"Today we hear so much about America's troubles...Vicious accusation is becoming a daily staple in the American diet. Hatred and bitterness are killing the human soul. Some people cry out "Impeach the President"...What is the will of God?...I have prayed to God earnestly...the answer came... "Forgive". America must forgive. Whatever wrongs have been done, whatever mistakes have been made. The...affair is an error: not only the error of...men, but the error of humanity, the error of the American people....If we want God to forgive us, we have to forgive each other first. (This)...is a test of America's faith. How will this nation stand before God in the midst of moral crisis?...Jesus' message was forgiveness...He...said to them "He who is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone" ...This is no time to cast stones upon your leader....I asked God "What shall we do with (the president)...?" The answer...was "Love. It is your duty to love him."...What do you do when a member of your family is in trouble?...You love him unconditionally...God inspired a man, and then confirms him as President through the will of the people...At this time in history, God has chosen...to be President of the United States. Therefore God has the power and authority to dismiss him...I continued in prayer, and the...word spoken to me was "unite"... America must unite....America must demonstrate unity in love and forgiveness...Forgive, love, unite!"

    For anyone around the movement in the early 70's, the above passages will be easily recognizable as SMM's answer to the Watergate crises, in support of Nixon in 1973. These words would seem to have special relevance for members of Congress during the recent Clinton impeachment fiasco. How eagerly I awaited the national proclamations in support of Clinton issuing forth from the Washington Times, bringing God's words of guidance to the American people. Of course, it wasn't to be. It seems SMM quickly forgot the counsel of the Almighty. By the late 1970's, he was not at all inclined to unite behind the (Democratic) president Jimmy Carter. Carter's position on something or other (U.S. troops in S. Korea, if I remember right) was deemed way to ungodly, and SMM was advocating his removal. (I remember Brian Saunders reporting on a visit to East Garden, telling us SMM, and by implication God, was so unhappy with Carter. Yet Carter was a devout man of faith, while Nixon was not so inclined. Which was more likely to seek divine guidance?) By the fall of 1980, members of the UC in NYC were relieved of their church responsibilities to go "volunteer" for the Reagan campaign against Carter. (Mose Durst - "these are just American citizens deciding on there own to get involved in the political process" - yeah, right) Reagan was not much of a church goer either, but he did consult the astrological charts on occasion. (his foundation of faith, maybe?)

    What are we to make of the inconsistent way SMM applies the word of God to U.S. politics? Is his motivation primarily political, and he evokes the message of God's love only when it serves his political agenda? When Clinton got into hot water over his completely personal indiscretion, where was the tolerant, wise prophet in the wilderness crying out "forgive, love, and unite"? Does God forgive and love only Republicans? I have heard that "God is pro-life", but I've never heard anyone openly claim that God loves Republicans more than Democrats! It would be fair to characterize UC politics as almost exclusively right-wing Republican. It seems obvious that SMM's agenda is political in a blatantly partisan manner. The glaringly hypocritical flip flop on the forgive, love, and unite message is ample reason to question his wisdom regarding the will of God, if not his motivations.

    This should give pause to any member that claims to love the freedom and human rights we enjoy as Americans. When a man who believes he is God's sole conduit of truth, the first "true" human being and center of the universe, the one to build the new kingdom on earth, wants also to directly influence American politics, we should be very careful. Our founding fathers wisely built into the constitution the checks and balances as a way to defend against the excesses of the supremely sure. I dare say that flag waving patriots loudly proclaiming "God is on our side", all the while following a man whom continually demands "absolute obedience", with a clear agenda to remake the world in the image of their religion, is what the founders were trying to protect us from.

    It is one thing to suggest that people should let their religious morals and principles guide them in choosing elected officials. It is another thing altogether when real political power is wielded by religious zealots with a fundamentalist agenda. How many Americans would choose to live in any society today controlled by Islamic fundamentalists? Or in any religious state, for that matter? From the beginning SMM has made it no secret that he has a grand strategy, a long term plan to influence public policy in the United States. Who doubts he would implement very specific religious beliefs into law? From the beginning he has sought access to the highest levels of government, openly or behind the scenes, using whatever money and connections he has. Money is power, and money is one thing SMM has had at his disposal. There is way too much secrecy, way too little known about where the money comes from, where the money is going, and what foreign powers are influencing the movement, to satisfy reasonable expectations for openness and disclosure. There is something deeply disturbing about the cozy alliance UC money has bought with elements of the conservative wing of this country, and the way it has tried to use money behind the scenes to shape policy and influence elections. From "Koreagate" to the "Wise Use" movement (there's an obscene euphemism if ever there was one) to "Star Wars" to "Iran-Contra", to the rabid vilification of Bill Clinton and now support of George W., SMM has tried to influence policy to suit his needs. He "has purposed, and he will do it" - the will of the people, or the democratic process, be damned.

    I'm sure the movement would like to take credit for any perceived shift to the "right" in American politics in the last twenty years. We can only speculate how much of that is because of the Washington Times, and how much is coincidental. I believe pendulum of public sentiment swings back and forth over the decades, and right now we are in the age of puritanical, "family values" conservatism. We will see what the landscape looks like twenty years from now. (Don't think I am denigrating "family values", (whatever they may be) - only the way they are shamelessly used as a political ploy)

    Whatever the case may be, I don't think I am alone in the country in feeling resentful that the religious right and it's intrusive social agenda seems to have so thoroughly co-opted conservative politics. Today I read that the UPI has been bought up by News World Communications. There is only one reason for this - influencing public opinion. If I could believe that the media powers in SMM's control would be impartial conduits of the truth, and that the editorial positions would be used to bring messages of love, tolerance, understanding, unity, peace and disarmament, stronger world institutions, universal child access to quality education and health care, fair treatment of women and children worldwide, responsible stewardship of the planet, etc.etc, (things I would naively expect from any messiah working to build an ideal world) I wouldn't be too troubled. But the agenda will inevitably steer the reporting, and I expect the judgmental, intolerant, divisive political rhetoric of the right wing will continue to prevail. Do members ever stop and think where their leaders are taking them? Do the aims and political beliefs of the organization really reflect the idealism and vision members had when they first joined the movement to build an ideal world? We sang Bob Dylan songs at the workshops - What do you suppose HE would think of SMM's agenda? What kind of world would we have if the movement gained real power?

    We remember SMM's quotes that "what satan likes most is separation of church and state", "what we need is an automatic theocracy to rule the world", "the day is coming when my word will serve as law", and "In the KoH, adultery will be a capital offense". I have heard UC officials say "these were mistranslations of impromptu speeches" or "these were taken out of context." I am thoroughly unconvinced. Sure, there may have been some translational glitches here and there, but who can doubt that the above quotes are not an accurate reflection of the goals and aspirations of the new messiah? Who doubts for a second that SMM wouldn't make himself absolute ruler of the world, if given the chance? This is a man who doesn't protest when members pray to "True Parents". Who thinks the bill of rights would survive in any reckognizable form if left to him? I know what kind of organization he set up in the UC. I know it"s regard for pluralistic, constitutional democracy. I remember leaders agreeing that in the ideal world, fornication will be punishable by death. I have in my own handwriting, notes I took at one of SMM's talks, the very clear and unambiguous statements "I want to make God the absolute ruler of the world"...and.. "democracy is a transitional ideology". (May 15, 1977 "Things That Belong to God and Things That Belong to Man") No one who has read the "America in God's Providence" speeches that the UC prepared for the bicentennial celebrations can have any doubt that SMM would make religion and politics one and the same. Ken sudo, member of SMM's inner circle, big time "Abel" figure and chief architect of DP training seminars that everyone was supposed to go through in the 70's, said in the 120 day training manual: "the government, the President, must hear Master speak in order to find out what to do... the only decision is to obey God...through Rev. Moon." (page 56) "When sovereignty is restored or one nation is restored, heavenly law will be put into practice. The constitution will be in line with God's words Divine Principle. Divine Principle will be the constitution of America, or some country. Then, there will be no fornication, no adultery". (page 84) "The American Constitution must be changed. Therefore, in the ...Messianic country, fornication and adultery will constitute a felony...the Messianic country or Messianic nation must be established. God's words will govern this country". (page 47)

    There can be no reasonable doubt that if given the power, SMM would make a government, a society, that bears little resemblance to the one we enjoy today. Like I told a member recently, if you doubt this, you are only fooling yourself. How ironic that UC organizations with names like "Freedom Leadership Foundation" and "American Freedom Coalition" are part of a larger movement that in a very real sense threatens liberty on the individual level, and if it had it's way, would threaten it on an institutional level as well. This is why I continue to go to the effort of speaking out against the organization and it's goals.