Righteousness

Righteousness means a life upholding high principles and dedicated to public service. Righteous people are the spiritual and moral pillars of a society, bestowing its vision and setting its values.

By their courage, moral rectitude, and devotion to public service, they demonstrate the exemplary qualities of a good citizen. Righteousness is often demonstrated by concern for the greater good: for the community, the nation, and even for the world. Father Moon calls this being a public person, living a public life.

He teaches that we should strictly live with a mind to serve the greater good and never fall back into acting with selfish, greedy motives. It is not easy to be a righteous person.

Righteous people invariably place public duties ahead of personal gain. They are serious about the propriety of every action they take. When society is corrupt and decadent, such righteousness is not always welcomed, and righteous people face persecution.

Yet the value of righteousness is so great that in the Old Testament story of Sodom and Gomorrah, God was willing to spare those sinful cities for the sake of 10 righteous men. Every community needs such people.

A Righteous Person Stands against Evil at the Cost to Himself

The Master said, “A gentleman in his dealings with the world has neither enmities nor affections; but wherever he sees Right, he ranges himself behind it. Analects 4.10 (Confucianism)

And if God had not repelled some men by others, the earth would have been corrupted. Qur’an 2.251

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5.10

Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the moneychangers at their business. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all, with the sheep and oxen, out of the temple; and he poured out the coins of the moneychangers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; you shall not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” John 2.13-16

They that are desirous of victory do not conquer by might and energy so much as by truth, compassion, righteousness, and spiritual discipline. Discriminating then between righteousness and unrighteousness, and understanding what is meant by covetousness, when there is recourse to exertion fight without arrogance, for victory is there where righteousness is. Under these conditions know, O king, that to us victory is certain in this battle. Indeed, where Krishna is, there is victory. Mahabharata, Bhishma Parva 21 (Hinduism)

Neither let us be slandered from our duty by false accusations against us, nor frightened from it by menaces of destruction to the Government nor of dungeons to ourselves. Let us have faith that right makes might; and in that faith let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it. Abraham Lincoln

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
The Chinese character for “righteousness,” 義 (eui) is a combination of two characters: 羊 (yang) “sheep” and 我 (ah) “self.”11 In other words when you put yourself in the position of a sacrificial lamb, you will create the condition for righteousness. (92:309, April 24, 1977)

Go and do something adventurous for the sake of the nation and God’s righteousness. God will encourage you, “Go ahead and do it.” Then you will meet with abuse.

There will be a confrontation, but if you subjugate the evil on your own, then God will be pleased. It is the outcome God hopes for. Will God help you if you cower in fear, too afraid even to fight? Therefore, raises well-intentioned problems. (104:107, April 15, 1979)

You must be able to distinguish between good and evil, but how do you distinguish them? In the world good and evil are intermingled; however, the point where good and evil becomes distinguished is in yourself. The world is evil; therefore, if you live without colliding with the world, you are an evil person.

You live in a fallen realm; therefore, if you are living your life like a fish caught in a net, you are an evil person. If you just continue with your life instead of confronting the world’s evils, you are an evil person. Since you know that the present-day world is an evil world, you must fight against it. Why?

It is because humans fell. Having fallen from our original position, you must climb back up, and in order to climb back up, you must struggle through it. It will not do to stay still. Otherwise, you will never be able to greet the new world that humankind desires.

You will not leave a mark of goodness in history, and history will not be able to progress. That is why, as people who would advance the cause of goodness, you must fight. (33:42, August 1, 1970)

It is a principle that the side of justice grows stronger with persecution and difficulty. Therefore, when we are hit we will develop even more. (93:134, May 21, 1977)

When good people pursue a certain goal, they are often uncertain about their objective, and on the path they find little support to stimulate and strengthen their aspiration for goodness. On the other hand, evil people find help every step of the way and relationships to encourage them from the beginning to the end.

Therefore, a person who is seeking truth inevitably finds him or herself in situations of loneliness and sorrow.

The path of the person who upholds goodness will not be a smooth one. Not many people welcome an individual who strives to cultivate a character of exceptional goodness, especially as he tries to assemble an environment that meets his standard.

There will be opposition when that person tries to build a family of goodness, and even stronger evil forces will surround and oppose any attempt to build a tribe of goodness. (36:52, November 15, 1970)

Father! I am going forward as a strong man, bold and magnanimous; I will not be put to shame. Please, watch over me on my path; I will make Thee proud of me. (134:142-43, February 25, 1985)

A Righteous Person Leads a Public Life and Identifies His Welfare with the Public Good

Do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. Matthew 6.31-33

It is not righteousness that you turn your faces [in prayer] to the East and to the West. Righteousness is this: to believe in God, and the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the Prophets, Kung-sun Ch’ou asked Mencius, “May I ask what your strong points are?” “I have an insight into words. I am good at cultivating my ‘flood-like ch’i.’” “May I ask what this ‘flood-like ch’i’ is?” “It is difficult to explain. This is a ch’i (breath) which is, in the highest degree, vast and unyielding. Nourish it with integrity and place no obstacle in its path and it will fill the space between heaven and earth. It is a ch’i that unites righteousness and the Way. Deprive it of these and it will collapse. It is born of accumulated rightness and cannot be appropriated by anyone through a sporadic show of rightness. Whenever one acts in a way that falls below the standard set in one’s heart, it will collapse… You must work at it and never let it out of your mind. At the same time, while you must never let it out of your mind, you must not forcibly help it grow either.” Mencius II.A.2 (Confucianism)

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
Do you want to be blessed? Do you want to live eternally? Then, you should become a public person. (31:168, May 24, 1970)

When you make it your business to serve others and to touch others’ hearts, you are going beyond the life of a private individual. (241:118, December 20, 1992)

A human being is not meant to live for his or her individual self. Yet, these days many worldly people say, “I work for myself.” In other words, they live for the sake of themselves. How pitiful are these people?

They are like orphans without parents or siblings. You should be able to say, “I live for the sake of all the people of the world.” (24:21, June 22, 1969)

You should be able to declare, “I have tackled the most difficult problem in the nation.” It is not enough to deal with problems within the church. Furthermore, you should be able to declare, “I have tackled the most difficult problem in the world.”

Unless you do it willingly, you will remain on a servant level and cannot reach the level of an adopted son.12 You have to be willing to digest all the difficulties in the world—all the things that servants can do—with joy. (113:111, May 1, 1981)

There is no need to worry whether something will be done or not. The question is whether you did it or not. (308:209, January 5, 1999)

The public-minded person speaks from public-mindedness; he sees, hears, feels, thinks, eats and sleeps and does everything from the public-minded standpoint. When you look at the world with a public-minded eye, you come to love everything. (111:244, February 22, 1981)

Whether your work is small or big, regardless of the task, you should not relate to it personally. In other words, your mind should be intense. Your state of mind should be like a ball that is completely round after the air has been pumped in, with pressure.

Your mind should keep that pressure like a completely round ball, and never go flat. If instead, your mind is uneasy or self-centered, dominated by personal greed, it is like a sharp edge forming in that round, ball-like mind. (40:278-89, February 7, 1971)

Righteous People are the Guardians of a Nation

Then Abraham drew near, and said, “Wilt thou indeed destroy the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt thou then destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it?

Far be it from thee to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” Genesis 18.23-25

I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.13 1 Kings 19.18

Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, look and take note! Search her squares to see if you can find a man, one who does justice and seeks truth; that I may pardon her… O Lord, do not thy eyes look for truth? Jeremiah 5.1-3

There are [always] thirty righteous men among the nations, by whose virtue the nations of the world continue to exist.14 Talmud, Hullin 92a (Judaism)

Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
Since I came to America I have been working as hard as I can, and also I am pushing Americans to go through many hardships.

Nevertheless, if we can prosper, it can be a blessing to America and an indemnity condition that can cover the failure of America to fulfill its God-given mission.

Then, I can pray to God, “Heavenly Father, please have regard for these children and forgive America for their sake. Although America deserves to perish, because these children are devoted to Thee, please save this nation.” It is similar to Abraham’s prayer when he pleaded with God to spare Sodom and Gomorrah if ten righteous people could be found. (103:200, February 25, 1979)

Many people are patriots, but saints are rare. A saint is someone who sacrifices for the world. Do you think that I want you, the people whom I love, to be merely filial children, patriots, or saints? I am pushing you to become saints. (111:141, February 8, 1981)