21 year journey of Stephen and Barbara Stacey after UTS.
Barbara and I had the privilege of going through UTS together – and we graduated 21 years ago. It
wasn’t planned like that, but heaven has its ways. When I went to UTS, Barbara was still in the
underground movement in Poland, behind the iron curtain, her life under threat everyday. But we
graduated together, and Teresa our first daughter was born 3 weeks later.
Because the Berlin wall tumbled in 1989 – we returned to Poland on graduation. I always remember
the day we arrived. Two suitcases, a baby, a laptop – our worldly possessions at the age of 34 – all
sitting with us on a station platform somewhere in the middle of Poland. It was so reminiscent of a
wild-west station. Poland was undeveloped, a land of opportunity for Poles who returned. We spent
two years alone in large Polish city called Lodz. I taught in a college, Barbara looked after the baby
and the growing number of guests that visited our home. With the help of visitors from around the
world, 7 people joined the movement there. We were then asked if we could take over the education
of new members on a national level in Warsaw. It was an inspiring time for me. How do I grow as a
human being and how do others grow? To be honest I still wasn’t quite sure. Barbara was busy
making some more baby “young members” – a boy and a girl - and taking care of the Women’s
Federation for World Peace (WFWP). After those wonderful years with the amazing Poles, we left
and returned to Great Britain (GB) to consider our future.
After a year in GB, we ended up in the new National Messiah (NM) providence – and we moved to
Finland. We decided to spend a couple of years getting to know Finns, and to think about what we
personally could do to help change Finnish history for the better. One develops a completely
different mind-set when asking such a question over a long period of time. What’s a viable strategy
considering the situation? Finland does things so well, what could we offer? But like the rest of the
world, the families are struggling. So I had my goal – to help Finns to build more lasting and loving
families. I helped Barbara to set up a kindergarten so we had some financial stability, and I also
started to teach in a university part-time – I started to read every marriage education book out there.
It took an immense amount of spare time effort - and a lot of patience from Barbara, but finally I
put together 30 or so one- hour lectures. I then took a teacher training course – and as part of that
course I was allowed to teach a marriage education course in a university. I did some research on
my course – and based on that small piece of research, I was allowed to teach the course in another
university. I felt inspired. So I wrote book. It had 12 chapters looking at various recurring themes in
marriage education. I published it. Finally I had a course book to teach with. Everything looked
good. Of course, it’s never that easy.
That summer I was invited to St Petersburg in Russia to teach a weekend marriage enrichment
seminar. It was long bus ride. At 2 in the morning, a voice woke me up, and said: “Everything in
your book is in the Principle of Creation.” Mmm, where did that come from? On getting back home,
I rearranged the 12 chapters and there, laid out before me, was most of the Principle of Creation ( P
of C). I was completely shocked. There were the dual characteristics of Masculine and Feminine
(The valuable strengths that different genders bring to the marriage - Mars/Venus). There was Give
and Take action around a common base (communication structures and topics for discussion that
create a healthy home). There were joy and beauty (dating and romance). There were topics around
human value and respect (fidelity, non-violence, etc). I was dumbfounded. It slowly dawned on me
that hidden in the P of C were a set of principles for successful living. And it was even more
astounding to realise that all marriage education experts are trying to get couples to live one or more
of these principles to higher degree of competence - and even improving only one can help love's
ways.
Several things started to become clear. Firstly, I realized that the P of C had, hidden within its
structure, at least 7 principles of good living - principles that bring down blessings – 7 principles
that married couples could embrace to maintain health and well-being in their relationship. Next I
realised that not only healthy marriages embodied these 7 principles, but all human systems. In fact
almost every living organism needed to embrace these 7 principles in order survive and flourish. It
was easy to see that well-run companies were living the 7 principles. They didn’t know it, as they
had found their success through trial and error.
I went around for about 4 weeks looking at everything with new eyes. Could I see the 7 principles
in this system or in that animal’s existence? It was everywhere. If a church or a movement used
them, would they grow too?
The 7 principles quickly became an analytical tool for evaluating the health of any organisation or
country - and much more. Thirdly, I could see what was missing from my book – and the principles
that I had missed out.
Eventually the 7 principles of successful creation looked like this:
1) The Principle of Identity:- of clearly knowing who and what you are to become (mind), so you
can take your body there.
2) The Principle of input from both masculine and feminine. (E.g. diverse viewpoints are essential
in formulating the identity and creating strategies for growth towards that identity. Different
cultures and different personalities also express a different mix of masculinity and femininity)
3) The Principle of Give and Take: good communication to create policies and strategies that head
towards that clear identity
4) The Principle of including joy, beauty, goodness, truthfulness and meaning as essential elements
for health and well-being in that identity
5) The Principle of Respect: having respect for all stakeholders in the system
6) The Principle of Growth: typically through raising up of individuals so they can better support
the fulfilment of the strategies and goals that are key to the development of that identity
7) The Principle of Feedback: vitality elements - having a range of feedback systems to know what
is working, what isn't, and what policies need to be changed and then making those changes.
The 7 principles of creation are logical, rational – able to be deduced by reason or common sense.
They have been used to a greater or lesser extent throughout history to bring about success on every
level of society. For example, if you look at the story of Jacob in Haran he must have become rich
through using some basic principles of gaining success. Abraham was no different - a successful
guy with great wealth. They both were aware enough to use some of the 7 principles to become
successful.
Also worthy of note is that because the 7 principles are universal laws – you cannot cause them to
“fall” - to come to have fallen natures. You can only use the 7 principles to a greater or lesser
degree. If the future of mankind is bright, we will be developing these 7 principles to ever higher
levels of competence for the next 10,000 years. Because of this, we cannot talk about restoring the 7
principles of creation through use of the Principles of Restoration. Restoration is to do with the
restoration of the individual’s heart, and aligning a person’s core values with the desires of their
original mind. It is to do with the inner workings of a human, recreating the 1st blessing in us to
become God’s children - not the tools we use to bring about success in life. Of course a person,
family, company, church, or nation can refuse to use the 7 principles of creation and use other less
effective strategies instead. Sadly, this often leads to people feeling violated, and in that
environment people are more likely to manifest and develop fallen natures – develop hearts that feel
angry or resentful, or core values that have little to do with goodness.
Lastly, if we understand the above, it’s important to understand what this all might mean to our
movement. What’s the ideal? The goal as I perceive it is that we become an organisation that seeks
to live the 7 principles of creation – a clear identity; diverse views to help create and maintain that
identity, creating strategies and policies that support that identity – strategies and policies that are
imbued with beauty, joy, truthfulness, goodness and meaning. Learning how to respect every
stakeholder in the system is a must – with proper checks and balances in place. Empowering and
developing members to support the long-term goals and strategies is essential. Lastly, a range of
well formulated feedback systems will help develop an understanding of what is going right and
what needs to be improved. Our biggest problem – and probably always has been – is the
formulation of our identity. The next is bringing in diverse voices to create that identity. Because
we’ve been in a long struggle to restore a foundation, it’s understandable that we haven’t seen many
of these elements in our movement before. But now is a time of settlement and these are the
principles of successful creation.
Because of these revelations and many more, my newly published book (2007) just got forgotten. I
was off on a new journey. Also, just at that moment, my university department closed down and I
was out of job.
All along this journey I have always had the feeling of being guided and supported. I believe a lot of
that support came as a result of my beloved, Barbara, who worked long hours and totally invested in
loving Finnish children with all her heart, mind and soul. As I see it, sincerity brought heavenly
support. My ex-boss called me and asked if I wanted to do on-line university teaching. My new
career was born. I then taught marriage enrichment on-line for three years. I had finally found a way
to teach a form of the principles of creation in university. It took 9 years to achieve but I had
achieved a major step in my long term goal.
In the couple relationship course we first looked at the identity of marriage –its purpose, its goals,
and the core values associated. Then we looked at gender differences, and how learning to value the
gender differences was an important phase in the life of successful couple building. Then we would
look at how couples create a common vision, and move onto dating and romance. Next, human
value and respect. We then looked at how couples might live a life of continuous growth for their
love, and lastly, how important vitality elements are (good feedback – praise and room for
growth).
As the course matured, however, it become clear to me that even if married couples could do many
of these things - there might still be many struggles in their relationship. There’s more to a human
being than just the ability to live the 7 principles. These 7 principles are an equation for living life
well– but many elements of our humanity are missing. For example, the 7 principles have no
conscience – even organisations with evil intent might use almost all of them. I started to
understand that though a couple might use the 7 principles to improve the quality of their
relationship (gain the 2nd blessing) – there was still a primary need for both partners to individually
embody God’s love (the 1st blessing). And their ability to embody this love is more important than
being able to utilise the 7 principles. In short, a model to describe a reasonably healthy human being
was needed if I was to sincerely understand the core dynamics taking place within marriage. An
understanding of how individuals come to exhibit true love’s ways and words on a daily basis as a
foundation for a close, intimate relationship was my next goal.
Once I understood the next part of my journey, two things happened. My on-line marriage
education course just disappeared in a puff of smoke. And then another university called me and
asked: “Can you teach a course about personal development and relationships?” So my journey took
a new turn. I have now spent the last 2 years seeking to create a model that explains some of the
core elements of a reasonably mature, loving person. It has been a deeply interesting journey. This
‘wholehearted human’ model (English just doesn’t have the words we need) now guides the
‘Developing Me’ course I teach at university. After the first year of teaching, due to positive
feedback (e.g. a student saying “this is the most important course I’ve taken in my 4 years of
studies”) – the administration made it a core course that all students in the department have to study.
Finally I had found a way to teach some of the core elements of being a child of God to students in
a department of business studies. Heaven works in mysterious ways.
The model has elements that we all can recognize. Firstly, the attitude of co-creatorship – (living for
others, appreciation, non-blaming and forgiveness). Next we look at the original mind, and how our
core values should align with the desires of the original mind. Then we look at the importance of
knowing one is loved and how to maintain this feeling and much more – it comes together in a nice
little model. Rather than share more about the model, however, I would like to share some things I
have learnt along the way.
Firstly, True Father’s words are like breadcrumbs left along a forest path. You know you are on the
right path when you find these breadcrumbs, and many times these breadcrumbs assured me that I
was heading in the right direction. Without these breadcrumbs it would have been so much harder
to design this ‘wholehearted human-being’ (WHH) model. For example, Rev. Moon says that God
modelled the world based on the original model of a human being. When the basics of the model
had been formed, one of the criteria for validity was to ask if it applied on other levels of society. It
worked. The internal workings of a modern well-run company are remarkably similar to the inner
workings of a WHH. Competent democracies also develop very similar internal processes to
maintain health and well-being. The same applies to a successful movement or church too.
Secondly, it was impossible to build a WHH model until some of the key aspects of the original
mind were understood. On finding something that described the essential desires we are all born
with, it was easy to see what drives us as human beings. The original mind is the spiritual DNA of a
human. It is designed to encourage us to become God’s children. If Adam and Eve had followed the
desires of the original mind they would have blossomed into becoming true parents. The process of
finding some of the key elements of our spiritual DNA was extremely rewarding - a process of
logical deduction.
Thirdly, the model of the WHH is far more profound in understanding than the 7 principles of
creation. The 7 principles explain what you can DO to gain blessings in any system. The healthy
human model explains who I am (God’s child) – what I am to become – and the key internal
processes and attitudes I need in order to get there. It is far more internal, more spiritual. It is here
that the principles of restoration (P of R) can be applied when needed. For example, if I feel
insecure as a human being, how can I move to a state where I internally feel loved and valued? If
my core values aren’t aligned with the fulfilment of the 3 blessings then how can I find an
opportunity for realignment? If I find I just get angry when I face certain situations, what can I do to
overcome this anger? Here, voluntarily subjugating oneself to a person who stands in the position of
Abel for a period of time can be extremely helpful. Even so, the P of R only apply to that part of us
that needs to be fixed. Our primary guide will always be our alignment with our original mind – or
what we call the force of Principle. Once we are aligned with its desires – we are pushed to take
responsibility to grow through living life well. It is creating a life of ‘freedom within the Principle’ with the occasional input of the P of R to help us get through the blocks that are standing in our path
- that is the model that I believe describes the era of Cheong Il Guk (CIG).
Fourth, the WHH model explains the basis for health and trauma (some aspects of which are fallen
natures), and suggests certain practical ways to move from trauma or fallen nature to a healthier
viewpoint on life. For example, it’s easy to see why it is sensible for us, when we reach young
adulthood, to take some time to apply the P of R to fix those things that went wrong during our
upbringing – and thus we can move forward into adulthood and maturity based upon a healthier
sense of self, more aligned with the desires of our original mind. The model also needed to be able
highlight which part of the wholehearted person it is that each world religion is aiming to restore or
awaken.
Fifth, the model concurs with popular psychological models, and thus it is down to earth and easy to
understand. For example, it was interesting to find how the updated version of Maslow’s hierarchy
of needs pyramid (1990), clearly lays out the spiritual DNA of the original mind. On top of this, the
model needed to explain how people with quite different personalities can all reach ‘completion’. It
does this.
Sixth, I realized that the English language is severely limited when it comes to describing many of
the elements I need to describe. For example, just the naming a person who has achieved a certain
level of spiritual maturity is hard. A wholehearted human? A person of character? English needs a
whole new set of words to talk about the world ahead of us.
Seventh, a wholehearted human can use the 7 principles of creation to bring heaven to earth. In
many ways WHH is mind, the 7 principles are body. The two stand in subject – object positions.
Imagine a company. There are the basic things you need to run any company well. You need core
values, a healthy company culture, you need the inner processes that keep the whole company going
(e.g. R&D, accounting, HR, legal department, leadership training, and more), and you need that
company to have certain attitudes as it thinks about its customers – can it think about their needs,
appreciate them, deal with customer complaints effectively, etc. These are the inner workings of
any well run large company. This is the manifestation of WHH model on the company level. Next,
to go forward as a unique company it needs the 7 principles of creation. The differentiation happens
in the first principle of creation. A company needs to identify what kind of company it wants to be
and its key product or service. Then the other 6 Principles focus supporting that unique identity. On
top of this, a whole-hearted person or society is more likely to understand the value of using, and
more able to use, the 7 principles of creation to receive God’s blessings. The fallen natures won’t
keep getting in the way of application. For example, Christianity helped people move closer to
becoming wholehearted people and, over time, these people created social processes (e.g.; the rule
of law, education system, ethical voting, etc) that allowed democracy to be born. And democracy
works reasonably well because it applies most of the 7 principles of creation. Sadly, democracies
built upon the foundation of the Christian ethos are non- sustainable because the Christian mindset
doesn’t fully understand the desires of our original mind – it is not wholehearted enough. It doesn’t
understand deeply enough the role of the 2nd blessing in building a healthy society. Thus western
nation states haven’t learnt how to support the marital dreams of their citizens and social decay is
happening.
Eighth, though we as a movement might come to use the 7 principles of creation to bring about a
certain level of success, our future depends primarily on us becoming wholehearted people and
developing a movement that models the core dynamics of a healthy human being. If our words and
actions don’t show that God’s love has touched our spirit, or our core values don’t align themselves
with individual ethics, family ethics, and social and environmental ethics, then CIG will never
appear. This especially applies to our role models, our leaders. To be honest, from an academic
viewpoint, for a movement that prizes the 1st blessing as the primary way in which we receive
God’s blessing, we have a very basic understanding as to what the 1st blessing comprises of. If one
asks long-time members, you get a variety of vague answers (e.g. a person who fulfils the 4 realms
of heart; a person who lives for the sake of others; etc). If one asks the leaders who run Special Task
Force (STF) - leaders who aim to help prepare the next generation for future success- there appears
to be no model of a wholehearted person (or equivalent) guiding their work. It’s difficult to
understand how one can effectively educate if there is no clear picture of the ideal to head towards.
As far as my limited perspective can see, there are two things that our movement needs to embrace
a) some sort of model of what a healthy human being looks like; and b) some understanding of how
we can effectively use the principles of creation to bring about success. If we don’t learn to use
these, then the movement will be constantly subject to changing leadership styles and goals. Either
we believe what we teach or we devise a completely different set of principles to live by –
something that doesn’t seem to make much sense to me.
And lastly, much of democracy is working quite well – almost all essential inner processes are in
place, and it uses most of the 7 principles in a somewhat effective way. Its biggest problem is that it
doesn’t know where it could be heading – it lacks a clear identity. But this is primarily because it
doesn’t understand the core values that are part of the original mind – it doesn’t understand that
humanity moves forward based upon the ability to live the 3 Blessings. Because of this, when
thinking about our future as a movement, we absolutely need a theoretical, principled based
framework to guide us.
So where to go now? It's been a long, long 14 year journey, trying to find ways to translate the
Principle into something that can be taught and understood by ordinary university students. The
'Developing Me' course is in its infancy. It will still need further refinements and insights from
others will help it mature (that's principle #2 for you). That will take a while. In my work, I hope I
have enough time to finally write a course book, and translate it so it can eventually be taught in all
universities in Finland. I can only pray that this will one day be realised as a step towards fulfilling
our original goal for being here.
Barbara and I can only be grateful to God for allowing us a chance to go on this journey together.
We were given many gifts through our UTS experience. We especially had the privilege of hearing
True Father’s words almost every Sunday, to see his youthful energy and his passion for a brighter
world. But that world, we know, won’t come without sacrifice, sincerity and effort. We are grateful
that our small effort to understand some deeper aspects of the Principle has been recognised, but we
also feel that there are many UTS graduates out there who have achieved and are achieving far
more remarkable things – graduates who have picked their goal and are giving their all to see a
transformation happen. The UTS class after ours did some amazing things in the USSR – and their
legacy still goes on today in variety of ways, transforming cultures around the world. Then you
have the individual efforts – some have gone the road of incredible sacrifice by seeking to love and
support people in nations that are beset by war or poverty. Others have gone the academic way:- to
overcome creationism; to rectify Christianity’s understanding of the trinity; the World Scripture;
and many, many more. Barbara and I can only be proud to be associated with such a unique and
deeply sincere group of individuals and couples – all brought together because of the vision and
love of one couple.