by Carole Cecile
Lancaster Gate, London May 26, 1978
They were coming from all over Europe, brothers and sisters we were all, having joined in our own country the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity; in short, the Unification Church, head by our True Parents, the Reverend Sun Myung and Mrs Hak Ja Han Moon. However among each other, we considered ourselves the Unified Family, because that is how we felt; this was/is and always will be the true spirit of the Unification movement. If we meet another member for the first time, and tell them when we joined the church, we would simply say;
- Hi, I am Caroline from Belgium. I joined “the Family”, May 1st, 1977 …
I can easily recall the noise and bustle inside the large church headquarters at Lancaster Gate, London, which is situated on the North side of Hyde Park. I recall eating for the first time the famous breakfast dish called porridge, which I actually enjoyed. We got organized by teams, each team would be assigned to go to a city or town in England. We would have a center, which would have of course, a center leader. These were brothers, who came from the United States who had experiences with campaigning for rallies, witnessing and teaching the Divine Principle. And of course there were many teams assigned also in the different areas of London itself. We were part of a new providence initiated by True Father, called the IOWC, which means, the International One World Crusade. We were missionaries, not just for the purpose of witnessing, and educating people in the Divine Principle but also to develop what was called a home church where we would also serve the community. Wherever we would be sent, we would be assigned an area of the town or city to create there a homechurch.
Three days later, it was announced to us that True Parents were in town, and that Father would be speaking to us all in the Grand Ballroom.
We were all in the room half an hour before Father entered it, preparing ourselves internally by singing holy songs. What we call the holy songs are songs that were written by Father and early members in Korea. They had been translated in English and we sang them in English. The most traditional one we sang before True Parents were to speak to us was, “Song of the Garden”
The Lord into His garden comes
The spices yield a rich perfume
The lilies grow and thrive
The lilies grow and thrive
Refreshing showers of grace divine
From the Father flows to every vine
And make the dead revive
And make the dead revive
Oh, oh, that this dry and barren ground
In Springs of water may abound
A fruitful soil become
A fruitful soil become
The desert blossoms at the rose
When the Saviour conquers all His foes
And makes His people one
And makes His people one
Come Brethren you that love the Lord
And taste the sweetness of His words
In Father’s ways go on
In Father’s way go on
Our troubles and our trials here
Will only make us richer there
When we arrive at home
When we arrive at home
Then the double doors of the Grand Ballroom opened,
and in entered True Father,
A smile
A twinkle in the eye
A man in his 50s, looking younger, medium height,
With the purposeful step of his feet, dressed casually,
light grey pants, with a short sleeve printed shirt.
My eyes and heart saw a simple man,.
It is also the way I saw Jesus, a simple man.
Father’s gaze was direct, and warmth emanated from Him.
To His every word I was glued, His vision so grand,
His faith deep, His trust in us complete,
His expectations, high.
A task
for each of us to take full charge of
Working as a team, supporting each other.
One of His first words to us that evening, which made a big change for me was,
•“ You must write to your parents once a week …”
Since I had estranged myself from my parents after they helped planning my kidnapping in Belgium six months prior, I was moved to tears, and made a determination to follow this direction. I felt its importance. And so I did.
I can still see clearly today, the moment I saw Father for the first time, entering the grand ballroom of Lancaster Gate, London.