. When an American young guy catches a tuna, he will never forget that excitement. After one or two times, he can't escape from the ocean. He will be caught by such experiences on the ocean. That is why I want young people to go out on the ocean for an entire summer season. I want them to have this kind of wonderful experience. I've visited many other fishing towns. Fishermen love to brag about the fish they catch. They say to each other, "I caught this kind of striped bass and it weighed this much," or "I caught a halibut and it fought for twenty minutes and weighed this much," and so on. They talk and make so much noise, too much noise.

However, when a young man walks up and shows them a picture of his bluefin tuna and quietly says, "It only weighed 1,000 pounds," they will go crazy. They won't believe it. They will look at him with open mouths, thinking, "Is that true?" Any young man would want to have that moment of pride. I want young people to feel that kind of pride.

Many fishermen will never tell anyone else where they fish, but after catching one tuna like that, you can invite them to fish with you and they will come. Then, they will want to show you all their places and teach you how to fish for different kinds of fish. Isn't that true? Of course it is. That is how people are. If you have a beautiful boat and invite them to fish with you, they will become your friend. In a small town, if you have a beautiful boat like the One Hope and you tell the people that you helped to make it, they will automatically have respect for you. You don't know so much about the One Hope, but you will find out about it and you will see what kind of a boat it is. I have done many different kinds of fishing and I have researched many different fishing places. Also, my head isn't so bad. In fact, I'm a fairly smart guy. I see many details and I can connect them together.

With that kind of mind, I designed and developed the One Hope boat. Have you members, here on the West Coast, seen the One Hope boat? Oh, many of you have never even seen it. Well then, you are just like a country boy, not like a city boy, you don't know about anything that's going on. You should find out and catch up to other members.

I designed that boat and from that boat, I can make any kind of boat. I learned how to design larger and larger boats. Now, there isn't any boat that presents a problem to me. We can make any kind of boat. This also means that we can do any kind of fishing. That's how we have to be. If we can do any kind of fishing, we can also do any kind of fish selling. In New York city there is a huge and famous wholesale organization and they sell fish all over the world. Many of the Japanese members who came here worked very, very hard. For whom did they work so hard? They worked hard for America and for you! It is sad that this nation persecutes them, persecutes Moonies. You have to feel something deep inside you about that, otherwise, who will change it?

I know what you are going through. I know very well. You don't have the kind of responsibility that I do. I am the leader of the Unification Church and my concern is always how to make the foundation for you. I am down in the basement, preparing everything for the house you are going to live in.