by Andrew Wilson-Nutley, NJ
Monday evening, Dec. 11, saw the end-of-year meeting of the Association of Jewish Unificationists (AJU) at the HSA Headquarters building in New York City. The meeting was begun in prayer by Dr. Andrew Wilson, who has been taking the leading role in organizing the AJU since Mother inspired its formation in November 1992 at the time of her WFWP speech in Jerusalem.
As we reflected on this eventful year and on our future direction, two themes were paramount: on the micro level, how to establish ourselves as tribal messiahs; and on the macro level, the rapidly advancing providence.
We received this inspiration for our personal direction: Dare to be an individual and establish your own material foundation. Whatever it takes, we must become prosperous. We should be able to hold up our heads before our families, for whom material wealth is the primary measure of personal worth. They do not readily understand the value of a life of poverty and sacrifice. Jacob made sure to gain material possessions before returning to face Esau, for he knew what his brother could appreciate. For some, this call to tribal messiahship may conflicts with the demands of church missions, demanding hard choices.
The assassination of Yitzhak Rabin was the other big topic. His funeral was very moving. He was killed on the very day Father was supposed to speak in Great Britain. We discussed how in 1948, when Father's outreach to Christianity was blocked and Great Britain lost her position as the Eve nation, all Britain's colonies (her children) were divided: the partition of India and Pakistan, apartheid in South Africa, and the separation of Palestine between Arab and Jew. Was the death of Rabin indemnity for Britain's latest failure? Moreover, we noted how Rabin's death has finally brought national criticism down upon the more stiff-necked factions of the Orthodox Jewish community. They had transgressed against God's hope for Israel by trying to block Mother's speech just 3 years before. Judaism has been divided between Cain and Abel, but the relative positions have switched since the '70s, with the more secular (or "progressive") Jews who seek peace with the Palestinians now in the position of Abel.
Regarding the Palestinians: Dr. Wilson described Yassir Arafat's recent speech at Harvard, in which he described his motivation for wanting to make peace. A few years ago, his small plane crashed and only he survived. At that moment God spoke to him, saying his life had been spared so that he could take up the mission of a peacemaker. Ever since this "road to Damascus" experience, Arafat has been braving enemies within his own ranks in order to do God's will. Father has often said that he is working for peace in the Middle East. Who knows what other secret providences God is working to this end?
Anyone interested in participating in the AJU may contact Dr. Wilson at: Encyclopedia Project, 4 West 43 Street, New York, NY 10036. Telephone: (212)869-5879 or (201)661-0469.