Speeches of Hyo Jin Moon 2006-2008
Delivered Sunday at Belvedere Estate in Tarrytown, New York
Hyo Jin Moon Speaks on Entitlement, Page 172

Some episodes may contain explicit language. Listener discretion is advised.

Entitlement

October 15,2006

Please sit.

Good morning. Today's topic is "Entitlement." This world is crazy. Let's go to the storytelling phase. Let's go back to the beginning of how we build our understanding as to what is right and what is wrong. What are we inheriting? That is the question, right?

In democracy and free society we talk about entitlement, and that is about basic freedom and human rights. It is a fundamental thing that makes you who you are in relation to God. It is the case that there are many people who see things otherwise. It is basically where we stem from. That is where we start. That is the conflict. If there is any conflict in a fundamental sense, that is where it comes from—entitlement issues. Why? Because children of God have a certain promise based on religious doctrine and traditions that are inherently yours because God exists. That is it.

When you take God out of the picture, the entitlement issue disappears. It is every man for himself. If you do not have parents you do not inherit anything. You do not even exist to begin with. That is the fundamental stuff.

When you are dealing with people who do not believe in God, that is when anything is open to every kind of crazy stuff that comes down the pike based on conflict or whatever situation that exists based on voluntary issues. Ultimately things get crazier because they do not have any root. There is no connection. It is very difficult when you have to prove yourself and how great you are on a moment to moment basis, why you are better than the next person—if you do not have some kind of connection that allows you to speak representing good. It does not work.

The only reason that good is accepted in the world is that we believe in God. I know you never saw God. You do not call Him on a red phone or something. I know that does not exist. The only reason that we try to take the moral higher ground is because we believe that we have some kind of relationship with God. Whether we understand it clearly and whether it is real to us, and to what degree that is true is an individual case thing because there will be many variations of it. That ultimately becomes the focal point no matter how you address it. That will pretty much determine the outcome.

When it comes to dealing with what we have to face in reality, there are people who do not believe in God. Another unfortunate fact is that it does not end beyond that reality. There are many groups of people who say "My God is better than your God." I am not talking about polytheism here. I am talking about one single God. "But my belief is better than your belief, my faith is better than yours."

It all comes from the concept of entitlement. I deserve something because of a religious teaching. God promised. God exists. God created everything. God gave me the opportunity to be something. Based on that, people try to translate whatever and however they want to translate entitlement issues. That is it.

Let's go back to the Christian stories. We kind of get along. It does not matter how strange the stuff we do is, still we seem to get along because of the Christian concept. You have to promise something. What is the entitlement? If you go to the mythological story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the Fall occurred because the entity who was delegated to raise up the primary ancestors of the human race, Adam and Eve, had a falling out with that particular entity God based on entitlement issues.

On a hierarchy level, jealousy normally comes from the bottom up. It does not come from top to bottom. Top to bottom you will have contempt. "That is contemptuous. I am disgusted with that person's actions." It will not be out of jealousy or envy. Jealousy and envy are due to things that you see and feel, tactile things, things you need to feel and you need to have. This application will trigger jealousy. If something is just out there in theory, you cannot be jealous. How can you be jealous of something that you cannot measure? Jealousy and envy exist because something is measurable. You want something. You want to take something. "Oh, he has more power." That is measurable. Based on that kind of thought provoking emotions you act upon it and try to claim it for yourself. This causes all sorts of problems.

When you talk about entitlement, what is the essence of entitlement? As the human race, if we believe in God and God is the Almighty, the Creator, we have to accept the will of God. What are we ultimately inheriting? Do you think it is something that will trigger jealousy and envy? I do not think so. It has to be something better. Why?

Because you have to ask the question: What do you say when somebody says, "I'm perfect?" What does that mean? Perfect in what? Am I perfect in suffering like God? Am I perfect in forgiving like God? Am I perfect in sacrificing? What kind of perfection are you talking about? That has to be clear. And why do you want to be in that position? Why do you want to emulate God? Why do you want to assume God? What is your intent? Do you really know what God's perfection is?

Or is your perfection or your desire just a product of human history in the general sense? It is not religious or secular. It is just filled with all kinds of things from all over the place. Why do you want to assume that position? Why is it important to you, and if you are a representation of God, then what can you do with that stuff? What is the thing that makes a difference ultimately, not just in the present, but in the future?

You cannot judge somebody until they are dead, right? So I will leave it at that. You will be judged by your children and by God. You cannot just think about yourself, my children, my posterity, my people. There is no such a thing!

We are obviously going through religious strife in the most appalling way possible dealing with racial differences and all sorts of issues. That is why you have to talk in general when you try to understand God because no matter how we try to understand in detail it will take time. It is not going to happen like that. Why? Think about yourself. Know your limits. You do not live that long. History did not start from you. There are many things you can be addicted to. I have seen all sorts of addictions, but the most devastating is power and money. That will make you think all sorts of stupid things. If you are high on drugs you do crazy things and it is not you making the decision. It is the drug making you do things that you will regret. Ultimately you are responsible for it whether you like it or not.

It has to be that way if everybody is going to achieve perfection in the eyes of God. "I did not do anything wrong" In whose eyes? To what standard? The world will change. No matter how crazy it is, it will change. In the past it was crazier. We know a lot. That is why we struggle in our discretionary measures. We do have a greater understanding of how history works, of how human beings work in a basic sense, physical, emotional, psychological. So basically it is mind and body, body and mind. People 2000, 4000, 5000 years ago they were trying to have a relationship with God. We are still going through that phase and we still struggle to this day to have a spiritual relationship with God, a God that we all see, that we all talk to every day.

Obviously something has improved. We understand that but we still struggle. Why? Because it is real! Because we cannot control what the spirituality is to the level of our understanding even on the individual level. Remember that reality is various. It is not uniform. It is different in all sorts of strange ways. But that is what it is about, nothing else.